It’s said that variety is the spice of life, but it can be hard for older patients with balance issues to find fun exercises to improve their balance. The exercises you’re doing can strengthen muscles that help you balance, yet the exercises may seem stale and boring after a while. Here are two fun balance exercises that elderly people can use to spice up their daily exercise routine:
- Side step to music
The side step exercise can be very helpful for seniors with balance issues. This exercise helps work the quads, hip flexors and core muscles, and all of these muscles are important for your balance. This version of balance exercise is more fun for elderly people than normal side steps because it’s done to music.
To perform the musical version of the side step exercise, you’ll need to be in a room with a stereo or other music device. You could also use some form of portable music player with headphones, such as a cellphone. It’s a good idea to choose music that has a tempo you can keep up with for this exercise.
Start the side step with music by firing up your preferred musical device, and then, you’ll want to stand with your hands on a counter or the back of a stable chair. You should also position your feet so that they’re close together. In time with the music, step to the side with your left leg. Next, return your left leg back to the starting position on the beat of the music, and you should try to repeat this step about 10 times before taking a break. After resting for about a minute, you should repeat the steps again with your right leg. Your goal should be to do two to three sets of side steps with each leg.
- Foot taps with music
Another therapeutic balance exercise that can be more fun for elderly people when there’s music involved is foot taps. This exercise is intended to target your quads, hamstrings and glutes, and a toe-tapping beat makes it much more exciting to do.
First, you’ll choose your favorite upbeat music and a music player. You’ll also need a piece of furniture, too, for this exercise, and a low step stool will work well for most people. Also, you could do foot taps at the bottom of some stairs. To get into the starting position for this exercise, put one hand on a wall, railing or counter for balance, and then stand in front of the stool or step. From this starting position, raise your right foot and tap it on the raised surface. You should then return the foot to the starting position. Do your best to repeat the exercise 10 times with your right leg and stay in time with the music. Then do this using your left foot. Your goal should be to repeat the steps for this exercise until you’ve done two to three sets of 10 with each leg.
Fun balance exercises are just one way Panther Physical Therapy can help elderly patients treat balance issues
Our team at Panther Physical Therapy would be happy to show elderly patients fun exercises that can improve their balance. However, the therapy plans we create don’t rely on balance exercises alone. Our team can gather information about your balance issues during one of the free screenings we offer, and we can then use this information to build you an individualized treatment plan that may include:
Take the next step to start getting our help with your balance issue. Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an appointment.