Many of the people I coach are in their 50s and 60s (and a few beyond that) so balance has become a bit of a focus for me lately. And just recently I received a question on Facebook about ways to improve balance and decided it was time to address this topic publicly. So, let’s take a look at how balance works, why we need it, and what we can do to maintain it.

If you pay attention to it, the world is always trying to knock you over in creative ways. The ground gets slippery when it rains, it gets slick with foreign substances, and it is often riddled with bumps and cracks. Our old foe gravity constantly pulls on us, as if it is just waiting for us to slip up and take a tumble. The fact that we manage to stay upright the majority of the day is actually pretty incredible.

For children, balance is something that requires practice. For adults, it’s something we only think about when we test its limits with daring feats. (Parkour anyone?) But the older we get, the more the world seems to challenge our balance. With that in mind, doesn’t it sound like a good idea to keep practicing it?

Before we get to that, let’s talk about how we actually balance.

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