Health tips: Balancing act: A few minutes a day can protect your health. At the Fitness Academy Awards, cardio and resistance exercise get the diva treatment: red carpet, glitzy gowns, long-winded speeches, the works. Flexibility, nominated for a supporting role, feels underappreciated (yet extremely relaxed). But balance? Snubbed! Balance exercises may lack glamour, but they’re not “extras.” The ability to balance often declines with age, as does recovery time and bone density, creating a perfect storm for fall-related injuries. You don’t have to be a tightrope walker, or a cat for that matter, to master balance. Both yoga and tai chi have been shown to improve balance when practiced regularly. But improving your balance can be even simpler! Cleveland Clinic fitness specialist Ryan Sidak offers four options for a balance exercise you can do at home in just minutes a day: 1. Stand on one foot for as long as you can, up to 60 seconds if possible, and then repeat on the other side. 2. When you’ve mastered that, try doing it with your eyes either closed or at half-mast — stand close to a counter or wall so you can steady your-self if necessary. 3. Next you can try standing on a couch pillow, eyes open. 4. Finally, stand on a couch pillow with your eyes closed (again, next to a wall or counter so you can steady yourself). It’s really that simple! Subtle yet powerful, and extremely low-budget, balance exercises have serious chops. Here’s to a 2017 Oscar nomination for balance.
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