Putting your socks and shoes on while standing is a great way to improve your balance and a useful daily practice to future-proof the body for old age.
“If you can balance well enough to do that, it means you’ve got the hip strength, ankle stability and postural control to manage your own body without support,” says certified personal trainer Monty Simmons, founder of MWM Training in London, England.
“If you lose that skill, it’s a flag that other aspects of your mobility and stability probably need some maintenance. So being able to balance on one leg for these everyday tasks is directly linked to health and quality of life as we age.”
“As we age, falls are one of the biggest risks to our health and quality of life. If you train balance now, you’re training your muscles and your nervous system to react quicker, to stabilize better, and to protect yourself if you stumble.”
I asked Simmons to create a short circuit of balance exercises that you can add to your usual fitness routine.
“The exercises I’ve chosen each train balance in slightly different ways,” explains Simmons. “The calf raise and hold teaches you to control a narrow base of support and really fire up your hips.
“The standing stork challenges left-to-right balance, forcing you to stabilize on one leg. And the Warrior 3 hold brings it all together because it’s a single-leg move, it’s high-tension, and it demands full-body alignment.
“The truth is, you’re going to lose your balance while practising these, and that’s exactly the point. Every time your muscles get activated and have to put the brakes on, you’re training your body to catch itself quicker in real life—that’s the whole benefit.”
How to do Simmons’ balance exercises
“The goal isn’t to rush,” says Simmons. “Stay controlled, feel your feet—not too much clenching, not too relaxed—keep your hips lightly engaged, and your breathing steady and slow. Let yourself wobble, and let yourself keep building stability and balance over time with practice.”
He recommends resting for 30-40 seconds between sets, or just enough to reset your balance, and give your ankle and hip muscles a rest.
1. Calf raise and hold
(Image credit: MWM Training)
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 10 Rest: 30-40sec
How to do it:
- Stand with your legs together, heels pressed together but toes turned out slightly.
- Lift your heels and fully extend your ankles, finishing on the very edges of the balls of your feet.
- Hold this position for 7-10 seconds on the first rep, and 2-3 seconds on subsequent reps. Make sure you’re not dumping all your weight into your toes or tensing your toes, clawing at the floor.
- Lower with control.
“Try to find that narrow, high-tension balance point without wobbling,” says Simmons. If at first you’re unable to maintain your balance, perform next to a chair or stable surface you can hold on to when needed. Keep practicing and your balance will improve.
2. Standing stork
Sets: 2-3 Time: 20-30sec each side Rest: 30-40sec
How to do it:
- Stand with your toes pointing forward.
- Place the sole of your right foot on the inside of your left thigh, with the toes of your right foot pointing down.
- Hold for time, then repeat on the other side.
Form tips:
- The key is to stay tall, squeeze your glutes (butt muscles), and avoid clawing at the floor with your toes.
- Think about balancing through the tripod of your foot: heel, ball of big toe, ball of little toe.
- Place your hand on a wall or other support to get into position if you need to, then once you feel balanced, release and place both hands on your hips.
- Press your foot into your standing thigh and let your standing leg push back into it to help you stay upright. You’ll feel the muscles in your standing foot fire up, especially around the ankle.
Once you can hold this position for a minute, reduce the hold time to 10-15 seconds and close your eyes and/or fold your arms (this is very difficult).
3. Warrior 3
Sets: 2-3 Time: 15-20sec each side Rest: 30-40sec
This is a bent-knee variation of the well-known yoga move, also known as the airplane pose. It’s a tough variation: your standing leg will shake, your glutes (butt muscles) and hamstrings (the muscles in the back of the thighs) will burn, and your core and lower back will have work hard to keep your body stable.
How to do it:
- Stand with your legs together, feet turned out slightly, with a slight bend in your knees.
- Hinge forward at the hips and lift your left behind you until your left leg and torso are parallel to the floor.
- Hold for time, then return to standing and perform on the other leg.
Form tips:
- Keep your foot light (no clawing), lengthen through your raised leg and try to make one long line from your heel through to your fingertips.
- If this feels too difficult, use a table or stable surface in front of you to hold onto at first, then once you feel stable, take your hands away and balance.