We look at a lot of things to determine how well someone is aging. Gait speed, muscle strength and balance are the top of the list.
What many people don’t realize is that physical decline and balance issues begin as early as being in your 50s.
As these issues progress, you have a much higher risk of a serious fall, broken bone or, even worse, death. (Nearly one in four adults over age 65 takes a serious tumble each year, and it’s the leading cause of injury-related death in this age group.)
As far as I’m concerned, this is a big problem.
That’s because most healthcare professionals don’t even start testing functionality until people reach their 70s and 80s. But testing should really start much earlier, giving you the opportunity to start correcting these problems as soon as possible.
Still, it’s never too early to determine your balance status… or too late to start strengthening it.
Try Standing on One Leg
A group of researchers wondered which factor was the strongest predictor of poor aging. Was it gait speed? Was it hand-grip or knee strength?
Well, it wasn’t any of those.
Instead, they discovered that the amount of time a person can stand on one leg might just be one of the best indicators of how well someone is aging.
In a nutshell, the amount of time a person was able to stand on one leg – specifically the non-dominant leg – showed the most significant decline over each decade. (It was a 30 second test, which doesn’t take a lot of muscle strength, so that says a lot!)
This is something I have heard from many trainers over the years. So I am a big believer.
In the meantime, gait and strength measures (hand-grip, knee strength) resulted in the lowest amount of change during the same time period.
What Can You Do?
I mentioned this study to a co-worker, and she has a neat trick. She still washes dishes by hand, and told me that she always rests on one leg while standing in front of the sink cleaning her plates, pots, pans and silverware.
I think that is a great idea.
If you can find a way to stand on one leg a few times each day in a safe place (in front of a counter, near a wall, or next to a table to give you balance if you need it) you should be able to get your muscles working together to improve your balance. Just make sure to switch back and forth between legs and hold the position as long as you can.
Walking also helps improve balance. In fact, nearly anything you do on your feet can help. Step-ups, heel-to-toe walking, marching and climbing stairs are just some examples.
And here is another tip.
While I don’t have poor balance today, there was a I time when I did. I was low on vitamin B12 due to several dental appointments that required nitrous oxide. I started staggering around and bouncing into walls. These types of unsteady gait changes often accompany B12 insufficiency.
Thus, all it took was a few shots of vitamin B12, and the symptoms resolved. So if you find yourself unsteady on your feet for unknown reasons, make sure to get tested.
SOURCES:
Physical Declines Begin Earlier Than Expected Among U.S. Adults. Press Release. Duke Medicine. Jul 2016.
Kakara R, Bergen G, Burns E, Stevens M. Nonfatal and Fatal Falls Among Adults Aged ≥65 Years — United States, 2020–2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2023;72:938–943.
Rezaei A, Bhat SG, Cheng CH, Pignolo RJ, Lu L, Kaufman KR. Age-related changes in gait, balance, and strength parameters: A cross-sectional study. PLoS One. 2024 Oct 23;19(10):e0310764.
Stolakis K, Megas P, Panagiotopoulos E, Mentis M, Antoniadou E, Kalivioti X, Tyllianakis M, Kokkalis Z. Association of vitamins B12 and D3 with Balance and Falls in a sample of Greek older people. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2023 Jun 1;23(2):205-214.
