Balance Training

Balance training is widely recognised as being valuable in sport and day to day living. In sport this sort of training is very useful in the prevention of injury. Similarly in normal life it is very effective at preventing ankle/knee sprains and falls.
In my pilates classes I quite often get people balancing on one foot. This not only helps to strengthen the stabilising muscles of the leg, but also improves proprioception: - proprioceptors are cells in the muscles with the job of sending messages to the brain about changes in position or tension within the muscle. Improved efficiency of these proprioceptors means that the brain corrects an imbalance before it goes too far and causes a sprain or fall.

Balance training can take many forms, but should be specific to the need. This sort of training can be performed on an unstable surface such as a swiss ball or a wobble board. However this type of training may only be relevant in certain situations.Most sport and normal life takes place on a stable surface ie. a football pitch or the pavement. People lose balance when their foot slips or the foot catches on something like a kerb. Therefore it is the body or foot that move rather than the surface. So to train balance and proprioception for these situations it is more relevant to perform exercises such as: Balancing on one leg whilst moving the other leg and/or arms; Hopping; Running with sudden changes of direction.

Training on unstable surfaces does have its place. It can be useful in the rehabilitation of an injured joint. Also sports such as waterskiing/wakeboarding and skiing/snowboarding take place on surfaces that can change suddenly.
I have certainly found that training on a BOSU (like a wobble board) and on an Indo board (a mini surfboard balancing on a roller) has helped my own snowboarding performance. Also wearing a helmet makes me feel more comfortable at speed!

Without a doubt balance training is useful in all walks of life, but if your time is limited make the most of it by keeping your training relevant.