Strength And Balance: Latest Evidence

18/12/2025

Many older adults haven’t actually been down on the floor in years!

And what's worse, a lot of times the cause of a "long lie" isn't actually from a fall

(it's people getting down to ground level to do things like clean a spill, get something out of a low cupboard, etc  only to find out they can't get up again)

That's what makes this question powerful.

The best analogy I can think of is that this is like those people who have never been swimming before jumping straight into the ocean or a swimming pool because it looks like something they can do... only to realise too late that it's not.

If you or someone you know are unsure (or have struggled in the past) then that's a clear sign that they could actually be running a huge risk

The good news?

Regaining independence in floor transfers is something that is achievable for most older adults regardless of their age 

At the very least, it can provide an insight into  needs for measures like fall alarm pendants

17/12/2025

🖐️ Balance Tip: Imagine the Wet Paint Trick!

Ever tried a balance exercise and found yourself holding onto something for dear life?

Or just touching it to try to hold the position?

Well, this could actually be preventing you from improving your balance 😮

Exercises like this may actually be reinforcing a bad habit of relying on your hands for balance, rather than your feet

This is the opposite of what we're trying to achieve!

Here’s a little trick we love:

👉 Pretend the bench or bar next to you is covered in wet paint! 🎨

Why do we say that?

Because we want you to challenge yourself *just enough* so that if you wobble, you can take a step to recover your balance

(rather than automatically reaching out with your hands)

But if it gets too hard then at least it's there for safety ⚠️

It’s a gentle reminder to let your ankles, hips, and natural step responses do the work they are supposed to be doing 

If you find you’re routinely using your hands to maintain a position, it often means the exercise is just a bit too tough right now...
..and you should adjust to something slightly easier and build up from there.

Happy balancing!

16/05/2025

If you're asked to do a "balance exercise" that's so hard that you need to use your hands to maintain position...
..well then you're not improving your balance, you're improving your ability to use your hands to maintain position!

👉 You should be doing an easier variation of the movement that still allows you to move your feet to recover from a loss of balance 

31/03/2025

Balance is task-specific... and context-specific!

To improve balance" we need to 👉 practice scaled versions of each movement skill that needs to be improved and then progressively increase the challenge until the client reaches their movement goal

👉 Progressively increasing the challenge includes changing context 

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15ueD6mVoF/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Fear of falling changes how we balance — and the vestibular system shows it.
New research by Zaback et al. (J Physiol, 2025) confirms that vestibular-evoked balance responses are amplified by threat, but fade with repeated exposure — mirroring emotional and autonomic adaptation.

This matters clinically. Vestibular responses aren’t fixed. They’re shaped by experience, emotion and environment.
Vesticam IR video goggles help capture subtle eye movements in real time, allowing clinicians to observe these changes — and support evidence-informed decision-making over time.
Thanks to the authors – Martin Zaback, Solenne Villemer, Kyle Missen, J Timothy Inglis and Mark G Carpenter – for a timely and valuable contribution to vestibular research.

Full paper: https://doi.org/10.1113/JP287391

Learn more: www.vesticam.com

05/03/2025

Partial squats at the kitchen counter don't help with getting out of a low chair

👉To develop strength at depth, you need to train at gradually increasing depth

17/04/2022

Ouch.

11/04/2022

Can’t wait to check this one out!

https://www.facebook.com/100057348832723/posts/462251885696435/?d=n

Check this out 👇👇👇The WHO endorsed ‘Preventing falls among older people’ webinar

07/04/2022

Exactly the same applies to balance training:

06/04/2022

Standing hip extension is not correlated with improvements in balance… and its not even a great exercise to target what we think it targets.

So why is it a “strength” exercise in so many pre-printed program sheets for balance clients? 🤔

20/03/2022

Principle 1️⃣0️⃣ Balance exercises need to be F**T

Balance skills are not developed unless they’re practiced with the appropriate frequency, intensity, type, and time. The specifics of these parameters need to be individualised based on each client’s existing capacity.

19/03/2022

The goal of balance rehab is motor learning… the principles of skill acquisition apply

08/03/2022

When done right, you don’t even need to touch clients 🤔