I think everyone appreciates the importance of balance at all stages of life, but as we age, the consequences of losing your balance tip from inconvenient to devastating to potentially life-ending.
There are many ways to train for balance, ranging from walking on uneven surfaces to walking on a tightrope or zipline.
Regardless of your ambitions with respect to balance, a big piece of it, and the part that probably matters most for your healthspan, is lower leg variability, or as Beth Lewis likes to call it, “problem solving with your feet.”
Most of us have nowhere near the variability and proprioception with our feet that we have with our hands, which makes it much harder for us to maintain balance than it should be. We must have the ability to shift weight, accelerate and decelerate our mass through different parts of the feet in order to respond and stabilize appropriately to changes in our environment.
While I love to play with a balance board, it doesn’t really help me gain the “feels” with my feet that the Black Board tool provides. I have to use my foot and lower leg to respond to how my weight shifts up top.
Great video. It would be awesome if you can link to the product.