Stork balance test

[RunBrianRun]

Have you ever tried it? Our coach made us do it last week and I lasted 5 seconds. My stability is really poor and i need to work on improving it.

topendsports.com/testing/te...

[Julian23]

Hello. I just tried balancing with my left leg, I lasted for 30 secs and with my right leg, I lasted for over 1 min. Same as one of the yoga pose for me. Fun test! :0)

[RunBrianRun in reply to Julian23]

Gosh, that’s really good 👍

[Julian23 in reply to RunBrianRun]

Thanks Brian. However when I try to run, I don’t understand why I get stomachache every time after 30 mins in then i have to stop. I can’t get my running routine on. Any tips for me please?

[RunBrianRun in reply to Julian23]

I’ve heard of runner’s stomach before. I wonder if it might be related.

Here’s a link to some information I found:

healthline.com/health/runne...

Probably worth seeing your GP I reckon.

I’m not sure what advice I can give, but have you tried jeffing? It’s worth trying if you haven’t. It will help to get the distance and time you are out up a bit and maybe this will help.

[Julian23 in reply to RunBrianRun]

I really like the idea of Jeffing as I looked up they do in Couch25K. I’ll see if it helps my runner’s stomach also. That article is really helpful, I’ll eliminate dairy from my diet first. Much appreciated your advice Brian.

Cheers,

Julian.

[Cmoi in reply to Julian23]

Were you on the ball of your foot or just balancing on one leg as in tree pose? I found combining the two much harder than one or the other!

[RunBrianRun in reply to Cmoi]

I was standing on the ball of my foot. I’m ok (ish) with my foot flat on the floor but raising up is another issue entirely. 😓

[Cmoi in reply to RunBrianRun]

I was actually asking @Julian23 RunBrianRun , but the system won't let me tag for some reason! I've replied directly to you below 😀

[RunBrianRun in reply to Cmoi]

ah! Didn’t see that. Yes for some reason it’s not possible to tag in this forum

[Cmoi in reply to RunBrianRun]

No worries 😀

[Dexy5]

That exercise is hard enough with your foot flat on the floor (we used to do it at Pilates) but raising on to the ball of your foot 😳? I’ll give it a try Brian.

[RunBrianRun in reply to Dexy5]

Do let me know how you get on Dexy. I struggle with my foot flat on the floor too. I wobble all over the place and I know it’s something I need to work on.

[CBDB Administrator Graduate Gold]

That’s a great little fun exercise. Daily yoga has improved my balance considerably, which was quite poor.

So I’ll have to give this a go! This is similar, but slightly different from the balancing yoga poses that YWA does regularly.

Would you mind if I tag this post in order for it to be accessible through our folder titled “Fun”. That way it dies not disappear after a while. (I’m asking as I believe you will get a message that I have “edited” the post, but I just add a tag)

[RunBrianRun in reply to CBDB]

Not at all. Go ahead 😊

[Blueruth]

hello,

I am new to this group and have been lurking but this is one thing I’m very familiar with. At 57 it is something i spend a lot of time trying to improve. I can offer a combination of what I learned from teachers and a PT who hired specifically to work on balance.

Pre pandemic (less yoga, more walking) I could hold tree for as long as I wanted but I rarely got my foot above my knee ever. I also couldn’t rotate my leg as if it is flat against a wall post pandemic. That is getting better.

in my case the biggest problem is weak hips and hamstrings not feet or balance. As I strengthen that area I get better balance. A PT could diagnose this. Point is “practice “ alone isn’t enough. And it isn’t unfixable either.

The hips in that picture look like the lean too far btw. I used to do that and it didn’t help balance. No idea if a doctor would say that is wrong. It feels wrong to me because I can tell I’m not using my hips now that I am aware. Plus you aren’t maximizing core with is key to everything balance. All experts I deal with say don’t put pressure on your knee like that. Fine for 10 sec but I wouldn’t do it daily.

Your stability is partially dependent on how you stand and the surface and your mood even how much you ate in the last hour. This is a test so they may not want to specify but unless you take yoga or have had an injury there are not many times when you think about those things. Low hanging fruit changes.

At home I am much more successful. I do it while watching tv or on a conference call. In hot yoga with a set sequence I am more successful. In both I am more relaxed and am not watched and timing isn’t a factor. Try that.

I don’t think yoga is enough tbh. I also use proformer Pilates (different than reformer Pilates) and I can totally feel my hips, hamstrings and gluts getting the work. I think walking with poles as if cross country skiing helps too. Another one that was helpful is Iyengar yoga. It uses a wall to help you “feel” what proper alignment is like.

[Blueruth in reply to Blueruth]

side note…your user name implies you run. That focus on the front of your legs vs the back of your legs could be a factor. My pt has compared me to runners. I hate running but I hike a ton. Again a conversation with a pt could help.

[RunBrianRun in reply to Blueruth]

That’s very interesting @Blueruth. So much information too. I’m a sprinter so I do a lot of work on my posterior chain and core which I think are fairly well developed. I do have hearing problems and I wonder whether that might be why my balance is so poor. I have a PT, and I’ll be seeing him on Tuesday so will pick his brains.

[Blueruth in reply to RunBrianRun]

interesting idea. I believe it is a little different otherwise we’d be falling over wearing noise canceling headphones and walking I think this is a new trend too. I heard about in nyt. Imo any one test is not a great measure. I’d love to hear what your pt says.

[RunBrianRun in reply to Blueruth]

I’ve since done a bit of reading and it seems that damage to the inner ear canal (which I have) does affect balance. I’m now looking into what I can do to help it. If indeed that is what the problem is, or whether it’s just weak ankles. Interesting 🤔

[alpacagirl in reply to RunBrianRun]

Sorry I know this post was last week but hearing loss can definitely go hand in hand with similar damage to your vestibular system (semi circular canals) in your ears. My brother and I both have adult onset hearing loss and in our 50’s have also developed vestibular loss - mine is almost completely gone so cannot be improved (when I did yoga I needed a wall for support for tree pose) my brother has less loss and his brain has got better at compensating - so definitely worth doing specific exercises to improve balance.

[RunBrianRun in reply to alpacagirl]

Thank you alpacagirl that’s very useful to know. I have quite bad hearing loss in both ears but my right ear is much worse than my left. It’s definitely inner ear as that is what I was told by the ent consultant. It’s got to be affecting balance as I read that the inner ear canals are important for balance and is why cat’s inner ear structures are so large in comparison.

I have been looking at various bits of advice and videos to improve my balance and I’ve begun these recently. I hope I can see some improvement soon. What exercises are you doing to help with your balance?

[RunBrianRun in reply to RunBrianRun]

This seems a good one from James Dunne that I haven’t tried yet. I will try this evening though.

youtube.com/watch?v=tSvVAjn...(Not working as expected?)

[alpacagirl in reply to RunBrianRun]

I was given a sheet of exercises at audiology and I think my balance has improved as much as it ever will😅 The exercises did include practising standing on one foot with eyes open then eyes shut, marching on the spot on a sofa cushion with eyes open then shut for 100 steps - put the cushion next to the wall just in case. Also standing heel to toe for 30 seconds eyes as before. If your balance is only slightly affected you should be able to see a good improvement, strong core and leg muscles are also vital for balance so keep up the running, and strength exercises!

[RunBrianRun in reply to alpacagirl]

Thank you for getting back to me with this information. Much appreciated. I have added in one legged stuff into my morning wake up and bedtime routines. Hopefully there will be an improvement 👍

[alpacagirl in reply to RunBrianRun]

Tai Chi is meant to be good for improving balance in later life too!

[Rowers]

Think even balancing normally on one leg helps with balance? Had to do that when recovering from broken ankle and like others say, there are various balancing poses in yoga. Depends on the day how well I do but often have pain in my feet.

[RunBrianRun in reply to Rowers]

Yes I think it might help. I’ve decided I’m going to start doing this when I get up every morning. Out of bed and on to a few seconds of single leg balancing.

[javo123j]

Tried a few times but only lasted 3 seconds. I'm okay with flat foot but once I'm on ball of foot I go over

[RunBrianRun in reply to javo123j]

Yep, same here. I’ve watched a couple of other videos and it’s not easy but seems possible. Glutes, core and an a good natural sense of balance seem to help.

[Cmoi]

Well on the basis of that test I'm screwed  RunBrianRun . I can balance on one leg on the ball of my foot, but without the correct knee position for the other leg, for at least 30 seconds. I can balance on one leg on the flat of my floot with the other leg in the correct knee position for over a minute. Combine the two - ball of foot and correct knee position - and it drops to a few seconds.

Strikes me as an artificial test because in real life if you're about to lose your balance you'd move naturally to correct it, not insist on maintaining the same rigid pose!

[RunBrianRun in reply to Cmoi]

I haven’t tried to see how long I can go with the two you mention yet. I’ll give it a go. Like you, one I got up on the ball of my foot it was a matter of seconds before it all went wrong.