Having trouble keeping your balance?

Hi Ronnie @grandmar, this is a great place for the article! Thanks for sharing.

Of course.
Thanks John.

Thanks everyone. I think it is also lack of stability and balance issues especially
since my ankles aren’t that strong to begin with. I am going to try to incorporate some stability and balance exercises to my regiment.

After my back surgery,, I really had problems with walking, which didn't help that I previously had both knees replaced. Then my ankles started being undependable. Before all this, I had excellent balance and could stand on one foot longer than anyone I knew. After falling twice, I realize that I was not thinking about my walking while I was doing it. My mind was somewhere else, and even though I have been walking for 82 years, it is still necessary to concentrate on what you are doing at the moment. It is embarrassing to not be able to get up off the floor once you are down. So now I practice my gait in the hall and I actually thinking about walking instead of the next event. It helps and I don't feel so stupid anymore. Dorisena

What an excellent suggestion! As we get older, we all need to think more. I certainly hope you weren’t hurt when you fell! Do you use a walker at all? When I was so unstable, I found it very helpful. Take care! Becky

No, I never needed a walker. I needed to think about what I was doing at the time. It is a bad habit to let your mind wander ahead of your steps and be in a hurry needlessly. Doctors advise us of physical helps but forget to urge us to think in a more disciplined way. We still have functional minds. We just are lazy in our thinking. Our surgeries take away the pain and leave the stiffness. Bummer! Dorisena

At the moment I fell, I was not unstable. I hurried too fast, didn't think about my movement, and tripped. It was a good lesson, after the pain stopped in my chest. I thought about what I was doing when I stepped on the landing. after that, and walk slower, and I think about what I am doing. With practice, I am walking with more confidence. Practice, practice, practice. Like piano lessons. Dorisena

@dorisena
Hi, You sound like the smartest 82 year I know. I am 78 and have been going to 3 active senior classes weekly for over 5 years
where we have an instructor who is 79. He is in great shape. We concentrate on stretching, balance, cardio and strength. He can’t emphasize enough the importance of stretching and maintaining our stability and balance to reduce injury and falls.
I love that you think before you walk and are practicing your gait. I do the same and am careful when climbing stairs and watching where I walk. I exercise daily. So many people our age don’t move enough and, even in my class, they do the minimum.

You sound like you are really on the ball there lady. Keep on doing what you are doing and maybe we both can audition for the senior version of Cirque Du Soleil.

Regards from Florida Mary

@dorisena Good for you both I'm 76 and started a chair exercise here where I live 2x week 30minutes In May on Tues.@Thrus.the arthritis class for exercise so will be 4x a week. This is the way to go at our new age

Anytime you have an issue that is 'disconcerting' I think it needs evaluation. Who knows you better than you? Listen to your body and what it is telling you. Fractures are more difficult to deal with as we age. Best Wishes