How to reduce your risk of falls using one simple exercise
Improve your balance, coordination and hip flexor strength
As you get older, it's normal to feel less steady on your feet or struggle with balance, but you don’t just have to grin and bear it.
Maintaining your strength and balance is something that can be easily improved at home with consistent practice.
Exercise scientist and strength and conditioning coach Pete Williams has shared an exercise that will improve your strength and balance to reduce your risk of falls.
Williams calls it the step and 90 rotation, and it doesn't require any equipment.
How to do a step and 90 rotation
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- Twist your torso to the right as you raise your right knee to hip height, bending it to 90°.
- Pause and maintain your balance.
- Step your right foot forward, then repeat on the other side.
- Continue, alternating sides with each rep to walk forward for two minutes.
The benefits of the step and 90° rotation
This move helps you feel more stable and reduce your risk of falls in a few ways.
“Firstly, driving the knee high creates an action that develops strength and power in the hip flexors, which are the main muscle group that allows you to pick your foot off the ground and avoid those bumps in the pavement,” Williams tells Fit&Well.
“On the other side you are working your lateral glute muscles which are important in keeping your hips tracking in the right position, which helps your balance and the biomechanics of your walking cycle,” says Williams.
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If you try this move, you'll notice that it also tests your balance. Even Williams is wobbling slightly in the Reel.
“When we add rotation into the exercise it challenges our balance even more as we are asking our body to control another plane of movement,” says Williams.
“It also works the outer calf muscles that help to control the ankle, reducing the risk of falls.”
If you don’t feel stable while doing this exercise, try holding onto a wall when you lift your leg. Doing it between kitchen counters, as in the Williams’ demonstration, is also a good idea, so you have support within reach on both sides.
Alice Porter is a freelance journalist covering lifestyle topics including health, fitness and wellness. She is particularly interested in women's health, strength training and fitness trends and writes for publications including Stylist Magazine, Refinery29, The Independent and Glamour Magazine. Like many other people, Alice's personal interest in combining HIIT training with strength work quickly turned into a CrossFit obsession and she trains at a box in south London. When she's not throwing weights around or attempting handstand push-ups, you can probably find her on long walks in nature, buried in a book or hopping on a flight to just about anywhere it will take her.
