Scott is a Seattle-based health and science writer who says he "discovered" what he calls "the lost sense" of balance after he watched in horror as his 67-year-old father tumbled off a boulder and disappeared from sight during a hike in the Cascades.
Though his father hurt little more than his pride, McCredie became intrigued by what might have caused this experienced hiker, an athletic and graceful man, to lose his balance suddenly. His resulting science-and-history-based exploration led to a book, Balance: In Search of the Lost Sense, published last June by Little, Brown.
Noting that each year one in three Americans 65 and older falls, and that falls and their sometimes disastrous medical consequences are becoming more common as the population ages, McCredie wonders why balance is not talked about in fitness circles as often as strength training, aerobics and stretching. He learned that the sense of balance begins to degrade in one's 20s and that it is downhill - literally and figuratively - from there unless steps are taken to preserve or restore this delicate and critically important ability to maintain equilibrium.
Vertigo, which can be caused by inner ear infections, low blood pressure, brain injuries, certain medications and some chronic diseases, is loss of balance in the extreme. Anyone who has experienced it - even if just from twirling in a circle - knows how disorienting and dangerous it can be. Really, without a sense of balance, just about everything else in life can become an insurmountable obstacle.
One normal consequence of aging is a steady decline in the three main sensory contributors to good balance - vision, proprioceptors on the bottoms of the feet that communicate position information to the brain and the tiny hairs in the semicircular canals of the inner ear that relay gravity and motion information to the brain. Add to that the loss of muscle strength and flexibility that typically accompany aging and you have a fall waiting to happen.
EXERCISING FOR EQUILIBRIUM
But while certain declines with age are unavoidable, physical therapists, physiatrists and fitness experts have repeatedly proved that much of the sense of balance can be preserved and even restored through exercises that require no special equipment or training. These exercises are as simple as standing on one foot while brushing your teeth or walking heel-to-toe with one foot directly in front of the other.
Marilyn Moffat and Carole Lewis, physical therapists, agree with McCredie that "balance is an area of physical fitness that is often overlooked," but they seek to correct that in their recent book Age-Defying Fitness. They define balance as "the ability of your body to maintain equilibrium when you stand, walk or perform any other daily activity" like putting on pants, walking on uneven ground or reaching for something on a shelf.
Moffat and Lewis suggest starting with a simple assessment of your current ability to maintain good balance. With a counter or sturdy furniture near enough to steady you if needed, perform this test:
1. Stand straight, wearing flat, closed shoes, with your arms folded across your chest. Raise one leg, bending the knee about 45 degrees, start a stopwatch and close your eyes.
2. Remain on one leg, stopping the watch immediately if you uncross your arms, tilt sideways more than 45 degrees, move the leg you are standing on or touch the raised leg to the floor.
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