Catch a wave for better balance on land by Mary Sanders

In Dr. Walter Bortz's keynote address at the 2002 American College of Sports Medicine Health and Fitness Summit, the author of We Live Too Short and Die Too Young and Dare To Be 100 recommended balance training as an integral component of health programs, especially as people age.

Balance can be defined as the ability of a person to maintain the body's position over its base of support while moving or in a stationary position. People use dynamic balance during activities that move the arms and legs from the center point around the body. Some examples include stepping up and over an object, reaching for the door, pressing the elevator button, lifting groceries off a shelf, stepping and turning. Static balance is stationary stability, or balance while standing still. This type of balance is the most sensitive to aging. As static balance decreases, postural sway increases as a person tries to stand motionless.