By Barb Berggoetz, The Indianapolis Star

Carolyn Fultz used to be "pretty wobbly." She couldn't stand very long, and her arthritis bothered her. She's much steadier since taking a balance class.

Judy Johnson maintains her equilibrium with tai chi. It keeps her calm, centered and focused on her movements and how she walks. Practicing the Chinese martial art helps Johnson, who has an inner ear disorder, strengthen her quads, hamstrings and glutes and all the muscles that keep her balanced.
 
Whatever your age or athletic ability, you can benefit from maintaining proper balance, fitness experts say. It's key to staying fit and preventing falls. And balance exercises keep you steady, strengthen core muscles and improve flexibility, so they can help improve your golf, tennis and skiing, too. 

It becomes even more important if you have problems like joint pain and dizziness due to illness, or have Parkinson's disease or diabetes or have suffered a stroke. With balance training, you'll move more freely and confidently, especially if you've fallen. Training also will give you more energy and strength. 

A wave of products, such as agility ladders, wobble boards and balance discs, have recently focused more attention on balance training. 

"I don't think you're ever too young to start this," said Emily Davenport, who manages the Greenwood Village South Wellness Center for the National Institute for Fitness and Sport. "Once you reach the point where your balance is declining, you should concentrate more on it." 

Davenport teaches a daily balance class to Fultz, 90, and about 25 others. They work on coordination, strength, flexibility and posture. Each morning, they do leg lifts, squats, arm circles, toe taps and ankle circles. 

"It has strengthened my legs and quads. I had a lot of trouble with balance, but I can walk much better now," said Charlotte Lofgren, who takes the class with her husband, Carl, 78, who has Parkinson's disease. 

Having difficulty walking, dizziness, tingling in the feet, shaky hands and getting easily confused could be signs of declining balance, said Indiana University kinesiology professor David Koceja.
For many, it's caused by a lack of physical activity that leads to muscle atrophy and loss of muscle strength. 

But there's good news. 

"The central nervous system is very trainable," he said. "Elderly people who haven't practiced balance for a long time can improve quite dramatically in a short amount of time." 

Koceja and other IU researchers found practicing three balance poses 15 minutes a day, four times a week for six weeks, improved the balance of 55- to 60-year-old participants. After training, researchers found about a 20 percent improvement in balance. 

The body's balance system is not easily measured and is influenced by genetics, so it's hard to predict those most apt to fall, he said. However, Koceja said physical activity, such as dancing, tai chi, yoga or strength training, is the most powerful intervention.
For Johnson, 59, practicing tai chi has pulled together her mind and body, so she concentrates more on lowering her center of gravity and steadying herself as she walks. 

The Chinese martial art consists of slow, rotational movements of the arms and legs and weight shifting. Barbara Kazanjian, instructor of the class Johnson attends at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, said tai chi teaches you to move better without overextending, breathe deeply and exercise every single joint. 

"You are unbinding those tense muscles, so your relaxed energy can lower your center of gravity," she said. "It becomes part of how you stand, walk and move."