Falls are a serious matter for seniors. A fall could cause a head injury or break your hip. If you have other medical conditions too, a bad fall could seriously affect your health in the long term. Your body undergoes a lot of changes when you reach your senior years. These changes and medications you may be on increase your risk of falling, but a fall prevention therapy course might help.
Here's how fall prevention therapy for seniors can be beneficial and decrease the risk of falling and suffering a severe injury.
You'll Do Exercises To Improve Your Balance
Poor balance is a leading cause of falls in seniors. One of the best ways to reduce your risk of falling is to improve your balance. This might be done through exercises such as standing from a sitting position without using your hands or standing with your eyes closed for several seconds at a time while not holding anything for balance.
When you take fall prevention therapy, you do exercises in a safe and controlled environment. You'll exercise next to a table, chair, or grab bar so you can reach for support when you need it. As you go through the program, you'll be able to maintain your balance for longer periods of time. Exercise practices such as yoga and tai chi are also gentle for seniors and work on improving your balance.
You'll Build Your Core Muscles
Strength training is also helpful for preventing falls since strong core muscles help you maintain good posture and help with balance. Strong muscles also make it easier to stand from a sitting position and perform other movements required for daily living.
Strength training might be done with light weights or your own body weight. You can learn how to do exercises safely so that you can continue on your own at home when your fall prevention therapy has been completed.
You Can Build Stamina
Fall prevention therapy for seniors is often done in classes that span several weeks. This gives you time to build muscle, improve balance, and improve stamina. Stamina is important so you can walk longer distances when needed without getting weak and tripping or collapsing. Your goal when starting fall prevention therapy is to improve your safety during daily life so you're safer in your home and when you go out in public. The therapy can give you confidence that you won't fall and that you can recover if you stumble.
In addition to learning specific exercises that help with fall prevention, you may also learn how to reduce your risk of falling in other ways. This might include using nightlights, removing area rugs from your home, stopping drinking, wearing supportive shoes, eliminating clutter in your home, staying active, and letting your doctor know if medications or poor vision affect your balance.
