4 Exercises That Can Increase Your Balance and Lower Leg Strength

If you’ve been experiencing balance issues, it may be a sign that you have weak lower leg muscles. You can enhance the strength of these muscles by following a well laid out workout plan. Here are four exercises that are aimed at building up lower leg strength and increasing a person’s balance.

Single Leg Stance

It’s best to start things off with an easy balance exercise. You’ll want to have a solid chair or a table that you can hold onto for support when necessary. Lift one leg off of the ground and balance your weight on your remaining foot. Hold the position for 30 seconds to start with. Proceed to switch sides and repeat the stance. Do 3 sets of 10 reps for each leg.

The Line Walk

Most people are familiar with the line walk that police ask those they suspect are drunk to perform. This is actually a great exercise to enhance balance and build up leg strength. For those who are unfamiliar with this walk, we’ll explain. You want to put your right foot directly in front of the toes on your left foot. Then, move your left foot directly in front of the toes of your right foot. Continue this line walk for 3 sets of 20 steps.

Rock the Boat

Rock the boat is somewhat similar to the single leg stance. You’ll want to stand behind a solid chair or table. Have your feet positioned about width hip apart. Slowly lift your left leg to your side. Put all of your weight on your right foot. Hold this weight for 5 seconds. Slowly return your left foot to the floor and lift your right foot out to your side. Hold your right foot for five seconds, and return it to the ground. Do five to seven sets per side.

Back Leg Raise

This exercise is best performed from the prone position. However, you can do it standing while grasping the back of a solid chair for support if necessary. You start by slowly extending your right leg straight back. You don’t want to bend at the knee or point your toes. Simply raise your right leg in the air behind you for one to five seconds. Next, switch to your left leg and repeat. You’ll want to perform 10 to 15 reps per side.

Once you get skilled at these exercises, you can move on to leg strengthening that requires the use of strength training equipment. This can really help you keep up your trajectory and maintain both balance and strength.

Strengthening your lower legs and enhancing your balance can be done with the same exercises. The above are four very basic exercises that can help to get you started on your strength journey. It’s best to start with these basics and work on increasing the number of sets that you can complete each day.

Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She recommends looking into unflavored CBD animal tinctures for your pet. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan