Throughout our lives the Body and the Brain need to exercise. We exercise for continued health, strength and fitness. If we swim for exercise, we maintain and improve our ability to swim as well as the other health benefits we gain from moving our bodies. Functional movements, cognitive behaviors, and balance skills also all improve with practice. The brain controls the body and our exercise should impact both the physical body and the neurological brain.
In all individuals 85% of the time the Right side of the brain controls the Left side of the body and the Left side of the brain controls the Right side of the body. The other 15% of the brain can be trained to jump in and help either side of our body. As we age, and if we are living with movement disorders, it becomes even more important to get that last 15% of our brains to work as often as possible. So we need to practice doing things that require that last 15%, and exercise the brain in ways that specifically require it to fire every neuron to do the tasks and movements we are repeatedly practicing.
One way that we do this by raising the heart rate to stimulate more parts of the brain. Physical movements that get our blood pumping raise the heartrate and tell our brain to “pay attention we have work to do”. Divided tasks are tasks that require us to use two halves of our body; whether that is the left and the right, or the upper and lower halves. These divided tasks exercise more of our brain than single-sided tasks. Using both halves of the body requires both the left and the right sides of the brain to work, which brings us closer to getting that last 15% to jump in and help. For example, toe-taps with your right leg are good movement exercises for your body, and help to raise the heartrate, but if you add in reaching up with your left arm – now you are calling on both sides of the brain and telling the 15% to “get in there and help us to do this more complicated task”. Now add in some short-term memory drills and you have the whole brain working hard to accomplish your exercise routine.
All cognitive behaviors, that is the “work done by your brain”, need to be established and then repeated to be maintained, and with enough repetition progress is made and you can see improvement: it’s called neuroplasticity!
Our classes use these concepts to develop, maintain and improve the cognitive behaviors and combined them with the traditional concept of exercise. When you think of exercise you think of getting stronger, improving cardiovascular health, and decreasing health risks. Our classes incorporate these traditional exercise goals as well - practicing balance skills, functional movements (reaching, walking, getting out of a chair), and strengthening the muscles needed to maintain and improve everyday quality of life.
Balance is the key to so many aspects of our lives.
Together we can work toward Better Balance so you can Be Balanced and Be Safe.