5 Exercises for Better Balance and Reflexes

Here's a simple way to test your lower body strength: Sit in a sturdy chair and try to stand without using your arms to help you up. According to Ann Butenas, if you cannot pass this test, then your risk of falling is up to three times higher than normal. Look into lower body exercises to help you stay on your feet.

If your ankles are weak and inflexible, Ann Butenas says that you're at a much greater risk of having a serious fall. After all, if you can't bend your ankles, how can you expect to regain your balance once you start to topple?

Butenas includes two tests to make sure your ankles are as flexible as they should be:

1) Stand facing a counter with your feet should-width apart. Put your hands on the counter for balance, and lift up onto the balls of your feet. Have a friend crouch behind you while you're elevated. Your heels should be at least two inches off the ground.

2) Stand with your back against a wall, and your feet about four inches in front of you. Now raise your toes so you're standing on your heels. You should be able to get your toes at least an inch and a half off the ground.

Once you start to lose your balance, you only have a fraction of a second to recover. For that reason, having good reflexes can help you avoid falls, just like lower body strength and flexibility.

Butenas passes along two tests to make sure your reflexes are up to speed.

1) Pick up a stop watch. Start it, and then try to stop it as close to five seconds on the dot as you can. If you can stop if between 4.9 and 5.1 seconds on a consistent basis, Butenas says you're in good shape.

2) Have your friend hold a dollar bill by the narrow end. Position your fingers about an inch away from the middle of the bill. You're friend will count to three and then drop the bill. Can you catch it? What if your friend doesn't count to three, but drops the bill without warning you...can you still catch it?