Improve Parkinson’s Balance With This Eye-Tracking Chop Drill

Do you feel like you may fall over when picking something up off the ground or looking up in the air? With Parkinson’s and other neurological conditions, our eyes, ears, and awareness of our body in space causes us to become unsteady unless we practice the very movements we are afraid of doing. That’s right—avoiding things that may cause you to fall actually makes your balance worse!

Balance is a complex process that relies on many systems working together in the body. You should naturally turn your head, use your eyes and ears, and gain information from your feet so that your brain understands where you are in space. This awareness is called proprioception.

Consistently looking down actually increases the risk of falling by limiting visual awareness and disrupting natural balance responses.

Here is a great exercise that will really wake up your brain and heighten your awareness while challenging your balance. Make sure you do this exercise in a corner for safety.

Watch this video to learn How To Improve Parkinson’s Balance With This Eye Tracking Chop Drill:

Neck mobility and trunk rotation also play an important role in balance. Being able to look up, turn your head, and scan your surroundings helps your brain process spatial information.

The hand-eye exercise shown in this video is designed to improve walking balance, encourage a more upright posture, and reduce the habit of looking at the ground while walking—especially for people with Parkinson’s disease.

Want even more exercises to improve your balance? Join our Balance Builders Course! It’s a five-week course that you can do in person or virtually. Classes are held once a week, and you’ll also get recorded videos that you can do at home. For more information, email Kimberly.

We also offer specialty digital courses to address a variety of Parkinson’s symptoms, including stooped posture and stiff hands and feet:

• Rebel Fit Club Posture School
• Rebel Fit Club’s “From Cramping Feet to Happy Feet!” Course
• Rebel Fit Club’s PD Exercises to Improve Hand Dexterity & Mobility

💜 Coach Kimberly