For older adults seeking to significantly improve their balance and reduce the risk of falling, movement practices that emphasize continuous motion and motor skills, such as Pilates and tai chi, have been shown to be highly effective. Experts in fall prevention agree that these exercises provide better stability and motor control than activities like traditional yoga.
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Dynamic Stability: Why Pilates and Tai Chi Offer Good Fall Prevention
While other forms of physical activity, such as yoga, have been found to increase stability, some experts are skeptical that the gains in muscle strength and flexibility from yoga actually translate into fall prevention.
“For high-risk individuals like the elderly, yoga is simply not a sufficiently intense activity to lower the risk of falls,” says Debra Rose, a professor of kinesiology at California State University-Fullerton and director of the Fall Prevention Center of Excellence at the University of Southern California. She adds that while yoga emphasizes static poses, which can be helpful for balance when standing still, tai chi and Pilates are more effective at improving motor control and coordination for walking, which is when most falls occur.
It’s the focus on precise body movements and strengthening of the hip and leg joints and the body’s core — the abdominal and back muscles — that seems to make tai chi and Pilates better suited to lowering the risk of falling.
A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that for people 70 and older, tai chi cut the risk of falling nearly in half after only 15 weeks.
With Pilates, says Rose, “if you lose your balance while walking, you’ll be better able to make rapid adjustments in your gait” to stave off a spill.
While the unique spring-based equipment of Pilates reformers may initially look intimidating, the exercises invented by Joseph H. Pilates increase strength, endurance and motor skills.
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Dynamic stability
At Pilates on Fifth, a studio in Manhattan, men and women aged 55-plus, many referred there by doctors and rehabilitation specialists, train with instructors to boost their mobility.
Co-owner Katherine Corp says the Pilates exercises have a huge impact on the seniors’ confidence, motivation and what she calls “dynamic stability,” or the balance that results from practicing moving through space in many directions.
[READ: How to Prevent Falls in Seniors: A 7-Point Home Checklist and Expert Health Safety Tips]
How Pilates and Tai Chi Improve Dynamic Stability and Motor Control
| Exercise Type | What Does It Benefit? |
| Reformer Pilates | Uses spring-based resistance to increase flexibility, posture and muscle endurance |
| Mat Pilates | Strengthens the core and improves posture and increases flexibility by using body weight on a mat |
| Chair Pilates | Allows individuals to perform strengthening and stretching motions while seated, which is ideal for those with limited mobility |
| Tai chi | Improves motor control, balance and coordination for walking, significantly reducing the risk of falling in seniors |
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Pilates Benefits: Motor Control, Strength and Fighting Sarcopenia
Pilates benefits motor learning and neuro-motor control, which can help slow down the impacts of aging, says Joy Puleo, director of education at Balanced Body, a manufacturer of Pilates equipment.
Puleo has been teaching Pilates since 2001. She notes that learning new movements and practicing low-impact training builds strength and endurance around the primary joints. This can help decrease the impact of sarcopenia, or age-related muscle loss, as people enter their 60s and 70s.
Pilates forces people to move in different ways through the planes of motion, “with reform Pilates having people engaging multiple parts of the body, especially the core, using the straps in their hands and balancing on the moving carriage,” she adds. “You’ve got that rich movement environment. There’s balance, there’s coordination and there’s opportunity to work specifically on things like leg strength, ankle strength, specific balance, eye-hand coordination and grip strength, and those are also big markers in aging.”
[READ: Fear of Falls in Older Adults]
Pilates vs. Tai Chi: Which Exercise Is Right for You?
Both Pilates and tai chi offer significant benefits for older adults. You can compare their focus and determine which approach best meets your needs.
| Exercise | Primary Focus | Equipment Needed | Impact Level | Key Benefit for Seniors |
| Pilates | Core, hip and leg joint strengthening | Mat or spring-based resistance machine (reformer) | Low-impact training | Improves dynamic stability to make rapid gait adjustments and reduce fall risk |
| Tai chi | Motor control and coordination for walking | Typically none | Low-impact training | Improves motor control and coordination, reducing fall risk |
Finding the Right Pilates or Tai Chi Class and Certified Instructor
Puleo advises that seniors seek out a certified instructor and studio that specifically caters to the needs of older populations, focusing on balance, coordination and controlled movement. She emphasizes finding an instructor you trust who can help you safely build strength, endurance and mobility.
Rose cautions that older adults should consult with their doctors before signing up for a Pilates, tai chi or yoga class, especially if they have lower back problems or other disabilities. Some physical therapists and other health professionals, in fact, are specially trained to work with elderly people either in private or group sessions.
“A certified instructor with enough experience should listen to what you say, be compassionate and shouldn’t push you too hard,” says Corp. “Everyone remembers the glory days, but you have to work with the body you have now.”
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Improve Balance and Prevent Falls With Pilates and Tai Chi originally appeared on usnews.com