Uses and Users
Originally produced for skiers and then surfers to practice their skills in the off season and at night, a balance board is a device that has come to be used for training in all sports and martial arts, for physical fitness and for non-athletic purposes that are listed here.
It is used to develop balance, motor coordination skills, weight distribution and core strength; to prepare people, before and after they reach old age, to avoid injurious falls; to prevent sports injuries, especially to the ankle and knee; and for rehabilitation after injuries to several parts of the body.
Uses of a balance board that are distant from the athletic purpose of its origin have gradually become more common: to expand neural networks that enable the left and right hemispheres of the brain to communicate with each other, thereby increasing its efficiency; to develop sensory integration and cognitive skills in children with developmental disorders; to make dancers lighter on their feet; to teach singers optimal posture for the control of air-flow; to teach musicians how to hold their instrument; to shake off writer's block and other inhibitors of creativity; as an accessory to yoga and as a form of yoga, cultivating holistic health, self-awareness and calm.
Users who may not be interested in any of those practical purposes use a balance board to entertain themselves; it is a game of thrills that is somewhat frightening because of the almost constant sensation of being at risk of falling in the next moment if one does not adjust carefully enough before then.
Skillful and dramatic balancing acts are presented by circus performers who stack multiple boards on top of one another to increase the challenge, also combining this with other circus arts to create a more exciting spectacle.
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