FIND YOUR BALANCE 5 EXERCISES TO IMPROVE BALANCE
Though we may not always think about it, balance is essential to just about everything we do in our daily routines. From simply getting out of bed, leaning over to tie our shoes, or even walking to the mailbox, we need good balance to keep ourselves steady while performing normal tasks. Know why balance is important. Balance is the ability to control your body’s position, whether stationary or moving. It is a key component of fitness that many people neglect while developing their fitness regimen. Balance training is a great way to help your body recognize where it is and control movements in a given space. When the body knows where its limbs are in space — known as proprioception — it is able to produce smooth, controlled movements with fewer risks of injuries.
Reaction time and agility are also improved with balance training. The body learns how to quickly correct itself but not overcompensate and has the ability to quickly change direction effectively and efficiently. Though balance training is important for everyone, it is especially important for those who have problems due to illness, weakness, or dizziness. It allows them to overcome stiffness or unsteadiness and to develop an awareness of body segments and how to align them. These exercises help with balance. Balance training involves exercises to strengthen the muscles that help keep you upright and improve stability. These types of exercises can be done as often as you like or even every day.
Consider trying the following exercises:
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Standing with your weight on one leg and raising the other leg to the side or behind you. Putting one heel right in front of the other foot, as if you were walking a tightrope. Standing up and sitting down from a chair without using your hands. Walking while alternating knee lifts with each step. Stretching and gentle movement as part of yoga or tai chi.
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Balance is essential to living a healthy, functional life. It’s important to incorporate balance training into your fitness regimen. That way you can decrease the risk of injuries and help move freely and confidently.
Empowering Your Employees
THROUGH MOTIVATION AND ENGAGEMENT
Job motivation is one of the most important considerations that any team leader faces. After all, motivated employees are more productive and happier, but ideas to motivate employees can be hard to come by. Take a look at these strategies to motivate your own employees and boost work productivity in the workplace! Provide quality feedback. Employees tend to respond very well to active feedback methods that are connected to individual and organizational success. Let your employees know if what they did was great or if there is any room for improvement! Good constructive feedback facilitates positive outcomes and creates a positive work environment. Continuous feedback gives every employee a stronger feeling of investment in your business’s goals and builds stronger relationships within the work environment. Don’t wait for six months or a year to provide the feedback; otherwise, your employees may think they are performing their job to a satisfactory level when the reality
is that they are not. It is unfair to the employee to wait six months or even a year for a review. The feedback must be provided on a regular basis. Recognize hard work. A simple pat on the back or even a “good job on that project” can make all the difference in your employee’s motivation to complete the job. It allows employees to see that their company values them and appreciates their contributions to the success of their team and the business overall.
Whether it be a catered lunch for the whole team, a shoutout on your social media platforms, or a gift basket of their favorite things, showing your employees you appreciate their hard work is proven to increase engagement and motivate them to keep up the good work. Host a work party. A company party is a great way to get your team together in a casual environment. Your team can get to know one another a bit better, relax, and enjoy seasonal festivities together, which promotes higher morale, tighter social cohesion, and better relationships between management and staff. Teamwork is one of the greatest motivators out there! Having those strong relationships and knowing that your colleagues have each other’s back can help them root for one another to complete the next task. By implementing these strategies to empower your employees, those sparks of motivation can come from just about anywhere.
2 • DouglassRunger.com
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