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Why do I keep falling?
As we become more aware of fall prevention across the country and around the globe, it has become apparent that once someone has fallen, more specifically in the 50+ age group, the fear of falling increases and walking properly becomes an issue.
Sometimes the resulting fear of taking another spill can create what I call the “ground watch” posture. We have all seen or know someone with the stooped or slouched upper body, the gaze fixed on the ground, and their arms barely swinging if they are not using a cane or walker. It makes it tough to walk when the knees hardly bend enough to lift feet clear of the ground or thinking that shuffling feet anchored to the ground will prevent a fall. In short this means their mechanism for reacting to shifts in walking surfaces is not used and is now severely diminished.
One may not realize that they are not lifting their feet off the ground when walking nor properly using their upper body when turning around to look behind themselves or to the side for fear they might trip. Poor reaction time makes them at risk for falling.
All of these newly developed “habits” make falling more probable which may be why so many seniors begin to fall more often. This gradually acquired way of walking becomes the “norm” instead of the natural activity of an “active,” upright upper body with swing arms that engage the hips as they work to lift the knees giving us our wonderful mechanics of walking or running. Get to a balance class and learn to use your body again!
Exercise in the pool is a great way to begin, too, since you are building your body by doing resistance training with water! How many people do not pass driving tests because they depend on the rear view mirror to tell them what is behind or beside them and will not turn and look when changing lanes?
Exercise on the Original SANDDUNE™ will help you restore diminished leg and core strength whether due to chronic illness like diabetic neuropathy, Parkinson’s or MS, stroke recovery, surgery (ie…hip or knee replacement) or a sedentary lifestyle. It provides a comforting and enjoyable way to get back on the fitness bandwagon!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
AS THE NEW YEAR DAWNS
THE ORIGINAL SANDDUNE™ WISHES YOU A
BALANCED, HAPPY, HEALTHY & PROSPEROUS
NEW YEAR IN 2014!
COG – Center of Gravity
When you begin to learn about the Center of Gravity or COG whether you are standing or sitting, you will learn how many small movements contribute to your COG and how they awaken the spine and your feet as the foundations for your COG.
You learn:
- how to sit properly on your sit bones vs. slouching and how this affects your posture both sitting and standing. If you slouch when you sit, you will most likely slouch when you stand. This
means learning to keep the belly button pulled in, shoulders square, a long spine and open chest (no slouched shoulders or shuffling when walking). - the importance of eye and head movement to sound balance. Most people do not “think” about how eye and head movement affect the body’s everyday functioning. This is especially critical as we age.
- the relevance of sensing your ankle, arch, heel pad, the ball of your foot, and be able to differentiate and move the five toes, which many people never think of doing.
Because the feet are the Foundation for the COG, weight shifting – both standing and dynamic (walking, running, cross training, etc), and learning to work your 
heels and toes together are paramount to healthy gait and balance. This applies whether one is aging, recovering from an injury/surgery or extended time off of the feet due to illness.
Understanding this leads to the comprehension of how these individual systems tie into “proprioception” or knowing where your body is in space. The sensors engaged by this proprioception are in each joint, the bottoms 
of the footpads, the visual and vestibular (inner ear) system as well as touch. For example, proprioception not only helps with daily direction-finding, but also is essential to becoming a beautifully expressive dancer or gymnast, successful professional golfer, or runner.
Together these sensors help to provide information about the environment that we see daily and that the muscles are engaging in judging the height of 
a step, the distance to the rail or ball, the depth of the curb, or the placement of the foot as a turn or a yoga stance is executed.
Learning to stretch and strengthen these muscles, their respective systems and their correlating movements on the non-compliant surface of an Original SANDDUNE™ makes it easier to do on solid ground. Why is it easier? You are not trying to balance your body on the ground as you do on the mirror resisting exercise produced by the Original SANDDUNE™. Referenced from Miriam Tate’s findings and class development.
Flow into your Fitness
The Original SANDDUNE™, a unique aerobic/anaerobic compliant device invented for interval training to keep performance level from losing momentum during off weather or injury downtime.
Being able to excel on off days or rehab muscles and joints when the impact of the ground is over exhausting, SANDDUNE™ Cross Training excels in keeping your current level of fitness.
Increase Cardio, while Reduce or Build
- Strengthen Muscular-skeletal, Body’s Core Muscles
- Build Stamina, Endurance and Agility
- Develops greater Dynamic Balance
- Aids in Rehabilitation practices
The device allows the body to train:
- up-hill, down-hill,
- sitting, standing, leaning,
- stretching, walking or running;
Similar to aqua-jogging, or plyometrics in the water, it offers therapeutic options easy on the joints.
“Flow” ~Artwork Courtesy of Kirk Wassell
Working on the SANDDUNE will allow one to learn how to:
- Stand at the Center of Gravity with the core engaged, knees soft, back erect, belly button back and gaze straightforward.
- Learn Feet and Foundation sense in the feet through learning to work the whole foot as weight shifts “around the clock.”
- Develop and understand proprioception (the ability to sense the position, location, orientation and movement of the body and its parts) on an uneven, moving surface as all of the parts of the body are taught to work together. IE…learning to “marry” the trunk and the lower body for greater flexibility in movement and walking.
Test jog @ Riverside Diabetes Walk, Nov 16, 2013.
Thank you Jenn!
Happy Thanksgiving
The staff of the
Original SANDDUNE™
wish you a
plentiful and joy filled
Thanksgiving Day.
“The miracle of gratitude is that it shifts your perception to such an extent that it changes the world you see.”
— Dr. Robert Holden
The Original SANDDUNE™ Honors US Veterans
We at the Original SANDDUNE™
honor our nation’s Veterans –
past, present, and future
for their commitment to safeguarding the freedom that this great country stands for.
BEAR IN MIND THAT THE MEASURE OF A MAN (WOMAN) IS THE WORTH OF THE THINGS HE (SHE) CARES ABOUT.
~ MARCUS AURELIUS ~
~ GOD BLESS THE USA ~
Cross Training on The Original SANDDUNE
CROSS TRAINING ON THE SANDDUNE™ by Miriam Tait – Balance Instructor
The Original SANDDUNE™, a unique aerobic/anaerobic compliant device invented for interval training to keep performance level from losing momentum during off weather or injury downtime.
Being able to excel on off days or rehab muscles and joints when the impact of the ground is over exhausting, SANDDUNE™ Cross Training excels in keeping your current level of fitness.
Increase Cardio, while Reduce or Build
- Strengthen Muscular-skeletal, Body’s Core Muscles
- Build Stamina, Endurance and Agility
- Develops greater Dynamic Balance
- Aids in Rehabilitation practices
The device allows the body to train:
- up-hill, down-hill,
- sitting, standing, leaning,
- stretching, walking or running;
Bounding Segment of Running Workout
Similar to aqua-jogging, or plyometrics in the water, it offers therapeutic options easy on the joints.
Perfect for:
- Senior Fitness in Fall Prevention,
- general athletic conditioning among women, men and children and
- professionals who fitness and reflexes are key components for successful execution of duties .
Used by for all levels of warm-up, interval training and cool down by:
- therapists in clinical or personal settings,
- golf pros, athletes from a variety of sports, professional dancers, and
- seniors across the country at home or in group balance classes
Original SANDDUNE™ 