How To Improve Your Child’s Balance to Help Them Stand Independently, Walk Independently, and Run Independently
THE ACTIVE BALANCE PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
Log Rolls
If you begin to log roll your child passively you are ready to move on to an active program. When you are passively rolling your child you are providing information to the balance areas of the brain saying “This is how it feels to roll over, this is how it feels to roll over.” First, we must provide the sensory information to the brain before we can expect the brain to independently initiate that physical ability. Any rotational activity you did during the passive program was preparation for active rolls. Once your child, regardless of age, can roll over tummy to back, back to tummy, he or she is ready to pursue independent rolling. The child will be rolling over and over like a log. All that is necessary is that the child continues to roll over more and more times successively. Follow this process:
Once your child can independently do a single log roll, kneel down at the child’s side. With both hands, roll the child onto his or her side, and then help the child to roll over away from you. “Kneewalk” after your child, continuing the process several times. Now, move to the child’s other side and help him or her roll back to the original position. This is called “log” rolling because the action is similar to rolling a log along the ground. When your child can do several rolls independently, lie down parallel to the child, and roll in unison. Roll several times in one direction, and then roll back to your original position. (This is important to maintain both clockwise and counterclockwise balance input.) Gradually increase the number of rolls you both can do without stopping. If space is limited, simply continue to roll back and forth over the same area. A roll is defined as a roll from the tummy to the back to the tummy. In other words a complete 360-degree turn of the body.
Frequency: Begin with many brief sessions, such as one complete roll ten separate times or ten rolls total. As nonstop rolling develops, reduce the frequency to four sessions of five rolls nonstop. This equals a total of 20 rolls. Parents have found this program very effective to increase the child’s balance. This results in better standing, walking and running. It is common for our brain-injured children to increase to four sessions of ten rolls (40 rolls total). Other children have increased to four sessions of twenty (80 rolls total), and four sessions of twenty five (100 rolls total). In order for the child’s brain to experience this information optimally, the sections should be spread throughout the day.
Intensity: Once independent non stop rolling is well established, encourage your child to increase the speed. This will challenge the balanced areas of the brain.
Duration: This will increase as your child’s nonstop rolling ability increases. Always stop before the child wants to stop. The minimum total duration should be five minutes per day.
Forward Rolls
Your child has also been in training for independent forward rolls. Previously if you have done the vertical rocking (head down) activity your child’s brain has been programmed to regain orientation when the child’s feet are over his or her head. Rotational activities have adapted the vestibular mechanism to spinning activities.
As soon as your child walks for transport and can carry objects easily while walking, the child is ready for forward rolls. If you’ve been frequently setting an example, you’ll find your little sixteen-month-old child bent over, head on the ground, looking through his or her legs and trying to push over. However, even before this, you can teach the somersaulting experience to your child.
Even if your child is not walking yet, you can gently put your child’s head down on a soft mat, be careful to keep your child’s head tucked under with one hand and holding the child’s hips with the other, gently roll the child over. Doing this ten to fifteen separate times a day will teach your child’s brain what it feels like to roll over (turn) on that axis.
As your child becomes a walker, you continue this process of teaching somersaults. By now, the baby can put his or her head and hands down on the floor without help, or get into this position from the quadruped position. All the child needs now is some help getting over. You can give a light push, with one hand on the child’s bottom, as you tuck the head under with your other hand so that the child rolls over. Make sure your child learns to tuck in his or her head so that rolling is done with the chin on the chest. As the child learns to do this, you no longer need to help; you merely need to provide the push.
There are two ways to help your child get the “feel” of doing a forward roll without any assistance: You can either have your child do the forward roll down a five or ten degree incline on a mat, or down a slight, grassy hill outside. Gravity will help pull the body over the head.
Teach your child to walk the feet toward the hands after putting the top of his or her head on the floor. This action will eventually push the hips over the child’s head so that the child’s balance will be off-center in a forward direction, causing the child to tumble over.
Continuing these approaches (and setting a constant example) will help your child do forward rolls independently. The child will delight in tumbling around the house.
Frequency: Begin with doing one assisted forward roll ten separate times a day. Once your tiny child can do a forward roll independently, increase the frequency of forward rolls to one independent roll fifteen times per day. We can repeat the same process we used for forward rolls. Build up to four sessions of five forward rolls non stop.These sessions should be spread throughout the day. Increase to four sessions of ten rolls (40 rolls total). Then increase to four sessions of twenty (80 rolls total), and four sessions of twenty five (100 rolls total). In order for the child’s brain to experience this information optimally, the sections should be spread throughout the day.
Intensity: Begin slowly, and gradually increase to your child’s level of enjoyment. Once independent forward rolling is well established, gradually encourage faster and faster forward rolling.
Duration: This will increase as your child’s nonstop forward rolling ability increases. Always stop before the child wants to stop. The minimum total daily duration should be five minutes.
It is impossible to imagine doing these rolls comfortably on any surface other than a gymnastic mat or, perhaps, a soft grassy field or hill. A padded surface is essential for the child to be safe and comfortable.
Backward Rolls
When your child is independently doing log rolls and forward rolls with success and enjoyment it is time to go back on backward rolls. Backward rolls are more challenging.It is possible to coach your child as you did with forward rolls. You begin with helping your child doing a backward roll. As with the other rolls, this needs to be done on a gymnastic mat. Make sure your child is safe and comfortable. Always protect your child’s head and neck. Gradually reduce your help and encourage your child to be more independent. This process works.
It is easier, faster, and more successful to teach your child on an inclined mat. If you use this method with the forward roll, you are familiar with it. It is possible to purchase large 2 meter triangular mats. But they can be expensive and they can take a lot of space. A less expensive method is to get a board or an old door and incline it on a foot stool or other piece of furniture. The child sits at the top of the inclined mat with their back pointed down the mat. The child lies “down hill” and then holds their legs over their head as best they can.
At this point place your hand on the child’s bottom and gently push their bottom over their head. Encourage your child to hold the “tuck position”. The “tuck position” is when the child holds their knees and feet into their chest. When this is done the child is in the prone position. It is natural for them to land on their knees. If your mat is long enough, there maybe enough space for them to do an additional backward roll. They repeat the process by rolling onto their back again and pulling their legs over their head with your help.
As you have learned with the other rolls, you gradually help your child less and less, as your child becomes more and more independent. Eventually your child will become independent in doing backward rolls on the inclined mat. Coach them by complimenting them and helping them to improve the quality. We recommend you build up to 4 sessions of five backward rolls non stop spread throughout the day (20 backward rolls total).
At this point you begin to gradually decrease the angle of the inclined mat. Decrease the angle by 5 degrees. Keep that angle until your child is independently doing 20 backward rolls a day. Now decrease the incline by another 5 degrees. Work back up to 20 independent backward rolls. At times you may need to intervene by gently pushing your child’s bottom over her or his head. Continue until your child is completely independent with the gymnastics mat flat on the floor.
Frequency: Now repeat the process you used for log rolls and forward rolls. Gradually increase from four sessions of 5 rolls to four sessions of 10 backward rolls, 20 backward rolls, 25 backward rolls (20, 40, 80, 100 backward rolls total). As before, spread these sessions throughout the day.
Intensity: Once your child is independent with backward rolls, and doing non stop backward rolls, you can encourage them to increase their speed. This will challenge the balance areas of the brain.
Duration: As you increase the number of non stop backward rolls you’re increasing duration. This helps to build the endurance of the balance areas of the brain. For example, if you were to do ten rolls non stop, you might find that you are dizzy. But by doing these ten rolls consistently day in and day out your brain will naturally orient yourself until you are no longer dizzy at all.
It is wise and challenging to the brain to alternate the roles. In other words, do one session of log rolls, then one session of forward rolls, then one session of backward rolls. Then start it over with log rolls.
If you choose to build up to 100 of each of the three rolls, you’ll be doing a total of 300 rolls throughout the day. It is rare that well children on gymnastic teams will do this many rolls as part of their training. This means you will see a significant improvement in your child’s balance when standing, walking, going upstairs and down, walking up and down hills. This program is practically beneficial for those who are learning to transition from walking to running.
Goal: The goal here is to prepare your child for even more sophisticated activities, such as gymnastics. Now, you will take on the roles of coach and cheerleader as the child begins doing these new activities independently.