Cycling UK Forum

Remember when we were kids and used to spin like merry go rounds to deliberately fool the inner ear.

I did experiment on a level playing field cycling blind.No problem .The bikes forward momentum carried me effortlessly forward.
However if brain circuitry thrives on practice like learning to ride a bike.I will spend time trying to balance on one foot with eyes shut and arms crossed.This is not an easy exercise.

Arms extended is cheating.Not sure why it is easier maybe alter the centre of gravity.

(ps re microscope google "University days" "microscope" "James Thurber")

briansnail wrote: ↑10 Jul 2024, 3:25pm Remember when we were kids and used to spin like merry go rounds to deliberately fool the inner ear.

I did experiment on a level playing field cycling blind.No problem .The bikes forward momentum carried me effortlessly forward.
However if brain circuitry thrives on practice like learning to ride a bike.I will spend time trying to balance on one foot with eyes shut and arms crossed.This is not an easy exercise.

Arms extended is cheating.Not sure why it is easier maybe alter the centre of gravity.

Or you can do it with waving arms but set your benchmarks/targets higher.
It might work well to do it with waving arms for a while and then move to motionless arms as you get better.

Pete.

Another component of balance will be from proprioception related to the foot along with the foot's mobility and strength.

I don't quite know what standing on one leg eyes closed helps with.

There are some in this forum who do suffer balance conditions. eg PPPD (many causes for same condition) exercises to improve that don't involve anything on one leg (and consultants have a laugh when you tell them you can do it). Body maintains balance through several different ways. When one of those senses eg one ear starts misbehaving (many causes) then brain tries to compensate by prioritising other senses eg eyes which has other impacts (eg bird flying across your field of vision) and because brain is working overtime to try and make sense of conflicting signals fatigue can start.

If PPPD sets in then the exercises don't even involve standing. Many are given VOR exercises to try (often successfully) to retune the brain to new sensory conditions.

But the "eg"s in the above are just egs and there are many causes and impacts.

Unfortunately NHS has few trained specialists, GPs only think Meniers and don't even know which specialty to refer patients to. Snd it's worse in US.

Ian

Psamathe wrote: ↑10 Jul 2024, 6:08pm I don't quite know what standing on one leg eyes closed helps with.

From the paper 'Changes in the Equilibrium of Standing on One Leg at Various Life Stages' -

"Preceding studies have indicated that causes of involution of standing balance include problems in sensory integration of visual, vestibular, labyrinth, and somatic sensations "

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3415179/

My take would be that somatic feedback and control from the foot can be improved with training and any improvement feeds back into better balance.

re_cycler wrote: ↑11 Jul 2024, 7:36am

Psamathe wrote: ↑10 Jul 2024, 6:08pm I don't quite know what standing on one leg eyes closed helps with.

From the paper 'Changes in the Equilibrium of Standing on One Leg at Various Life Stages' -

"Preceding studies have indicated that causes of involution of standing balance include problems in sensory integration of visual, vestibular, labyrinth, and somatic sensations "

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3415179/

My take would be that somatic feedback and control from the foot can be improved with training and any improvement feeds back into better balance.

At the moment I don't have enough battery power, readable screen (sun), etc. to read the paper but from your quoted bit that references eyes open which I can see helps train the fully integrated balance system. But eyes closed and you are sort of training the balance system without one if its inputs.

Without going into my own conditions, I do stand on one leg eyes closed most days, not to train anything but as a test for the day and for some reassurance (which it isn't anyway). I find it's a buttock muscle that starts to fatigue after time. I also alternate legs differento days. But I do it for specific and probably unusual reasons, not training anything.

Ian

Psamathe wrote: ↑11 Jul 2024, 1:35pm
At the moment I don't have enough battery power, readable screen (sun), etc. to read the paper but from your quoted bit that references eyes open which I can see helps train the fully integrated balance system. But eyes closed and you are sort of training the balance system without one if its inputs.

Without going into my own conditions, I do stand on one leg eyes closed most days, not to train anything but as a test for the day and for some reassurance (which it isn't anyway). I find it's a buttock muscle that starts to fatigue after time. I also alternate legs differento days. But I do it for specific and probably unusual reasons, not training anything.

Ian

My knowledge doesn't extend beyond that gained from a curiosity over foot mobility. Another comment that I found interesting from the paper was that the percentage blend of the inputs tends to change throughout your life.

"Preceding studies have indicated that causes of involution of standing balance include problems in sensory integration of visual, vestibule, labyrinth, and somatic sensations "

We need to get President Biden to consent to take this test.
He was photographed 2 months ago on a mountain bike.Cycling at a moderate pace.