The best examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention

Real-world examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention

Let’s skip the theory and start with actual movement. When people ask for examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention, they usually want things they can do today that don’t feel like circus tricks.

Here are some of the best examples, starting from very simple and building up. You can mix and match based on your sport and current fitness level.

Single-leg balance: the starting point for almost everyone

If you want the most basic example of a balance training exercise for injury prevention, this is it: stand on one leg.

Stand tall, feet hip-width apart. Lift one foot a few inches off the ground and hold. Keep your hips level, eyes forward, and core gently braced. Aim for 20–30 seconds per leg.

This looks too easy…until you actually try it and notice your ankle wobbling. That wobble is your stabilizing muscles learning to fire. Over time, this simple move helps reduce ankle sprains and improves joint awareness (proprioception), which is a big deal for athletes and older adults alike.

To progress this example of balance training, you can:

• Turn your head side to side while standing on one leg.
• Close your eyes (start near a wall or counter for safety).
• Stand on a softer surface, like a folded towel or foam pad.

Single-leg Romanian deadlift (bodyweight or light weight)

Now let’s turn balance into strength. The single-leg Romanian deadlift (RDL) is one of the best examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention because it targets your hamstrings, glutes, and the stabilizers around your knee and ankle.

Stand on one leg, knee slightly bent. Hinge at the hips, sending your free leg back like a counterweight while your torso leans forward. Keep your back flat and reach your hands toward the floor or your shin. Then drive through your standing heel to return to upright.

You’ll feel this in the back of the standing leg. Start with bodyweight, then add a light dumbbell or kettlebell in the opposite hand of the standing leg.

This move teaches you to control your hip and knee alignment—exactly what protects you from non-contact knee injuries and hamstring pulls during running, cutting, or jumping.

Lateral step-downs from a low box or step

If you’re a runner, hiker, or play court sports, you want real examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention that challenge side-to-side control, not just front-to-back.

Stand on a low step or sturdy box (4–8 inches). Stand near the edge so one leg is on the box and the other is hanging off. Slowly bend the knee of the leg on the box and lower the hanging heel toward the floor, then push back up.

The key: keep your knee tracking over the middle of your foot, not collapsing inward. Move slowly. Use a wall or rail for light support if needed.

This exercise strengthens the muscles that control your knee position—something that’s strongly linked to lower risk of ACL and patellofemoral pain, especially in sports that involve cutting and landing.

Heel-to-toe walking (tightrope walk)

Here’s a simple but powerful example of balance training you can do almost anywhere: heel-to-toe walking.

Imagine a straight line on the floor. Place your right foot directly in front of your left so your heel touches your front foot’s toes. Then step your left foot in front of your right the same way. Walk 10–20 steps forward.

Once that feels easy, walk backward the same way. Then try it while turning your head, or holding a light weight in front of you.

This exercise is widely used in fall-prevention programs for older adults and recommended in guidelines from organizations like the CDC’s STEADI initiative on fall prevention (https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/). It challenges your balance, coordination, and focus in a very real-world way—similar to walking on uneven ground or navigating crowded spaces.

Split squat with front foot elevated

A split squat is already a great lower-body strength move. Elevating the front foot a few inches adds a sneaky balance challenge and teaches you to control your center of mass.

Stand in a split stance with your front foot on a low step or weight plate and your back foot on the floor. Drop your back knee toward the ground, keeping your torso tall and front knee tracking over your toes. Press through the front heel to return up.

This is one of the best examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention for people who play field or court sports. It mimics the staggered positions you find yourself in while sprinting, decelerating, and changing direction. You’re training your body to stay stable under load and through a full range of motion.

Standing Pallof press (anti-rotation cable or band press)

Balance isn’t just about your feet and ankles; your core plays a huge role in keeping everything stacked and stable. The standing Pallof press is a fantastic example of balance training that challenges your entire trunk.

Attach a resistance band or cable at chest height. Stand sideways to the anchor point, feet about hip-width apart. Hold the handle at your chest, then press it straight out in front of you and hold for 2–3 seconds while resisting the band’s pull. Bring it back in and repeat.

You’ll feel your core working hard to prevent rotation. This anti-rotation strength helps protect your spine and hips when you twist, throw, or absorb contact. It also supports better posture and reduces the risk of low back strain.

Single-leg bridge or hip thrust

Glutes are your body’s shock absorbers. Weak glutes often show up as knee pain, hip pain, or low back issues. A single-leg bridge is a simple example of balance training that also builds powerful hip extension.

Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat. Lift one leg off the floor. Press through the heel of the other foot and lift your hips until your body forms a straight line from shoulder to knee. Hold briefly, then lower with control.

To progress, elevate your shoulders on a bench for a single-leg hip thrust. This variation challenges your balance more and builds serious strength in the muscles that protect your hips and knees during running and jumping.

Single-leg calf raises on a step

Ankles are frequent victims in sports. If you’re looking for very specific examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention for the lower leg, single-leg calf raises on a step are gold.

Stand on a step with the ball of one foot on the edge and your heel hanging off. Hold a rail or wall lightly for safety. Drop your heel slightly below the step, then rise up onto the ball of your foot as high as you can. Lower slowly.

You’re not just training strength here; you’re teaching your ankle to control motion through its full range. Strong, well-controlled calves and ankles help reduce the risk of Achilles issues and recurrent ankle sprains.

How these examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention actually protect you

It’s one thing to list examples; it’s another to understand why they matter. All of the examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention above have a few things in common:

They improve proprioception. That’s your body’s ability to sense joint position and movement. Better proprioception means your body reacts faster when you step on a rock trail running or land awkwardly from a jump. Research on ankle sprain rehab and prevention consistently shows proprioceptive and balance training reduces future injury risk. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has several reviews on this topic; you can explore more here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

They build strength in stabilizer muscles. These are the smaller muscles around your ankles, knees, hips, and spine that keep your joints aligned while the big muscles produce force. When stabilizers are weak, you get wobbly knees, caving ankles, and a cranky lower back.

They train control in realistic positions. Notice how many of these exercises use single-leg or staggered stances. That’s how you actually move in sports and daily life—rarely perfectly symmetrical, feet side by side.

They progress from simple to challenging. In 2024–2025, a big trend in sports performance and physical therapy is “graded exposure” to more complex, sport-like demands. You don’t jump straight to unstable surfaces and circus tricks. You start with stable, controlled positions and gradually add load, speed, and unpredictability.

For more background on how strength and balance training reduce falls and injuries, the CDC has accessible resources here: https://www.cdc.gov/falls/facts.html.

How to build a weekly routine with these examples of balance training exercises

You don’t need a separate 45-minute “balance day.” Instead, sprinkle these exercises into warm-ups or finishers 2–3 times per week.

For a beginner who wants to prevent falls and move more confidently:

• Start with single-leg balance near a counter, heel-to-toe walking, and double-leg bridges progressing to single-leg bridges.
• Perform each exercise for 2–3 sets of 20–30 seconds (for holds) or 8–10 reps (for movements).

For a recreational lifter or runner:

• Add single-leg RDLs, lateral step-downs, and standing Pallof presses to strength days.
• Use them either as part of your warm-up or as accessory work after your main lifts.

For a competitive athlete:

• Use more demanding examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention like front-foot-elevated split squats, loaded single-leg RDLs, and single-leg calf raises on a step.
• Integrate them alongside plyometrics and change-of-direction drills.

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and organizations like the National Institute on Aging (https://www.nia.nih.gov/health) emphasize including balance work at least 2–3 days per week, especially for older adults and those with a history of falls or lower-limb injuries.

Progressing your balance training safely

When the basic examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention start to feel easy, you can make them more challenging without making them risky.

Here are simple progression levers you can adjust:

Change the base of support.

• Go from two legs to one.
• Narrow your stance.
• Use a staggered stance instead of side-by-side.

Change the surface.

• Start on solid ground.
• Then use a folded towel, foam pad, or balance pad.
• Avoid extreme instability (like standing on a rolling ball); it often looks impressive but doesn’t transfer well to real movement and can increase risk.

Change the visual input.

• Start with eyes open, fixed on a target.
• Progress to turning your head while balancing.
• Eventually try short periods with eyes closed (always with something sturdy nearby for safety).

Add load or movement.

• Hold light dumbbells or a kettlebell.
• Add a small reach (forward, to the side, or overhead) while balancing.
• Combine balance with light hops or quick changes of direction once you’ve built a base.

Always respect pain. Mild muscle fatigue or a bit of burning in your stabilizers is fine. Sharp joint pain or repeated loss of balance is your cue to back off and regress the exercise.

Who benefits most from these examples of balance training exercises?

Honestly, almost everyone. But some groups get especially big returns:

Older adults.
Falls are a major cause of injury in adults over 65. Simple examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention—like single-leg stands, heel-to-toe walking, and sit-to-stand variations—are strongly recommended in fall-prevention programs and supported by data from organizations like the CDC and NIH.

Runners and hikers.
Single-leg RDLs, step-downs, and single-leg calf raises on a step help protect against ankle sprains, IT band issues, and knee pain by improving control during stance and push-off.

Field and court athletes.
Soccer, basketball, football, tennis, pickleball—these all involve cutting, decelerating, and landing. Split squats, Pallof presses, and single-leg bridges or hip thrusts help your body stay aligned and powerful in those chaotic moments.

Lifters with cranky knees or backs.
Many lifters hammer heavy bilateral lifts but skip single-leg and anti-rotation work. Integrating these examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention can clean up movement patterns and reduce strain on the spine and knees.

If you have a history of serious injury (like ACL tears, fractures, or neurological conditions), it’s smart to run your plan by a physical therapist. Mayo Clinic and similar organizations often recommend individualized progressions in these situations; you can read more general guidance here: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness.

FAQ: examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention

Q: What are some simple examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention I can do at home with no equipment?

A: Great starting options include single-leg stands, heel-to-toe walking along a hallway, double-leg bridges progressing to single-leg bridges, and bodyweight split squats using a chair or countertop for support. These examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention require little space and can be done barefoot to wake up the small muscles in your feet and ankles.

Q: How often should I do these examples of balance training exercises?

A: Aim for 2–3 sessions per week. You don’t need marathon workouts; even 10–15 minutes added to the beginning or end of your regular training sessions works well. Consistency matters more than intensity. Think of balance training like brushing your teeth: small, regular doses keep your movement system healthy.

Q: What is one example of a balance training exercise that helps prevent ankle sprains?

A: A very effective example of a balance training exercise for ankle injury prevention is the single-leg balance on a slightly unstable surface, like a folded towel. Stand on one leg for 20–30 seconds, then switch. Once that feels steady, add gentle head turns or reach your arms in different directions while maintaining balance.

Q: Do I need unstable gadgets like wobble boards or BOSU balls?

A: Not necessarily. Most of the best examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention use stable surfaces and your own bodyweight. You can add mild instability later, but you’ll get huge benefits just from single-leg work, controlled step-downs, and anti-rotation core exercises.

Q: Can balance training replace strength training?

A: No. Think of balance training as a partner to strength training, not a replacement. You still want solid foundational strength from squats, deadlifts, presses, rows, and similar movements. The examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention in this guide help you apply that strength in more realistic, sometimes awkward positions—exactly where injuries often happen.

If you start with just two or three of these examples of balance training exercises for injury prevention and stick with them for a few weeks, you’ll feel the difference: steadier steps, stronger joints, and more confidence in your movement—on the field, in the gym, and in everyday life.