Decreasing Your Fall Risk

Fall Risk Tests:

There are several simple tests you can do on yourself or loved one to assess risk of fall. Timed balancing on one foot, timed balancing with feet placed heel to toe, and standing upright with arms out straight in front and leaning to reach are 3 quick ways to get a baseline. When you get your results, you can compare that to others your age and gender, as well as what number increases your risk of fall. You can also use these measurements as a self- challenge to improve and decrease your risk level over time! It does take time and repetition to see your balance improve! There are many other tests that can be performed by a clinician for greater insight and accuracy. The tests below are quick and simple to do. Please use a person standing close by to assist for safety, and stop the test if anything causes pain!

Although I am a physical therapist, I am not your physical therapist. This information is for educational purposes, and you should follow the advice of your own personal health care team! Please see the medical disclaimer.

Use your phone or a timer to see accurate numbers, and to experience positive feedback as you improve (affiliate link):

1 Single Leg Stance: with hands on hips, time how long you can stand on one foot without needing any support. Don’t use your standing leg to support your leg that is bent. Perform 3 times, and take the average number of seconds for each side separately. Here are some typical times for a healthy senior: age 50-59= 37 seconds, age 60-69 =26 seconds, age 70-79 = 11 seconds (Female) 18 (Male). In general, if you cannot stand on one foot for longer than 5 seconds, you are considered to be at increased risk of fall. (Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, 2025 and Springer et al, 2007) Write down your number and use it as a motivation to improve!

2 Heel to Toe Stance: with hands on hips, time how long you can stand with one foot directly in front of the other, heel touching toe, with your lead foot being the front foot. If you are unable to hold your balance for at least 10 seconds you are considered to be at a high fall risk! Record your number and work to maintain or improve it over time!

3 Forward Reach Test: standing tall with hands at shoulder height straight out in front of you, reach forward as far as you can lean safely. Measure the inches from original position/ fingertips to how much further forward your fingertips went (perform next to a wall for easiest measuring). If you cannot reach at least 7.2 Inches, you are considered to be at an increased fall risk. (Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, 2025 and Weiner et al, 1992) Write your number down and use it to motivate yourself to improve!

If your test suggests you are at risk of fall:

What can you do if you are at an elevated risk of fall? 3 things you might evaluate and adjust are your health conditions, home condition, and your heart/ head condition!

1 Health conditions need to be managed well to reduce your risk of fall. Keep your meds organized– check out this organizer!!! (affiliate link) Take your medications, but be aware of any that might affect your balance or safety. Get medical help for health issues and pain with therapeutic exercise or meds in order to stay active. See a physical therapist for help! Eat healthy food and stay hydrated. Prioritize good sleep as well. Stay up to date with health check ups for glasses, hearing aids, blood work, etc.

2 Do a thorough assessment of your home safety to limit accidents and injuries. Check dated equipment for safety and replace as needed. Check cane and walker tips for wear- (affiliate link). Purchase any accessories or furniture that may make your home safer. There are many different types of equipment available to purchase and use in your home and bathroom to improve safety. A fifty dollar purchase could help prevent a very time consuming and expensive fall recovery! Work with an Occupational Therapist to improve bathroom safety if needed. Check this link for more helpful safety tips that I would recommend for assessing your/your patient, or loved one’s home.

3 Your head/heart condition can be seen as your understanding and motivation to care for yourself. Learning about how much you can do to reduce your risk is encouraging. Likewise, having a teammate to encourage you, monitoring your scores, and using lists and exercise logs can help you stay faithful. Don’t forget to print out the test score and goal sheet at the end of the post!

Physical activities to decrease your fall risk:

Numbers of studies have demonstrated repeatedly that faithful balance exercise decreases your risk of falling. You must perform challenging but safe balance activities regularly, and with variety. Balance exercises should challenge your ankles, hips, and stepping reactions (safely), and should be performed faithfully. Research does demonstrate that it may take 3+ months to see significant results, but it is a proven way to reduce your risk!

A few easy exercises you can begin with are doing the first two tests you performed above: practice standing on one leg as long as you can 3 times each leg daily, and practice standing heel to toe alternating which foot is in front, 3 times each daily. Performing marching in place, sidestepping and heel toe raises at a counter (up to 30 reps) can decrease your risk of fall. See this post for more exercise detail! Overall staying active throughout your day, participating in cardio exercise and performing strength training regularly will contribute to reducing your fall risk.