How long you should be able to stand on one leg according to your age
Published: 01:34 GMT, 1 November 2024
It is often said that being able to balance confidently on one leg is a good test of your health.
Indeed, research has found those who can't do so for more than ten seconds could be at vastly increased risk of dying within ten years.
But now, NHS scientists believe they have discovered the optimal time each age group should be able to stand.
Balancing on one leg continuously for more than 40 seconds is a key sign of strength and mobility among 18 to 39-year-olds, they insist.
By contrast, those aged between 70 and 79 should manage 18 to 19 seconds.
The reason standing on one leg is such a marker of fitness is because it uses so many different parts of the brain and body at once.
It tests balance, and strength — and these two things are lost, the more frail a person comes, making them more prone to bone shattering falls.
According to the NHS test, those trying to test should aim to stand one one leg with their hands on their hips.
Keeping their eyes open, the timer starts as soon as the foot lifts off the ground.
It stops when the foot is either lowered or their hands are taken off their hips.
Those aged 18 to 39 should manage 43 seconds, the NHS says, and 40 seconds if you're aged between 40 and 49.
For 50 to 59-year-olds, the figure stands at 37 seconds and 30 for 60 to 69-year-olds.
By 70 to 79, this drops to between 18 and 19 seconds and a little over five seconds if you're over 80.
Selina Lim, Divisional Director for Integrated Pathways at the NHS East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'We know that people who struggle to balance for the expected amount of time are at a higher risk of developing ill-health as they age.
'By taking part in the 'flamingo challenge' people can quickly and easily assess for themselves whether they are at risk.
'If they are, there are lots of different activities they can engage in that can help improve their overall fitness.'