Single-leg partner jousting
Category: Balance
30-seconds each leg
Carla van den Berg
- Keep neutral head/neck position throughout the exercise
- Using two fingers, partners use slight force to nudge each other at the shoulders and chest while the athlete tries to resist movement
- Nudge from various directions (front, back, sides)
- The amount of force applied by the partner should be enough to slightly push the athlete out of position before returning to center
- Excessive force from the partner nudges that pushes the athlete too far off balance that they cannot recover, or that causes the athlete to take a step away from centre to catch themselves
- Cue "Slight taps"
- Educate partner about the importance of safety for their teammates
- Knee collapsing inward
- Cue "Drive knee out towards pinky toe"
- Cue “Squeeze glutes”
- Straight, locked knee
- Cue “Soft knee bend”
- Cue “Sit back slightly”
- Develops ankle stability
- Develops knee control
- Challenges the vestibular system (information about the body's positioning in space, contributing to balance and coordination)