The effects of ankle loads on balance ability during one-leg stance

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of ankle loads on balanceability and to suggest an appropriate load amount. [Subjects and Methods] The31 healthy subjects randomly put 0%, 1%, and 2% body weight loads on their ankles using astrap, and limit of stability was measured using a Biorescue system. Limits of stabilitywere measured for 10 seconds using their dominant leg in the left, right, forward, andbackward directions. [Results] All values for limit of stability increased significantlywith the 1% load compared with the 0% load during a one-leg stance. However, all valuesexcept for the backward limit of stability showed a significant decrease with the 2% loadcompared with the 1% load. There was a significant difference between the 0% and 2% loads.[Conclusion] Application of loads on the ankles can be used as a training method forimproving balance ability, and to increase efficiency, it is appropriate to apply 1% ofthe subject’s body weight.Key words: Balance, Loads, One-leg stance