Strong evidence

In older adults, balance and functional exercise reduces the rate of falls by about a quarter.

In practice

A few minutes of standing balance work — one foot, or heel to toe, with something to hold nearby — belongs in every session from your mid-sixties on, alongside the lifting rather than instead of it.

What it doesn't say

The trials are mostly in people living at home, averaging mid-seventies. Whether it prevents fall-related fractures is less certain than whether it prevents falls.

Sources

• Sherrington C, Fairhall NJ, Wallbank GK, Tiedemann A, Michaleff ZA, Howard K, Clemson L, Hopewell S, Lamb SE (2019). Exercise for preventing falls in older people living in the community. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 1(1):CD012424. doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD012424.pub2
• Bull FC, Al-Ansari SS, Biddle S, Borodulin K, Buman MP, Cardon G, et al. (2020). World Health Organization 2020 guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 54(24):1451–1462. doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2020-102955