If you follow Al Roker on Instagram, you’ll frequently see him out on long weekend walks, logging early morning training sessions before work at TODAY and getting steps in at his walking pad.
The 72-year-old is committed to aging healthfully. “ I think healthy aging is about trying to maintain your core, trying to maintain some strength, balance … not falling, those sort of things,” he said in an Instagram post on Start TODAY. “One of the things that’s been most important is working on my balance and my core because everything else flows out of that.”
Because remaining strong and independent as he ages is the goal, balance training has become a staple in his workout routine.
One exercise you will see him doing daily, both in and out of the gym? The single-leg balance.
The exercise looks simple, but it requires multiple systems of the body to work together, things like muscle strength, neuromuscular control, vision, proprioception and even brain health, TODAY.com previously reported.
“It’s something you can do even when you’re not training. Sometimes when I’m just standing in front of the weather map, I’ll just balance on one leg to see how long I can do that for,” he said. “Right now, the best I can do is 30 seconds on each leg. But some days are little easier than others.”
Al Roker works on his single-leg balance during almost every gym session. @alroker Instagram
Incorporating short bursts of movement throughout the day — sometimes called “exercise snacks” — is a smart tactic to squeeze fitness into a jam-packed schedule and science show it works. Research links the strategy with improved cardiovascular fitness, TODAY.com previously reported. Plus, it’s a low-lift way to start making movement a daily habit and helps combat the negative health effects of a sedentary lifestyle.
Al takes advantage of any down time during the day to fit in some movement. “The little things that you can do on the side of the set when I’m not on camera … little snacks, you don’t have to change clothes or anything.”
Other exercises you’ll spot Al doing during commercial breaks include calf raises and wall squats.