Balance boards are popular

Luna, UNDA, Montreal B-Board, Quebec manufacturers multiply and offer products as pleasant to look at as to use.And if you have handyman talents, you can easily find tutorials on the internet to build one.

A house balance board

Photo: Getty Images / Istockphoto / Natalia Duryagina

Launched in 2018, the young company Montreal B-Board is one of those for whom the stars have lined up during the pandemic.

Before the pandemic, it was already fine, says the founder of the company Nicolas Loiselle.When the pandemic struck, the company was put on break, the gyms closed and people wanted to find new ways to move, to train and my product went directly into this line.

Nicolas Loiselle does not hide that his turnover increased from $ 52,000 in sales last year to $ 650,000 this year.

Some of the Montreal B-Board creations.

Photo: Facebook Gralicété Montréal B-Board

There has also been a movement to encourage local entrepreneurs and I cohaisted all these boxes, he stresses.My product took off from the second week of the pandemic and it has been non-stop since that time.I was then broadcast on the program in the dragon eye.It gave another big push.And the more visibility, the more people talked about it, the more people talked about it, the more people wanted it, it had a snowball effect.

The fact that the Sébastien Toutant Olympic medalist has published many videos on social media using balance boards must have helped the emerging industry a little.

Teleworkers are also attracted to the product, driven by the desire not to sit all day.

People are turning more and more to standing offices to work, notes Nicolas Loiselle.The Balance Board, once you master it, you can do lots of things, talk on the phone, write a text, read a book or write to the computer.

From rehabilitation to your living room

The balance board is not new in itself.Used for several years in rehabilitation, it has gradually entered the gyms and now in salons with more aesthetic versions.

Le vice-président de la Fédération des kinésiologues du Québec, Marc-Antoine Pépin, affirme que c’est unoutil aussi valable que n'importe quel autre outilet que la planche d’équilibre peut être intéressante pour varier votre routine d’entraînement.

"From the point of view of balance and proprioception, where we are in space, there are benefits that are undeniable.We are used to having both feet on the ground.When you walk, you run or go cross -country skiing, you have two flat feet.Having this notion of balance and instability is an interesting addition that is little present in training that people have at home.»»

— Une citation deMarc-André Pépin, vice-président de la Fédération des kinésiologues du Québec

There are many models of balance planks.

Photo: Facebook Gralicété Montréal B-Board / floregnier

Due to the shape of the balance board, we immediately make the link with surfing, snowboard and roller board.The founder of Montreal B-Board believes that the product is not only aimed at sliding sports enthusiasts.

It is for so much more people, says Nicolas Loiselle.Those who want to practice yoga at home, who just want to train at the fitness level, for board sports athletes or hockey players.It is a tool that is very versatile when you want to work in general your proprioception.It will help motor skills, weight transfers and reflexes.

Marc-André Pépin recalls that the balance board was already present in the life of certain athletes.

I see it from a perspective of rehabilitation or return of injury for example, indicates the kinesiologist.We see a lot of the use of this among athletes who recover from a sprained ankle when they have to come back and enhance their muscles.

And can we do a complete training with a balance board?The kinesiologist replies that yes, but it depends on our goal.

If we want to really develop our strength, our muscle mass, when we work on a balance board, we will have to lower the charges that we will take a little bit. À ce moment-là, qu’est-ce que l'on veut plus travailler, l'équilibre ou la force, dit Marc-André Pépin.

We cannot necessarily do all our exercises on the board, but there is a way to have a complete training if our goal is to develop our stability and our proprioception.

A young man standing in balance.

Photo: Istock

And if you wonder about the exercises you can do on the balance board, you are not alone.

"In events, people who came to try my product wondered what to do with.You can do training, pushaps positions, lunges, there are several exercises available, but people did not have this creativity.They were standing and after they asked me what to do.I quickly understood that people needed to be guided in the use of this bébelle and this is where the idea of making training videos came.»»

— Une citation deNicolas Loiselle, fondateur de Montréal B-Board

There are very few contraindications for the use of a balance board, according to Marc-André Pépin.It is even used with the elderly to develop their stability and prevent falls.Regardless of your age, however, you must ensure that you are in a safe environment, that is to say to have a support and a clear space.

Balance boards are used to prevent falls in the elderly.

Photo: Getty Images / Istockphoto / Jacoblund

As for the founder of Montreal B-Board, he dreams that the balance board becomes a sport in its own right.

I give myself the objective of being able to organize competitions and to make this discipline grow that we will one day find in complementary competitions, such as skateboarding, snowboarding and all other board sports.