Tandem stance with eyes closed means standing with your feet in one line, heel to toe, and holding still with your eyes shut. With your eyes closed you lose the quickest way to notice a sway, so your balance depends on what your feet, ankles and inner ear sense on a very narrow base. In the video he holds his arms out to the sides, which helps with steadiness, and a chair stands right beside him. It is one of the harder standing balance positions and comes after tandem stance feels steady with your eyes open.

How to do the tandem stance with eyes closed

Stand beside a kitchen counter, or a heavy chair that cannot fold, tip or slide, close enough to touch it without leaning. Wear flat shoes that fit well and grip the floor, not socks, tights or bare feet.
Place your feet heel to toe in one straight line, with the toes of the back foot against the heel of the front foot. Share your weight evenly between both feet.
Lift your arms out to the sides at about shoulder height, as in the video, and look at a fixed point ahead until the sway settles.
Close your eyes and hold the position with your head level, letting your ankles and hips make the small corrections.
Open your eyes before you lower your arms or move your feet. If you start to tip at any point, open your eyes and put a hand on your support. Switch so the other foot is in front, and repeat.

What you should feel

More sway than with your eyes open, forward and back and from side to side, with your feet and ankles working all the time to catch it. That extra sway is expected, but feeling close to falling is not.

Common mistakes

Shutting your eyes before the eyes-open hold is steady.
Standing too far from the support to reach it in time.
Letting the front foot drift out to the side, which widens your base.
Staying in each hold until you nearly fall, instead of stopping while you are still in control.

How often

Many programs start with short holds of 5 to 15 seconds with each foot in front, repeated 2 or 3 times, once or twice a day, building up as you steady. The voice guide asks for as long as possible, but stop each hold while you still feel in control rather than waiting to tip. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

You feel dizzy, lightheaded, faint or sick, or the room seems to spin. Hold your support, sit down and get medical advice the same day before you practice again. If you faint, it does not settle within a few minutes of sitting still, your vision suddenly blurs or goes double, or you cannot stand or walk steadily, call emergency services.
A sway gets away from you and only your support stops a fall.
Your feet feel newly numb or tingly, or your balance has been slipping over recent weeks. Get medical advice within a few days, and leave out eyes-closed work until you have been checked. If the numbness or tingling spreads quickly up your legs or into your hands, get medical advice the same day. If your legs also feel stiff, heavy or weak, walking suddenly becomes hard, you have trouble breathing or swallowing, or you have trouble controlling your bladder or bowels, call emergency services.

From the clinic

Close your eyes only once you can hold tandem stance steadily with them open and little or no help from your hands. Many programs close the eyes in an easier position first, such as standing balance with eyes closed with the feet together. Arms out, as in the video, is the easier way to learn it. Folding them across your chest makes it harder. Leave that until your physio suggests it.

In the video the man keeps a folding chair right beside him and only touches it at the end. A folding chair can tip or fold if you grab it suddenly, so use a kitchen counter, or stand in the corner of a room with a heavy chair in front of you, and keep a hand hovering near your support. Closing your eyes on a narrow base raises the chance of a fall, so check with your doctor or physio before you begin if you have fallen in the last 12 months, have reduced feeling in your feet, have an inner ear problem or dizzy spells, or take tablets that make you drowsy. Have another adult standing close by for your first sessions, and every time if your physio advises it.

A sudden loss of balance is different. Call emergency services straight away for any sign of a stroke, even if it goes away: sudden dizziness with unsteadiness or falling over, a face that droops on one side, an arm you cannot lift or keep up, slurred or muddled speech, weakness or numbness on one side of your body or face, sudden blurred vision, double vision or loss of sight, or a sudden severe headache.

If you have had a hip replacement, get the go-ahead from your surgeon or physio before you try tandem stance with eyes closed. Some operations limit this kind of work for the first months, so the timing depends on your surgery.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Tandem stance with eyes closed