What Most Parents Don’t Know About ADHD and Balance

It’s Not Just About Focus

If you have a child with ADHD, you know it’s not just about focus. It’s the meltdowns, the impulsiveness, the emotional rollercoaster, and the constant worry that you’re always one step behind.

You’ve probably tried everything. Sticker charts. Breathing exercises. Visual schedules. Maybe even occupational therapy or sensory tools. You’re doing everything you can to help your child stay regulated, focused, and confident.

And yet… there are still those days. Days when nothing helps. When your child is overwhelmed, reactive, or bouncing off the walls for no clear reason.

 And you’re left wondering: What am I missing?

Movement helps — but not all movement is equal

We’ve all heard it before: “Kids with ADHD just need to burn off energy.”

So we sign them up for sports. Let them bounce on trampolines. Encourage outdoor play.

And yes — that kind of activity might help them burn off energy in the moment. But it doesn’t teach them how to manage their emotions or focus more effectively.

What many parents don’t realize is that certain kinds of physical activity actually engage the exact brain systems that ADHD makes hardest to manage:

• Staying focused on a task
• Managing big emotions
• Slowing down before acting
  
  

This isn’t about running wild. It’s about intentional movement — especially activities that challenge balance, coordination, and body awareness. These activate areas in the brain responsible for focus, planning, and self-regulation.

In other words, the right kind of movement doesn’t just wear kids out — it helps wire their brains to manage emotions, energy, and attention more effectively.

Why Balance Training Works for ADHD (and What the Science Says)

Most people think of balance as just a physical skill — something kids develop to ride a bike or walk a beam.

But balance is actually controlled by one of the most powerful systems in the brain: the vestibular system. It sits deep in the inner ear and brainstem, and it plays a major role in how kids focus, regulate their emotions, and process the world around them.

That’s why so many kids with ADHD struggle with balance and coordination — because these brain systems are underdeveloped or overloaded.

But there’s more.

Research shows that the cerebellum — the part of the brain responsible for balance and coordination — is also deeply involved in attention, emotional regulation, and learning. In fact, some studies suggest that children with ADHD often have delayed or disrupted cerebellar development.

So when your child works on their balance, they’re not just improving physical control. They’re activating and strengthening the very parts of the brain that help them manage attention, frustration, and impulsivity.

And it doesn’t take fancy programs to start building these skills.

Balance training — especially when it’s playful, progressive, and includes tasks like guiding a marble through a maze — gives the brain exactly what it needs:

• Vestibular input to support sensory processing
• Proprioceptive feedback to build body awareness
• Focused movement that engages patience and executive function
  
  

It’s fun, but it’s also therapeutic.

With regular balance training, many kids become noticeably more focused, more emotionally steady, and better able to pause before reacting.

And the science backs it up:

A 2019 study published in NeuroQuantology found that children with ADHD who participated in balance and vestibular rehabilitation showed significant improvements in attention, impulse control, and motor skills within weeks of training (Baran et al., 2019).

Research reviewed by the Harvard Education Letter and Tufts Child Study Center linked balance and coordination exercises with improved eye-tracking, postural control, and reading ability — all of which are commonly affected in kids with ADHD.

And a 2008 study in Neuroscience Letters found that even a single session of balance and coordination activity led to better concentration and emotional regulation in adolescents (Budde et al., 2008).

What It Looks Like in Real Life

Balance training doesn’t have to be complicated, clinical, or supervised by a therapist. In fact, it works best when it’s fun, engaging, and part of your child’s everyday routine.

Here’s what it might look like in real life:

• Balancing on one leg while playing monkey see, monkey do
• Catching a ball while standing on a balance board — using the right hand for blue balls and the left for red ones to add a layer of cognitive challenge
• Picking something up from the floor while balancing on one leg — a playful way to build stability and control
• Guiding a marble through a maze while balancing — it’s fun, requires concentration, and gives kids a real sense of accomplishment when they complete it
• Solving simple math problems while navigating the maze — the same type of dual-task training used in the BARAN study, shown to improve attention and executive function in kids with ADHD
  
  

The key is that it’s intentional — not just random movement, but play that challenges focus, coordination, and control at the same time.

Start small. Let them explore. The goal isn’t perfection — it’s progress. With just a few minutes a day, kids begin to improve their awareness, patience, and ability to stay present in the moment.

And if you’re looking for a tool to help make it easier — that’s exactly why we designed our balance boards.

They combine movement, focus, and challenge in a way that feels like play, but supports real developmental growth. The built-in mazes give kids a clear goal, encouraging them to slow down, stay steady, and finish what they started — all while activating the systems in their brain that help them thrive.

A Small Habit That Can Make a Big Difference

Balance training isn’t a magic fix. But it’s a small, powerful habit that can help your child feel more focused, more in control, and more confident — all through play.

It works because it meets ADHD where it lives — in the body, the brain, and the sensory system. And best of all, it’s something you can start doing today.

Discover our wooden balance boards — made in the USA, hand-finished, and designed to support kids' focus, regulation, and coordination through play.