Eye of the Tiger: Sports Training for Your Eyes

If you have ever seen any of the Rocky movies there is usually a really awesome training montage where the song ‘Eye of the Tiger’ is blasting as Rocky is sprinting up a long series of stairs, doing clean and jerks, and working over a punching bag. The part where he ‘trains’ his eyes must have ended up on the cutting room floor. However, YOU can train your eyes for your favorite sports activities.

Training your eyes for various sports may sound silly but it is something you can really do. Certain sports require excellent hand eye coordination, such as golf, while others require visual memory, such as team sports where you have to see multiple people at once and make split second decisions on where to move. Contrast sensitivity and depth perception is something Olympic alpine skier Lindsey Vonn might work on to train her eyes to read shadows and contours on the mountain.

So here are some eye exercises you can do to train your eyes.

Focus flexibility

This exercise is training your ability to change focus from a close object to a faraway object, or vice versa. One method would be to quickly change focus from your computer screen to an object outside of your window. The bonus to this one is that this can help relieve eye strain if you have been on the computer working for hours.

Depth perception

This is all about how you make spatial judgements, such as how far away a person is from you. Threading a needle or trying to drop a small pebble into a straw at arm’s length are two exercises to train your depth perception.

Peripheral awareness

This is about seeing what is going on alongside of you without turning you head. This is important for team sports on courts and fields where you need to be aware of the people around you. To train your peripheral awareness try looking at a busy scene, such as a baseball game, with your head turned to the side. Remember to train both sides.

Color vision

In games where you have opposing teams in different colors, as well as the playing field and equipment used, you need to be able to distinguish different colors and shades of them quickly. This is one where you can wear sports performance enhancing contacts or glasses.

If you feel you are having issues with any of these vision skills make an appointment for an eye exam today. At Vision Pro we would be more than happy to help you maximize your eye sight to get your ‘Eye of the Tiger’ on!