Byline: LISA LIDDANE Orange County Register
When we think of improving our athleticism, we think of the usual suspects: muscle strength, cardiovascular and muscle endurance and flexibility, and occasionally, hand-eye coordination.
But what we may not realize is that good sports vision is a crucial ingredient in athleticism -- and not just in ``ball'' sports (baseball, football, etc.) Better visual skills can make a difference in performance in activities such as surfing, inline-skating and mountain-biking although the results of training seem the most obvious in sports such as baseball, football, volleyball, basketball and golf.
There are exercises for eyes that can improve our vision skills, according to the American Optometric Association, which counts sports-vision specialists among its members. A sports-vision optometrist can evaluate your visual skills and challenges relative to your chosen activities and prescribe a list of eye exercises. Here are some general exercises from the AOA. Remember that these exercises are not meant to address medical conditions and that some people may need more individualized training. Dynamic visual acuity: This allows you to clearly see objects while you and/or the objects are moving quickly. Cut letters of different sizes out of a magazine and tape them to a turntable. Try to focus and identify them from arm's length at 33, 45 and 78 rpms. As it becomes easier, use smaller letters. Eye tracking: This helps you to maintain better balance and react to a situation more quickly. Your eyes follow objects without much head motion. Place a book on your head, and a softball or baseball on the inside edges of a Frisbee. Roll the ball within the circumference of the Frisbee and follow the movement with your eyes, while keeping the book balanced. Focus flexibility: This enables you to shift focus from one object to another at a different distance. This could make the difference in your reaction time. Post a newspaper page (like this) on a wall at eye level about 15 feet away. Hold a similar one in one hand 15 inches from your face at the same height but slightly to one side so you can see both pages. Focus on a headline on the page on the wall, then suddenly change focus to the page closer to your face. Keep shifting focus back and forth. If it becomes easier, move the paper in your hand closer to your face.
Visual memory: This is the ability to remember a fast-moving, complex picture of people, the kind you might find in a soccer or football game, or while surfing or cycling. Leaf through a magazine with a lot of photos or illustrations, glancing briefly at the page. Turn the page and reconstruct the images from memory. When this becomes easy, wait five seconds before starting to remember the images. Visual concentration: This is the ability to screen out distractions. Practice your sport or activity while there are other people moving in the background.
Peripheral vision: This is seeing things when you are not looking directly at them. Watch TV with your head turned to one side, then the other.
