Popular Benefits of Sports Vision Enhancement

Whatever sport you play, you probably rely on your visual acuity to help you excel. But what if a vision issue affects your reaction time or hand-eye coordination?

Sports vision enhancement can help improve your visual skills so you can stay sharp on the field 一 and it’s a service available here at Maryland Eye Care Center.

Here’s what you need to know about sports vision enhancement and how you can benefit from it, courtesy of our team here in Hyattsville and Silver Spring, Maryland.

Understanding sports vision enhancement

Sports vision enhancement is an individualized program of custom eye exercises designed to help improve your visual skills. 

Sports vision enhancement doesn’t treat myopia or hyperopia 一 you may still need to wear corrective lenses or contacts if you have these conditions 一 but it does improve the following visual skills to make your vision more efficient. 

Eye-tracking

Eye-tracking refers to how well you can follow objects visually. Understandably, this visual skill is invaluable for sports like baseball where following an object 一 such as a pitcher’s fastball 一 is key to your success. 

Focus accuracy/focus flexibility

Focus accuracy helps you maintain a clear and sharp focus on objects. Focus flexibility means you can quickly switch your focus between close objects and those at a distance while maintaining clarity. 

This skill is helpful in basketball, for example, if you need to quickly look behind you to gauge how far your opponent is from you and then quickly turn to the basket to shoot the ball.

Depth perception

Depth perception is the ability to assess distance in three dimensions 一 length, depth, and width. It’s one of the most important visual skills for sports performance. 

Not only can depth perception help improve your performance, but it can reduce your risk of sports injuries.

Eye-hand-body coordination

Your hands and body react based on information received from your eyes. Good eye-hand-body coordination boosts your sports performance by maximizing your body’s movements. This skill is tied to another one: visual reaction time.

Peripheral vision

Another visual skill that supports safety while boosting athletic performance is peripheral vision. By improving this skill, you can see not only what’s in front of you but what’s next to you as well.

Visual memory

Imagine an opponent sneaks up on you, and you need to quickly pass the ball to a teammate. Visual memory 一 the ability to remember where people or objects are positioned 一 can help you pass the ball quickly and accurately.

How sports vision enhancement works

Sports vision enhancement is nonsurgical. Your provider here at Maryland Eye Care Center first conducts an exam, reviews your eye health history, and discusses your sports performance goals. Depending on your needs and goals, you may benefit from:

• Specialty lenses, like anti-reflective lenses or anti-glare lenses
• Computerized vision games, including games that monitor eye-tracking
• Focusing exercises
• Exercises to help with convergence/divergence issues

Some exercises are computer-based while other, physical exercises can help strengthen your eye-hand-body coordination, balance, and visual motor integration.

Benefits of sports vision enhancement

Popular benefits of sports vision enhancement include:

• Improved accuracy in terms of goals, baskets, etc.
• Improved reaction time 
• Reduced risk of sports injuries 
• Increased self-esteem on and off the playing field

Despite the name, sports vision enhancement doesn’t just benefit athletes. Strengthening your visual skills can help you whether you’re a weekend warrior, dancer, actor, or musician.

To experience the benefits of sports vision enhancement for yourself, call the Maryland Eye Care Center office nearest you or use our online booking tool to schedule your appointment.