Eye speed exercises serve two primary purposes. They potentially increase your reading speed, while decreasing your reaction time in sports and daily functional activities. Performing eye speed exercises on a regular basis may minimize the time it takes to read a paragraph, while also minimizing the time it takes to catch a ball or respond to outside stimuli.
Identification
Just as your body has different movement patterns, your eyes use different movements for different situations. Saccadic eye movement is used in rapid scanning. You might use saccadic eye movements for scanning an article or a crowd to find your friend. Vestibular-ocular movements integrate eye movement with head movement, while assisting with dynamic balance. A dancer would use this type of movement while performing a pirouette. When crossing the street and looking for cars in the distance, your eyes would use vergence movements, which focus on objects moving in the distance. As you watch a car slow to a stop, your eyes use smooth pursuit movements, which watch objects moving in slow motion. An eye-speed exercise program should address most of these eye movements.
Significance
Aging plays a key role in eye speed, writes Keiko Ishihara in a chapter in a book titled "International Encyclopedia Of Ergonomics And Human Factors, Volume 1." The elderly experience more involuntary eye movements, such as blinking. When you blink, your eyes are closed for a fraction of a second. Ishihara explains that this puts the elderly at a disadvantage during visual search tasks. Strengthening your extraocular muscles may help you control saccadic eye movements. Close your eyes and focus directly ahead. Keep your head still and your eyes closed as you move your eyes up and down. Perform six repetitions, open your eyes and blink three times. Then, close your eyes, look straight ahead and move your eyes from right to left. Perform six repetitions.
Effects
Color or contrast sensitivity also diminishes with age. This is significant to the elderly and for athletes of any age. Dr. Barry Seiller, director of vision performance for the U.S. Ski Team, explains that some people may have excellent visual acuity but demonstrate a poor ability to see under changing light conditions. A skier with poor contrast sensitivity may have difficulty during the flat light of the late afternoon and may have a delayed response to obstacles that cross his path. To improve contrast sensitivity, turn on your television and tune to the scrolling preview channel, which lists texts on the screen. Simultaneously open a newspaper, alternate between reading the screen and the newspaper texts. Gradually increase your speed.
Potential
Improve eye speed by practicing eye exercises on a regular basis. When riding in a a car or on a bus, or while out for a walk or run, try to read road signs or license plates on your far right or left, without moving your head. Perform the exercise for five minutes, rest five minutes and repeat.
Expert Insight
Specialists on the Mind Tools website suggest eye speed exercises for enhancing reading speed. They suggest gradually increasing the number of words you read in each block, reducing fixation time and reducing skip-back time. Holding the text further away from your eyes may help you increase the number of words you can read. To reduce skip-back time, run your finger, a pen or a pencil along the text. Your eyes will follow the tip of your pointer and smooth your reading flow.
