Enhancing peripheral vision with five eye exercises
What's the story
Peripheral vision is crucial for spotting movement and finding your way around in low light.
Unlike central vision, which gives us clear, focused images, peripheral vision lets us perceive the world without looking directly at it.
Athletes, drivers, and anyone looking to increase their visual awareness can gain an edge by improving peripheral vision.
This article provides five proven exercises to help you train your peripheral vision.
Focus shift
Focus shifting exercise
Hold a finger a few inches from your face and focus on it.
Then, without moving your head, shift your gaze to an object approximately 10 feet away.
Repeat this process daily for two minutes.
This exercise improves both central and peripheral vision by training your eyes to rapidly adjust focus between near and far distances.
Object track
Peripheral object tracking
Take a small object such as a pen or marble for this exercise.
Hold it at arm's length in front of you and slowly move it in different directions: up, down, left, right, and diagonally.
Keep your head still and follow the object with your eyes only.
Spend about three minutes daily on this exercise to improve the agility of your peripheral vision.
Hand motion
Dynamic hand movements
Extend both arms out to the sides at shoulder height.
Without moving your head or looking directly at them, wiggle your fingers and slowly bring your hands closer until they are about three feet apart.
Then move them back out again, continuing to wiggle the fingers throughout the movement.
Doing this exercise for three minutes every day can help improve the sensitivity of your peripheral field.
Vision breaks
The "20-20-20" rule exercise
To avoid eye strain, particularly when working on computers or reading for long periods, follow the "20-20-20" rule: every 20 minutes, take a break and look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
This simple exercise not only minimizes eye strain but also fosters a conscious connection to the world beyond the screen or book by encouraging a regular shift in focus from close-up to the wider environment.
Ball toss
Ball tossing exercise
Two individuals stand five feet apart, one with a ball. They throw it underhand to each other, while maintaining eye contact with each other, and not the ball.
The catcher uses their peripheral vision to catch the ball and throw it back.
Doing this enjoyable exercise every day will significantly improve your peripheral awareness.