Amazing Point of View Eye Care & Eye Gym: Where vision is more than 20/20!!

What is Sports Vision Training?

Dr. Jemyre Felton specializes in sports vision training, which is a type of optometric vision therapy that enhances sports performance by improving the connection between the eye and brain so that the brain processes more of what the eyes see. The visual system summarizes what is seen, then tells the brain to activate the muscles in the body to execute an action. As a result, vision directs the rational movement of the body; the more accurately the visual system can manage visual information, the more accurately it can direct meaningful body movement. Vision is the primary sense (of the five senses) used by athletes and accounts for more than 80% of the sensory processing requirements used during sports activities.
The purpose of vision therapy is to train the brain to achieve maximum efficiency in the way it processes and responds to visual input. Sports Vision Training helps athletes with good vision process and respond to what they see quicker and more precisely. Studies show that the most successful athletes are those with the best visual-motor operation. Poorly timed or inaccurate responses are what inhibit good athletes from becoming great athletes. In the same way that an athlete improves sports performance by training the body for strength and endurance, visual skills can be reformed and reinforced through a wide range of eye conditioning activities.
Superior visual skills can propel good athletes to higher levels of performance. An exceptional athlete needs neuro-visual responses that are productive, precise, and infallible each and every time. Thankfully, Dr. Felton can help train that functional vision. Sports vision training can improve athletic performance for children and adults alike for players, weekend warriors, firefighters, police officers and military personnel.

What are the steps during Sports Vision Training?

First, Dr. Felton performs an initial examination to assess each athletes’ visual abilities pertaining to the sport of their choice. With the results, she evaluates where that athlete ranks in comparison to their peers playing the same sport at the same level of play. She will then formulate a training program that improves the areas that the athlete is deficient. Performance training of these skills is not a ‘one size fits all’ approach, as the visual skills for optimum athletic performance will vary, depending on the demands of each sport and the needs of each player.
Dr. Felton uses state of the art training equipment that is also utilized by professional sports teams such as the Houston Astros and Houston Rockets. This training has been proven to improve competitive performance by enhancing situational awareness, focus flexibility, reading of human movement cues, and tracking of dynamic scenes.

What are the benefits of Sports Vision Training?

Sports Vision Training utilizes the vision/brain skills listed below provide significant benefit in every sport.

  • Eye Focusing or accommodation: the strength, flexibility, and accuracy of the eye focusing system. Accommodative skills allow the athlete to keep objects in focus at near and far distances as well as quickly change focus between ear and fat during the game.
  • Dynamic Visual Acuity: perfect the athlete’s ability to keep objects clear while in motion and helps the athlete track moving objects.
  • Eye-Hand Coordination: how well the athlete coordinates eye movement control with hand movements. Upgrading this skill will enhance the eye’s ability to direct body movements and will increase the athlete’s ability to reach, pass, throw, grab and hit more precisely.
  • Eye Tracking: helps track objects more accurately and move the eyes with greater precision
  • Peripheral Vision: allows us see objects all around without turning our head or moving our eyes. It helps maintain balance and walk without bumping into things. Expanding peripheral vision helps the athlete see objects outside of their focal point and gives the athlete a wider view of the field.
  • Visual Tracking: the ability to move our eyes while maintaining focus on the exact object we are looking at. Improving visual tracking improves the athlete’s reaction time, speed, and fluidity within their sport.
  • Visual Reaction Time: the amount of time it takes for environmental stimuli to travel from our vision system into our motor system to produce a physical reaction. Improving visual reaction time helps the athlete reduce the amount of time it takes to respond to what is seen by training the eyes and brain to work more usefully
  • Peripheral Awareness: Used to keep our guard up and detect motion. Developing this function not only helps to make athletes better players but also to avoid injury. Peripheral awareness allows players to see the location of the ball, teammates, and opponents all at once
  • Vision-Balance Integration– Balance relies on central and peripheral vision, and most aspects of sports performance can be improved with better balance.
  • Depth Perception and distance estimation– Assess more accurately and quickly the speed and distance of a moving object.
  • Contrast Sensitivity– Improved contrast improves the ability to see a white ball against a blue sky

Athletes can use sports vision training to improve their level of play and get an edge over the competition. These days, most competitive athletes have the physical strength, speed and endurance required to play the game at a higher level. However, it is visual processing and reaction speed that separates the good from the best. With sports vision training from Dr. Felton, high performing athletes will gain the ability to make split-second, game-changing decisions that help them rise above the competition and lead their teams to victory. For sports with rapid movements, the athletes who have undergone sports vision training will have a significant advantage over their competition.

Which Sports does the training improve?

In baseball and tennis: sports vision training helps in predicting the speed and location of the ball.
In soccer, hockey, and volleyball: sports vision training helps with anticipating and reacting more quickly when a puck or ball is headed your direction. The training at Amazing Point of View Eye Care & Eye Gym will increase accuracy and the speed of the eye-hand response.
In basketball: sports vision training helps improve peripheral vision which allows players to process the location of other teammates as well as opponents more quickly. Basketball players will also be able to increase the ability to focus accurately and quickly while in motion. With training, their shot can become more consistent.
In track and skiing: sports vision training improves depth perception and focus.
In football: sports vision training will enable an increase in eye-foot response as well as increase depth perception. Balls will be thrown and/or caught with more precision

What are the results of undergoing Sports Vision Training?

After training with Dr. Felton, our athletes have much better control of their vision, greater agility, and advanced efficiency as well as visual confidence in:

  • Dynamic visual acuity
  • Eye-hand coordination
  • Peripheral awareness
  • Eye tracking
  • Focusing and accommodation
  • Visual reaction time

How do I get started?

To learn more, please fill out the form below. One of our Sports Vision Coordinators will be in touch to answer your questions or help schedule an evaluation for you. You can also contact us at (832) 340-7769 (League City).

Sports vision training is for athletes of all ages and all activity levels. It is no longer reserved for only sports professionals and elite athletes. We can’t wait to SEE you shine!

Sports Vision Training in action!