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Eye-hand coordination

Eye-hand and body coordination involves the integration of the eyes with the hands/body. It determines the effectiveness of a perceptual motor response to a visual stimulus.

Eye-hand coordination is the athlete’s ability to synchronize finger, hand and arm movements with constantly changing visual information from a dynamic sporting environment.

Why is eye-hand coordination important in athletic performance?

Visual coordination affects timing, reaction speed, body control and balance.

Numerous studies across various sports have shown that eye-hand coordination speed is faster among athletes when compared to non-athletes.   In addition, studies have shown it to be a characteristic which distinguishes expertise levels among athletes.

How can athletes improve their eye-hand coordination skills?

Athletes can improve their eye-hand coordination skills with deliberate vision training exercises that require the synchronization of motor movements with visual input.

Effective exercises may vary from simple visual-response tasks that require minimal brain processing, such online computerized reaction speed tests, to more complex visual-response tasks that require greater analysis of visual information, such as juggling, soft toss, or computerized target shooting games.