Many people each year learn that they have to wear glasses because they have lost their close-up vision (farsightedness) or have lost their distance vision (nearsightedness). Many begin to lose their vision as they age, or suffer damage from modern living. Fluorescent lighting, a lack of exercise, spending a lot of time in front of a computer, and watching television all contribute to blurry vision and vision loss by putting extra strain on your eyes.
If you want to get into better vision habits and help improve your vision naturally, follow these exercises to give your eyes a workout!
Focusing
If you already wear contact lenses or glasses, be sure to remove them for this exercise. Once you are sans-eyewear, hold your thumb close up and focus on it. Then focus on your other thumb held away at arm’s length, then move your focus to something across from you in the room, and then at something really far away, like something out the window. Ideally you want to keep all four points along the same line of sight, so this way you are making subtle changes in focus. Be sure to spend about 1-2 seconds focusing on each item, and repeat the exercise for several minutes.
Palming
This is a great eye relaxation exercise, and it’s excellent for when your eyes are feeling worn and tired from staring at a screen all day. Start by cupping your hands over your eyes and create a gentle pressure on the bone that surrounds the eye socket. With your eyes closed, stare off into the “darkness” and allow for the colors to fade to black, which will help “reset” your vision and allow them to relax and lubricated. You can complete this exercise for as long as you like, but at least 30 seconds is needed in order to make your eyes feel rejuvenated.
Zooming
This exercise is similar to focusing, but is better designed for people who are losing their sight due to aging, or from farsightedness. Start off by holding your thumb out at arm’s length and focus on it. Then draw in your thumb until it’s about three inches in front of your eyes, maintaining your focus on the thumb as you draw your thumb inward. Now move your thumb back out again, and complete this exercise for a few minutes.
Blinking
Did you know that the average blink rate drops from 16-20 blinks per minute to 6-8 blinks per minute when you are staring at a screen! This can make one suffer from dry eyes, which can lead to headaches, eye strain, as well as blurred vision. The best way to fight against this is to blink more, especially when you are staring at a screen. If you feel like your eyes are straining when you are on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, be sure to blink. Blinking helps lubricate the eyes and will refresh your brain!
Flexing
This is a warm-up exercise that stretches your extra ocular muscles, and will help get you out of the habit of staring only 1-2 feet in front of your face. Start by facing straight ahead, with your eyes open, and then look up as far as you can without moving your head. Then shift your gaze down, and repeat; up, down, up, down. Then shift your gaze to your top right, and stretch your vision as far as you can. Now shift to your bottom left, and repeat. Be sure to work the other side as well, by shifting your gaze to your top left and then to your bottom right. Repeat the exercise, stretch, and feel the burn!