Effective Eye Exercises for Dancers

If you have one slightly weaker eye than the other, then your head will spontaneously tilt or turn a bit to neutralize (find a new center). This will put some additional strain on your neck, which might seat your shoulders out. This could then affect your hips or backs. Then both your legs could be under extra pressure. Next thing you know, you have problems with sufficient foot balance and placement. All this is because of issues in one of your eyes!

You can see now how considering the eyes can improve your balance and your dancing. So it’s good to know some eye workouts that improve your symmetry if you want to enhance your dance.

The First Exercise

1. Hold a thin (ball) pen in front of your face (about 40cm or just over a foot away)
2. Now move the pen you are holding in a circle around the perimeter of the edges of your point of view (that means take the pen to an area where you can practically not see it)
3. Keep your eyes pointing ahead
4. You will perhaps find that the pen can go extra to one side than the other
5. Just move the pen around for about 45 seconds

Second Exercise

1. Hold a thin (ball) pen in front of your face (about 45cm or more than a foot away)
2. Now move the pen outlining the number ‘8.’
3. Keep your eyes pointing ahead.
4. You will find that the pen can go extra to one way than the other.
5. Just keep moving the pen in this motion for about 45 seconds.

Focus change 

1. Hold your index finger a foot away from your eye.
2. Calmly focus on your finger.
3. Gently move your finger away from your nose, holding your focus.
4. Look out for a moment, into the distance.
5. Focus on your far away finger and slowly bring it back near your eye.
6. Look away and focus on something far away.
7. Repeat five times.

Near and far focus

1. Hold your finger about 10 inches from your face and concentrate on it for 20 seconds.
2. Find something about 20 feet away, and focus on it for 20 seconds.
3. Return your center to your thumb.
4. Repeat three times.

These simple exercises will assist in balancing your eyes. This will then give you extra symmetry, and your body will undoubtedly move better. 

Here are some other things you can do to improve your eye balance from personal experiences on better dance exercises.

• Stand near a mirror and see if your eyes seemed balanced. By noticing this consciously, your body will typically start to adjust itself.
• Visualize a beam of light vertically, leaving the top of your head. How do you need to adapt your body to ensure that the beam goes from the very top of your head? Thinking about this will also make your body adjust itself.
• Place your fingers over one of your eyes. Imagine that eye and the muscles around it so that you can feel the covered eye resting in its socket. Now take that hand away and see how distinctive that side of the body moves and feels. Repeat the exercise with the second eye.