Reflexes are muscular reactions induced by nerve signals in response to external stimuli. For example, if you spot a ball thrown in the direction of your head, your brain will send a signal to your hand to block it before it can hit you. Having excellent reflexes is important for those who practice sports and in any daily situation that involves physical effort, from driving in a car to crossing the road. Some people are already born with excellent reflexes, while others need to practice to improve reaction times to stimuli. Here are some useful methods to improve the alertness of your reflexes!
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Improving Reflexes with Mental Exercises
Step 1. Improve peripheral vision
Sometimes, reaction times depend on the extent to which the subject is aware of their surroundings. You can improve your ability to sense incoming obstacles and flying objects by paying more attention to peripheral vision during daily activities.
- Find a window with a nice view and focus your attention on something in the distance. Keep staring at it, but in the meantime try to identify what surrounds it entirely. Do this exercise once a day, trying to widen your field of vision more and more. Gradually, you will get used to perceiving a greater number of silhouetted elements in your peripheral vision.
- When you are walking or driving, try to notice the elements that fall within your peripheral vision. Try to quickly name people's hair color or the model of cars passing by.
- On youtube you can find videos related to the topic that show how to combine the study of martial arts with the development of peripheral vision.
Step 2. Play video games
To play, you need good hand-eye coordination. If you don't want to lose, you need to be able to reflect and act immediately without stopping. Many studies show that playing video games for a few minutes a day improves reflexes. In particular, FPS (First Person Shooter, or first person shooter games) and RPGs (Role Playing Games) require excellent coordination, but in general any video game is useful for training reflexes.
Step 3. Try hypnosis
According to some people, the hypnotic technique (called neuro-linguistic programming) helps to increase awareness of a certain object, giving the impression that time expands, creating a wider margin of reaction. Imagine a sports movie where the quarterback watches the ball go towards him in slow motion. Obviously, it is not the ball that moves slower, but according to those who practice this technique, neuro-linguistic programming allows you to see it in this way.
Step 4. Resort to full awareness, the so-called mindfulness
Develop a state of full awareness through regular meditation or by focusing on the present. Clear your mind and try to focus all your attention on what is happening around you. Ignore thoughts of the past or about the future and focus directly on glimpses, noises and sensations related to the moment you are experiencing.
In this way, you will be able to acquire a greater awareness of the present governing your attention and reacting more readily in various situations.
Part 2 of 3: Improving Reflexes with Physical Exercises
Step 1. Practice catching a bouncy ball
If you can, choose a six-sided rubber one so that it bounces in unpredictable directions. You can find it in the best sporting goods stores. Buy it or get a bouncy ball from a vending machine. Throw it at an outside wall.
Concentrate on grabbing it when it comes back in your direction. As your reflexes start to improve, pull it harder by diving for it.
Step 2. Play jacks
When you're feeling a little down, grab everything you need to play jacks. It is an ancient game for children that only needs a ball and 12 pieces of six-pointed metal. Start by bouncing the ball and, in the meantime, collect as many metal pieces as you can. As you get used to it, try to make the ball bounce faster. To increase the difficulty of the game, you can also scatter the metal pieces.
Step 3. Play dodgeball with a partner
For this exercise, you need a larger rubber ball and a friend. Stand in front of a wall (in the gym or outside any building). Your partner has to throw the ball in your direction, keeping at a distance of about 3 meters, while you have to dodge it. As you become more comfortable dodging it, ask your opponent to throw it faster from a shorter distance.
- To increase the difficulty, find a second partner willing to throw another ball at you as soon as you dodge the first.
- Invite opponents to take unpredictable shots, feint, throw the ball from different directions, and so on.
- Being part of a dodgeball team is a great way to improve reflexes. Practice by raising and kicking balls that come in your direction.
Step 4. Try ping-pong
Table tennis, or table tennis, is a great sport for improving reflexes and hand-eye coordination. You can buy the rackets and the table without breaking the bank on the Internet or in sporting goods stores. Alternatively, you can join a ping-pong group or association so that you can compete with different opponents and play more difficult matches as you improve your alertness.
If you've never played ping-pong, it is better for you to join an association to learn the basic rules and principles of the game, but also to know the techniques and acquire fluency and skill.
Step 5. Choose a sport to play regularly
Hockey, tennis, badminton, squash and lacrosse are great for improving reflexes. Go for an athletic activity where you have to handle an object (for example, a ball) using a tool (such as a racket or stick). Typically, these sports require quick reactions and can help you hone both your reflexes and situational awareness.
Step 6. Run in the woods
Since this exercise requires neither special equipment nor a partner, it's probably the best way to start working on your reflexes. Start running by choosing the closest path, preferably narrow and with uneven terrain rather than a comfortable path. The uneven ground and the unexpected presence of roots and rocks to avoid represent stimuli to which the body is forced to react quickly. Run often in the woods to improve your alertness.
- Start running slowly. As your reflexes improve, try increasing your speed more and more. Since the risk of getting injured along a nature trail is greater, try to go slow at first.
- To make your training more lively, change your route from time to time. If you get used to it, your brain will remember obstacles and it will be harder to exercise your reflexes.
- If you don't have a great variety of trails, go the other way around.
Part 3 of 3: Take Care of Yourself
Step 1. Eat nutritious foods
It is essential to keep the body and mind in shape to have excellent reflexes. Foods that contain refined sugars and trans fatty acids can make you feel sluggish. Be careful to get the right amount of protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats.
- Unrefined foods such as nuts, fish, berries, fruits, vegetables and garlic improve cognitive functions.
- Also drink lots of water because dehydration promotes lethargy and slows reaction times.
Step 2. Consider supplements
Some supplements appear to help improve reflexes. Ginseng, gingko, vitamin B12, vitamin C and omega 3 are used to enhance cognitive functions and reaction times.
Step 3. Get enough sleep
According to the National Institutes of Health (an agency of the United States Department of Health), sleep promotes responsiveness and allows for higher performance. Both the body and the brain are slower when you are sleepy and, as a result, your reflexes are impaired. Conversely, the motor response will be faster if you sleep 7-9 hours.
- A good night's sleep consists of 4-5 sleep cycles, each of which consists of a deep sleep phase and a REM (rapid eye movement occurs). In total, it comes to 7-9 hours a night.
- If you haven't slept well before a big competition or game, take a nap a few hours before the event to be more alert when you need to enter the competition.
Advice
- Remember that if you train with a certain movement, your reflexes will improve in relation to that gesture. If you want to get better at catching the baseball, all you have to do is practice consistently until you can catch it automatically.
- If you practice two throws with a teammate or friend, remember to use a soft ball to move faster.
- If you are prone to bruising, ask your dodgeball partner to throw the ball as he approaches, without aiming directly at your body. You will be able to continue to train your reaction times by dodging it.
- Before you start running in the woods, get the right shoes. Choose a model designed specifically for trail running, but if the weather is good, you can also use normal running shoes, as long as they are of good quality.
Warnings
- Consult your doctor before taking supplements as they are not suitable for any disease or certain health condition.
- The use of safety glasses is recommended when practicing shooting the ball.
