Exercises that will improve your sports performance and quality of life
Reaction speed often plays a decisive role in many sports, especially team sports (football, basketball, volleyball), martial arts (boxing, karate, MMA), and individual sports (hurdling, high jump, long jump, swimming, figure skating, rhythmic gymnastics). In everyday life, it helps to avoid injuries.
What is reaction
Reaction speed (or quickness) in sport is the time that elapses between the appearance of a signal and the start of a response. The signal can be, for example, the action of an opponent, teammate, referee or coach, or something happening on the playing field, on the mat, and so on.
For a sprinter or swimmer, it is important to start immediately after the gunshot, whistle or wave.
In martial arts, it is important to choose the right moment to strike, to block, to dive or dodge, or to counterattack.
For a goalkeeper, it is important to predict the trajectory of the ball or puck and stop it before it crosses the goal line.
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In many sports, it is reaction that determines performance and the winner.
The signal activates various senses and thus determines the reaction. It can be:
auditory — the starting pistol, the referee's whistle,
visual — the flight of the ball, puck or shuttlecock, the facial expressions of opponents and partners,
tactile — a blow, a block.
Reaction speed increases an athlete's effectiveness in difficult situations. The wider their range of well-rehearsed tactical algorithms and technical techniques, the better the result.
An athlete's reaction is not simply a matter of action. In a fraction of a second, they analyse the situation and calculate possible actions (for example, in which direction to move, at what speed, and what to do). This is developed through long and varied training.
What kind of reaction is there?
It can be divided into two main types.
Simple, when the signal is well known to the athlete and is followed by a pre-planned movement. The starting sprint, stopping at the referee's whistle.
Complex, which is characteristic of sports where the situation is constantly and unexpectedly changing. These are martial arts, games, races.
If the first is directly related to movement, action, and reflexes, then the second is related to the coordination of motor activity, which includes analysers (eyes, brain, arms, legs, and the whole body) and ensures their coordinated work.
If the stimulus is visual, it is a visual or visual-motor reaction. With its help, the surrounding environment, the actions of teammates and opponents are perceived and analysed. And the person decides how to act.
How to train reaction speed
Training is the main way to develop reactions. It helps to reduce the time of simple motor reactions, teaches you to see an object moving at high speed, quickly assess the situation and make decisions.
Maxim Oborin noted that developing this characteristic, if it is not required for sports, is not very difficult and does not take much time. You can practise both during training and at home.
Simple exercises
Start by throwing a tennis ball against the wall for 1-2 minutes, for example, during a warm-up. Once it becomes easy, add a second ball.
Hold any object in your hand and stretch it out in front of you. Turn your wrist with your palm facing down. Unclench your hand and try to catch the object.
Use unstable surfaces during warm-up exercises. They will diversify the training process and help develop your reactions.