Episode 13: Graham Erickson, OD, FAAO, FCOVD “Sports Vision Training”

Dynamic Duo Podcast

We welcome Dr. Graham Erickson and his knowledge on sports vision training. He covers the basics and benefits athletes can gain from joining a sports vision training program.

Things you will learn in this episode:

• Sports vision training is used to optimize the visual system to increase performance within the sport. Just like the body, you continue to strengthen and push to deliver positive results.
• The basis for any sports vision exercises stem from visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and depth perception. From there, many other skills can be layered on.
• Although every sport can benefit, baseball and hockey have seen the most improvement with the integration of sports vision training.
• Having a baseline of visual acuity, refraction, rapid eye movements, and multiple object tracking can be useful to measure improvement of the athlete.
• The first step of vision sports training is receiving an accurate and recent eye exam.
• Skills obtained from a vision training program can be carried over to daily life such as driving or aging.

Resources Mentioned:

Sports Vision: Vision Care for the Enhancement of Sports Performance

Why Elite Vision is a Must-Have for MLB Players

Dr. Graham Erickson has been on the faculty since 1998, and currently teaches the Pediatric Optometry, Vision Therapy and Sports Vision courses. He is a diplomate in the Binocular Vision and Perception Section of the American Academy of Optometry, and fellow of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development.

He has authored the text Sports Vision: Vision Care for the Enhancement of SportsPerformance, currently the only resource both for the student learning about the field, and the practitioner seeking a deeper understanding and application of Sports Vision. In addition, Dr. Erickson co-authored the text OptometricManagement of Reading Dysfunction, and published chapters and articles in various optometric journals. He lectures nationally and internationally on the topics of Sports Vision, pediatrics, binocular vision, and dyslexia.

Dr. Erickson has served as chair of the Binocular Vision, Perception and Pediatric Optometry section of the American Academy of Optometry, Chair of the American Optometric Association Sports Vision Section council, and is currently the Oregon director for the Special Olympics Lions Club International Opening Eyes vision health program.

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