20 best coordination exercises

What is coordination and why develop it

Coordination is the ability to perform smooth, precise and controlled movements through optimal muscle interaction.

To perform any movement, the body must strain some muscles and relax others, moreover, do it with the right speed and strength. By developing coordination, you learn to act efficiently and economically in any situation, be it a jump, lifting weights or a difficult gymnastic movement.

Like any movement quality, it can be developed through constant training. Here are some reasons to add coordination exercises to your class:

Reduced risk of falls and injury. Coordination exercises teach the body to tense the right muscles and do it on time, so the chance of maintaining balance in an awkward position or on a slippery surface is greatly increased.
Reducing back pain. Coordination exercises can help relieve low back pain, a common problem that plagues not only the elderly, but also young people. A review of 29 scientific papers showed that coordination training works as well as other types of exercises.
Improving cognitive ability. Coordination exercises provide stimuli to the vestibular, neuromuscular, and proprioceptive systems that send signals to various areas of the brain, including the cerebellum, hippocampus, prefrontal and parietal cortex. Since these zones are also responsible for higher cognitive functions, coordination exercises improve memory, the ability to maintain attention and better orientate in space.

What coordination exercises to choose

Any physical exercise, starting with simple morning exercises and ending with complex acrobatic elements, builds the ability to control your body. You can do yoga or tai chi, learn to juggle, or go to the gym and do strength exercises to improve your coordination.

If you want to train in a short time, try complex coordination movements: they require maximum concentration, involve many muscle groups in the work at once and allow you to increase the difficulty due to the speed of execution.

We offer several options for such exercises:

Strength exercises with your body weight.
Different types of jumping rope.
Exercises on the coordination ladder.
Movements with a tennis ball.

Choose what you like best, or try everything.

How to do coordination exercises

Bodyweight Exercise

You can choose several exercises and do them separately or create an interval workout and pump not only coordination, but also strength and endurance.

1. Moving in a square

Place your feet slightly wider than your shoulders, lean forward and place your hands on the floor - this is the starting position. At the same time, tear off your right arm and left leg from the floor, turn the body to the right, roll over with your stomach to the ceiling and lower your left foot to the floor, and put your right hand behind your back.

Then repeat the same in the opposite direction. Raise your left arm and right leg, turn the body to the right and come out to the starting position. You can always do this exercise in one direction, as shown in the video, or go back in the opposite direction.

2. Jumping lunges and runner stance

Perform two jump lunges with alternating legs. Then move your front leg back and place it on your toes, bend over with your back straight and touch the floor next to your skating leg with the opposite hand. Take your other hand back, behind your back.

To begin with, practice at a slow pace to master the movement, and then increase the speed of execution.

3."Skater" from the lunge

Perform a backward lunge, jump out of it. Then lower yourself into a lunge again, and on the way out, jump to the side with your free leg. After landing, do not lower your other leg to the floor - immediately jump back and repeat the exercise from the beginning.

Try to jump to the side as far as possible, accompany the movement with your hands. Do the required amount in one direction, and then change legs and do the same in the other.

4. Burpee with a jump to the side

Burpee engages many muscle groups and trains endurance. And if you add a little balance to it, it makes a great coordination workout.

Perform a burpee on one leg, and then make a wide jump to the side. If this is too difficult for you, try the skater jumping option. Make one exit to the support position, and then three jumps from side to side with a landing on one leg.

5. Chameleon

Squat down and place your hands on the floor. Walk your hands across the floor while lying down, but do not straighten your knees. Without leaving the support, take a step forward with your right foot and left hand, and lower yourself into a push-up.

Then push yourself up, take a step with your right hand and left foot, and then lower yourself into a push-up. At each step, touch the floor with your chest, try to put your bent leg closer to the pelvis.

If your arms are not strong enough to do push-ups at each step, perform a half-range movement: just bend your arms slightly.

6. Somersault with access to the "pistol"

This exercise improves coordination, balance, and leg strength.

Roll forward, step on one leg, and pull the other forward. Climb out of the pistol and repeat again, this time getting up on the other leg.

If you don't know how to do these squats yet, then it's time to learn. After all, this is another great exercise for developing balance and coordination.

Rope exercises

Jumping rope perfectly pumps coordination, agility and balance, and also develops endurance.

The rope is cheap, does not require a specific training space, and is suitable for people of all skill levels. You can start with simple exercises and gradually increase the speed of execution, as well as combine movements in complexes in any order.

1. Jumping with forward leg extension

Jump on your right leg while bending your left knee. On the second jump, bring your left leg forward. Repeat with the other leg.

2. Boxing jumps with alternating heel and toe

Jump on two legs, then with a jump, take one leg back and put it on your toe, with the next jump, move it forward and put it on your heel. Do the same on the other leg. You can alternate every two times: toe, heel, change of legs. Or after a few: toe, heel, toe, heel, change of feet.

3. Jumping with a change of legs forward-backward

During the jump, bring one leg forward and the other back. Land on both feet at the same time, with your body weight evenly distributed between the ball of your feet. Change the position of your legs every jump.

4. Jumping "legs together - legs apart"

Place your feet together. With the first jump, place them shoulder-width apart, with the second, return them to their original position. You can alternate them with the previous exercise, for example, do two changes of legs forward and backward, and then two "legs together, legs apart."

5. Jumping with crossed legs

With the first jump, spread your feet shoulder-width apart, with the second, cross the right one behind the left. Then, with a jump, return to a stance with feet shoulder-width apart, and the next time, cross your left leg behind your right. Continue jumping in this manner, alternating your legs.

6. Backward scrolling jumping

In the starting position, hold the rope not behind your legs, but in front of them. Rotate your wrists back and jump over the rope when it is down. If you have the opportunity to work with a heavier rope, do it. This will make it easier to learn.

7. Jumping with crossed arms

Do one normal jump rope, and during the second, bring your arms cross in front of your body and jump over the resulting loop. At the moment when the rope passes over your head, spread your arms to the sides again. Change the position of your hands - fold them crosswise and spread them back - when the rope passes the head, but has not yet reached the floor.

Exercises on the coordination ladder

This is a special equipment that is used in football training, various types of martial arts and other sports where good coordination and speed of footwork are important.

Such ladders can be bought at any sports store or ordered online - they cost around a thousand rubles. You can also make a ladder yourself: just draw the lines with chalk or build something similar with belts and laces.

1. Running in and out and out and out

Place your feet on the step one at a time, and then turn them out one at a time. Bend your knees gently and move on your half-toes, trying to complete the movement as quickly as possible and avoid stepping on the edges of the stairs.

2. Jumping on two legs with backtracking

Jump two steps, and then jump back one step.

3. Lateral approaches outward and inward

Turn sideways to the stairs and take turns going inside and out of the boundaries of each step. Move on half fingers and accelerate as you get used to. Perform from both the right and left sides.

4. Jumping out and in

Jump with both feet on the step, then with the jump spread your legs apart so that they are outside the bounds of the stairs. Keep up the good work, climbing one step at a time.

If you think these exercises are too easy, you just haven't tried them quickly. Watch the video below and maybe change your mind.

Tennis Ball Exercises

Exercising with small objects like a tennis ball is excellent for developing hand-eye coordination - the ability to perform precise hand actions based on visual information. It is this kind of coordination that helps to deftly catch the keys thrown to you or to keep the mug falling from the table in time.

1. Tossing the ball with a partner

This will not only improve your coordination, but it will also give you a lot of pleasure. Try this exercise with your children - they will definitely not refuse to help you. Throw the ball from different angles, from behind and in motion, catch it after turning around you.

You can also throw the ball on your knees or squatting, in place or in motion.

2. Throwing the ball against the wall

If you don't have a partner to play with, you can practice with a tennis ball next to the wall. Throw with varying strengths, try turning around after throwing and catching the ball or throwing it into a gymnastic ring or other target.

3. Juggling

To begin, imagine two points in the air, about the distance of your raised arms and about shoulder width apart. Throw the ball with your right hand to a point above your left shoulder, and then catch it with your left hand. Repeat the same on the other side.

Practice this movement until you feel confident. Then take one ball in each hand. Toss the ball with your right hand, aiming at a point above your left shoulder, and, before it drops into your hand, do the same with the ball in your left hand.

The balls should fly up in turn, visit imaginary points and fall into your hands one by one.

Then you can increase the number of balls or perform this movement in difficult conditions: on one leg, unstable support or with your eyes closed.