Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 2: Improve your physical agility
• Method 2 of 2: Improve your mental agility
• Tips

Dexterity refers to the speed or resourcefulness of your physical or mental capabilities. Agility is not a natural trait, so you have every chance to improve these abilities. If you do the right things, you can quickly see improvements in both your physical and mental agility.

To step

Method 1 of 2: Improve your physical agility

1. Improve your balance. Do balancing exercises to increase your general agility. Not only does this strengthen your muscles, it also helps you focus when practicing this skill on a small scale.
   • Try to stand on one leg with your other leg out in front of you. After doing this for ten seconds, switch legs and do the same. You can also use a mirror to check that your legs are straight.
   • Do a handstand or cartwheel when you feel you've mastered the beginner's balance skills. These will help you improve your coordination and balance.
   • Make sure your weight is evenly distributed. You don't want to injure or overuse certain areas, but rather let your whole body work together.
2. Train with weights. There are several types of exercises you can do that target different muscle groups. Work progressively, starting with hand weights and moving up to heavier weights as you build up more strength.
   • Do squats and deadlifts to strengthen your leg muscles and hamstrings. You can hold a weight in either hand while squatting or deadlifting, although the deadlift is traditionally done with a barbell. You can also use a barbell for squats. If you choose this option, place the barbell on your shoulder.
   • You can do the bench press or other exercises for your chest muscles and arms. This will strengthen your arms, which in turn helps with activities such as throwing and catching.
3. Tap cones. Place one cone in front of you. Lift one leg and gently tap the top of the cone with the ball of your foot before returning it to a resting position. Repeat this with the other foot. Switch back and forth and do three sets of 30 seconds.
   • This exercise strengthens the foot muscles and ankles. It also makes you more light-footed and improves foot coordination.
   • Try not to trip over the cone. If you notice the cone falling over, slow down your movements until you are no longer hitting the cone.
   • Once you've mastered this exercise on one level, increase your speed to gain more skill and balance. You can also add more reps of 30 seconds.
4. Do ladder exercises. Using an agility ladder about nine feet long with rungs about 18 inches apart, walk slowly through each opening of the ladder. Keep your arms high with each step and bring your knees to your chest, switching arms and legs as you make your way up the ladder. Once at the end of the ladder, return to where you started to complete an exercise.
   • Do each rep 2-4 times, doing more reps as you get better at it. You can also increase your speed as you get better.
   • If you don't have an agility ladder, you can make your own with sticks and rope, or with tape.
   • Alternatively, try this exercise sideways instead of forward. Jump sideways between rungs before lifting one leg and arm, as in the original exercise.
5. Do suicide runs. Start by running to a point about six feet away. Once you get to that point, turn around and run back to where you started. Without stopping, turn around and walk back nine meters, then return to the start. Finally, turn around without stopping and run 12 meters, then return to the start.
   • Do several cycles of these sprints for best results. You can also extend the distance once the first runs get too easy for you.
   • This is a great way to improve your strength, speed, balance and precision. Do these a few times a week to see its benefits.
6. Go hurdles. Set up a row of 5-10 blocks of 15 or 30 cm in a straight line. Start next to the first block and jump over it with your first leg, pausing for a few seconds, before dropping your other leg to stand between the first two blocks. Jump back over the first block and return to start. After that, repeat the same side jump over block 1 and block 2 before returning to the start. Follow the same pattern for all blocks, jump over all the obstacles before returning to the start. Repeat with your other side, turning around and guiding with your other leg.
   • Once you have mastered this, try to increase your speed as you take the hurdles so that there is no break between each jump.
   • Instead of hurdles, you can use cones, yoga blocks, or any other object you have on hand. Just make sure it's in a shape that's easy to jump over and won't cause injury.
   • If you're just getting started, try a 6-inch hurdle first. If that's still too high, try a smaller object or just jump imaginary obstacles in the air. After a few weeks of doing this exercise, you can jump higher.
   • The purpose of these types of exercises is to increase your balance and stride length. This will help you improve your performance in sports such as tennis, football and rugby.

Method 2 of 2: Improve your mental agility

1. Eat the right breakfast foods. Waking up every day with a diet full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants can increase your mental capacity over time. Furthermore, there is also the added benefit of strengthening your immune system and improving your health.
   • Regularly eating a (hard) boiled egg rich in choline (a B vitamin) can increase your verbal and visual performance. There is also a recent study linking this vitamin to a protection against dementia.
   • Eat foods rich in zinc, such as bran. Zinc plays a central role in cognitive stability and memory. There is also the added effect of improving the look of your skin.
   • Eat antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables. They provide your brain with necessary nutrients that it may not be getting through other things in your diet. They help improve your mental capacity and memory.
   • A small amount of caffeine early in the morning with a cup of coffee or caffeinated tea can help improve mental performance and memory, and increase concentration.
2. Exercise during the day. You can do a short workout at any time of the day to improve your mental performance. It also boosts mental health and agility by reducing stress, boosting mood-enhancing chemicals in your brain, relieving anxiety, increasing relaxation, and increasing creativity.
   • Exercising such as aerobics releases vital neurotransmitters that increase concentration and brain power and help you concentrate. Cardiovascular workouts can also increase the production of brain cells in your hippocampus, the part of your brain responsible for learning and memory.
   • You can take a brisk walk, jog, or run if you prefer to be outside. If you prefer to be indoors or the weather conditions are unhelpful, work out on a stationary bike or treadmill. Do these exercises for 45-60 minutes, four days a week. Not only does it improve your mental state, it also aids in your physical agility.
3. Read more. Whether it's the latest thriller, a classic novel, or your favorite magazine, reading involves many parts of your brain in memory, cognition, and imagination. Your brain imagines environments and people and your brain provides voices for the dialogues. Even with simple sentences, your brain has to recall the meaning of words and concepts and this will stimulate the development of your brain. Reading also improves mood and increases relaxation.
   • Choose any kind of reading that you enjoy most. As long as you immerse yourself in it and enjoy it, your mind will be active.
4. Play games. Whether it's a video game or a traditional mind puzzle, games test multiple skills and open neural pathways. Choose those games that require skill and multiple cognitive levels to improve focus and your memory. Play the game a few days a week to keep your mind active and improve your cognitive performance.
   • You can do Sudoku, crossword puzzles, or other games that test your reasoning skills to keep your brain nimble. Also try trivia-based games to build your brain muscles and improve your memory.
   • Even if you are older and have no experience with games or don't really like games, you can choose a video game that you can play, such as a racing game or puzzle. You can enjoy it a lot and it also improves your mental skills.
   • There are also online platforms such as Luminosity.com with various games to increase mental agility. Luminosity bases their games on scientific research and tailors the games you play to those areas of your thinking that you want to improve.
5. Learn something new. Learn a new way to complete your normal routine and your daily tasks. You can also start playing a new instrument, learn a new language, travel to new places, or even prepare new food. These tasks help your brain create new neural pathways.
   • Difficult new tasks improve brain function and memory. This puts your brain to work in new ways and opens up unknown mental territory.
6. Collaborate with others. Whether at work or at home, collaborate on projects with other people. This takes you out of your familiar mindset and forces you to work with other people and be considerate of them. Try to view the project from their point of view or integrate their ideas into your own. This encourages you to see something in a new way and approach it from a different angle, which keeps your brain fast.

Tips

• Do not take too much rest time between physical activities. This gives your body time to adjust and your heart rate will return to normal. You want your heart rate to stay high for 20-60 minutes for best results.
• Always do the most difficult exercises after your warm-up. Your body will be less fatigued and you can focus on the shape and be less likely to injure yourself.
• You should rest for 48 hours between intensive physical workouts. This gives your body and central nervous system time to recover and maintain the new skills. Do exercises that are light or less strenuous on the rest day to continue your workout without the risk of prolonged fatigue.
• For best results, do something every day to improve both types of agility.