This week we're going to exercise a body part that has never been featured in this column before: the eyes.

Yes, according to yoga instructor Yvette Tee (below), you can give your peepers a workout. And it goes further than the 'look into the distance every now and then' advice dished out to those who spend hours in front of a computer.

Tee, 37, has perfect eyesight and she credits it to these eye exercises, which she has been doing for years.

While Western medical practitioners do not focus much on eye exercises, yoga has incorporated these movements into its asanas (postures).

The exercises work the muscles in the eye region and are credited with staving off the deterioration of eyesight normally associated with ageing.

She does warn, however, that people who have had eye surgery recently or suffer from eye problems should consult their eye doctors before doing these exercises.

Originally a group exercise junkie, Tee, who teaches a type of yoga called Kryoga at Spaboutique in Nassim Road, says she fell in love with yoga after trying a class by the beach in Thailand in 2000.

She claims that Kryoga, developed by Indian yoga master Kamal, is especially good for those who suffer from sports injuries, stress, high blood pressure, back and neck pains, asthma and gastric problems.

Like all yoga practitioners, Tee believes that the mind and body have to work in harmony for one to achieve fitness and health.

Hence her way of ending this workout: 'After doing these exercises, rub your palms together to create heat, then cup your eyes with the flesh of your palms very gently. Let the warmth from your palms relax your eyeballs. Then slowly open your eyes into your palm with a smile on your face.'

Now, don't forget that smile.

Yvette Tee can be contacted via Spaboutique on 6887-0760.

Side to side	Diagonal	Rotation	Up and Down
Open your eyes wide and, without moving your head from side to side or blinking, look as far left as you can for about three to four seconds. Then look to the right. Do it 10 times and, after the last repetition, look straight ahead, close your eyes and take a deep breath.	Open your eyes wide and, without moving your head or blinking, look up towards the right hand corner for about three to four seconds. Then look down towards the left hand corner. Do it 10 times. Then repeat by looking up towards the left hand corner and then down towards the right hand corner. To end, look straight ahead, close your eyes and take a deep breath.	Open your eyes wide and, without moving your head or blinking, move your eyes clockwise counting from one to 12 like the numbers on a clock. Do it three times. Then repeat in the anti-clockwise direction three times. Then look straight ahead, close your eyes and take a deep breath. If you feel dizzy, do a smaller circle instead.	Open your eyes wide and, without moving your head or blinking, look up towards the ceiling for about three to four seconds. Then look down towards the floor. Do it 10 times and, after the last repetition, look straight ahead, close your eyes and take a deep breath.

This article was first published in Urban, The Straits Times on Mar 6, 2008.