It's probably not the first thing that springs to mind when you think about the areas of your body you need to tone, but a healthy nervous system is essential for good health. Personal trainer Kathleen Trotter explains and offers some exercises.

Q: What role does the nervous system play in good health?

A: The nervous system can be described as the crucial ingredient of the 'mind-body connection'. The nervous system is vital for good health because it allows one's brain to relay information back and forth to the rest of the body, and this constant communication allows for all human movement. When your nervous system is not functioning at its potential, everything is affected including one's balance, coordination, body awareness and muscle recruitment. In severe cases like Parkinson's (which is a disease that primarily affects the nervous system), one's ability to walk and perform many everyday functional movements is impaired.

Q: Is it possible to train the nervous system?

A: Yes. I would suggest training the nervous system in three ways:

Proprioception: Proprioception is the body's ability to know where it is in time and place, and the body uses its proprioceptive abilities to get information about its surroundings. For example, when we are walking our feet give us proprioceptive feedback about the terrain we are walking on. A well functioning nervous system, using propriception, enables one's body to adapt to its surroundings without consciously thinking about what movement would be appropriate for the situation. Training the body's propriceptive abilities will improve balance, coordination and posture.

Exercise that trains proprioception:
Perform standing balance exercises (preferably with no shoes on.) During these standing exercises, try and close your eyes. The easiest way to do this is to stand on one leg, close your eyes and hold for as long as you can. Once you have mastered standing on one leg with your eyes closed, try moving your arms around while still maintaining your balance.

Tactile Feedback: "Wake up" a sleeping nervous system by using tactile feedback. Tactile feedback will help improve the neurological loop that goes from your brain to your muscles and back to your brain.

Exercise that use tactile feedback:
A simple exercise that uses tactile feedback is a bird dog with a water bottle on your back. To perform this exercise, get down onto all fours and place a water bottle on your lower back. Make sure your pelvis is neutral and your core is tight. Try to keep the water bottle still as you straighten your right arm and left leg. The main thing to focus on is using the water bottle to give you tactile feedback. If you feel all the water move to the right side of the bottle (or the bottle falls off to the right side of your body,) you know your hips are tilting to the right.

Fractionality
Train the fractionality of the nervous system. Fractionality is the ability of the body to do isolated movements and work individual body parts without engaging other muscles that are in close proximity. For example: one has poor fractionality within the foot if one or more of the toes respond when the brain sends signals for only the big toe to move.

Exercises to train Fractionality:

1. Resistance Band Ankle Exercise:
   Lie on your back. Your left leg should be bent with your foot on the floor, and your right leg should be fairly straight with a resistance band or towel wrapped around the ball of your right foot. Make sure your shoes are off. Slowly point and flex your right foot. Repeat 15 times and switch legs. Go slowly and try to feel all the muscles in your foot. Try to differentiate between your ankle moving, muscles within the arch of your foot and your toes.
2. Towel Toe Pulls:
   Sit in a chair with your shoes and socks off. Lie a towel down in front of you. Place your foot on the towel, close to you. Use your toes to pull the towel towards you. This will be slow, and it's supposed to be. Take your time and really feel your toes moving. Try to pull the entire towel towards you. Feel free to reposition your foot whenever too much towel gets underneath your arch.