The vestibular system is a sensory system that provides our brain with information about motion, head position and spatial orientation.

It’s also involved with motor functions that allow us to keep our balance, stabilize our head and body during movement and maintain posture.

The vestibular system impacts your movement, balance and posture.

Poor posture, movement dysfunction, dizziness and a variety of other health issues can all indicate vestibular issues.

If left uncorrected or undetected, compensation patterns and associated movement dysfunctions can and will disrupt movement, increasing the risk of injury and damage to the body, even if the individual is unaware of these dangers.

To help correct things like posture, movement disorders, dizziness and pain, you must address the input your brain receives from the vestibular and visual systems.

If you have ongoing injuries, postural issues, movement disorders, or musculoskeletal pain, keep reading to learn about how working with the vestibular system can help you achieve pain relief and improved performance.

Anatomy

The vestibular system is located in your inner ear.

Each ear has a vestibular apparatus. Each part on each side sends a different signal to the brain.

There are five parts to your vestibular apparatus. Three semicircular canals and two otolith organs are present.

There is a horizontal canal, an anterior canal, and a posterior canal. They’re 90 degrees apart and work together to tell your brain about head and neck movements as well as to coordinate your eyes with your inner ear so your brain gets good information from both systems.

Your brain will send a signal to other parts of your body in response to vestibular system signals to set posture, balance, muscle tension, and even how your organs function, how well you digest food, and so much more.

The vestibular system affects so many different parts of the body.

Training the vestibular system

I believe that training the vestibular system is vital because it’s a system that guides our brain.

I gathered information from the body and used it to design exercises that affect the entire system which has far more impact than a narrow-minded view of muscles and bones.

It’s critical to assess what’s going on in the body and devise a strategy that improves all of the moving parts.

Working on the vestibular system is  often extremely beneficial for athletes and people who want to improve their performance in general.

They frequently need to improve their ability to powerfully extend their hips, knees, spines, and shoulders.

Because of the inherent pathways in the brainstem and spinal cord that connect the inner ear to the muscles of the body, targeted vestibular training can assist them in achieving this change.

Physical activity that stimulates the vestibular system and proprioceptors can greatly improve mobility, balance and overall movement by improving the brains’ understanding of where your body is in space. 

The goal of the exercises I do with my clients is to improve one’s central or brain compensation for vestibular or balance system injuries or abnormalities. This results in improving stability, mobility and flexibility and maintaining an injury-free, active lifestyle.

The brain must be retrained or taught to correctly interpret the information it receives.

Repeatedly performing these exercises can even teach the brain to adapt to an abnormal stimulus.

Some of the exercises we do are:

• Head movements
• Eye exercises
• Utilizing proprioception
• Sitting and standing exercises

Having in mind that vestibular thresholds begin to double every 10 years above the age of 40, representing a decline in our ability to receive sensory information about motion, balance and spatial orientation.^[1] These exercises can help many maintain and optimize the function of the vestibular system.

In addition, vestibular training can assist you in recovering from concussion-related dizziness and headaches, as well as significantly reducing ankle, knee, and hip strain during dynamic activities, lowering your risk of ankle sprains.

Conclusion

In order to maintain a correct posture or produce an efficient movement you should make sure that a few systems in your body are working in sync with each other.

One of them is the vestibular system.

Training these systems will vary from person to person.

Specialized vestibular and balance training takes your existing skills to a whole new level and can also help you recover from injury faster.