Rewiring Your Brain Through Movement

Presentation with Jules from Brain Body by Jules  

About This Resource
Join Jules, a former professional athlete turned brain-body educator, for an inspiring and deeply informative Q&A session where she shares her personal journey of recovering from concussion using dual movement brain exercises. This presentation offers a unique window into the intersection of neuroscience, somatic practice, and real-world healing.

Jules holds a Master's degree in Health Informatics and works as both a Health Scientist and Data Scientist whilst teaching graduate-level courses in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. She is also a Certified Somatic Reprocessing Practitioner for Illness and Pain, bringing evidence-based insights into nervous system regulation and mind-body healing.

What You'll Discover: The Science of Brain Rewiring

In this session, Jules opens up about her concussion recovery and how she harnessed the power of neuroplasticity, the brain's remarkable ability to reorganise itself by forming new neural connections throughout life.

She explores the concept of prediction error, a fundamental mechanism in how our brains learn and adapt. Prediction error occurs when there's a mismatch between what our brain expects to happen and what actually happens. This "surprise" signal is crucial for learning, as it prompts the brain to update its internal models and create new neural pathways. When we challenge our brain with unexpected or novel movements, like dual-task coordination exercises, we generate prediction errors that drive neuroplastic change.

Jules also delves into the neuroscience behind dopamine reset, explaining how these movement practices can help recalibrate our brain's reward system and restore healthy dopamine function, which is essential for motivation, focus, and emotional regulation.

Three Dual Movement Techniques

This isn't just theory. Jules guides you through three practical dual movement exercises that you can integrate into your practice immediately:

1. Pinky Switch Exercise with Physiological Sigh
Combining alternating hand movements with the physiological sigh (a double inhale followed by an extended exhale) to rapidly downregulate the nervous system whilst challenging motor coordination.

2. Salute and Thumbs Up with 4-7 Breath
Pairing contrasting hand gestures with an extended exhale breath pattern (4-count inhale, 7-count exhale) to activate the parasympathetic nervous system whilst building new interhemispheric connections.

3. Squirt the Bunny with Box Breath
Integrating playful bilateral movements with box breathing (equal counts for inhale, hold, exhale, hold) to create a balanced state of alert calm whilst strengthening cognitive flexibility.

The Science Behind the Practice
These dual movement exercises paired with breathwork create a powerful synergy for brain and nervous system change.

How It Works
The bilateral coordination challenges force both hemispheres of your brain to communicate through the corpus callosum, strengthening interhemispheric connections and building new neural pathways. When you perform different movements with each hand simultaneously, you create prediction errors that signal your brain to adapt and rewire.

Adding breathwork amplifies these effects by directly influencing your autonomic nervous system. Extended exhales activate the parasympathetic (rest and digest) response, whilst coordinated breathing patterns help synchronise brain activity and enhance focus. The combination of motor challenge plus intentional breathing creates what neuroscientists call 'enriched learning conditions', where your brain is primed to form stronger, more lasting neural connections.

The Benefits:

Together, these practices work on multiple levels. They:

• Improve executive function and attention
• Enhance emotional regulation
• Increase stress resilience
• Literally reshape your brain's architecture

For breath coaches, educators, and wellness practitioners, these tools offer an accessible, evidence-based way to support nervous system health and cognitive wellbeing.

What's Included: When you download this resource, you'll receive:

• Full Q&A video session with Jules (30 minutes)
• Video demonstrations of all three dual movement exercises
• Practice guide PDF with step-by-step instructions

Who This Is For

✓ Breath coaches in training

✓ Parents and Carers

✓ Somatic practitioners

✓ Educators and school staff

✓ Wellness professionals

✓ Anyone interested in practical, neuroscience-backed tools for brain health and nervous system regulation

Download Your Resource
Support School Breathe's mission to bring evidence-based breathwork and movement practices to schools and communities. Your donation helps us continue creating accessible resources for educators and practitioners.

Scientifically Proven Exercises 

Salute and Thumbs Up with 4-7 Breath

Learn how pairing contrasting hand gestures with an extended exhale breath pattern (4-count inhale, 7-count exhale) activates the parasympathetic nervous system whilst building new interhemispheric connections.