Our Senses: Think Beyond the Big 5
It’s easy to believe that there are only 5 senses: Smell, Taste, Hear, Touch and Vision. Each of these is a survival mechanism to say the least. Smell can warn us of fire, chemicals, and foods that are bad for us. Taste, as well, can tell us not to swallow something dangerous or bad for us. Hearing warns us of impending danger so that we can take action or seek safety. Touch makes us realize if an object is too hot, too cold, rough, sharp, and more. Vision allows us to see and then process to make decisions regarding how to act or react.
Those magnificent senses allow us to enjoy life too… to hear laughter, touch something soft and desirable, to smell your favorite dish cooking and then taste while devouring with joy, or to see landscapes, smiles, and changes of seasons.
But there is more to senses that gets lost in the shuffle of life that tends to be forgotten. Have you ever heard of proprioception? Close your eyes. Now bring your index finger to touch your nose. To do that without seeing it is proprioception. It’s the ability to know where your hands, feet, arms, legs, and other body parts are in space (and in total darkness, as well).
Not only do we need proprioception to know where we are in space, but also for awareness of our position, such as being upright. That is equilibrioception, our sense of balance. This is within the inner ear of the vestibular system. Remember spinning around as a kid, over and over until the disruption of the vestibular system created imbalance? You might recall falling and laughing at the sensation. Sure, you returned to normal quickly as the body regulated itself in a short time. This same system helps us with feeling velocity. If you tilt your head back and forth while reading this, your eyes are still able to read the words. However, some may feel queasy as the sight signals during the movement do not match the vestibular system. Think about car sickness. When you’re riding in a car and looking out the window, the scenery quickly streams by, and your eyes send a signal to your brain indicating a rapid velocity. Your vestibular system, on the other hand, indicates that your body is stationary. It is as though the systems conflict which results in that nauseous feeling. What is interesting is that, rather than working in isolation, scientists have found that our senses work collaboratively, through a process called multisensory perception.
Have you ever thought about how you can tell whether it’s hot or cold outside? This sense is known as thermoception. We can detect outside temperature through thermoreceptors in our skin. Who needs a temperature gauge anyway? This allows us to avoid things like getting burned or frostbitten, or environments that are too hot or cold.
Other senses include kinesthesia, a sense of movement. For example, think of riding a bike! Yes, you are in kinesthetic mode while moving all those limbs at once. Eventually, we get good at identifying how various bikes feel different from one another. Same goes with surfboards, golf swings, rowing a boat, and more.
Chronoception is the ability to sense the passage of time. We develop this perception of time with habitual behavior. It allows us to recognize what three minutes, an hour, and even more feels like. We know when it is time for our daily exit from work without even looking at the clock. Before technology came around, endurance athletes could combine chronoception and kinesthesia senses together to know actually what pace their were running without using a watch.
But let’s get back to proprioception and equilibrioception. We tend lose these abilities as we age or when a significant injury impacts our body. Unless there is constant stimulation of these senses to stay at their best, the abilities diminish and increase the risk for accidents, injuries, and poor daily function. Unfortunately, our younger generations are losing proprioception abilities as a result of more idle time spent sitting with their devices and technology. You may have heard some say, “Things aren’t like they used to be,” or “Ever since the accident, I haven’t been the same.” Yoga and balance training exercises help tremendously. Heck, dancing and Tai Chi too, are ways to stimulate the senses. Research has shown that incorporating proprioception exercises into your pre-workout or post-workout routines improves the balance potential and athletic performance while also reducing the risk of injury and falls. Adding this to your fitness routine can also make your day-to-day living easier. Why not give proprioception training a try?