The Costello Method
A Body-Led, Brain-Supported Framework for Nervous System Regulation
The Costello Method wasn’t born as a theory—it was born as a response to what the body was already asking for. This movement-based framework restores regulation by honoring the body’s natural sequencing. When rhythm comes before reflection—when movement precedes mindset—the nervous system softens, and the brain finally gets the signal it’s been waiting for: “You’re safe.”
HOW IT WORKS
Each phase of The Costello Method activates specific neural pathways through intentional movement—triggering neuroplasticity, calming the stress response, and restoring the body’s rhythm of calm, focus, and resilience.
Phase 1: Foundation Reset
Stabilize the system.
We begin by creating safety. This phase mirrors early developmental stages using reflex integration, primal movement, and breathwork to reduce sensory reactivity and postural instability. These foundational movements activate survival circuits in the lower brain and spinal cord—helping the body exit chronic fight-or-flight states.
Phase 2: Fortify Connectivity
From effort to flow.
Once stabilized, we build coordination across the sensory-motor system through dynamic, rhythmic movement. By engaging the vestibular (balance) and proprioceptive (body awareness) systems, we replace bracing with balance and improve emotional regulation, attention, and spatial orientation.
Phase 3: Fine-Tune Integration
Resilience becomes reflex.
In this final phase, we optimize performance with high-level integration tasks—multi-sequence movements, bilateral coordination, and cognitive-motor challenges. These movements enhance executive function, task-switching, and sustained focus while reinforcing adaptability and recovery under stress.
WHY IT WORKS
The Costello Method doesn’t train muscles—it reactivates circuits. It doesn’t chase calm—it creates the conditions for it to return. And it redefines safety—not as the absence of stress, but as the presence of adaptability. Every drill, every rhythm, every breath serves one purpose:
To remind your body that safety isn’t something it has to earn—it’s something it can return to.
Rooted in Biology, Refined by Experience
Developed by Dr. Jim Costello, The Costello Method is grounded in decades of neuroscience, developmental biology, and clinical practice. Each phase builds on the last, offering a proven system to help you reset, reconnect, and thrive—starting from the ground up.
About Dr. Jim Costello
Dr. Jim Costello is the founder of Neuro-Fit Systems and the creator of the Costello Method—a body-first framework designed to restore regulation through movement, rhythm, and neurodevelopmental science. With over two decades of clinical experience, Dr. Costello’s work is grounded in a simple but often overlooked reality: sustainable change doesn’t happen by thinking harder. It happens when the nervous system remembers how to shift safely between states.
Throughout his career, Dr. Costello has worked with a wide range of individuals, including children with autism and ADHD, adults living with anxiety and chronic stress, and elite performers navigating burnout and recovery. Across every case, he observed the same pattern: traditional mindset-based approaches often left people aware of their challenges—but unable to access real, lasting change.
Driven to bridge that gap, Dr. Costello developed a system that focuses on bottom-up regulation—building safety, rhythm, and resilience into the body’s operating system first. His work moves beyond symptom management, offering a practical, science-based path for restoring the foundation of regulation itself.
Today, Neuro-Fit Systems provides programs, tools, and resources that apply this method in real-world settings—from clinical practices to home programs—meeting the nervous system where it actually lives: in the body.
Dr. Costello continues to develop new protocols and resources designed to make nervous system science accessible, actionable, and sustainable for individuals, families, and practitioners worldwide.