What is Rolfing?
Rolfing is a system of deep-tissue bodywork that brings the body into a new alignment and better balance, greater flexibility and improved physical abilities.
By releasing the deep soft-tissue of the body, a person realizes benefits including relief of chronic pain, ease of movement, improved posture and a sense of emotional well being.
Changing old postural habits often initiates further changes in life
Fascia is constantly changing and adapting in response to demands placed on an individual’s body.
Fascia reacts to specific physical damage – to a joint for example – by producing extra material to enhance stability and support. However, it can produce more than necessary. If this happens, over time, rather than stabilizing the joint, the healing process itself can actually reduce mobility, leading to changes in body’s posture and altered patterns of movement.
What can you expect from a Rolfing session?
Rolfing is a collaborative technique and adapts to your individual structure. You should feel safe at all the times and you decide your level of comfort. Rolfing works in a series of ten sessions to release the fibrous and thickened connective tissue (myofascial system) that influences alignment of the skeletal structure.
At the beginning of each session I will do a body reading to get an impression of your body’s structure and posture.
During the session I will work on your body while you will lie on a massage table, sit or stand. I apply sensitive and precise pressure to specific areas of your body.
I might ask you to bring your attention and breathing into the area where I will be working, as well as follow some guided movements. I will invite you to come off the table and explore how you feel, stand, move and walk.
Common benefits of Rolfing
Alleviate tension and chronic muscular pains
Align, lengthen and dissolve poor posture patterns
Improve range of motion, breathing and movement
Feel safely contained within your body
Evoke more energy and strengthen your awareness
The ten sessions
Rolfing works systematically through the body, starting with the uppermost layers of connective tissues related to the breath. Throughout the treatments, the body’s alignment, body awareness and balance improves.
As we work on your body, other issues will inevitably show up, so each session is tailored to you and your needs.
Sessions 1-3
In the initial sessions, we work on the superficial layers of the fascia, increasing elasticity in the chest, freeing up the breath, a healthier organization of the pelvis, rib cage and shoulder girdle, and a better organization of the feet and legs.
Sessions 4-7
The next sessions focus on the deeper fascial layers and the body’s organization around a vertical axis that we call “the line”.
Sessions 8-10
By the last few sessions, the body as a whole has become more flexible and the balance has improved. In the last few sessions we pay extra attention to your body awareness and movement patterns to ensure that the changes are going to last.
Where does Rolfing come from?
More than fifty years ago, Dr. Ida Rolf recognized a system in the human body – a seamless network of tissues vs. a collection of separate parts. Connective tissues, called fascia, that surround, support and penetrate all of the muscles, bones, nerves and organs.
The stress of daily activities and physical injuries can pull the body out of alignment. The fascia gradually shortens, tightens and adjusts to accommodate the misalignment. The elasticity and sliding capacity of fascia can be restored through the Rolfing touch and the body structure realigned to function with greater ease.
By introducing the impact of gravity on human health and well-being, Dr. Rolf broke new scientific ground. Modern research increasingly supports her wisdom.
Curious to learn more?