What is Rolfing?
Rolfing® is a system of soft tissue manipulation and movement education that organizes the whole body in gravity. Rolfing affects the body’s posture and structure by manipulating the myofascial system (connective tissue). Research has demonstrated that Rolfing creates more efficient muscle use, allows the body to conserve energy, and creates more economical and refined patterns of movement. Rolfing has also been shown to significantly reduce chronic stress, reduce spinal curvature in subjects with lordosis (sway back), and enhance neurological functioning.

Who uses it?
People seek Rolfing as a way to reduce pain and chronic stress, generally resulting from physical and emotional traumas. Rolfing is used by many professional athletes, dancers and entertainers to improve their performance. Some manufacturing companies have employed Rolfing to decrease workers’ compensation costs due to repetitive stress injuries. And, based on the mind/body connection, many counselors and therapists are incorporating Rolfing in the therapeutic approach. Greater physical support and flexibility ultimately influence emotions and energy levels.

Where did it come from?
Rolfing® structural integration is named after its creator, Dr. Ida P. Rolf. Dr. Rolf received her Ph.D. in biochemistry from Columbia University in 1920 and furthered her knowledge of the body through her scientific work in organic chemistry at the Rockefeller Institute. Her extensive search for solutions to family health problems led her to examine many systems that studied the effect of structure on function, including yoga, osteopathy and chiropractic medicine. Dr. Rolf combined her research with her scientific knowledge to stimulate a deeper appreciation of the body’s structural order, resulting in the theory and practice of Rolfing. There are more than 1,000 Certified Rolfers in 27 different countries. The Rolf Institute is located in Boulder, Colorado, with offices in Germany and Brazil.

How is Rolfing different from massage?
Through soft tissue manipulation and movement education, Rolfers affect body posture and structure over the long-term. Unlike massage, which focuses on relaxation and relief of muscle discomfort, Rolfing is aimed at improving body alignment and functioning. As structure becomes more organized, chronic strain patterns are alleviated, while pain and stress decrease.

Furthermore, Rolfing can speed up injury recovery time by reducing pain, stiffness and muscle tension. Improved movement and circulation around joints while attending to both the injury and any secondary pain that may develop from favoring the injury are also benefits.

Rolfing is generally performed over a series of ten sessions. This approach allows the Rolfer to affect the client’s structure in a methodical manner. This includes loosening superficial fascia before working deeper areas, improving support in feet and legs before affecting higher structures, and helping clients find ways to benefit from freer movement in their daily activities.

Does it hurt?
It is interesting that most people who have the opinion that Rolfing is extremely painful have never experienced the work firsthand. Much of the reputation for pain came from the early days when Rolfing was first gaining public recognition. Since that time, the process has greatly evolved. As far as the actual experience is concerned, the area being worked will vary in sensation and feeling depending upon the severity of chronic stress, injuries, and other factors specific to your body. Feelings can range from pleasurable release to honest-to-goodness discomfort. Fortunately, the work proceeds at your level and pace. Nothing is forced, and skillful Rolfing never feels sharply painful or invasive. When discomfort occurs, many clients describe it as a "good hurt" that the body wants and needs. Others say Rolfing significantly reduces the pain experienced in their daily lives or increases athletic functioning to such an extent, that any discomfort felt on the table is worth the trade.

Unlike massage, Rolfing is a participatory process. You may be asked to “breath” into tissue to help it release, to make small movements under the practitioner’s hands, or to “stretch out of a place” being worked. Participating in the movement feels very different from having work “done to you.”.

Tension is stored in the body by the way of tight muscles. Sometimes releasing this tension may cause some discomfort. To get a sense of this release, you can reach across your shoulders and feel a hard tight place. Press your hand on this spot and you will feel discomfort, then after holding the pressure briefly, you will feel a release and no discomfort. This is similar to the Rolfing experience. Rolfers work with clients at a pace that allows them to participate. We also work with very small children and again they are able to benefit because they immediately feel the release of pain causing tension.

Does it last?
Yes! Photographs taken of clients years after the basic ten-series show changes still present. Physiology explains why: Our bodies are constantly breaking down and rebuilding themselves. Bodies determine how to rebuild themselves in the future, based on the way weight and stress is distributed through the structure today. When we loosen, lengthen, and shift connective tissue, we affect relationships between structures and change stress patterns. Next time, the body rebuilds itself a bit differently. This is how Rolfing affects structure over the long-term. Movement education supports these changes by teaching clients more effective sitting, standing, walking, and work habits. Obviously, if body-use changes due to injury, illness, or stress, additional work may be useful.

What is the difference between Rolfing and Massage?
Is Rolfing like Chiropractic?
Rolfing is a technique that works on the connective tissue, not only the surface structures, but also deeper structures that massage does not address. The goal and results of Rolfing is to balance the over-all structure of the body. Massage and Chiropractic do not generally produce balance and alignment in the body. Rolfing is a compliment to these disciplines.