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ROLFING® Structural Integration Achieving balance and freedom of
movement Kevin Frank
What is Rolfing Structural Integration? Rolfing Structural Integration (R.S.I.) is a trademarked body mind therapy taught at the Rolf Institute in Boulder, Colorado. It is a therapy that rebalances and frees the body. It releases stresses, strains and tensions that we hold in our physical structure over the years. It improves flexibility and freedom in the ways we move. The rebalancing and integration of the body’s structure also releases energy that has been bound within it. This freedom leads to a sense of increased physical and emotional vitality, improved health and physical appearance. Some persons also experience psychological gain, as the emotional history that is stored in their bodies is released. How does RSI work? RSI works systematically on the body’s whole network of connective tissue. The work is slow and gentle, using one-and-one-half-hour sessions to reshape the connective tissues or fascia that give the body its shape and determine the limits of its movement. As the body learns in each session to move in more natural ways, the Rolfing is integrated into one’s daily life. It is a two way process: the Rolfer uses physical pressure to loosen the restrictions in the connective tissue. The client works with the Rolfer, using breath and movement as tools to facilitate change. Each session builds on the one before. The structural changes of early sessions form the basis of the integrative work of the later sessions. As the client’s awareness of his or her body is enhanced the work becomes more understandable and efficient. What does a session of RSI feel like? Warmth, pressure, a lengthening or stretching of tissue... the work evokes a wide spectrum of sensations. Some parts of the RSI process may feel intense, the feeling of pains being released from the body. The client is in charge of how intense the session becomes. A session is a gift to yourself, something to look forward to. People benefiting from RSI include those who: •
Wish to reduce stress and tension Research Findings: The effectiveness of Rolfing Structural Integration has been substantiated through several published studies. A controlled study at UCLA Department of Kinesiology, conducted by Drs. Valerie Hunt and Wayne Massey documents that Rolfing achieves its goal: “to create and maintain a more balanced energy system which conserves energy rather than expends it.” The researchers found that among clients who had received Rolfing compared to a matched sample that had not received Rolfing, movements were smoother and less constrained; there were fewer extraneous movements; body movements were more dynamic and energetic, carriage was more erect with less straining to maintain a balanced stance. Articles also have been published in the Journal of Physical Therapy summarizing the effects of Rolfing on the autonomic nervous system and the angle of pelvic inclination. Abstracts of these and other research projects are available through the Rolf Institute in Boulder Colorado. The benefits of Rolfing: •
Improved posture To Make an Appointment: Rolfing optimally involves a ten session series, each session lasting from one to one and one-half hours. Single sessions or a shorter series of sessions can also be appropriate. Appointments are available at the Resources in Movement Studio in Holderness, NH
Kevin Frank
– Licensed State of NH Kevin Frank is a graduate of the Rolf Institute in Boulder, Colorado. He makes his home and practice in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. Having studied psychology and religion at Harvard College and natural science at the University of Massachusetts, Kevin investigated various approaches to the problem of human development. He spent many years in the study and practice of Eastern traditions of inquiry and awareness, especially Zen, in which posture, breath, and attention to the sensations of the body are essential. Kevin has also been a builder, and in this work he sustained injuries to his back. Since he found some relief from chronic pain through stretching and yoga, he sought a treatment method which would work, like yoga, to give the body back its length and flexibility. Rolfing was the technique he found. Through Rolfing he discovered that bodywork could be a dialogue - a working together between client and practitioner, finding the constriction, feeling it and moving through it. Now Kevin works with people exploring what it is in one’s body that works, what it is that is less aware. The goal is to enable people to rediscover the broad range of resources inherent in their bodies, by releasing and awakening them. We see balance in nature all around us, but our lives often seem out of balance. We are part of nature and yet we may feel separate from it. The pattern of our bodies is inherently orderly and symmetrical, but our reactions to stress, accidents and disease tend to disorganize this pattern. We are unaware of the extra burdens that the body has taken on. Rolfers say that it is possible to release these disorganized patterns. The body balances itself if we allow it. Given the chance to move with less effort, it does so. |