ROLFING®︎

“Feeling hurt?” It’s time to connect with your body differently.

What's Rolfing?

Rolfing®︎ can help you create a new relationship with your body. Rolfing® (officially named Rolfing® Structural Integration) is a bodywork technique that was developed in the US. It uses gentle pressure to manipulate the connective tissue throughout the body to restore physical comfort. Unlike chiropractic and massage, this approach is also known as a “body re-education program”. It enables you to build a body that can maintain long-lasting comfort rather than providing temporary relief.

Rolfing can benefit people experiencing these symptoms:

Chronic pain, lower back pain, neck and shoulder stiffness, back pain, hip pain, headaches, sleep disorder, and poor posture.

What to expect:

Reduction of chronic pain
Deep rest & relaxation
Posture improvement
Better quality of sleep
The ability to perform daily movements comfortably (e.g. walking, standing, sitting, lying down)
Learning exercises and stretches for relapse prevention
Improved body awareness and mindfulness
Enhanced body ownership (the sense that your body is truly yours)

Three Reasons Why it Works

①Hands-on Therapy Targeting the Fascia (soft connective tissue)

By carefully addressing the fascia, this soft tissue mobilization promotes blood flow and influences the sensory nerves and autonomic nerves abundantly embedded within the fascia. It induces relaxation throughout the body, allowing you to yield your body more easily and bringing comfort to both mind and body. Gentle touch to the fascia works to improve the neural pathways that perceive pain and the hormonal balance that suppresses it, thereby reducing chronic pain.

②Movement Therapy to Enhance Body Awareness

The movements introduced in Rolfing are characterized by “small, slow movements that stimulate the five senses while focusing awareness on the body.” These delicate movements improve the neural pathways that govern the body's sense of balance, thereby enhancing body awareness. This awareness is reflected in the various movements and postures performed in daily life. The body learns new, more comfortable and natural movements that do not cause strain and are accompanied by a new sensation.

③The Rolfing® 10-Series provides sustainable changes
This unique program was developed by its founder, Dr Ida Rolf, with the aim of restoring the body's natural balance. Each session focuses on a specific physical theme and is connected to the sessions before and after it. Working on the entire body and various motor functions throughout all 10 sessions brings about sustainable changes.

The goal of Rolfing is to create a body that can maintain a long-lasting, comfortable state.
Pain is a warning sign from your body. If you continue to treat and move your body in the same way as before, it's no wonder the pain will return, even if you visit a chiropractor or massage therapist. Our bodies today are the result of decades of history. In order to change a body that has been shaped over a long period of time, we need to change the way we relate to our bodies. Rolfing can transform your relationship with your body.

More about The Rolfing 10-Series

For those who want to improve chronic pain, enhance sleep quality, or fundamentally reevaluate their bodies, the 10-session series is ideal for fully experiencing the benefits and rewards of Rolfing. This is an exclusive program developed by founder Dr. Ida Rolf with the aim of restoring the body's natural, beautiful balance. This unique approach, which differs from chiropractic, and massage, is also called a “body re-education program.” Each session focuses on a different theme to align your body's structure, naturally changing the quality of your breathing, posture, and movement. It is a process that not only improves “localized discomfort” such as pain and stiffness, but also rebuilds the connections throughout your entire body. I recommend a session frequency of once a week or once every two weeks to allow for the body changes to sink in. The whole program will take approximately three to six months to complete.

10-Session Cycle
At the end of each session, I give you a simple activity to try before the next session. Some examples are: paying attention to certain parts of the body, small movement exercises, simple stretches, self-touch, and many more. Incorporate these activities gradually into your daily movements as much as possible. By increasing opportunities to focus your awareness on your body, you cultivate greater bodily awareness and naturally facilitate the integration of new movements. Through dialogue with your body, you discover a “new way of connecting with your body.”

(1) Free breathing, (2) Feet rooted to the earth, (3) Lateral expansion of the body, (4) Inner leg and pelvic floor, (5) Establishment of abdominal space, (6) Free movement of spine and sacrum, (7) Release of neck and head, (8 & 9) Connection and integration of upper and lower body, (10) Integration of whole body (From Japanese Rolfing Association website)

More info about Rolfing:
Introduction to Rolfing:
https://youtu.be/AdHrpvszumg
Japanese Rolfing Association:
https://rolfing.or.jp
Dr. Ida Rolf Institute:
https://www.rolf.org

European Rolfing Association:
https://rolfing.org