Session 1: Rolfing™ SI Experiencing with Charles - Introduction and Body Awareness

Not knowing what to expect with the Rolfing, I went in with an open mind. A friend of mine had tried it first, a big guy, and told me it was very painful, so I was ready for an uncomfortable experience. I go for semi-regular deep tissue massage and didn't really feel like my body was sore or out of alignment or tight in any way.

What is Rolfing? Essentially it looks at releasing tension and rehydrating the stretchy fascial tissue that extends through the body from the tips of your toes all the way up to the top of your head. If one part is tight or restricted in some way, it affects the movement and alignment of the rest of the body. Restrictions in different parts of the body can be due to injuries, stress, what type of activities you do, as well as the fact that a lot of us sit at desks all day.

Man what a difference! Rolfing is unlike any other treatment I have tried before, and I really didn’t experience anything past minor discomfort at some times. It really focuses on mind body awareness and being aware of how one part of your body affects the motion of the rest. The first session really focusses on making you aware of tension and contact points throughout your body. I found it very interesting how small little micro-movements could help to loosen and rehydrate the muscle tissue. The first session does a little bit of everything, mostly big joints such as ankles and hips and some larger tissue groups as well.

As you can see here, even after just the intro session, there is a significant rotation in my pelvis. Still need to work on that computer hunch! I had not realized it had gotten so bad.

It was very surprising to me to see the before and after results in the photos. I was standing straighter, my shoulders and hips were more level, and my stance was less compacted. What really impressed me about working with Coko was that she took the whole body into consideration and made adjustments as we went along and things moved.  Rather than traditional massage where the practitioner may focus on the spot that is sore (the symptom), a Rolfer focuses their attention on the source of the restriction and adapts as you go along. Never expect to have the same thing done on the right and left side in the same session.

Excited for Session 2!