In Rolfing, the goal is to create deep, comprehensive order, alignment, and integration of the body in gravity. Rolfing quite literally changes your shape, sometimes dramatically. Rolfers use their hands to carefully soften, stretch, and lengthen the soft tissues of the body (muscles tendons, ligaments, and fascia) in a highly specific and systematic way, restoring ease, alignment, and "order" to the body. Most people feel lighter, more balanced, energized, more grounded. They are longer and more upright. They experience greater range of motion, fuller breathing, and usually any pains they have are at least significantly reduced.

With the enhanced body awareness that you get from Rolfing, you learn to understand how posture and body mechanics influence your present health, balance, coordination and physical presence. Think of Rolfing as a physical Feng Shui within your system, that allows your Chi to move more freely. To further support the results of Rolfing, the most complimentary and beneficial forms of exercise are Pilates and Yoga. Those two exercise methods guarantee that the body stays in alignment and is able to sustain the evoked changes indefinitely.

Pilates

Pilates is an exercise method that has been around since World War I. It was developed by Joseph Pilates, a German boxer and physical therapist. He was looking for a way to get bedridden hospital patients exercising. His method became a comprehensive and systematic exercise modality that is able to change and support the body structure and function. It is both a diagnostic and a prescriptive system, and can be considered a mixture between physical fitness and physical therapy.

In Pilates, specialized equipment - that uses springs as resistance – is being used. This approach creates strong, long and lean muscle fibers, as opposed to the bulky muscle fibers that weightlifters get from their workouts. Pilates exercises emphasize awareness, sophisticated integration of movement and balance, as well as functional strength.

The movements reinforce and stretch the body, but also strengthen the core muscles that support movement. Pilates focuses on precise alignment and correct body mechanics, by using the entire body in an integrated fashion through strengthening, stretching, and movement re-education. Pilates has proven beneficial for the rehabilitation of injuries and slowing down osteoporosis, and is favored by dancers and athletes for muscle toning.

Rolfing and Pilates design a treatment plan based on a visual analysis of a persons structure and their movement. Both systems emphasize differentiation of individual body sections and how to teach the individual to move from the core. Both modalities introduce new movement patterns, that create balance and stability while simultaneously increasing mobility (fluid, graceful, and continuous movement.)

Yoga

Our society is so achievement oriented that we don't value time when we find ourselves in an “unproductive” state. Yoga is a tool toward being, introspection and stillness, which cultivates awareness so one can be present in the moment as well as in the body. When we get too involved in external events, Yoga helps us to go to that deep inner place - that resides in each of us - so that we can regain perspective. We all need to maintain our connection to this still inner place, in order to get in touch with the core of ourselves. Only then do we see the world more clearly.

Yoga's increasing popularity is proof that many people value an exercise system that engages the mind, body and spirit in equal measure. To date, thousands of research studies have been undertaken and have shown that with the practice of yogic meditation a person can, indeed, learn to control such physiologic parameters as blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory function, metabolic rate, skin resistance, brain waves, body temperature, and many other bodily functions.

Rolfing and Yoga are two modalities that work really well together. Both attempt to bring your body into balance so that the body can be used in the most efficient and comfortable way. Increased self-awareness, deepening the ability to self-reflect, experiencing full range of motion in all the major joints and integrated movement are the similar shared goals of Yoga and Rolfing.

Yoga is an excellent way to maintain the changes that are achieved in Rolfing - not just at the physical level. It is also a useful technique that allows you to examine the how and why of your structure and your movements, which set you off on the path of self understanding. However, Rolfing and Yoga are not modalities to alleviate suffering. The alleviation of symptoms is the consequence of the inquiry into the self. Attaining the highest level of self awareness, we can improve our lives and the lives of others. Rolfing and Yoga are tools along this pathway.