Rolfing
Yes, Rolfing.
If you’re friends with dancers you may have heard about Rolfing—no, it’s not what you do when you drink too much or have an upset stomach. It’s not RALPHING. It’s a system of deep tissue manipulation (notice I don’t say massage) that was created by a woman named Ida Rolf and is really popular among dancers and professional bodyworkers. Being a rolfer is a process that is overseen by a pretty rigorous certification program and required continued education.
Rolfing deals specifically with the fascia: the elastic, connective tissues that bind our muscles together. If you’ve ever cut raw meat, you’ve seen the filmy white layers that wrap around bundles of tissue—that’s what’s being manipulated in a rolfing session. By manipulating the fascia throughout the body, the rolfer aims to re-align various structures, stretch tight fascia and help to balance the movement of the body and by doing so, heal common ailments and issues like tightness in muscles, poor posture, headaches, and backaches. It sounds like pretty lofty goals, but people who get rolfed regularly swear by it the same way that some people swear by acupuncture, or regular massage.
The problem with rolfing—well, the one thing that kept me from going—was that I’d always heard that it’s excruciatingly painful because it’s so deep tissue that it’s just ridiculously intense. Big secret coming up here: I hate getting massages. I’ve always felt like I have skin that is really tightly adhered to my muscles or something, because my skin is just not loose and any kind of massage has always felt uncomfortable, and I tense up like I’m in the dentist’s chair. I know, how can I hate massages, blah blah blah. I would still get them, especially to combat tightness and tension, but it wasn’t ever fun for me. And as a pole dancer, I have very tight traps, shoulders, and back muscles, and it always felt like I was getting ripped apart when an overeager sports masseuse starting digging in with elbows or thumbs.
So, I figured, if I dislike massage that much, rolfing is just not for me. But as I’ve moved into a world of movement and dance and athleticism, my boundaries and willingness to try new things have shifted. And in the span of a week, I had a bunch of people, randomly, recommending that I try rolfing. The world was sending me a message, sort of, I think… so I asked around, got recommendations, did some research, and signed up for my first session. I honestly felt that a lot of the tight skin-ickyness issues that I had with massage was due to very tight fascia and very tight connective tissues, and thought that rolfing might help with my hip flexor tightness.
Rolfing, in the most traditional sense, is often done as a 10-session series, with the first series done as an overview of the body, and the sessions thereafter progressing in intensity and depth. I’ve only done two sessions so far, but about halfway through the series is a “hip flexor” session which is supposed to be one of the most serious and “WOOOAH” because depending on how far you let them go, they may or may not move muscles up and around to get to the deep hip flexor and soas.
Rolfing is very different from traditional massage. For me, the sensation is like someone giving you a really deep, indian sunburn (remember those?) by twisting skin and muscle and tissue apart and separating things that have always been locked together. It feels like incredibly intense stretching underneath your skin, and there have been moments where I wanted to tap out, but after wards, it was a feeling like being very, very tall, loose, and released. Super super pressure applied directly on tendons and connective tissues. Pressing on a muscle while you’re being asked to contract it (OUCH). Deep tissue massages that I’ve had in the past left me feeling sore the next day, but this was like immediate pain with awesomeness afterwards– sort of the reverse.
Would I recommend rolfing for everyone? No. Would I say that everyone should get rolfed? No. But, I think that it’s an interesting idea to explore for people who are looking for a new way of dealing with a lot of muscular stress and tension, and I also think that like acupuncture, it is a type of treatment that requires an open mind. Research is sort of skeptical with treatments of this type, and definitely inconclusive, but if you have a rolfer in your area, it may be worth a try.
Monday’s post: Buying a Pole- Finishes…
Have you ever tried Shiatsu? It’s Japanese form of bodywork that does not use oil, so no rubbing on the skin. It’s clothes on treatment that is all about applying rhythmical static pressure. It feels great and comfortable and is very effective. From what you are saying it seems you might like it. It definitely can fit into category of deep tissue treatment. Great for those who are ticklish or don’t find the rubbing/kneading of skin so effective or pleasurable. Joint mobilization and stretches are also part of treatment. It’s referred to as “acupuncture without needles” a lot of times. I think Uma Thurman’s brother is a shiatsu therapist in NY.
I’ve heard of shiatsu but I’ve never gone. It doesn’t hurt to try everyone once! Thanks for the info Martyna =)
Wow, I never even heard of this, I’ve been for 2 deep tissue massages on my back recently. I think I may have damaged a ligament or 2 in the middle of my upper back, the pain is in the same place on both sides, the ache is not going away. I will have to seek advice on it soon.
Fiona, that sounds awful and I’m sorry to hear that. Is it possible that it’s muscular? I hope you get a diagnosis and a course of treatment to deal with the pain!
GREAT topic! I have been to a Rolfer and was truly amazed at my body’s response. I am a faithful chiropractic and massage patient, and it was on the recommendation of both practitioners that I seek treatment from a Rolfer for my iliopsoas tendonitis. Did I find it painful? I sure did! Did I get relief after the first treatment? I sure did! In trying to explain to the lay person what I was having done I said that Chiropractors align your spine and Rolfers align soft tissue and attachment. An over-simplified explanation, but one I found worked for the uninitiated. I’m fortunate enough to be in a city where we have hoards of Cirque performers as well as more dancers than most, so I have access to this fabulous modality. Thank you Amy for introducing this treatment to your audience.
Oh my word, tendonitis of the soas? That sounds intense, painful, and awful. I’m so glad that you got relief from the rolfing; I’ve heard quite a few similar stories of soas/hip issues being resolved through rolfing which is what prompted me to go as well. I’m sort of surprised that more people haven’t heard of it given the glowing reviews I’ve heard from most people who have first-hand experience with the treatment.
I think I’m a weirdo in that the more painful a massage, the more I like it. Maybe like is the wrong word – the more I appreciate it:) I think it’s because I’ve had a massage therapist for a while who came to our worksite and did 20min back and shoulders massages and really worked the pressure points for me. Totally spoiled me for relaxation massages – I lie there and go “but what about that giant knot you just passed over??”; give me some pain then release any day! Now she’s stopped coming though and I’m really bad about seeking out someone else, even though I know that both as a runner and a poler, massage is of great benefit. Rolfing sounds like it would be quite a good option for me (or at least see whether I’m as hard core about the pain/release combo as I think I am;p)
You are a true masochist, my friend. I think you might love rolfing, although it’s a different kind of pain you do definitely feel the difference. I’m going through the very traditional progression with my rolfer, instead of working on particular trouble spots, but I’m sure that they’d be amazing at getting knots out as well… it just seems sort of like using a sledgehammer on a nail.
Thanks for posting on this topic Amy! As a poler and a Licensed Massage Therapist, I was excited yesterday to see that you were going to cover this topic today!
Working with the fascia can be a huge part of healing the body’s muscular dysfunction. And I think that, for some people, if you are incredibly “fascially bound” it can take a LONG time to either warm up or penetrate the tissues with most massage techniques. But loosening up those fascial planes, I feel like eventually you will see more benefit from massage work .
I’d love to hear an update on your progress soon! I myself am planning to get some rolfing done this year to fully understand the benefits and eventually I’d LOVE to learn to do it…that is, if I can come up with the several thousand dollars to do so!
Awesome, thanks for coming by and commenting! I’m hoping that doing more rolfing sessions will help with exactly what you have described =) I’ll keep you posted as I progress through the 10 sessions. I think it’s a fascinating course of study… while certification may be outside of your budget or time availability, you might be able to do some outside research on the techniques or attend some seminars?