Rolfing: Reestablishing the Natural Alignment and Structural Integration of the Human Body for Vitality and Well-Being

I am a clinical massage therapist in Seattle, WA. I was trained in a method of manual therapy called Neuromuscular therapy by its founder, Paul St. John I came to understand the importance of balance in the structure of the body. When a friend gave me an original copy of this book: 'Rolfing: Reestabling...' by Dr. Rolf I fell right into it. Dr. Rolf was the progenitor of a point of view that stresses a.}close examination of the alignment and physical (or structural) balance of the body, b.} a direct relationship between structure and function in this regard, and c.} the notion that a manual approach can re-organize the body in a deep and meaninful way. I kept discovering very quotable passages, and thinking 'That's what I always say'. I came to see that without Ida Rolf as my grandmother in the field of hands on therapy, I could never have been trained in a way that I could have had those insights. A very validating experience to find that you had got the message, even when you really derived it from things that you heard second hand. As a text, this book goes a long ways to filling in some of the mysterious blanks in our understanding of the body and it's function in gravity. It has enjoyable prose, flowing description and explanation, countless photos of case studies, and even more valuably it has a great number of hand-drawn illustrations, I beleive by Ida Rolf herself. The book covers specific subjects that are not undertaken by any other texts I have read in this field, where balance and structural orientation are concerned (look for the biomechanical description of the function of the pelvic floor, for example). For people who work with the body in a hands-on clinical fashion, this book is a classic. It would fill a great gap on the shelf on anyone concerned with physical examination as well. I can heartilly reccommend the book at this price,too.

I was very gladly surprised when I saw how well Rolf writes, as I was expecting the originator of Structural Integration therapy to use a "heavy" language, like F.M. Alexander did in his books on the Alexander Technique. The only thing keeping me from breezing through this book are my own ponderings on the insights Rolf constantly gives me. If you are interested in the human body in any way, get this (you should get it anyway, you will become interested!).

This book is invaluable in understanding the inter-relationships within the human body--and nothing is more important for proper assessment and treatment of myofascia. This is not a technique book, rather a book which details the fundamental principles of stuctural bodywork. It will aid any therapist in gaining a deeper understanding of the human body and avoiding the all-too-common problem of symptom chasing. Read this book to understand how structure effects function, and function effects health.

I found this book to be very helpful in deepening my understanding of the way the different parts of the body are interconnected and interdependent. It has influenced my yoga practice and my teaching. I better understand how the physical practice of yoga helps with spiritual transformation. I highly recommend this to anyone who wishes to be actively involved in your own transformation and evolution. This book will help yoga teachers identify the bony landmarks on the body to help brighten a student's alignment and free up energy in the body. It starts from the feet and moves up, just as you would create any pose. The language is easy to understand and there are many valuable drawings and photographs which illustrate each point.

Rolfing can make profound changes in posture and movement. This book tries to get beyond the medical dissection model of anatomy and really get at the way the core postural muscles are supposed to coordinate movement. The chapter on the psoas is worth the price of the book.This IS NOT a how-to on Rolfing nor does it get into the transformative powers of Rolfing from the perspective of someone who is undergoing processing. It is more a book of anatomy and kinesiology.