Rolfing ()[ "Rolfing". Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.] is a form of alternative medicine originally developed by Ida Rolf (1896–1979) as Structural Integration.[: "The idea of vital energy... does not correspond to known facts of how the human body operates. Similarly, there is absolutely no support in psychological literature for the idea of traumatic experiences being repressed in the form of muscle memory, and so the basic ideas of Rolfing certainly fall into the category of pseudoscience."] and is generally characterized as quackery.[
It is based on Rolf's ideas about how the human body's "energy field" can benefit when aligned with the Earth's gravitational field.][
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Rolfing is typically delivered as a series of ten hands-on physical manipulation sessions sometimes called "the recipe". Practitioners combine superficial and deep manual therapy with movement prompts.[ The safety of Rolfing has not been confirmed.][ The principles of Rolfing contradict established medical knowledge,]
Conceptual basis
Professor of Complementary Medicine Edzard Ernst has offered this definition: "Rolfing is a system of bodywork invented by Ida Pauline Rolf (1896–1979) employing deep manipulation of the body's soft tissue allegedly to realign and balance the body's myofascial structures."
Rolf described the body as organized around an axis perpendicular to the earth, pulled downward by gravity, and she believed the function of the body was optimal when it was aligned with that pull. In her view, gravity tends to shorten fascia, leading to disorder of the body's arrangement around its axis and creating imbalance, inefficiency in movement, and pain.
Rolfers make a life study of relating bodies and their fields to the earth and its gravity field, and we so organize the body that the gravity field can reinforce the body's energy field. This is our primary concept.
The manipulation is sometimes referred to as a type of bodywork, or as a type of massage.
Rolf claimed to have found an association between emotions and the soft tissue: "Rolfing is not primarily a psychotherapeutic approach to the problems of humans, but ... many people insist on so regarding it. Rolfing is an approach to the personality through the myofascial collagen components of the physical body."[Ida Rolf quoted in ] She claimed Rolfing could balance the mental and emotional aspects of subjects and that "the amazing psychological changes that appeared in Rolfed individuals were completely unexpected."[ Rolfers suggest their manipulations can cause the release of painful repressed memories.]
Technique
Rolfing is typically performed in ten sessions, sometimes called "the recipe", which claim to reorganize the body's connective tissues.
Effectiveness and reception
Because of its dependence on vitalistic concepts and its unevidenced propositions about the connection between physical manipulation and psychology, Rolfing is classified as a pseudoscience, and is generally seen as quackery.
Writing for Science-Based Medicine, lawyer Jann Bellamy writes that in the United States of America the public is inadequately protected from bodywork practices such as Rolfing because of the lack of independent oversight; instead certification is carried out within a "closed loop" system by such bodies as the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork.[ Note in the US the Rolf Institute is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork as a continuing education provider; see: ]
In 2015 the Australian Government's Department of Health published a review of 17 alternative therapies, including Rolfing, which concluded no clear evidence of effectiveness was found.[
] Accordingly, in 2017, the Australian government named Rolfing as a practice that would not qualify for insurance subsidy, to ensure the best use of insurance funds.
Proponents of Rolfing claim it can be used to alleviate pain.
The American Cancer Society says the deep soft tissue manipulations such as those used in Rolfing are a concern if practiced on people with cancer near tumor sites.
In 2010 The New York Times reported that Rolfing was enjoying a "resurgence" following an endorsement from Mehmet Oz on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
In 2019 a taxonomy of "internet scams" identified Rolfing as having been used for deceptive claims about alleviating gastrointestinal problems by "restructuring" muscle tissue.
History
The practice of Rolfing was developed in the 1940s by Ida Rolf, who held a PhD in biological chemistry from Columbia University.
According to Jacobson, she " organized these ideas around her own conviction that the adequacy of the individual’s adaptation to gravity... was a key determinant of physical and psychologic health."
Rolf began formally teaching her method in the 1950s at the European College of Osteopathy in Maidstone, England, and later at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, where she worked with other figures in the Human Potential Movement.
In 1971, Rolf founded the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration in Boulder, Colorado, to formalize training in her method.
In 1990, a group of senior faculty founded the Guild for Structural Integration, a separate teaching organization.
As of 2025, there are more than 1,950 Rolfers worldwide.
The field of Structural Integration
Since Rolf's death, the field of Structural Integration has branched into various schools.[ Of these schools, the Rolf Institute is the only one with the use of the trademarked terms "Rolfing" and "Certified Rolfer".][ Other programs of Structural Integration certify "Practitioners of the Rolf Method of Structural Integration" including the Guild for Structural Integration,][ A professional membership organization exists called the International Association of Structural Integration, which has certified practitioners by exam since 2007.]
In the United States, some states including New Hampshire and Nevada, have a separate license for SI.
See also
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Pierre Bernard (yogi) – an influence on Rolf
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Further reading
External links
