About Ben The Rolfer®
Hello, and welcome!
I’m Ben, a certified Rolfer living in London.
I first discovered Rolfing® 6 years ago when I was suffering with chronic back and knee pain. I had tried everything except surgery, but any relief I felt was short lived.
After discovering Rolfing, I was blown by by the results and long-lasting changes after one session. The amount of movement range that I regained in my ankle was mind-blowing. I didn’t even realise how much range I had lost, until it was restored by just one session of Rolfing. A few years later, I decided to become a certified Rolfer® myself.
My journey to become a certified Rolfer began during the lockdowns in 2021. I realised I needed a work/life balance in my life, and that my passion for bringing balance in the body made me a perfect candidate to study Rolfing.
In our modern world of desk jobs and sedentary lifestyles, we need inspiring, life changing therapies like Rolfing that can change the way we use and experience our bodies for good. The way I see it, the only way to truly understand Rolfing is to experience it. If it wasn’t for this amazing modality, I dread to think where I’d be at now with my physical health and mobility.
So here I am, now working as a certified Rolfing practitioner after graduating from the Dr. Ida Rolf Institute (DIRI) in Boulder, Colorado.
I look forward to meeting and working with you.
Qualifications
Dr. Ida Rolf Institute® (DIRI)Certified Rolfer (Boulder, Colorado, 2022)
Thematic Neck Work in the Series (Boulder, Colorado, 2022)
Visceral and vascular manipulation (Boston, Massachusetts, 2024)
Rolfing®, Rolfer™, Rolf Movement® and the Little Boy Logo are service marks of The Rolf Institute of Structural Integration®, Boulder, CO.Rolfing® designates the Rolf Institute’s brand of structural integration, the discipline developed by the late Ida P. Rolf, Ph.D. While the Rolf Institute is Dr. Rolf’s original school of structural integration, it is now one of many schools of structural integration; and Rolfing® structural integration designates the practice of structural integration by graduate members of the Rolf Institute, who are licensed to use its service marks.
What is Rolfing®?
Rolfing® is a system of fascial manipulation and movement education that organises the whole body in gravity. Rolfing affects your body’s posture and structure by manipulating both the influence of the myofascial system and the nervous system on posture. Research has demonstrated that Rolfing results in more efficient muscle use, allowing the body to conserve energy and move more economically. Rolfing has also been shown to significantly reduce chronic stress, reduce spinal curvature in people with lordosis, and enhance neurological functioning.
More information on Rolfing research can be found on rolf.org.
People seek out Rolfing as a way to reduce pain and chronic stress, generally resulting from physical and emotional traumas or just the daily strain of living in a human body. Rolfing is used by many professional athletes, dancers and entertainers to improve performance. Some manufacturing companies have employed Rolfing to decrease workers’ compensation costs due to repetitive stress injuries. And, based on the mind/body connection, many counsellors and therapists are incorporating Rolfing in their therapeutic approaches. Finding greater physical support and ease can ultimately be positively influential for our emotions and energy levels.
What Rolfing is not
While Rolfing is often grouped with massage and other hands-on forms of bodywork, there are fundamental differences between Rolfing and these other modalities. Rolfing works by addressing the structural patterns of your body, and not the symptoms that result from the body’s misalignment. The aim of Rolfing is to provide a more functional body for the long-term, beyond the temporary ease of immediate symptom relief.
Who would benefit from Rolfing?
Rolfing is of benefit to nearly everyone. It is especially recommended for dancers, musicians, athletes, and all those who lead a strenuous lifestyle. People suffering from stiffness, chronic pain, structural aches and physical stress can benefit from reduced or eliminated pain and stiffness, as well as a balanced and properly working body.
How to know if Rolfing is right for you?
The only real way to know if you like anything, is to try it. Here are some typical scenarios that clients come with.
A resource to reduce pain
‘My glutes don’t fire properly’, ‘my shoulder always clicks when I drive’ or ‘my back hurts when I stand but I am getting older so I am used to the pain’. These are just a few of the most common things that clients tell me.
Body awareness
Rolfing can help bring more awareness to the way you move and how your perception with the world. Just because we are ageing, doesn’t mean we should have to live with pain when performing daily tasks.
Curiosity
Rolfers are naturally curious, so just being intrigued about your body and the way you move is a great place to start.
Injury risk reduction
Everyone wants to reduce the risk of injury, and Rolfing can do just that. Whether you rely upon your body for work or your hobby, or if you simply don’t want to get hurt in the first place, Rolfing can radically reduce the risk of injury through increased body awareness and biomechanical efficiency.
Long lasting relief
Do you find yourself foam rolling daily and stretching in every spare moment you have, only to still be in pain not long after? Rolfing can provide long lasting change that can reduce this need, freeing up time for you to get on with other things.
Mobility
Have you ever seen others who are so mobile, even those who are older than you? Ever wondered why you walk in a certain way, or your range of motion is so restricted?
To learn more about how Rolfing works and the benefits of Rolfing, please visit the Rolf Institute® website or watch the video below:
What are the origins of Rolfing?
Rolfing Structural Integration is named after its creator, Dr. Ida P. Rolf.
Dr. Rolf received a Ph.D. in biochemistry from Columbia University in 1920, and furthered her knowledge of the body through her scientific work in organic chemistry at the Rockefeller Institute. Her extensive search for solutions to her and her family members’ health problems led her to examine many systems that studied the effect of structure on function. These included yoga, osteopathy, chiropractic methods, and the human potential movement of the 1960s. Dr. Rolf combined her research with her scientific knowledge to stimulate a deeper appreciation of the body’s structural order, which resulted in the theory and practice of Rolfing.
Today, there are more than 2,200 certified Rolfers around the world.
About the Rolf Institute®
The Rolf Institute was founded in 1971 to carry on Dr. Rolf’s work. The institute trains Rolfers and Rolf Movement practitioners, carries out research, and provides information to the public. Based in Boulder, Colorado, the Rolf Institute is the only school accredited to teach Rolfing and is the sole certifying body for Rolfers. Only individuals trained and certified by the Rolf Institute may use the Rolfing service mark.Successful applicants complete a 731 hour training program. This basic training includes the biological sciences, the theory and practice of Rolfing, and clinical work under supervision. Advanced training is usually undertaken within four to seven years after basic training. Continuing education is required as long as a Rolfer is practicing.
