How is Rolfing different from massage and what is fascia?
Unlike massage therapy, which strives to enhance the circulation of blood and lymphatic fluid and to ease tension in constricted muscle, Rolfing addresses the connective tissue, or fascia of the body. Fascia is an opaque, membranous protein arranged in the body like fabric and cables. It is fabric in the sense that it clothes every part of the body. It is sometimes like canvas, tough and fibrous, such as the swath across the lower back called the thoracolumbar aponeurosis. It is sometimes more like spandex, resilient and pliable, such as the fascia beneath the skin, where it imparts extra elasticity. (Stretch marks are places where the elasticity of the fascia was overcome, and the tissue broke down and lost its ability to rebound). All the muscles, bones, organs and nerves are clothed in and supported by fascia. Fascia also organizes into cables, able to resist strain in a specific direction. This is what tendons (connecting muscles to bones) and ligaments (connecting bones to bones)
