Rolfing Ten Series: Session II

I had my second rolfing session this afternoon. Today's session had a lot to do with your foundation-- the session focuses mostly on the feet and then the legs.

I am pretty amazed at how much of a difference I have felt in my body just after two sessions. The first session really opened up a new breath "pathway" for me-- for the past two days my awareness of my breath keeps going to my belly. I have often had troubles breathing in my belly-- I have always felt like my in-breath was somewhat shallow. I always notice how hard it is to breath into my belly on my way up to urdhva hastasana.

Today after my rolfing session, I really for once felt grounded in my feet. I have often felt when I walk-- unbalanced. I noticed especially during my first walk in front of my practitioner that I roll to the outside edges of my feet when I walk. It makes for quite the "tight rope" of a walk-- but on my post session walk-- my feet were stable and heavy on the earth. I really felt their support underneath me.

The other big realization in this session-- that as a result of yoga-- and maybe my own misinterpretaion of the action alignment for a backbend (drawing the shoulders up and back, and squeezing of the blades on the back)-- I have been pushing my cervial spine flat. The final stage of my last two sessions involved my sitting up and making a c-curve in my spine. The instructor in the class noticed right away (and I noticed yesterday too in my first experience of Forrest Yoga) that it is quite challenging for me to release my head and neck-- and part of that has to do with my pushing of my spine between my shoulder blades forward. My goal in the next few sessions is to figure out how to create broadness in both the front and back of my shoulder blades with my breath...