Exercises for Clients
Below you will find exercises that are paired to the Rolfing® ten-series sessions. The exercises can be done at any time and in any order. I recommend them to aide in relaxation, body awareness, and alignment.
Breathing Exercises (Session 1)
Breath Awareness #1
Draw your awareness to your breath. Don't try to change or exaggerate your breath in any way. Become aware of the movement caused by breathing. Perhaps you feel your chest moving, or maybe your belly. Feel the movement. Now, ask yourself if there is another place that you feel moving as a result of your breath. Maybe you feel your shoulders gently rising and falling. Again, don't try to force anything. Just breathe. Now check in with yourself: is there somewhere else moving from your breath? Possibly your lower back. Feel your breath. Be aware of the movement in the body. Now ask yourself is there another place moving because of your breath? Maybe your head. Perhaps your hands, feet, legs, and arms, etc. Continue breathing into your full body; following the inhales and exhales.
If you really have trouble feeling movement, take one deep exaggerated breath, and then try again.
Breath Awareness #2
This exercise is to help you feel the full range of the breath, so that you aren't either just chest breathing or just belly breathing. The lungs are expanded by the diaphragm moving down, but the lungs can also be expanded by enlarging the ribcage. Your ribs were designed to move - to rotate in their sockets - to allow the ribs to expand on the inhale. We'll do this in two steps.
Step 1: Side breathing
Place your hands on your sides (or have a friend/loved one place their hands on your sides), draw your awareness to your side ribs notice them expanding out into your hands on the inhale. You can do this from the very bottom rib, all the way up to your armpits. Feel the ribs expanding on the inhale, and relaxing on the exhale.
Step 2: Front/back breathing
Place one hand on your sternum, and the other hand behind your back aiming for between your shoulder blades. Breathe. Notice your hands spreading apart. Make sure you aren't just pushing either forward or backward - really feel both hands moving.
As in the first exercise, do not try to force or manipulate your breath. Just be aware of the breath and the movement. Over time, this will become easier.
Foot Exercises (Session 2)
Toe mobility #1
This exercise can be done seated or standing without shoes or socks. Lift all 5 toes, then slowly put them down one at a time, starting with the pinky and progressing to the big toe. Then lift them all again, and put them down in the opposite order, from big toe to pinky toe. Alternate feet. This is a deceptively simple exercise. Be patient with yourself!
Toe mobility #2
This exercise can be done seated or standing while barefoot. Sitting is slightly easier, so start there. You may find you need to hold your foot or ankle still as you start trying the movement, so that you aren't "cheating". The exercise is to slide your big toe away from the other toes (abduct the toe). You must not move your ankle, nor should you lift the toe; it should simply slide laterally along the ground. Then you will slowly slide it back. This exercise is an excellent one for bunions, but it is also VERY challenging, particularly if you have a bunion (because the abductor muscles are weak).
Establishing the "line" (Session 3)
Balancing your weight
While barefoot, bring your awareness to your feet. Where do you notice the most pressure? Where is your weight centred? On the ball of your feet, on your heels, the outer edge? Are your toes gripping the ground, or splayed Is it different foot to foot? Draw your awareness up to your ankles. Do you feel tension? Where? Continue bringing your attention up your legs towards your knees. Are they locked out/hyper extended? Are they clenched? Bring your awareness further up your body to your pelvis and lumbar spine. What do you notice? Are your glutes clenching? Do you feel a strain or pinch in your back?
Slowly shift your weight forward into your toes as far as you can without falling forward. What do you notice; where is the tension? Now, slowly go back the other way, shifting your weight as far back into your heels as you can without falling backwards. What sensations do you feel? Slowly alternate between forward and backwards, gradually decreasing the range, until you find yourself balanced on the centre of your foot (just in front of your heel, near the arch - called the "eye" of the foot). What do you notice in this position? Is there less tension? Perhaps your knees are relaxed, maybe your glutes aren't clenched, perhaps there is less strain in your lumbar spine.
Peel the Paint
Stand facing a wall so that you can comfortably place your hands on the wall at shoulder height (there should be a slight bend in your elbows). Allow your palms to press into the wall. Imagine your hands are stuck into the paint. Draw your awareness to your shoulders and scapula (shoulder blades). Allow your chest to open up, do not round your shoulders forward. You want to feel a gentle engagement at the base of your scapula (serratus anterior and lats). Keeping the pressure into your hands, gently draw your hands down. Ideally your hands do not move, or only very slightly. You are attempting to engage the shoulder girdle; keeping the chest and shoulders open, and strengthening the support muscles for the shoulder. These muscles are often chronically under-performing since we sit so much with our shoulders rounded forward and our scapulae winging off our backs.
Finding your midline (session 4)
While barefoot, bring your awareness down into your feet and legs. Notice how you feel. Where do you feel the weight in your feet, paying particular attention to the sides of your feet. Do you feel more pressure in your lateral (outside) edge of your feet? Or does it feel like the medial (inside) arch is collapsing? Is it the same leg to leg? Now, do you feel tension in your knees, IT Bands (outer thigh), glutes or low back? Be aware of how you contact the ground and what you are tensing to maintain balance. Now, if the weight is more on the lateral edge of your feet focus on bringing the weight more towards the centre of your foot, not over compensating so that the medial arch collapses and your ankle falls in, but rather imagine the weight is coming through the eye of the foot (just in front of your heel and in the centre of your foot). If your weight is coming down more through the medial arch and your ankle is collapsing, think about shifting your weight a little more laterally, feel the weight coming through the eye of the foot. And here is the important part in both cases, once you feel the weight in the eye imagine that the centre of your foot could draw upwards, so there is gentle engagement in the foot, you are not just sinking into the feet. Rather there is a push and pull relationship, a tansegrity structure in your feet. Now, bring your awareness again into your legs, glutes, low back, and all the rest of your body. What do you notice? Perhaps more space in the back? Less tension and gripping? Better balance?
Retrain the Psoas (session 5)
This exercise is very simple and can be a great way to help relieve low back pain. First, lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the floor/mat. Next, really focus on letting everything sink down and feel supported by the floor, or mat you are lying on. Bring your hands to your ASIS (the pointy bones at the front of your hips), and slowly lift one leg off the floor. Notice if the hips rock to do this. Repeat on the other side. If there is movement in the hips, this means that your illiopsoas is not firing correctly. What follows is a way to retrain the neural pathways:
Still lying on your back, now place your calves onto a chair or a coffee table -something that will let you rest your calf onto the surface and will create a 90° with your knees, and your knees need to be directly above your hips, so you have two 90° angles. From this position again let everything feel connected to the surface you are lying on. Bring your hands back to your hips (ASIS). Again, lift one leg bringing your knee towards your chest 1-2 inches (2-5 cm). Place it back down and then repeat on the other side. The goal is to eliminate the rocking of the hips. You can repeat this 3-5 times per side once or twice a day. Ensure you are using slow, controlled motions. Once this becomes easy and there is no rocking in your hips, remove the stool/chair/table, and try again with your feet on the floor. It may take weeks or even months before you are able to do this. Do not rush it, you are retraining your brain, and learning a new way of moving.
Breathing Exercises (Session 1)
Breath Awareness #1
Draw your awareness to your breath. Don't try to change or exaggerate your breath in any way. Become aware of the movement caused by breathing. Perhaps you feel your chest moving, or maybe your belly. Feel the movement. Now, ask yourself if there is another place that you feel moving as a result of your breath. Maybe you feel your shoulders gently rising and falling. Again, don't try to force anything. Just breathe. Now check in with yourself: is there somewhere else moving from your breath? Possibly your lower back. Feel your breath. Be aware of the movement in the body. Now ask yourself is there another place moving because of your breath? Maybe your head. Perhaps your hands, feet, legs, and arms, etc. Continue breathing into your full body; following the inhales and exhales.
If you really have trouble feeling movement, take one deep exaggerated breath, and then try again.
Breath Awareness #2
This exercise is to help you feel the full range of the breath, so that you aren't either just chest breathing or just belly breathing. The lungs are expanded by the diaphragm moving down, but the lungs can also be expanded by enlarging the ribcage. Your ribs were designed to move - to rotate in their sockets - to allow the ribs to expand on the inhale. We'll do this in two steps.
Step 1: Side breathing
Place your hands on your sides (or have a friend/loved one place their hands on your sides), draw your awareness to your side ribs notice them expanding out into your hands on the inhale. You can do this from the very bottom rib, all the way up to your armpits. Feel the ribs expanding on the inhale, and relaxing on the exhale.
Step 2: Front/back breathing
Place one hand on your sternum, and the other hand behind your back aiming for between your shoulder blades. Breathe. Notice your hands spreading apart. Make sure you aren't just pushing either forward or backward - really feel both hands moving.
As in the first exercise, do not try to force or manipulate your breath. Just be aware of the breath and the movement. Over time, this will become easier.
Foot Exercises (Session 2)
Toe mobility #1
This exercise can be done seated or standing without shoes or socks. Lift all 5 toes, then slowly put them down one at a time, starting with the pinky and progressing to the big toe. Then lift them all again, and put them down in the opposite order, from big toe to pinky toe. Alternate feet. This is a deceptively simple exercise. Be patient with yourself!
Toe mobility #2
This exercise can be done seated or standing while barefoot. Sitting is slightly easier, so start there. You may find you need to hold your foot or ankle still as you start trying the movement, so that you aren't "cheating". The exercise is to slide your big toe away from the other toes (abduct the toe). You must not move your ankle, nor should you lift the toe; it should simply slide laterally along the ground. Then you will slowly slide it back. This exercise is an excellent one for bunions, but it is also VERY challenging, particularly if you have a bunion (because the abductor muscles are weak).
Establishing the "line" (Session 3)
Balancing your weight
While barefoot, bring your awareness to your feet. Where do you notice the most pressure? Where is your weight centred? On the ball of your feet, on your heels, the outer edge? Are your toes gripping the ground, or splayed Is it different foot to foot? Draw your awareness up to your ankles. Do you feel tension? Where? Continue bringing your attention up your legs towards your knees. Are they locked out/hyper extended? Are they clenched? Bring your awareness further up your body to your pelvis and lumbar spine. What do you notice? Are your glutes clenching? Do you feel a strain or pinch in your back?
Slowly shift your weight forward into your toes as far as you can without falling forward. What do you notice; where is the tension? Now, slowly go back the other way, shifting your weight as far back into your heels as you can without falling backwards. What sensations do you feel? Slowly alternate between forward and backwards, gradually decreasing the range, until you find yourself balanced on the centre of your foot (just in front of your heel, near the arch - called the "eye" of the foot). What do you notice in this position? Is there less tension? Perhaps your knees are relaxed, maybe your glutes aren't clenched, perhaps there is less strain in your lumbar spine.
Peel the Paint
Stand facing a wall so that you can comfortably place your hands on the wall at shoulder height (there should be a slight bend in your elbows). Allow your palms to press into the wall. Imagine your hands are stuck into the paint. Draw your awareness to your shoulders and scapula (shoulder blades). Allow your chest to open up, do not round your shoulders forward. You want to feel a gentle engagement at the base of your scapula (serratus anterior and lats). Keeping the pressure into your hands, gently draw your hands down. Ideally your hands do not move, or only very slightly. You are attempting to engage the shoulder girdle; keeping the chest and shoulders open, and strengthening the support muscles for the shoulder. These muscles are often chronically under-performing since we sit so much with our shoulders rounded forward and our scapulae winging off our backs.
Finding your midline (session 4)
While barefoot, bring your awareness down into your feet and legs. Notice how you feel. Where do you feel the weight in your feet, paying particular attention to the sides of your feet. Do you feel more pressure in your lateral (outside) edge of your feet? Or does it feel like the medial (inside) arch is collapsing? Is it the same leg to leg? Now, do you feel tension in your knees, IT Bands (outer thigh), glutes or low back? Be aware of how you contact the ground and what you are tensing to maintain balance. Now, if the weight is more on the lateral edge of your feet focus on bringing the weight more towards the centre of your foot, not over compensating so that the medial arch collapses and your ankle falls in, but rather imagine the weight is coming through the eye of the foot (just in front of your heel and in the centre of your foot). If your weight is coming down more through the medial arch and your ankle is collapsing, think about shifting your weight a little more laterally, feel the weight coming through the eye of the foot. And here is the important part in both cases, once you feel the weight in the eye imagine that the centre of your foot could draw upwards, so there is gentle engagement in the foot, you are not just sinking into the feet. Rather there is a push and pull relationship, a tansegrity structure in your feet. Now, bring your awareness again into your legs, glutes, low back, and all the rest of your body. What do you notice? Perhaps more space in the back? Less tension and gripping? Better balance?
Retrain the Psoas (session 5)
This exercise is very simple and can be a great way to help relieve low back pain. First, lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the floor/mat. Next, really focus on letting everything sink down and feel supported by the floor, or mat you are lying on. Bring your hands to your ASIS (the pointy bones at the front of your hips), and slowly lift one leg off the floor. Notice if the hips rock to do this. Repeat on the other side. If there is movement in the hips, this means that your illiopsoas is not firing correctly. What follows is a way to retrain the neural pathways:
Still lying on your back, now place your calves onto a chair or a coffee table -something that will let you rest your calf onto the surface and will create a 90° with your knees, and your knees need to be directly above your hips, so you have two 90° angles. From this position again let everything feel connected to the surface you are lying on. Bring your hands back to your hips (ASIS). Again, lift one leg bringing your knee towards your chest 1-2 inches (2-5 cm). Place it back down and then repeat on the other side. The goal is to eliminate the rocking of the hips. You can repeat this 3-5 times per side once or twice a day. Ensure you are using slow, controlled motions. Once this becomes easy and there is no rocking in your hips, remove the stool/chair/table, and try again with your feet on the floor. It may take weeks or even months before you are able to do this. Do not rush it, you are retraining your brain, and learning a new way of moving.