The Recipe

I am dedicated to the teachings of Dr. Ida P. Rolf and practice the recipe, which I have learned from my teachers, Emmett Hutchins, Neal Powers, Jeff Lynn and others at the Guild for Structural Integration. I find this original recipe to be the most potent form of the work. What follows are generalized and simplified descriptions of the ten sessions.

The First Session:

Opening the sleeve (freeing breath & superficial fascia)

Territory: ribcage, sternum, shoulders, neck; lateral pelvis/leg and

hamstrings.

• Address any tension in the ribcage to improve breathing pattern and increase vital capacity and adaptability.
• Begin to horizontalize the pelvis. A horizontal pelvis is the point of reference for a body.
• Lengthen the torso away from the pelvis and define the relationship between legs and pelvis.

The Second Session:

Support (establishing relationship to the ground)

Territory: feet, lower legs, and knees, back

• Mobilize the ankle, the toe hinges and the knee.
• Release restrictions and tightness in the lower leg.
• Begin to provide a flexible basis of support for the legs and pelvis by creating resilient feet.
• Begin to effectively lengthen and free the muscles of the back.

The Third Session:

Lateral line (lengthening the sides, creating dimension)

Territory: neck, arms/shoulders, torso, pelvis, thighs and knees

• Release strain along the crest of the illium.
• Mobilize the 12^th Rib
• Differentiate the rib cage from the shoulder girdle and the pelvis for better support.

The Fourth Session:

Medial line (building up core support and strength)

Territory: ankle, knees, medial thigh, pelvic floor

• Continuing to establish a functional horizontal hinge at the ankles and knees.
• Establishing an inner pillar from which the limbs can hang.
• Freeing the leg from the pelvis.
• Acquainting the client with the region and importance of the pelvic floor (core support).
• Provide length and greater stability for the lumbar spine.

The Fifth Session:

Anterior line (visceral organization and core activation)

Territory: front of the legs, abdomen, diaphragm, ribs & sternum

• Lengthen and balance the abdominal wall, Waking up and reasserting the deep, abdominal musculature (core strength).
• Ease and lengthen the relationship of legs with pelvis.
• Initiating psoas-rhomboid balance, as well as rectus-psoas balance.

The Sixth Session:

Posterior line (creating a poised vertical line of symmetry)

Territory: posterior ankle, calves and thighs; gluteals, deep rotator muscles, sacrum, hamstrings, spine (lower and upper back)

• Addressing rotations in the leg (hip rotators)
• Freeing the sacrum from the ilia (SI joint)
• Coordinating the hinges in the back (lumbo dorsal & mid dorsal hinge)
• Enhancing and extending symmetry above and below the pelvic girdle

The Seventh Session:

Adaptability (balancing the neck & head on the spine)

Territory: chest, shoulders, neck, nose, jaw, cranium

• Releasing exterior & interior fascial tension of the face, throat, thorax, shoulder and cranium.
• Creating relationship between neck and thorax.
• Establishing a spanning polarity between the top of the head and the base of the sacrum.

The Eighth and Ninth Sessions:

Structural Integration and Functional Integration (stability and adaptability)

The goals of both sessions eight and nine are to integrate longer planes of fascia into the core. One session will be a "lower girdle" and the other an "upper girdle" session. They are interchangeable.

• Provide lift, length and stability in the body.
• Relating girdles to the vertical (mid) line.
• Encourage that all movements originate from the LDH (pre-vertebral).

The Tenth Session:

Final integration & closure (horizontal lines)

Territory: ankles, knees, hips, diaphragm, neck, cranium

• Preparing client for assimilation and manifestation.
• Establishing functional horizontals with the major hinges of the body.
• Establish a balanced and stacking of the major segments of the body: feet, lower legs, knees, thighs, spine, ribcage, shoulders, arms, neck and head

Post Ten:

After the Ten-Series, it is suggested to take a break while the body continues to change from day to day. After a period of four to six months the client may choose to receive more advanced work by receiving an advanced Three-series. This work continues the progression and evolution of the ten.

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