Rolfing and Movement with Martha Pfleeger

I came to Martha as an athlete with twenty years of professional bike riding textured into my body. My whole body had formed in the forward direction, various injuries had built up, and I have struggled for a number of years with back and neck pain. I would also definitely consider myself a stiff person. Working with Martha over several months I saw noticeable changes and improvements, some of them drastic. In particular, I watched as my rounded shoulders and chest began to open up, which led not just to better alignment but a greater sense of vitality, ability to breathe deeply, and overall fluidity and flexibility in daily movements. I probably got an inch taller. Her gentleness, care, and generosity have been priceless.
Martha is a great Rolfer but she is also trained in other modalities. She is aware of the way the body is put together beyond the muscle — she pays attention to organs, bones, joints, and even nerves (which she is also trained in), as one intricate system. She also has a unique ability to understand the body because of her decades of passionate dance experience. Those combine with her clear passion for the work and her social worker mentality that feels deeply compelled to help people in need.
As a Rolfer and bodyworker her approach is unique and playful. I enjoy each day I come in and am never quite sure what kind of setup I’ll end up on. Her practice isn’t to just have me lie there and get a nice relaxing massage, though of course it is inherently relaxing. She’s there to create lasting changes. She is always trying to creatively figure out ways to optimally orient the body during the work, trying to engage/​stretch or disengage particular muscles, and also sometimes involving actual movement during the work to address a greater range of motion.
Beyond the body work she is constantly trying to get me to be more fluid in my motions, and opening my mind to new ways of movement, helping me to reassess my relationship to my bike riding and my yoga practices. Her way of approaching movement is unique, something I’ve never seen before, and it has helped me to break from the rigid, «yang» approach that is so overvalued in our society. For instance, she’s helped me not just with the external postures but with better approaching my «inner posture» during yoga, the subtleties of what I am doing with my muscles, joints and organs, and how I was often fighting myself in the poses as I engaged one set of muscles while counterengaging with another. She also helped me to understand the artificial ideals I had set up for myself about what my body should look like — and that everyone’s body is different, everyone’s alignment is different.
Coming away from my experience with her, my body has changed more than I had thought possible, but even more, she’s helped modify my whole approach to physical movement, helped me gain greater and greater awareness of the nuances of my body, and given me the tools to continue to open up my body and avoid injuries — not to mention to be realistic about what is possible for my body given my history and body type. What I have learned will continue to evolve beyond the finish of our work. This post is part of my thanks to her, as I hope that others will find their way to such a gifted and helpful person with so many years of experience. Thanks Martha. –Richard.

Prior to my desk job, I had a pair of «football player» shoulders due to my heavy-​lifting job as a teenager… Now I am learning to Argentine tango but in order to do it properly and gracefully, my shoulders need to go down and my legs need to stretch out. I had a such hard time with my shoulders and my legs and I actually stopped tangoing for a bit. Then someone suggested I should go see a rolfer. She recommended me this famous male rolfer, but he was solid booked for 60 days and VERY expensive. I found her while web searching and I liked the fact that she was a dancer before. Anyhow, I’m so glad I found her. She has been amazing in her work (My shoulders are down!!! to normal level) and also glad that she is a female because most of the time I am wearing bra and underware style of outfit so she can see how I walk, how my body moves, etc. I HIGHLY recommend her. #massage #neck pain #back pain. Also, she is very affordable.

Martha’s rolfing work is truly amazing! I initially saw her because I was under extreme stress at work and then moving to a place. I feel so relaxed and rejuvenated. Everyone is remarking how much better I look and that my body looks taller and thinner.