Michael Valenti, B.A., Certified Rolfer, Portland

To understand Rolfing, it’s helpful to examine Ida P. Rolf’s founding philosophy on the subject: “As in all matter organized into biological units, there is a pattern, an order in human bodies. Rolfers make a life study of relating bodies and their fields to the earth and its gravity.” While certified Rolfer Michael Valenti holds this notion dear, his bodywork approach is more direct. By manually lengthening the connective tissue through kneading techniques, Michael hopes to ease his clients’ chronic tension, improve range of motion, and make them all tall enough to reach the cookie jar.