‘Steve Austin, astronaut: a man barely alive… Gentlemen we can rebuild him. We have the technology, we have the capability to make the worlds first bionic man. Steve Austin will be that man. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster.’
Do you remember these lines? This was the introduction of my favourite TV show in the 1970s: ‘The 6 Million Dollar Man’, starring Lee Majors.
The show was about the adventures of colonel Steve Austin who, after his space shuttle had crashed, had both legs, one arm and one eye replaced with robotic parts. These gave him superhuman powers such as running at a speed of 60mph and lifting 300 pounds with one arm.
Even though I was a kid I realised a major flaw: humans don’t walk and run just with the legs and feet but with the whole body. Even if the technology had existed, in order to run at that speed the hero would have needed a robotic pelvis, spine, rib cage, shoulders and left arm.
The show was great though so it didn’t bother me and I thoroughly enjoyed watching the charismatic hero stop villains.
Back to reality. Have you ever paid attention about how you walk? Whether aside from the movements of your legs and feet your arms swing back and forth and your shoulders, spine and pelvis rotate with ease?
Most people have restrictions that prevent walking with the whole body with ease and fluidity.
At the beginning of a Rolfing session I observe your walking gait and movements. I then use deep fascia manipulations for releasing your tensions and restrictions. The goal is to facilitate movements so that you can walk and move with your whole body.
Here the intro of the Six Million Dollar Man. Enjoy!