Fascia, fascial adhesions and swimming

I have been reading some of my old swimming literature in preparation for some specific workouts I will be preparing for the masters swimming group I have been part of for 20 years. The following quote is from an article by Bob Pritchard entitled "The New Swim Paradigm" that appeared in the magazine SWIMMING TECHNIQUE back in 1993. It doesn't mention Rolfing
but it does neatly discuss issues with connective tissue, i.e. fascia, which is exactly what Rolfing works with, as they relate to swimming. The lesson is universal.

"The old body paradigm is 'swimmers consist of muscles and bones, guided by a nervous system.' In fact, every muscle, muscle fiber, bone, internal organ, nerve-even the whole body-is surrounded by a thin membrane of connective tissue. The body is a series of concentric, inter-connecting tissue tubes, filled with muscles and bones. The role of connective tissue in swimming cannot be underestimated. Connective tissue makes a permanent and worsening record of every training error in a swimmer's career. Here is how it works.

"Whenever the muscles tense up because of injury, over-use or stress, small micro-fibers form between the adjacent tubes , binding them together to immobilize the area so it can heal. The micro-fibers prevent the muscles from stretching by preventing them sliding past each other. Unfortunately, after the muscles have healed, the micro-fibers not only don't go away, they accumulate as time goes by. It is the accumulation of those micro-fibers that make us stiffer as we get older. Since these micro-fibers are between the muscles, they cannot be released through stretching."

But they can be released by Rolfing. Check out my web site, www.vermontrolfer.com.