In stillness like a great mountain
In movement like a mighty river
Somatic Structural Integration
Touched by Nature
SOMATIC STRUCTURAL INTEGRATION
Feel better, move Better
Tai Chi Ch'uan and Somatic Structural Integration
While Structural Integration is not specifically designed to support Tai Chi Ch’uan, it has proven to be a valuable complement in practice. The sessions help uncover blind spots in movement patterns and structural limitations, and transform them gradually—leading to greater breath capacity, fluidity, and dynamic ease.
Refinement | Key principles
This structural refinement makes it easier to embody central Tai Chi Ch'uan principles. In partner exercises, it also deepens somatic discernment—between bones, connective tissue, organs, and breath space—resulting in greater lightness, presence, and clarity in contact.
Touched by Nature | align with gravity, move with ease
A key connection between Tai Chi Chuan and Structural Integration is the way both disciplines work with gravity- it's actually Tonic Integration. In Tai Chi Chuan, you learn to use gravity to develop balance, fluidity, and strength, with breath at the center of the practice. Similarly, Structural Integration focuses on restoring the body’s efficiency and breathing space in relation to gravity—by working directly with the fascial system (the connective tissue web) to support more functional, adaptable patterns of tension and alignment. Through precise manual techniques and movement awareness, the body reorganizes itself in a way that feels more supported and integrated. Both systems use gravity’s natural polarity between earth and sky to help the body find its center—bringing stillness to both body and mind.
Importantly, Structural Integration does not “fix” or force the body. Instead, it engages the nervous system’s perception—inviting it to update old patterns of holding, movement, and protection. Through touch and awareness, the nervous system begins to sense the body differently, allowing ingrained movement habits to reorganize in a way that feels safe and supported.
This process helps you recognize how structural patterns—often shaped by habit, injury, or emotional history—relate not just to posture, but also to how you feel and express yourself. As these patterns shift, a renewed sense of freedom, mobility, and presence can emerge. The mind becomes more focused, and fixed structures in the body are given space to soften and adapt—supporting a deeper connection with yourself and your environment.
The method consists of 10 sessions, each building progressively toward restoring balance and a more efficient alignment of the body in relation to gravity. By working on the nervous system, using (myo)fascial techniques focused on the connective tissue, the work also brings awareness to how you perceive and inhabit your body—supporting physical and energetic movement, both in open space and in contact.
Tai Chi requires a refined coordination between relaxation, stability, intensity and flowing movement. The 10 Series of Structural Integration creates more inner space and connectivity within the body, allowing Tai Chi practice to become more natural, powerful, and internally sourced. Movement is then supported by a resilient, sensitive, and integrated fascial network.
Sessions 1–3: The Sleeve Sessions (sky, ground, sky session)
These first three sessions focus on the superficial fascial layers, freeing the breath, walking pattern, and creating space in the feet, legs, chest, and shoulders. In relation to Tai Chi Ch’uan, these sessions help to soften the outer structure — the "sleeve" — and enhance the initial perception of Yin–Yang dynamics in both form and breath.
Sessions 4–7: The Core Sessions
This middle group addresses the body’s deeper structures: the psoas, the spine, the pelvis, and the deep postural muscles. This strengthens the connection to the center (Dantian), makes contralateral spirals more tangible, and supports core-initiated movement — a fundamental aspect of Tai Chi Ch’uan practice.
Sessions 8–10: Integration and Consolidation
These final sessions weave together the upper and lower body, left and right, inner and outer structure — with attention to rhythm, fluidity, and coordination. They refine the integration of structure, breath, and intention — which, in Tai Chi Ch’uan, translates into clarity of movement, partner work, and inner stillness.
"Soma" is a Greek word meaning "the living body" — not as a static object, but as a lived, felt experience from within. In somatic practices like Structural Integration, it refers to the body as you experience it from the inside out — in relationship to gravity, movement, the environment, memory, and meaning.
The soma is the conscious body, where sensation, emotion, movement, and awareness converge. It carries a deep intelligence — a non-verbal kind of knowing, through which the body can self-organize and heal. Structural Integration is grounded in this self-organizing potential: the body holds memory and rhythm, which can be awakened through touch, breath, and attention.
Just as Tai Chi Ch’uan invites listening instead of control, somatic work invites us to move with the body, not against it. When we say “the body knows,” we speak of embodied awareness — nourished by the breath, guided by intention (Yi), carried by Qi — a dialogue between body, mind, and the world we move within.
The body knows | the mind has yet to hear
More than just a structure
Meet the practitioner
Maya - Matthea van Staden
Structural Integration is a hands-on approach to working with the body’s (myo)fascial system, aimed at improving posture, movement, and overall physical coherence. Rooted in the work of Dr. Ida Rolf, it offers a personalized, one-on-one process that reorganizes the body in relation to gravity. In parallel, her teaching of traditional Tai Chi Ch’uan introduces a gentle, group-based movement practice that cultivates coordination, balance, and embodied awareness through flowing, structured forms. While distinct in form, both approaches foster greater ease, adaptability, and an integrated relationship between body, breath, and perception.
Why the 10 Series of Structural Integration work so powerfully
The 10 Series is a carefully structured sequence of sessions that approaches the body in layers—from superficial to deep, and from local tension patterns to global integration. The goal is not just physical relaxation or pain relief, but a fundamental reorganization of the body’s structure in relation to gravity, movement freedom, and inner awareness.