Structural Integration Gold Coast
A deeper approach to movement, tension and whole-body balance
Do you feel like your body has been holding onto tension for years?
Perhaps you have ongoing stiffness, restricted movement, recurring muscular tension or changes in the way you move following an injury or surgery. You may have tried massage, exercise or other treatments, but feel that the same patterns keep returning.
Anatomy Trains Structural Integration (ATSI) is a comprehensive form of hands-on myofascial therapy that views the body as a connected whole rather than focusing solely on where you feel discomfort.
Structural Integration combines hands-on fascial and myofascial treatment with movement and postural assessment, creating an individualised approach based on how your body moves and adapts.
This is not a standard massage treatment. It is a progressive process designed to explore long-standing patterns of tension and restriction and encourage greater freedom, balance and ease of movement.
Bodywork Evolution offers Anatomy Trains Structural Integration, serving clients across the Gold Coast and is based on the North Gold Coast.
What is Anatomy Trains Structural Integration?
Anatomy Trains Structural Integration is an approach to myofascial therapy and movement re-education that developed from the pioneering work of Dr Ida Rolf and has been further developed by Thomas Myers through the Anatomy Trains model.
The approach recognises that the body’s connective tissues, muscles and movement patterns are interconnected.
Over the course of our lives, our bodies can adapt to injuries, surgery, repetitive activities, changes in posture and the way we habitually move. These adaptations can contribute to persistent patterns of tension and restriction.
Structural Integration works with these patterns through slow, specific hands-on treatment and movement, helping you explore a different way of moving and using your body.
Rather than trying to force your body into a particular posture, the aim is to encourage greater ease, balance, length and freedom of movement.
Could Structural Integration be right for you?
Structural Integration may be worth exploring if you experience:
- Persistent muscular tension or stiffness
- Restricted movement
- Long-standing movement patterns
- Changes in posture or body alignment
- Recurring areas of discomfort
- Tension following injury or surgery
- Compensatory movement patterns
- A feeling that your body is constantly working harder than it should
- Difficulty feeling comfortable or balanced in your body
- A desire to understand and change long-established movement patterns
You don’t need to be particularly fit or flexible to have Structural Integration.
It can be adapted to different bodies, ages, abilities and levels of mobility.
A personalised approach rather than a one-size-fits-all treatment
The full Anatomy Trains Structural Integration programme consists of 12 progressive sessions, traditionally described as a “recipe”.
However, a recipe isn’t rigid.
Each person’s body is different, so the sessions are adapted according to your individual structure, movement patterns, history and response to treatment.
At the beginning of the process, a detailed postural and movement assessment is used to help identify areas that may require attention. Assessments can also be repeated throughout the programme to observe changes.
The focus isn’t on creating a “perfect” posture; posture is or should be dynamic.
The aim is to help your body find greater balance, movement, and ease rather than finding a particular position.
The 12-session Structural Integration series
The full series is divided into three stages.
Sessions 1–4 — The Sleeve
The first four sessions explore the outer layers of the body, including the front, back and sides. The work may focus on areas such as the shoulders, trunk, breathing mechanics and feet, helping to establish greater freedom and support through the body.
Sessions 5–8 — The Core
The middle four sessions move towards the body’s deeper central structures. The intention is to explore the body’s central support and coordination and address movement patterns and rotations that may have developed over time.
Sessions 9–12 — Integration
The final four sessions bring the previous work together. The focus is on integration, coordination, and whole-body movement, allowing the changes explored throughout the series to be more naturally incorporated into your movement.
How often do I need a session?
There isn’t one schedule that is right for everyone.
Structural Integration is a progressive process, and your body needs time to respond and adapt between sessions.
The appropriate interval depends on factors such as your individual response to treatment, how your tissues respond and how you feel following each session.
Rather than automatically scheduling sessions as frequently as possible, we listen to your body and allow enough time for the process to develop.
What happens during a Structural Integration session?
Sessions can take up to 80 minutes, though the exact duration may vary; they are generally between 45 and 80 minutes.
Each session includes:
Assessment
Your posture and movement are observed so the treatment can be tailored to you.
Hands-on treatment
Much of the treatment takes place on a treatment table, with some movements performed sitting, standing or using a stool.
Movement
You may be asked to make specific movements while the practitioner works with the tissues. This helps connect the hands-on work with how your body moves.
Communication
You remain an active participant throughout the session. Treatment can be adapted to your comfort level and your body’s response.
The intention is not simply to “work harder” or go deeper; effective treatment should be appropriate for your body on the day.
What should I wear?
Structural Integration involves working with different areas of the body, so treatment is performed in underwear or swimwear, whichever you feel most comfortable wearing.
Your comfort, privacy and dignity are important throughout the session.
Can I have just one session?
Yes.
While the 12-session series provides the complete Structural Integration process, Bodywork Evolution also offers Structural Integration as:
- Individual sessions
- A 3-session introductory series
- The complete 12-session series
The most appropriate option can be discussed during your initial consultation.
Does Structural Integration change your posture?
Structural Integration isn’t about creating a rigid or “perfect” posture.
Your posture naturally changes as you breathe, walk, sit, reach and respond to your environment.
The goal is to help you develop greater freedom, balance and ease within your movement, rather than holding yourself in a position that doesn’t feel natural.
Photographs may be taken at the beginning and end of a series, and sometimes during the process, to help observe changes in your structure and movement patterns.
These photographs are used to observe change — not to judge your posture or create an artificial ideal.
Although there is considerable controversy over whether posture matters, I believe that if changes in posture affect function, then it does matter.
A different way to experience your body
Many people spend years adapting to old injuries, habitual movement patterns, or areas of tension without realising how much effort their bodies use.
Structural Integration provides an opportunity to slow down, become more aware of how you move and explore different possibilities.
The aim is to help you experience your body with more ease, awareness, balance and freedom of movement.
Ready to explore Structural Integration?
If you’re interested in Anatomy Trains Structural Integration, myofascial therapy or a more comprehensive approach to long-standing movement patterns, contact Bodywork Evolution to discuss whether Structural Integration may be suitable for you.
Bodywork Evolution
Anatomy Trains Structural Integration
Myofascial Release • Remedial Massage • Clinical Pilates
For further information call Julie: 0416864841 or email: bodyworkevolution@gmail.com
Structural Integration price
3 or 12-session series – 60-90 mins/session – $150 per session.
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