Giants- Robert Schleip*

Robert Schleip received his training in structural integration at the Rolf Institute in Boulder Colorado in the late 1970's. He became the first Rolf practitioner in Germany in 1978. He obtained an MA in Psychology from the University Heidelberg, Germany in 1980. He became an Advanced Practitioner in Structural Integration in 1983, was certified as a Feldenkrais Practitioner by the International Feldenkrais Guild in Oregon in 1987 and is a certified Naturopath in Complementary Medicine (Bund Deutscher Heilpraktiker, Germany, 1997). Schleip holds a Ph.D. in Human Biology with summa cum laude (University of Ulm, Germany, 2006).

He currently directs the Fascia Research Project at Ulm University, Germany and is Research Director of the European Rolfing Association. He is a certified Rolfing Instructor and Feldenkrais teacher.

Dr Schleip has authored and co-edited several books and has written numerous research articles. He received a Vladimir Janda Award for Musculoskeletal Medicine for his discovery of active contractile properties in fascial tissues. He was a major organizer of the first Fascia Research Congress held in Boston, USA in 2007.

What we have learned from Robert Schleip guides every aspect of our work here at Structural Elements. His research has influenced the manual and movement disciplines we practice every working day. 

*In our “Giants” blog series we provide a paragraph (or two or three) of bio about our biggest influencers. As Isaac Newton said, "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants." For the curious among our readers, these short bios are offered as a spring board into more research.