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The Core Sessions
Now that we have worked on the outer shell of the body, effectively freeing up our extrinsic layer, we can move deeper. The body, by session 4, has learned better how to open up and receive connective bodywork. As we move deeper into the body, we can also move deeper into the mind and heart. The core sessions will start to bring forth more core issues, such as stability, protection and our view of ourselves in the world. The invitation is always there for breakthroughs, but the core sessions are especially powerful in getting to the heart of the matter.

In the core sessions, we will continue working systematically through the body, moving our focus towards the center line, lifting it, and giving it more strength, as well as freeing it to move more fluidly with this newfound strength. Initially we will lift our front line, in sessions 4 and 5, working from the inner heel up the leg and through the pelvis, lifting the abdomen and then the rib cage. In session 6 we will be working up the entire back side of the body, balancing out sessions 4 and 5, as well as working deeply into the out hip joint. Session 7, sometimes referred to as The Bridge Session, will work entirely in the head and neck, putting it on top of all the work we have done in preperation.
In sessions 4 and 5 especially we will be working a lot with the Psoas muscle, one of particular importance in Structural Integration. Entire books can and have been written on the Psoas and its' importance in the body but I will attempt to sum it up here. The Psoas muscle attaches to the front of the lower spine, and runs through the pelvis, over the pubic bone, and inserts on the inside of the upper thigh. It is the only muscle in the body that runs from above the pelvis to below the pelvis. The psoas is primarily accessible roughly in the position of the Dantian, Tan T'ien or Hara, a place of particule importance in yoga and martial arts, and equates to the center of gravity. The lower attachment can also be touched, by way of the inner thigh.
In a structural body, the psoas is responsible for pelvic shift and tilt. The pelvis is a bowl, or basin, and in some eastern religions is the "seat of the soul". The word sacrum means "sacred bone". As a basin, the pelvis supports the abdominal cavity. If the pelvis is out of balance, the contents of the abdomen effectively fall out, of place at the least. In tai-chi or kung-fu, it is said that the chi, or vital life force, is spilling out. Physically, the digestive system loses its support from below and effective functioning can decrease.

Extrapolating out, the sacrum is the guiding force for the entire spine. Since the sacrum is effectively a static part of the pelvis, as the bones of the pelvis effectively calcify around age 6, the movement of the pelvis starts a chain-reaction in the spine. The spine will try and produce a smooth curve for itself, so if the bottom starts more flat, then the curve must exagerate to compensate. For this reason, a tipped pelvis can cause lumbar lordosis (a concave lower back). Since the spine balances itself, the cervials and upper thoracics (neck and shoulders) follow with kyphosis (convexity). This is a very common condition, but the same "whipping" can be done with a pelvis tipped to the back, or to either side, which we may find in cases of scoliosis.

If nothing else, the goal of the core sessions is to return the pelvis to its "normal" position, balanced both from front to back as well as from side to side. In order to accomplish this, we must work the entire core of the body, front, back and sides, and effectively from head to toe, though mainly from knees to ribs, and the central muscle to all of that is the Psoas.