Tensegrity (pronunciation:
ten-SEG-reh-tee) is a
Buckminster Fuller term
applied to building suspension bridges and
can be defined as:
"Complimentary forces suspended
within a
base foundation of 3
create unlimited
tension integrity."
Tensegrity designs allow a dynamic system of
movement where the whole moves the part and
the part moves the whole and the circle is
unbroken.
Based on the Trinity, the Human Body is a
Tensegrity bridge suspended between Spirit
and Matter, truly a Sacred Temple.
Applied Tensegrity (AT) is the
concept of integration to the highest
degree.
The word “Tensegrity” was originally a term
coined in the engineering of suspension
bridges as a way to define distribution of
force through structure. When a part of a
suspension bridge is weak or compromised,
the entire structure responds to balance out
the problem. The power of a suspension
bridge is in the ability to move or adapt
under stress load changes. The same can be
said for the human body.
Understanding body adaptation patterns to
stress changes are primary to the
application of massage therapy. In a
Tensegrity or suspension structure, an
isolated problem or event does not exist.
There is only the response of the whole.
The depth of the concept of AT can
have vast applications from engineering a
bridge to an understanding of the fascial
system of the human body to philosophical
and spiritual debates. All are based on this
understanding: “in a dynamic system of
movement, the part moves the whole and the
whole moves the part…and the circle is
unbroken.”
In the introduction to AT within the
context of Massage Therapy, three main areas
will be examined: one is the fascial
system affected by the integrity of blood
flow in the capillary system; the second is
an integration of treatment modalities that
gain momentum within an AT model; and
the third is advanced palpation techniques
to sense and treat tensegrity foci of
tension that affect the entire body.
With each of the levels there is a strong
emphasis placed on the biomechanics of the
therapist as well as the focus of attention
of the therapist’s own thoughts to stay
present, not drift away in their mind. With
this new AT view of the body, a
therapist is able to apply many common
treatment modalities in a new and dynamic
way with increased, long lasting results.
