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Author page: Jeni Spring, LMT, BCSI

HomeAuthor page: Jeni Spring, LMT, BCSI
Footnotes by 12/31/2018 0Comments

What is Barefoot Massage?

what is barefoot massage definitionWhat is Barefoot Massage?

It’s not a foot massage – this is when the massage therapist massages YOU with their feet!

Barefoot Massage is simply the act of using feet as tools to professionally massage with.

Part of our mission here at the Center for Barefoot Massage is not only to cultivate a tribe of smart, educated and informed barefoot massage therapists within the massage industry, but also to educate the public on the benefits of barefoot massage, and what it is. We want to normalize the terminology of “barefoot massage” and make styles within this genre just as recognized and sought after as the typical “sports massage” or “hot stone” massage services are across the nation.

‘The public is just now learning about the difference between a foot massage, reflexology and bare foot massage – and the massage industry is starting to recognize the differences between techniques and styles within the genre.

A trained Barefoot Massage Therapist can use different aspects of their feet to recreate similar sensations that a “Hands-on” massage would deliver. Heels, arches, toes, calves, shins, and knees are employed in various Barefoot Massage techniques, just as fists, palms, fingers, forearms, and elbows are in your average massage from someone’s hands. Similar goals are achieved from each element, but the larger surface area of these tools allows for a diffused, yet distinct pressure that can be less triggering to a person’s pain tolerance.

Just like there are many different styles of massages provided by the upper extremities, there are many different styles of Barefoot Massages.

We teach two different styles of Barefoot Massage: Myofascial Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage – lovingly nicknamed “FasciAshi” (that’s more of an industry term, though. We don’t expect, or really want the public to use that hard-to-pronounce name!) AND we also teach Fijian Barefoot Massage.

Give it weight, then wait is a pretty heavy theory that we’ve found to be important throughout our entire barefoot massage approach to impact the Neuromyofascial web. Working with fascial integration, navigating the contours of muscle and bone while applying broad, consistent pressure on varying angles, the techniques we teach aim to address the body as a functional whole. The further you get into our courses and specialty track classes, the more you’ll see the importance of sustained pressure and anatomical specificity to best impact your client’s interoception.

Here’s our definition of the Myofascial Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage that we teach in any “FasciAshi” class:

This style of work is a modern massage approach to barefoot massage where the Licensed Massage Therapist is specifically using their feet to slowly glide along the skin, addressing muscles and interconnected layers of fascia throughout the body. Additional focused tracks of training help the practitioner to specialize in different niches – offering theories and protocols that use a myofascial massage approach but also add in a deep relaxation vibe, a sports massage vibe, or even a more clinical style for pain/injury rehabilitation.

In order to apply variable angles of weighted pressure through different techniques taught in our series of classes, a Barefoot Massage Therapist trained at the Center for Barefoot Massage will just happen to need overhead bars to hold onto, and a suspended strap to lean back into… in addition to their feet. A portion of the working therapist’s body weight up to their entire body weight can be applied in this technique, based on need, safety, the ratio of weight between the client and therapist, and the professionals level of FasciAshi training.

Here’s our definition of the Fijian Barefoot Massage/Matwork that we teach:

We also teach a neuromuscular sports barefoot matwork massage. Fijian Barefoot Massage gets it’s name from it’s country of origin – and when it was first brought to the US, it was not taught with a Neuromuscular, Trigger Point or a Sports Massage intent – but those are the theories that we layer on top of the technique to give insight into each stroke. It’s a faster-paced form of bodywork where the receiving person wears comfortable clothes and lays in various bolstered positions on a floor cushion or Thai/Shiatsu mat.

The working Barefoot Massage Therapist can sit on a chair, sit on the floor, or stand while applying this technique, and the same suspended strap used in our FasciAshi technique is employed to help offer more confidence in balance and leverage. No overhead bars, no lubricant, and no “back walking” are a part of Fijian Massage – it is an aggressive technique but does not ever utilize the therapist’s full bodyweight.

Barefoot Massage styles include, but are not limited to:

Luckily, we’ve written blog posts on every interpretation of the question – so read these posts, and share the video below with your clients!

Footnotes by 12/18/2018 0Comments

What do I need to bring to FasciAshi class?

What kind of things should you bring to your FasciAshi or Fijian Barefoot Massage class?

 

The list of items to bring ~could vary~ between locations, instructors and classes. Check your email after you sign up for FasciAshi class!

fasciashi-class-suppliesYou will receive a registration confirmation email immediately after signing up for class from info@barefootmassagecenter.com, and another one from your instructor 2-4 weeks prior to your class.

In those emails, you’ll be provided with a specific list of things you’ll need to bring – as it could vary slightly by class and location. Make sure to read everything.

Check with your Instructor directly, as each Training Campus may require you to bring different items, and some of our instructors list exactly what to bring on their biography page here on the website: go check!  You will ~for sure~ need to bring face masks as these are required in our courses, as well as clean sandals that can be sanitized between each client.

 

In the meantime, here are some ways to prepare for class!
Footnotes by 12/13/2018 0Comments

Do you offer webinars, or e-learning online video ashiatsu training?

Do you offer webinars, or ashiatsu e-learning online video training?

No. The Center for Barefoot Massage does not, and will not, teach barefoot massage technique through webinars, or e-learning online video ashiatsu training.

e-learning-online-video-ashiatsu-training
No e-Learning, or Online Video ashiatsu training here.

Down the road we will offer online training and webinars for topics that are not teaching any feet-on techniques, but will be offering invaluable lessons for other aspects of your massage therapy career.

Please read our blogs to learn more about why we hold this stance. We respect the massage industry too much to remove the element of touch therapy from the training process. Even after the pandemic when EVERYTHING pivoted to online training, we continue to believe in the value of live training, and we will not be offering any technique courses online.

We want to train therapists in person, look them in the eyes, touch them with our SOLES, and pass our knowledge onto the next generation of barefoot massage therapists.

Footnotes by 12/07/2018 0Comments

After I take the class, can I train my staff?

We get asked this question a lot – “Can I train my staff when I get back to work?” Or, “My spa director wants me to attend class so that I can train the employees everything I learned!”

Long story short – you cannot teach the work you learn in our classes UNLESS you are accepted into our instructor training program.

By attending our training workshops you will be a part of our professional family, and you’ll represent our work with every step you take.

As such, we have quality assurance and maintenance considerations to prevent any misrepresentation of the work itself, and to halt any unauthorized instructional programs. It is essential that the purity and safety features of our myofascial barefoot massage work, as well as the high-quality teaching standards established for the Center for Barefoot Massages curriculum, be upheld and honored for the continued respect of this lineage, as well as for the growth and support of our loyal FasciAshi practitioners.

This training we provide does not qualify or certify you to teach our protocols, sequences, techniques or methods in any environment, in any capacity. Attending our workshops or acquiring our materials does not qualify you, or give permission to teach any aspect of the technique, or present the FasciAshi format.

Implying that you are an instructor, trainer, a Certified practitioner, or any similar designation in any format is unethical, and goes against the Training and Use Agreement that every one of our adult learner students sign. 

The FasciAshi courses you attend are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the “knowing” the work. While in class, we encourage you to focus on learning the material for yourself, and retain what you can – without any agenda to teach this to your staff or other massage friends. Studies do show that there is never 100% retention level of material presented in adult learning – as humans, we learn what we can, and we take away what is most relevant to us at that time. Attending the course once as a student is not sufficient experience or training to represent any professional technique well. Don’t be come this student.

We want the best training for you, and for the sake of the future of the growing barefoot massage industry, we want the best possible representations being echoed across classrooms. To help our profession grow, as well as our little niche within it, we work very hard to deeply train our experienced staff in many nuances and elements of myofascial barefoot massage and curating a successful learning environment. We do not feel that this work should be passed down by word of mouth, so to speak. Let your staff and friends experience the same depth of information and resources, and encourage them to attend a live training with us. The benefits they will reap will equal yours, and you can continue to grow on your own path at first, and then together as a team.

Unless you have successfully passed our FasciAshi instructor training program that leads to status as a FasciAshi Instructor, and have written consent from the creative forces behind The Center for Barefoot Massage, LLC, you cannot teach what you learn in our classes. If you are interested in teaching FasciAshi, and want to help us spread our toes and expand our footprint on the massage industry, if you resonate with our philosophy, we welcome you to email us your resume and letter of interest to info@barefootmassagecenter.com

The Center for Barefoot Massage and FasciAshi as brands are comprised of a proprietary set of trademarks, logos, and designs. These, along with its copyright materials such as handouts, manuals, posters, media, online resources and other intellectual property is and shall remain in full ownership of The Center for Barefoot Massage, LLC. Any reports that show proof of our intellectual property being reproduced and taught without authorization will be met with legal consequences.

Thank you for understanding and respecting our commitment to barefoot massage excellence.

Footnotes by 12/01/2018 0Comments

What Ashiatsu Massage Table do I need?

You need to have an ashiatsu massage table that will hold your body weight, plus your heaviest client, plus a few hundred extra pounds breathing room within the working weight capacity of that table.

DO YOU HAVE THE EQUIPMENT THAT WILL SUPPORT THIS WORK?

We ~tend to~ recommend the Earthlite Ellora or the Earthlite Spirit – or something comparable. No aluminum legged portable massage tables.

Barefoot Massage Tables for Ashiatsu, Fijian and Sarga
Our classrooms are stocked with 32″ & 35″ Earthlite Spirits, and many of our instructors have one of the two versions of Earthlite Ellora’s in their treatment rooms – so you can try the tables out during your myofascial ashiatsu training.

There are also other tables that work great to stand on… if your table checks these boxes, then it’s more than likely good for Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage:

  • 32″ wide OR WIDER
  • Double decking (2 or more layers of plywood under all the padding)
  • Wide-set frame around the perimeter of the table, and support beams that cross the width or length for better weight distribution
  • Sturdy, Strong single hinge @ center of table if portable (No extra moving parts, like a tilt)
  • 2 knobs on each wooded leg if a portable table (Aluminum/metal portable tables are not safe)
  • Scissor lift if electric/hydraulic table (not center stand: these will tilt.)
  • 500+ pound working weight capacity (different than static weight capacity)

 

What won’t work?

  • Convertible Lift tables that are a hybrid of an electric lift frame with a flat-folded Portable table on top ARE NOT SAFE and standing on them is not recommended by those manufacturers.
  • Electric/Hydraulic tables with a pedestal lift: look for a scissor lift that is balanced in the center to prevent tipping and motor performance issues.
  • Tables with a tilt: the more moving parts the weaker the table is to stand on
  • Aluminum/Metal legged portable tables: these may not sustain our diagonal vectors of pressure.
  • Lightweight portable tables with a hammock or mesh (non-wood) decking/platform: your foot will sink through the padding!
  • Skinny (less than 30″ wide tables) due to tip hazard and less area to safely stand

TABLE TUNE UP! If your table passed those tests, here’s some tips to give it a quick tune-up before you stand on it:

Portable tables:

  • Flip it on it’s side and tighten EVERY screw. (Including hinge screws, leg-pulley screws, decking screws/bolts.) Don’t tighten so much as to strip them, just make sure there’s no wiggle left.
  • Notice if any plastic washers are broken, or the plastic pulleys. Most of the time these are covered by your table’s lifetime warranty and can be replaced free or cheaply just by contacting the manufacturer. Replace any broken plastic parts ASAP.
  • Notice if the elastic bands are still suspending the cables, and still have elasticity. Contact manufacturer if not.
  • Always make sure that the adjustable table legs are securely attached: if not completely screwed on at each setting, once you stand on the table that bolt can bend, and it will lessen the stability but also make it really tricky to get the adjustable part of the leg on and off later.

Stationary/Electric/Hydraulic Tables:

  • Make sure it’s been leveled out. Most models have adjustable feet, so that you can make sure there is no wobble or tilt. Many models of the Earthlite Ellora are sensitive to this, and after some use, if not properly leveled, will develop a “ping” sound when raising/lowering the height, especially when a client or you are also on the table. The tables can easily get moved with clients getting on and off of them, and with you pushing on them in all directions, so recenter them under yo
  • ur bars regularly, and check the levelness of the entire table often.
  • Make sure no cords are in the way of the moving parts – so they aren’t pinched, kinked, or run over.
  • Check with your table manufacturer about any maintenance that can be done to prolong the life of the motor.
  • Clean and safely position any height adjustment pedals so that nothing interferes with it’s function.

MOAR Table tips, tricks, hacks and ideas:

electric-ashiatsu-massage-table
electric “hydrolic” ashiatsu massage table

 

As of 2022, the Center for Barefoot Massage has chosen to no longer serve as a direct vendor with Earthlite, and we will not be taking orders moving forward.

You can order directly through Earthlite, Massage Warehouse, and even Amazon. Check with your massage association(s) to see if you qualify for a discount through them, and follow their process for ordering at their reduced rate.

Footnotes by 12/01/2018 0Comments

Is there an ashiatsu weight limit for Massage Therapists?

That’s actually a common misunderstanding – there is technically no ashiatsu weight limit in our Beginner/Intermediate level FasciAshi training (Fundamentals, Intermediate: Supine/Sidebody and ROM.. there ARE strength and skill requirements and weight restrictions for the Fasciashi Advanced class, however.)

ASHIATSU IS MEANT TO BE PERFORMED ON CLIENTS WHO ARE 50-100 POUNDS HEAVIER THAN THE MASSAGE THERAPIST.

ashiatsu-weight-limit
ashiatsu weight limit?

One thing that needs to weigh heavily on your mind: do you have the client base that even needs Ashiatsu? This deeper than deep tissue massage technique is meant to be performed on clients who are 50-100 pounds heavier than you. If you are massaging people who weigh less than you, then you’ll be working too hard against gravity – sometimes even working on someone who is comparable in size/weight to you can be more difficult to massage with your feet if they cannot tolerate deep pressure. I highly recommend that you save your FasciAshi massages for the larger framed, dense tissued clients who are difficult to work on with your hands. If you don’t have the right client base for this technique, you may want to re-evaluate why you want to learn this style of myofascial ashiatsu, as it’s not meant for every client, it’s not meant for every massage therapist, and if this work is utilized incorrectly, or for evil not for good so to speak, then you can cause repetitive strain issues within yourself, and easily injury your client. Being that our experienced instructors and their team of barefoot massage therapists provide barefoot massage ALL THE TIME, all day every day, we have experienced first hand (or… first foot?!) what it feels like in our bodies to do 20 ashiatsu sessions within a week on small bodies, and what it feels like to do the same amount of sessions on larger bodies. Barefoot massage techniques offer a big tool you’ll be using to massage with, so it has to be used on the right job.

Gravity and alignment of your body during your massage are the two main things that do the work of adding pressure and initiating movement. A FasciAshi therapist shouldn’t be pushing and pulling themselves through the strokes – the subtle movements initiate from your core, and the alignment you create within yourself during each stroke is where the depth comes from.

Fluid movement, awareness of breath, great coordination and balance will help diminish any physical challenges you may experience during the workshop…

…it’s more about your awareness of those factors than it is any kind of ashiatsu weight limit.

For safety reasons for your fellow students, your future clients, and our equipment in the classroom, we are cautious and try to bring an awareness of the physicality involved with this work before you arrive for your myofascial ashiatsu workshop with the Center for Barefoot Massage.  You are in for a 3 day boot camp – but once your coordination and flow come together, it’s a lot easier! We will need to know your height and weight once you register, so that we can coordinate the set up of the equipment and find the clients that you’ll be working with. Also for safety reasons, if you weigh over 200 pounds, you may be required to bring your own portable massage table –  please ask your instructor if that is necessary.

In your preparations for FasciAshi class, we ask that you are confident that your upper arm strength can pull your body weight off the client at any moment if needed – in case you lose your balance, or in case your client needs an immediate removal of pressure. So just find a bar in a playground, and work on activating your pull up muscles. (You don’t have to do a pull up – just work on the action of it.)

You’ll need a healthy mental and physical endurance level to maintain focus and strength in class during our daily 2.5 hour long practice rounds. (Work on your massage endurance – add in a few longer massages in a row leading up to your class.)

We ask that you are flexible enough to stand up & down from a 24 inch stool quickly and easily from the floor in one smooth movement. You should also be able to sit on a stool with your knees close together in a cannon ball position. We sure do make Barefoot Massage look easy, but once you are standing on the table or sitting on the barstool, it can feel much harder than it looks! (Mobility and Yoga, dance, and movement in general will help you with this!)

If this all seems to sound like ashiatsu may not be the best fit for your clients or you right now, then DEFINITELY consider our Fijian Barefoot Massage training!

Check out this blog post for more!

AND Read this blog post about Fijian Barefoot Massage!

Footnotes by 11/29/2018 0Comments

What Ashiatsu Contraindications are there for attending FasciAshi students

We will thoroughly discuss ashiatsu contraindications for your clients in every FasciAshi class.

We aim to maintain a safe learning environment for everyone, to massage ethically, and to ensure that every attendee in class gets to experience what the work feels like. As such, there are some ashiatsu contraindications, health cautions and concerns that students need to consider for themselves.

Speak with your instructor to clarify your specific situation and see if receiving 2-3 hours a day of ashiatsu during training through the Center for Barefoot Massage is, or maybe isn’t, appropriate for you at this time.

ashiatsu-contraindications
Ashiatsu Contraindications for Students in FasciAshi Classes

Anything contraindicated for deep tissue, or myofascial release, will be contraindicated for receiving Fasciashi in class

The deep compression provided by this modality could be dangerous for those still recovering from invasive procedures or ailments.

If you are currently pregnant, trying to get pregnant, have recently had breast/gluteal/calf implants and/or some select surgeries within the last 9 months, we regret that you cannot attend the seminar. 

It is not our intention to discourage or discriminate anyone from taking this class, we must focus on a quality workshop experienced by all and maintain the safety standards of the modality.

Footnotes by 11/29/2018 0Comments

Do I need to be a Licensed Massage Therapist to learn FasciAshi?

Do you need to be a Licensed Massage Therapist to learn FasciAshi?

Yes. Attendees in our courses MUST be Licensed Massage Therapists who are legally eligible to provide paid, professional therapeutic massage therapy services to the public in accordance with the laws in their state. Since we are massage therapy educators, we are here to “solely” teach massage therapists.

The Center for Barefoot Massage is working to help support and grow the massage industry, and is only training Licensed Massage Therapists within the field of massage therapy, to those who have the license to touch.

Read the Cancellation Policy

barefoot-massage-ninja
Licensed Massage Therapist can be BAREFOOT Massage Therapists!
MASSAGE STUDENTS who are still attending their entry level, pre-licensing training are not eligible. Those who have attended and completed massage school are also not eligible until you are licensed by the state you are practicing in. This is a new rule as of 2023.

BODYWORKERS who are not licensed but are allowed to practice Rolfing, Shiatsu, Thai, etc, ARE NOT ELIGIBLE to attend our courses without first obtaining a massage therapy license.

If the practitioner resides and practices in a state that is not currently regulated, then prior to registration or within 15 days of the start of class, we will need you to provide a copy of your massage school transcript, showing completion of a minimum of a single 500 hours in-class massage therapy training program. We may also require proof of professional liability insurance.

Massage, Why FasciAshi? by 10/13/2018 0Comments

Stretch Therapy meets Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage

Our FasciAshi Range of Motion (ROM) class is where stretch therapy meets ashiatsu massage. There is a growing presence of ‘stretch providers’ in the massage therapy, yoga and personal trainer industries, possibly due to the evolving understanding of the properties of fascia. The public is noticing more and more that a movement practice of some kind is essential to a healthy body – and some are turning to their massage therapists for help.

The human population is becoming more and more sedentary.

The leading cause of disability is musculoskeletal pain, and over 80% of acute and chronic injuries are caused by the body not moving properly. (I should know, I just spent a day on the couch writing this blog post!!) One goal of stretch therapy and movement re-education is to make the client more aware of their habits of movement and more comfortable in his or her body with less compensation.

We all need varying movement to maintain healthy tissue hydration, regeneration, and repair. Motion is lotion, no matter what lifestyle you live. The smooth moves we teach in the FasciAshi ROM class could be just the thing that your clients are ACHING to try!

Ashiatsu barefoot massage, Massage, Why FasciAshi? by 09/14/2018 0Comments

5 Reasons to Learn FasciAshi Barefoot Massage

5-reasons-to-learn-fasciashi

Why should you start to consider using your FEET to massage with? I can think of a million reasons, but I boiled it down to just enough to count on one foot. 5 reasons to learn FasciAshi Barefoot Massage. Just five. Read on to see if we can further romance you into learning our favorite way to do deep tissue, myofascial release and trigger point work with our FasciAshi style of barefoot massage therapy.