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Footnotes

Commonly asked questions about the Center for Barefoot Massage instructors of ashiatsu, fasciashi, fijian and other forms of massage done using one or both feet.

Where are the Center for Barefoot Massage’s classes held?

“Where can I find Fijian or Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage classes, training and continuing education workshops near me?”

Our classes are located where our Instructor’s businesses and regional training centers are.

The HandsFree and Fijian classes can come to you, if there is enough interest and a suitable training center available to use. All our myofascial ashiatsu “FasciAshi” classes must be held in our approved training campuses for safety, consistency and quality control purposes.

We are slowly but surely growing our company, and with time we will have more instructors and training locations across the nation.

Sometimes you may see our instructors teach at a massage school, national or state convention, or onsite at local massage clinics. These are usually one-time instances for special events, so don’t miss us if we are stopping by your town!

(If you are interested in becoming one of our instructors – read this!)

Visit this page to see all of our locations, or scroll down and click on any logo.
Each location has its own page on our website with the address, contact info, the upcoming class schedule, and any applicable info specific to that campus.

San Antonio, with Jeni SpringDallas-san-antonio-texas-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

Cincinnati, with Mary-Claire Fredette


Albany, New York, with Dawn Dotson
new-york-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

Durham, North Carolina with Julie Marciniak

Decatur, Alabama with Sharon Bryant
alabama-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

St Louis, Missouri with Sara Newberry
missouri-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

Dallas/Plano, Texas with Hillary Arrieta
Dallas-san-antonio-texas-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

Colorado Springs, Colorado with Erin Poovey
colorado-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes

Orange County, California with Ashley Shears
california-barefoot-massage-training-continuing-education-classes
San Luis Obispo, California with Missy Anderson-Fritch

San Luis Obispo Barefoot Massage Training

Does Massage Liability Insurance cover Barefoot Massage?

Great question! Many insurance companies have additional waivers and education requirements to offer services such as Hot Stone therapy, Prenatal Massage, and even Cupping. While no mainstream massage insurance company is currently requiring extra waivers or testing through their own means for Barefoot Massage coverage, it is still something that you’ll want industry-approved training in before providing to the public. (Because after all, that insurance and your license are in place to protect the public as much as yourself!)

To our knowledge, every professional massage liability insurance company currently on the market covers Barefoot Massage techniques that stay within the scope of practice for LMT’s. We recommend that you call to verify with your specific insurance company if they cover ashiatsu, fijian and other barefoot massage styles in general. Our team of instructors have a variety of different coverages, ranging from ABMP to AMTA, MMIP and others – we have each been covered on our professional liability insurance after our initial training with no hassle.

You are essentially doing myofascial release, trigger point therapy, deep tissue, and various models of stretch therapy in the barefoot massage sessions you provide once we have you trained up: you just HAPPEN to be doing these techniques with your feet!

Work within your scope of practice and training.

Do you have the training and a paper trail of proof to show that you are providing the appropriate standard of care for the massage services you offer? That’s VERY important.

Most massage insurance companies will cover barefoot massage services, provided that your are working within your scope of practice and are providing the appropriate standard of care: So if you stick to what we teach you in class, you are set.

Listen to this podcast talking about a comparison of massage insurance companies, from Massage Business Blueprint

massage-insurance-plus-center-for-barefoot-massage
Looking for an insurance company that proudly states upfront that Barefoot Massage is covered?

Check out Massage Magazine’s Insurance Plus (MMIP). We even have a $10 off deal for you!

 

 

 

 

Here are questions to periodically ask yourself on how you stay protected throughout your long massage career:
  • Are you following ethical guidelines as set forth by your state license and professional massage associations you are a member of?
  • Are you practicing the techniques as taught in class, as referenced in the study guides provided by that instructor?
  • Was that instructor an approved CE provider with the state or NCBTMB?
  • Does that instructor have specialty training in that topic/technique, and have they gone the extra mile with Educator Certifications or affiliations with associations in the field?
  • Did you learn the technique online or in-person?
  • If online, can you follow up that training with some in-person, documented mentorship or additional training?
  • How long has it been since your training – and could you use a refresher to stay on par with its standards of care?
  • Are the services you provide coming from a place of professionalism and integrity?
The lineage and paper trail of your training could matter if a serious injury or malpractice claim is filed on you.

How much is ashiatsu training?

How much does ashiatsu training cost?

How much are classes?

  • Fundamentals:  $750(3 days, 24 CE’s)
  • Fijian: $500  (2 days, 16 CE’s)
  • Intermediate: $500  (2 days, 16 CE’s)
  • ROM: $500  (2 days, 16 CE’s)
  • Advanced: $500 (2 days, 16 CE’s)
  • Hot Ashi: $250   (1 day. 8 CE’s)
  • IF IT’S A TRAVEL CLASS: meaning, if the instructor travelled to the location to teach there, then the tuition will be +$100 more than usual to help cover the costs of bringing an amazing guest instructor to town!

Payment plans are available, read more here

 

 

Included in your tuition costs:

  • Alumni Membership Website access, which includes curated resources and materials to start your new barefoot massage practice.
  • Study videos demonstrating each stroke taught in class.
  • Online networking and support group with fellow practitioners and instructors.
  • A printed and bound class workbook, with:
    • anatomical references to each stroke
    • THe structural goal to each stroke
    • pro-tips from the founders,
    • your notes and journal entries from observation time in class.
    • Specific Cautions and Contraindications to the strokes learned- and each section of our Pathology and Contraindications were reviewed by Ruth Werner, BCBMT.
    • Strap installation instructions in each workbook,
    • Bar Installation instructions included in the Fundamentals class workbook.
    • Client evaluation forms to help gather feedback during your self-study practice sessions.

Any additional costs?

  • Optional Sole Provider boosted listing on our alumni locator map: ranging from FREE-$80-$150 (Basic listings are FREE!)
  • Optional Pro-Membership for upgraded study videos, with monthly anatomy and marketing challenges: Price TBA upon next release
  • Bar installation cost varies greatly depending on supplies, design and labor. Common costs range between $150-$400
  • Support Straps (Ashi-Straps) are $25 each, and you’ll want a few to switch between clients.
  • Portable Bar designs available for $150! You’ll save on shipping and will be able to custom design your travel bars to your exact measurements for the best body mechanics. Contract a local welder to build the portable bars off our designs, and you’ll be supporting local businesses in your area.
  • ~Eventually~ a level of Endorsement will be available after testing: price TBD.

Is the Center for Barefoot Massage an Approved Continuing Education Provider?

ncbtmb continuing education provider

The short answer is: YES, of course!

Our CE Provider #1333 status with the NCBTMB and we have maintained that approval since March 2017.

 

The long answer is: it may depend on your state.

If your state has NCBTMB reciprocity, meaning that they acknowledge and accept NCBTMB approved courses for your Continuing Education hour requirements, then our classes are automatically valid for you.

Our provider numbers for select states are available for your review below.

CE Broker tracking number: # 50-20211

New York NCBTMB CE Provider Number: 1333 (approved as a part of our NCBTMB affiliation) Fundamentals, ROM, Intermediate, Advanced, Hot Ashi, HandsFree

Florida CE Broker Tracking Number: 50-20211 All Classes Approved

Georgia CE Broker Tracking Number: 50-20211 All Classes Approved

Mississippi Provider Number: 2642  – Approved for Fundamentals (Program #518) and Fijian (Program #541)

Louisiana Provider Number: 236  Approved for Fundamentals (#LCEU0002384) and Fijian (#LCEU0002385)

If your state is not listed:

They may have automatic NCBTMB Reciprocity! We cannot help you determine if the CE’s are valid in your state: you will need to check directly with your state to ensure our NCBTMB approved course will be accepted.

If your state does not have NCBTMB Continuing Education Reciprocity, then we will only consider expanding into their network once we notice a high demand for the most popular class(es). Until then, we hope that your love for barefoot massage and your plans to learn this work are not detoured merely because your state doesn’t recognize the credits. You may be able to easily fulfill your state renewal requirements through inexpensive local and online classes in other topics, and utilize our myofascial ashiatsu “FasciAshi” classes for your own professional development and career focus that takes you above and beyond your states standard! The lack of our ease of access in your region may be discouraging other LMT’s, which just leaves more space for you to stand apart from the rest.

Some state massage boards have created their own guidelines or limits for content they are willing to accept, along with content they require to be completed. A few of these state boards overrule the industry-standard NCBTMB CE Provider approvals and are instead requiring Continuing Education providers like The Center for Barefoot Massage to apply for and register each individual instructor on their team for each individual class they each teach.

It’s unfortunate that not all states acknowledge the NCBTMB. State-by-state approval of CE courses in massage therapy can be time-consuming, costly, and inefficient – so the Center for Barefoot Massage may not apply for CE Approval in states with additional requirements until a higher demand is seen in that region.

If we were to maintain every state license/approval for each class and every instructor, above and beyond that of the NCBTMB, it could cause tuition rates to increase due to almost constant licensure renewals.

With 13 instructors on our team and a roster of over 14 versions of our classes on file with the NCBTMB – on top of the inconsistent requirements for what constitutes “a class” or an instructor between each state board – we (along with many other team-based nationally recognized CE Providers,) have chosen not to sign on with every individual state, and not for every single class, and to only apply where we physically teach, or where a good percentage of our learners come from.

Things are evolving in the continuing education accreditation sector in the field of massage, and the current situation may not always be the case – things can change, and we are hoping they will! We have our big toes on the pulse of the industry and are watching closely to where the NCBTMB, FSMTB CE Broker, AFMTE and others are taking us.

Notice: As the Center for Barefoot Massage is working to help keep Barefoot Massage techniques ethically and professionally represented within the scope of practice of Massage Therapy, we will ONLY train reports to ce broker for Florida AshiatsuLicensed Massage Therapists. We will not seek out accreditation with other non-Massage Continuing Education Provider accrediting entities of other professions such as for Physical Therapists, Chiropractors, Yoga Therapists, Acupuncturists, etc.

We are not currently pursuing International Accreditation – but will still require proof of a regionally equivalent Massage Therapy License for any student who wishes to attend our courses. Our focus right now is presenting our courses to licensed massage therapists in the states before expanding internationally. If we can work together in the future to research your countries requirements for the massage profession, and how our continuing education classes could be set up for accreditation in that region, please contact us.

If your state/province is not listed above, contact your licensing or registration board directly to see if they will accept our course for CE credits toward licensure/registration renewal. If you have concerns or questions about your state CE requirements, please raise them with your board.

Do you have questions about what your states Continuing Education renewal requirements are? Google your state’s Massage Board!

How do I find a FasciAshi trained Barefoot Massage Therapist Near Me?

Want to get under our Alumni’s feet? Did you do a google search for “ashiatsu massage near me” but wish the results had myofascial ashiatsu barefoot massage therapists singled out? Let us help you find where they are at!

We know the feeling – once you try Myfoascial Ashiatsu, (AKA FasciAshi) you won’t go back to normal massage – and our Sole Provider directory is how you’ll find those we’ve trained across the nation.

Now, not every barefoot massage therapist will choose to list in our virtual yellow pages – but those who do want to be found will be there.

Here’s how you can get centered under our Sole Providers feet:

3 ways to find the Sole Provider Directory:

  1. Main Menu:
    Desktop/Laptop: Hover on the “About Us” section of the menu, then pull down to the “Find a Barefoot Massage Therapist” option
    What
    This is what it looks like on a Desktop/Laptop Computer
    Mobile Devices: Touch the Hamburger menu (the 3 horizontal lines!) and then touch the arrow next to the “About Us” section…. then touch the “Find a Barefoot Massage Therapist” option!
    This is the “Hamburger Menu” on mobile devices

    Once you open the Hamburger Menu, this is what it’ll look like on a Mobilie Device!
  2. Scroll down! Look towards the bottom of our page for this image, and click on that! (For all devices!)

    On any device, near the bottom of our page, you’ll see this image: CLICK IT!
  3. OR, just follow this link: https://centerforbarefootmassage.com/business-directory/  to find an ashiatsu barefoot massage near you!

I’ve also got a great massage blog post about this topic, here and also here!

How do I install the Ashiatsu Bars and Straps?

The FasciAshi Fundamentals class is where we will teach you e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g that you will need to know on how to install ashiatsu bars and straps, and how to build your overhead bar support.

In class, we provide designs and blueprints with detailed suggested material shopping lists that outlines which wood to choose, as well as the specifications of the ~many~ different options for hardware available.

Please DO NOT build your bars prior to class.

How Do I install ashiatsu bars and straps
install ashiatsu bars and straps

There are some specific measurements and safety guidelines that go along with using the bars that we will discuss together. For liability reasons we will not provide this information before class.

Many massage therapists have had to completely re-build their bars after taking our courses because their original designs were either not conducive to proper body mechanics, or were unsafe. Save yourself time, money and stress… just wait! Your Center for Barefoot Massage Instructor will show you examples, help you with designs, and provide you with blueprints when you meet in class. Even if you are not construction minded, the materials we provide you are perfect to hand over to your landlord, handy-person and build-out team: we’ve streamlined the process so you can easily build your bars in a day!

Looking for portable ashiatsu bars?

Read this blog post to know what the wooden portable ashiatsu bars are really like to use. SPOILER ALERT: They are not easy.

  1. Once you’ve finished your first ashiatsu barefoot massage class with us, our blueprints for portable bar designs are only $150!
The strap will have your back!

The straps are something Jeni Spring came up with and has been using with her ashiatsu sessions since 2003. The Ashiatsu-Strap allows FasciAshi Therapists to work effortlessly on a diagonal angle to engage the lateral fascial line and offer different angles of pressure, still utilizing body weight and gravity to create tension in the strap that gets translated back into your client. It also saves your hands from death gripping the bars. Read more about our support straps here.

Safety is key:

Equipment standards are a large part of the safety involved with our technique. Training centers are equipped with Earthlite’s “Spirit” massage tables and “Flex-rest” face cradle platforms, which have a 800 pound working weight capacity and offer the utmost padding for comfort. Strong enough to hold you, your client, and the movement created during the protocol, comfy enough to fall asleep.

The overhead bar apparatus in our training centers are built to commercial grade code, and support well over 1000 pounds in weight – even though we don’t dangle from the bars like monkeys, it’s very nice to know that our rigging is strong and can hold us up if the entire class decides to do a pull up on their bars!

We’ll teach you in class how to build safe and sturdy bars for your own use, and we’ll discuss the many makes and models of massage tables appropriate for using during a session. Discounts on Earthlite products available for our alumni – click here!

How can I teach for the Center for Barefoot Massage?

Thank you so much for your interest to teach for the Center for Barefoot Massage! We are honored that you would even ask! Before we ever consider bringing anyone into our business to represent FasciAshi, we do require candidates to attend the courses themselves, and fully experience the work we have to offer within the learning environments we’ve created.
We are happy to consider the perfect candidates for the team but will need to see them complete all of our training beforehand. We don’t believe in the idea of just promoting and endorsing someone to a teacher status because they are in the right place, or they were the star student, or it’s the next perceived step, or it’s another way to create income so that they can massage less. We are looking for someone who is a born teacher, a self-starter who is a total nerd for Barefoot Massage, and who isn’t approaching this responsibility like it’s a hobby or an early retirement plan. We require our instructor team to continue massaging so long as they are teaching for us, so that they are teaching with integrity and their experience is relevant, fresh, and most of all, authentic. Although no two people are alike, we also prefer to see anyone interested in teaching with us to have 5 years of experience using our technique regularly in practice, so they can teach from real-world experience in addition to the details that they will undoubtedly embody after completing our instructor training and mentorship program.

The goal of our team is to nurture a team of barefoot massage super star into subject experts, and let them lead the new wave of barefoot massage therapists into the future.

FasciAshi Faculty Myofascial Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage Instructors
Sole Sisters – leaving their footprints on the massage industry
  • We are specifically choosing instructors based on their influencer status in the massage community.
  • We love to see our possible team members act as active participants in massage organizations, associations, boards or schools, and interact with a strong knowledgeable, respected presence in online massage groups.
  • Sparks of leadership is something we look for in those looking to join our team. Whether you manage a staff of massage professionals or you regularly cultivate a supportive network within your local massage community – skills like these will help us move the barefoot massage field forward.
  • We want to see potential instructors who are marketing mavens, ranking high in online searches for ashiatsu and barefoot massage in their local area.

Being accepted to teach for the Center for Barefoot Massage starts with your passion for barefoot massage.

The Center for Barefoot Massage is a growing company with an ever-expanding enthusiastic alumni base, and we are honored to be followed by curious, intrigued and excited fans. The future is bright, and we will have something for everyone in our circles to look forward to!!!
If you are seriously interested in helping us to spread our toes and expand our footprint on the massage industry, if you resonate with our philosophy, please make sure and attend at least 1 FasciAshi class with Jeni Spring ASAP, and fill out this form!

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!

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!

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.