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Tag: massage

Ashiatsu Portable Bars: a real-talk review from Jeni Spring

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For those of you who know me – you know that I love the ashiatsu portable bars. I was originally trained in ashiatsu on a very old style of the portables, (that were new at the time) and they feel like home to me. Although I honestly couldn’t afford them back then, I put my first set on a credit card and made sure I got my money’s worth out of them ASAP. Ever since, I’ve used them regularly at local Farmers’ Markets, sporting/yoga events and massage conventions. I’ve taught on portable bars across the country and in Germany. I used ashiatsu portable bars daily for 6 months at one point because I wasn’t sure I wanted to stay in that location long enough to justify building permanent bars.

I just spent 3 solid days working on a set of portable bars that I own. Now that *anyone* can go buy a set of portables, I wanted to fill you in on all the things I don’t think anyone will actually tell you about them. HERE WE GO!

Talent, practice, and passion in barefoot massage

I have been an Ashiatsu instructor for almost ten years, and many types of massage therapists have come through my training studio. A few newbies fresh out of school and some seasoned massage therapists that been in the field for several years. But learning ashiatsu can level the playing field when it comes to length of experience for many massage therapists.

Unlike other massage CEUs massage therapists take to when they get out of school, we’re not only learning massage theory; we’re learning to use different TOOLS altogether: the FEET!

I’ve found three things make a great Ashiatsu therapist. Talent, Practice, and Passion. These are the words of a great visionary and architect, Frank Lloyd Wright,

What is talent?

Ashiatsu barefoot massage on Pinterest

Have you gotten sucked into the Pinterest vortex yet? It’s is such a great place to learn about amazing products and projects, to reference articles that you’ve seen but don’t have time to read just yet.

Ready to learn more about all things barefoot massage? Head on over to our FasciAshi boards!

If we get started on Pinterest, time flies, doesn’t it? You may as well make good use of your pinning addiction and see what kind of fun stuff we at Center for Barefoot Massage can show you!

The great thing about pinning one of our tricks (or following the board!) is that you can easily find what you’re looking for later if you don’t have time to check it out now.

Going back over your own boards can be like flipping through magazines made entirely of what you love. -Laura Grace Weldon

On our Massage Business Tips, you’ll find links to our business-y blog posts and other guest posts we’ve written as bloggers.

There are fun and silly foot quotes and useful tips for self-care. Our team’s featured guest blog posts are there too.

Want to know about more barefoot massage classes to take?We’ve got it.

Tips and Tricks for Ashiatsu are there too! 

Your Pinterest addiction may also help you move along that barefoot massage career of yours. Some pins may be a source of inspiration, and others may give you a big fat “a-ha! Why didn’t I think of that???” moment.

What are your favorite things to love on Pinterest? Is there anything you’d like to see on our boards? Comment below and don’t forget to share the love!

 

Big vs Small Ashiatsu Therapist – Who’s Deeper?

Ashiatsu is my favorite style of deeper massage to receive, hands-down. Or feet-down, however you want to say it. As a solo practitioner, I don’t have easy access to good quality barefoot therapists close to me. Our instructors who have a team of ashi therapists have set themselves up well for both business purposes and for being able to conveniently receive ashiatsu. (Yes, they are smart ladies in many ways.)

Sadly, there are times when I don’t have half a day to block myself off for my 2-hour barefoot massage sessions. The ashiatsu massage therapists currently I see are about 50 minutes away.

When I can’t receive my barefoot bar massage therapy, my second choice is to get my hands-on deep tissue massage from a man. My other choice is from a tall, well insulated woman. (Stay with me here–there’s a point to the big vs smaller hands-on therapist!)

I like getting hands on massage from men and big, solid, farm-type women for two specific reasons:

How to work deeper if you haven’t learned ashiatsu barefoot massage

This question of “how do I go deeper in a massage so I don’t hurt myself” recently came up in a massage group in which I belong. Of course, my obvious answer to learn barefoot massage and directed her to our website.

Sometimes it’s just not possible to take an ashiatsu class anytime soon. Maybe the kids are back in school, your rottweiler just had a hip replacement, or perhaps taking time off work and traveling simply isn’t an option at that moment.

Tuesday TOEsday: Where to start your massage

Where do your start your massage? At the feet? Perhaps at the client’s initial complaint area? At their upper back or in their neck? With their breath?

There’s not a wrong answer here, it all has to do with the theory you choose to approach the massage with.

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Having procedures and protocols can produce results – but every client and every condition is different. Learning a routine massage and always sticking to it is like being on autopilot: it might always produce the same results, but you may be bored, uninspired… and your clients progress may plateau.

Read a few of the ideas below, and see if changing up the sequencing of your next massage helps you and your client get the results you are looking for!

Using Canva for your massage biz

While text is king for SEO (search engine optimization), infographics (and video) rock by bringing attention to a Facebook post or blog. Using Canva to create blog headers or social media posts (like Instagram and Twitter) is a super easy way to bring attention to your massage biz. Best of all, it’s FREE!

If you don’t have an account, set one up.

Consistency

Have business partners or people you work with who would like to use the same templates? No worries-you can add a “team”!

This is what Jeni and Mary-Claire often do when trading who does the “Wow Wednesday” or “Selfie Saturday” posts on Facebook and Instagram. It creates a consistent feel between posts versus random designs.

3 top free email marketing programs for massage therapists

Emailing your massage clients periodically should be a given, like Marketing 101.  You can send them monthly tips about health or something interesting, and you can also let them know your upcoming openings or changes in your schedule. But how do you do that without emailing each person individually?

An email marking service is the best way to go. You can either use plain text for a simple email (apparently, your clients’ inboxes are less likely to send them to spam that way. Read more about that here). You can also design something nice (which is what we do) that will mesh with your website.

We are going to skip over the paid versions because if you’re just learning about this now, a free version will probably suffice nicely.

What do massage therapists really think about my body?

“I’d never get a massage,” a friend once confessed to me. “You’d see how fat I really am.” And “I’m SO SORRY! I didn’t shave my legs!” another confesses when you’re about to start the massage. Do massage therapists care about extra cush or stubble? What do we really think about your body?

Most massage therapists are honored that their clients trust them to touch them with healing intent. It doesn’t matter what color you are, if you’re bloated from that big burrito you ate during lunch (yes, gas happens. It’s ok.), if you broke your razor or if you’re chunky.