“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.” 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. - Jeni Spring, Owner of Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage Therapy

“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.” - Jeni Spring, Owner of Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage Therapy

“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!” - Jeni Spring, Owner of Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage Therapy

“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”

- Jeni Spring, Owner of Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage Therapy

“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.” - Jeni Spring, Owner of Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage Therapy