Barefoot Massage Open Challenge: 2024.2
Week 2: Addressing imbalances felt in your Knees & Ankles while working
Continuing on from last week’s Hip Flexor focus, we’re moving this years Barefoot Massage Challenge on down to the next typical restriction we notice in Massage Therapists across the industry: Ankle imbalances: specifically difficulty with dorsiflexion.
What’s in this post?
Blablabla: deep reads for deeper feets from Jeni Spring
Ankle Balance Awareness with Sara Newberry
Self-Myofascial Release “rolling” with Jeni
Stretch and move written by Hillary Arrieta, demonstrated by MC Fredette
Mobility for the knee with Dawn Dotson (rerun from 2019)
Ankle stability and strength with Julie Marciniak
TLDR recap
But first, some “blablabla”:
An imbalance in your dorsi- and plantar flexor muscle groups can restrict full range in your ankle and foot. Sometimes this causes compensations in the toes, knees and hips which could lead to pain, stiffness, or even weakness.
I’ve seen LMT’s with very strong toes suffer from pain along their shin and knees due to an excess of pushing or gripping those toe pads into flesh. I’ve also seen hip and knee pain from LMT’s who habitually try to pull back with intensity on return strokes - straining their posterior line of hamstrings and calves, in addition to a possible aggro on the hip flexors. An easy fix to those pain points: stop doing that. LOL! Everything in moderation. Save your toe-grip strength for fine-tuned detail moments, and don’t expect your drag-back return strokes to be deep. They don’t need to be: use the natural weight of your foot/leg to work effortlessly superficial when resetting a stroke. Save the deep work for when you move forward with gravity.
One of the many reasons why our game-changing FasciAshi-Strap exists is to help make your work life easier. Getting your foot angled right into the focus tissue can be tricky if ankle mobility is limited - the strap can help with that! The strap offers our students the ability to work on a variety of angles and work with substantially less strength and effort.
Trusting your ability to lean into the strap and being able to fluidly flow between vertical and diagonal vectors will help accommodate ankle limitations. If an ankle won’t dorsiflex like you want it to while standing more vertical, then lean out into your strap until you find the right angle where your foot can still perform the same goal. This will help save strain on your foot, knee, pelvis and shoulders. We’ll get you more “strapped in” when we see you in your next FasciAshi class!
On that note: don’t just tie a strap into your bars and think you are good to go. There is so much more to using this form of support as a safe and useful tool than what you think you see on Instagram. I first started the strap-trend and have been using this tool in my ashiatsu barefoot massages since 2003. The strap has been evolving in design, installation and use ever since - especially since the Center for Barefoot Massage opened in 2017 - it has grown in popularity across the massage industry and is our signature tool that is “FEETured” in every class. I see a lot of people out there using it irresponsibly and even unsafely, though, so if you haven’t trained with the Center for Barefoot Massage, then you haven’t learned the strap yet. Your clients and your body deserve the best outcomes, so come out and train to use this important equipment from it's source: us!
The following content will be available for free through July 1st, 2024. After then it (along with other “FEETured“ content, like a podcast!) will be a part of our paid subscription, $8/month or $80/year.
Dorsiflexion Help
Awareness
Lets start with our Missouri instructor, Sara Newberry. Sara has been practicing Barefoot Massage since 2011. Among her many studies and experiences, Sara’s scope of practice was extended into facilitating group experiences for mothers, guiding them into a greater awareness of their nervous system, and how to apply this awareness into their everyday lives. She is also a Roll Model Method trained practitioner that uses movement and props to educate the public about their bodies. Today she shares an awareness practice in balance that you are already doing in practice on the table daily: BUT lets break it down and pay closer attention on a firm yet still elevated surface: yoga blocks. See what you notice in your foot, ankle, knee, and on up from there. Then bring that awareness into your sessions for the next week.
Roll
Before you start your day full of Barefoot Massage sessions, lets try this new roll approach from our Texas instructor, co-founder and owner of CBM: Jeni Spring. Jeni has been practicing Barefoot Massage since 2003. Her scope of practice was extended into teaching the public self-myofascial release through her training with Jill Miller and the Roll Model Method, in addition to her Crossfit MobilityWod Coach training, her 200-hour Hatha/Vinyasa Yoga Instructor certification, and among many other nerd-level education adventures, her recent Structural Integration certification through Anatomy Trains. You’ll need a massage ball - she recommends using a single Plus Therapy Ball, although a cork ball, or another size ball with some give will work (a lacross ball is not recommended.)
Stretch
Our Dallas instructor, Hillary Arrieta, has been a Barefoot Massage Therapist since 2011. She expanded her massage scope to include Yoga and movement practices through multiple yoga instructor certifications, including Bernie Clark's Yin Yoga teacher training, iRest Yoga Nidra Level One teacher in training, Tune-up fitness roll model training, and Katy Bowman’s Move Your DNA training, Today she shares her insight through writing rather than video, so please read along!
Stand with your back leaning against a wall with your feet flat on the floor. You should stand so your feet are hip-width apart, ensuring your knees stay straight throughout the exercise. Use your anterior Tibialis muscles to raise your toes towards your shins as far as possible and then lower them back to the starting position. The further you step away from the wall, the harder this exercise becomes.
Doing calf stretches over a half-round foam roller, yoga block, or tune-up massage ball is a great way to warm up or cool down after a long day of work or to prepare you for your day first thing in the morning. Place the ball of your foot on the apex of the half-round foam roller or ball while you keep your heel on the floor. Progress this stretch by bringing the opposite foot forward, keeping your hips from hinging. Bring your center of gravity over the side that’s being stretched. Come off your stretch tool, and notice the differences.
Lay down and hug one knee at a time into your chest. Draw the entire alphabet using every articulation you can below the knee. Toes, carpals, ankles, everything. Exaggerate your movements: draw in cursive or all caps! Stand back up, check your dorsiflexion range, and notice the differences.
Tibialis Anterior on a foam roller! You know it, you love it, lets do it!
Mobility
This is a two-parter! First, an oldie but a goodie, we found some previously made content from Dawn Dotson that focuses on the ~knee~ …but how is that important to dorsiflexion?! We all our own weird ways of compensating, and our knees can be a weak link that maybe the stiffness in your hips or ankles are trying to make up for. So give these exercises from our 2019 Barefoot Massage Open Mobility Challenge a try for a week and see if you notice any improvement.
Secondly, our North Carolina instructor, Julie Marciniak, shares with us a stabilizing, strengthening balance exercise to beef up our ankles while in movement. Julie has been a Massage Therapist since 1992, then ten years later in 2002 she started into Barefoot Massage. This is her 16th year as a certified Rolfer - plus she’s further expanded her training into advanced Rolfing techniques! Foot alignment and stability are her jam - follow along in the video below.
Stay tuned for next weeks content: we tap into the your diaphragms contribution to restrictions that may be holding back your true Barefoot Massage potential!
Want to contact any of our instructors? Find them here.
Want to attend one of our Myofascial Barefoot Massage classes? Check out the training schedule here.
TLDR?
Watch all sections of this weeks content in 1 video:
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