FasciAshi's Grip & Glide
The role of lubricants in Myofascial Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage
Our classes teach westernized Ashiatsu Barefoot Massage, which is a combination of deep tissue and myofascial release techniques that glide smoothly along the skin’s surface while impacting layers of tissue at different depths below. The goal of our engagement with the tissue at any depth is to encourage internal glide between layers within our clients bodies. The quality of this glide underfoot starts with the external glide on their skin, and depends on several factors: the topical products used (cream, lotion, wax, oil, or water), the interaction between your skin and the client’s, environmental humidity, and the practitioner’s movement and body mechanics.
Even the lubricant underfoot affects how you interact with your equipment such as the bars and straps. Our body-saving approach to Barefoot Massage carefully guides students on how much lubrication to use at each stage of their training in our continuing education classes.
What is in this message!?
Our approach for beginners
Levelling up and lessening the lube
Our fave topical products
Some handsfree tips on how to apply lubricant
Get a grip: The Importance of Glide Balance
Using the right amount and type of lubricant is critical to mastering Barefoot Massage techniques. Too much lotion creates excessive slip, requiring more restraint and control in your body—think toe, leg, and core strength to maintain your footing and slower speeds, plus arm and hand strength to stabilize your grip on the bars.
If you have lotion-covered hands, even just a little bit, it can also make your equipment slippery, increasing the risk of "death-gripping" the bars for stability. That means more work for you and your forearms.
On the other hand, (or foot, LOL) using too little lubricant can cause uncomfortable drag on the client’s skin, particularly if your movements are too fast or forceful. This can lead to fatigue in your feet, legs, core and shoulders as you strain to push or pull yourself along.
Working “raw” (without lubrication) is appropriate for specific techniques like our “Give it weight and wait” moments or in advanced classes—but beginners should start with some glide to protect both their bodies and their clients.
Glide sets barefoot massage styles apart from the dry, compression-based barefoot matwork styles (like Fijian, traditional Anma, Barefoot Shiatsu, Thai, or more Western approaches like Rossiter or John Harris's methods.) As you progress in our training, you’ll find that less glide is incorporated into the techniques, and everything slows way down. This is hard to do at first, so we’ve made it a gradual progression. To help Licensed Massage Therapists master the controlled application of semi-gliding strokes while minimizing muscular effort, we have to lube up with something until natural momentum and gravity within the movements take over. However, both the amount and type of lubricant are critical, and we are sticklers about it!
Our Sliding Scale Training Approach:
Fresh-Footed in Fundamentals
For beginners, we recommend using a small amount of cream —just enough to support smooth movements without overdoing it. This balance helps new practitioners adapt to the physical demands of Barefoot Massage while reducing strain and injury. Glide is your friend at this stage as you learn to maintain depth, consistency, control, and hone your palpation skills. Attempting to perform these techniques without lubrication or with a super-grippy medium could make your learning curve steeper and harder on your body. Start with a happy medium of something that has a grippy glide. We like PurePro’s Deep Tissue Massage Cream for this purpose.
Inching Along in Intermediate
At the Intermediate level, we are well into introducing the concept of “Give it weight and wait” and encouraging students to experiment with less lotion than they think they need. This stage focuses on refining tissue engagement and directing pressure to the underlying bony structures. We are also starting to introduce wax in class, like our Dallas instructor Hillary’s Steady Yeti Barefoot Massage Wax, as a great tool for enhancing grip and slowing down the glide even more. The goal is to develop effortless movements that rely on precision, rather than strength.
Advancing to Stand Still Techniques
Advanced techniques require further refinement in glide control - mainly how well can you anchor down and simultaneously work multiple areas of your client, or a concentrated spot with your whole body weight, without sliding off the contours of their body. To do this you’ll need to know the potential of your lubricant as well as you know your strokes, and as well as you know your clients “kneads!”
Some strokes may initially need more cream and wax, but as you gain confidence and consistency in depth and rhythm with these new strokes, you’ll learn to reduce the amount all over again, and you’ll get better at innately knowing when and where a tiny bit of cream, wax, or even water works best.
Specialized Modalities: When Glide Isn't Needed
In specialized classes like ROM/Stretch Therapy, Hot Ashi, Clinical Neck, or Fijian Matwork, glide isn’t necessary. These modalities focus on working directly with the myofascial web and nervous system through pressure, drag, and tissue stretch rather than gliding strokes. If anything, a fine water mist may be all you need for subtle movement. Often, the client is clothed, completely eliminating the need for lubrication.
“It rubs the lotion on it’s skin…”
After years of trial and error, we’ve determined that the products we recommend—like Pure Pro’s Deep Tissue Massage Cream—is ideal for beginners. It reduces strain, supports control, and minimizes the risk of repetitive injuries, which is one of our primary goals in your training. We like the feel of this cream because it doesn’t have that ~silicone~ type feel, it doesn’t feel slimy, and it has a long-lasting sheen that when spread thin, offers a great grip-to-glide ratio.
Steady Yeti Barefoot Massage Wax, a new product in the market made by Hillary Arrieta, (our Dallas instructor) offers a slow, controlled glide that grips the skin, yet still feels “buttery smooth” so that you can move slowly or stop on a dime with less effort. There are a multitude of wax’s out there with even more grip, and we’ve tried too many to name! We recommend that you start with Hillary’s for a great introduction to the medium for your feet, since this was created with research and intention “solely” for Barefoot therapists!
I personally love using water mist, because it doesn’t stay around too long, it’s naturally hydrating, plus water is clean, easy on my sheets, and free! I use this in combination with wax often, as It helps me get moving if I’m stuck, and it blends or rehydrates blotchy to dry spots of the surface into something more even for consistency in my depth, detail and speed.
While various massage oils were once a standard for old-school Ashiatsu Massage across the US, (sometimes even painted on with brushes so we wouldn’t get it on our hands and bars - that part was pretty genius actually), we’ve found that creams and wax’s are better suited for the tissue engagement required in myofascial work. Feel free to experiment, but remember: less is more. (Like, so much less there’s almost none!) Although, if you love the feel of oil, consider researching your options to learn the Ayurvedic style of Barefoot Massage: Chavutti Thirumal!
Pro Tips: Adjust as You Go
If you’re struggling with balance during a stroke, reduce the amount of lotion you’re using for better engagement and control. Or, if you notice discomfort or drag, try adding just a touch more - don’t go crazy with it! Achieving the perfect glide-to-grip ratio is an ongoing process that evolves as your skills develop.
Try your best to avoid sliming up your hands with lotion/cream and then touching your bars - it’s a disaster waiting to happen for your forearms! You almost do need to use your hands when applying wax, this is almost unavoidable, so be sure to keep a hand towel and maybe some alcohol spray in your holster to get the residue off your hands before touching the bars.
Remember, the right product and technique not only enhance your client’s experience but also protect your body, ensuring a long and sustainable career in Barefoot Massage. Trust the process and the recommendations we’ve designed to support you at every step of your journey.
If you need help on how to apply cream during a session, check out our tips from Jeni and Mary-Claire:
…and here is another oldie but a goodie 2sdayTOESday tip!