Jeni Spring
Barefoot Massage Therapist
Photography by: Nina A. Padilla
What is Barefoot Massage?
It’s not a foot massage. I massage using Myofascial Release, Trigger Point, and Stretch Therapy techniques: I just happen to use my feet and bodyweight as the tool, rather than hands and strength. It’s great for many common chronic pain tissue issues of the hips, spine, and larger joints of the body, and the stretching aspects work well for more acute muscle pain. Barefoot Massage is not meant to be light. It’s not meant as a “treat yourself” spa day – my clients report that it speeds up recovery time post-work-out and keeps nagging pain at bay.
What are the benefits of Barefoot Massage therapy compared to traditional massage therapy?
Barefoot Massage feels like a deep, slow-moving, head-to-toe steamroll with focused work on tissue issues. Your nervous system reacts to this big-footed pressure the same as if it were a weighted blanket. My feet have been doing this for 18 years, so I can get just as detailed as hands. My bodyweight and gravity help maintain consistent pressure at the depth your body “kneads” to kick into a healing mode.
Who can attend Barefoot Massage training?
To train with me through the Center for Barefoot Massage, you have to be a Licensed Massage Therapist. The type of LMT I’m looking to train is the career-long learner who wants to grow with the work, someone who wants to continually push their understanding of how/why/when to use the techniques, and someone who geeks out on Barefoot Massage as much as I do. If you AREN’T a massage therapist and you want to learn how to massage your family with your feet – find me at Heeling Sole and attend my upcoming Self- Foot Massage, Couples Barefoot Massage or Kids Backwalking community/online classes!
What do you love most about your work?
I like teaching my clients quick anatomy lessons, or showing them tricks on how to self-massage and stretch themselves at home. I love teaching massage therapists how to sequence a session for their clients, offering them ways to make their lives and jobs easier. The most fun I have is when I’m choreographing a massage for someone based on what their tissue is telling me in the moment: the sessions become a moving meditation and are as beneficial for me as they are for my client.
Heeling Sole Barefoot Massage
210-560-1992
The Center for Barefoot Massage
210-816-1241
12915 Jones Maltsberger Road, #603
San Antonio, Tx, 78247