Where can you learn Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy
or Bamboo-fusion massage?

I teach at my permanent training facility in Cincinnati, and portable Ashiatsu bars allow me to train at your location in the Midwest. I typically travel as far as 12 hours driving distance from Cincinnati. Give me a call at 513-238-0970 or email me for more information at fredettemassage@fuse.net. More  information can be found here. 

Bamboo-Fusion massage classes can be found in Cincinnati, but we can also travel to your location. Be one of the first in the Midwest to learn this exquisite massage technique! It's a great new modality to add to your menu. Contact me for details.

I am pleased to announce that my office has moved to a new, larger site, where I will continue to offer massage therapy and continuing education classes in Cincinnati. The new massage therapy studio is located at 7813 Affinity Place, Cincinnati, OH, 45231. Click here to buy a non fattening, perfect size gift certificate for a favorite person--instant and online! 

Want to find out more about massage with bamboo? Bamboo-Fusion table massage is easy to do anywhere! The equipment is light and portable as well as easy to clean. The therapist is easily able to use warmed bamboo and rattan to deeply knead out kinks in the client's body.  Click here to see my page about Bamboo-Fusion massage.

Your massage therapist instructor for Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy and Bamboo-fusion...

Mary-Claire (Brinkman) Fredette received her Bachelor of Arts  in Theatre and Film from St. Mary-of-the-Woods College in Indiana.  In 1998, she graduated from SHI Integrative Medical Massage School in Lebanon, OH, and received her Ohio LMT license shortly thereafter. A professional member of AMTA (American Massage Therapy Association), Mary-Claire is also licensed in Kentucky.

She became certified in TouchPro^® chair massage (acupressure) in 1999, Nurturing the Mother^® pregnancy massage in 2000, Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy^® in 2002 and most recently received training in sports massage. Mary-Claire is also now offering Bamboo-Fusion massage at her studio too.

After learning Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy^® in 2002, Mary-Claire realized what a gift it would be to teach others how to give the deepest most luxurious massage on the planet! 

This barefoot massage technique has enabled her to work through 2 full term pregnancies, one of which was with twins.

Mary-Claire has been teaching Ashiatsu since 2004 and now also instructs massage therapists in Bamboo-Fusion table massage courses.

Portable Hardee Ashiatsu bars allow her to instruct therapists all over the Midwest, and she travels periodically to teach at spas in Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Mary-Claire's permanent training facility is located in Cincinnati, OH, where she lives with her husband and oodles of children. She is currently acting in the role of Mrs. Soames in Thornton Wilder's Our Town, which will be on stage November 6-23 in Cincinnati at Covedale Center for the Performing Arts.

About Our Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy Classes

Barefoot Basics ©
Introductory - 3 days - 25 CEU - $550
Pre-requisite: Therapist understands anatomy and physiology.

This 3 day entry level course is designed to teach massage professionals how to administer the ultimate barefoot effleurage application. Our famous one footed posterior sequences with our spa anterior finish can become a marvelous 60 or 90 minute session. Theory and lecture focuses on history of barefoot massage, cautions, contraindications, proper body mechanics for gravity assisted massage, proper draping, construction and design of bars in the treatment room, marketing the technique and foot hygiene. A full and rich program to say the least! You will feel every single stroke from the instructor and she will feel yours. On the final day, we provided is a public clinic/ practical for the ultimate in learning retention. Making sure you are safely up and operational before you leave our class is one of our "claimed to fame" teaching methods that is well respected in the CE industry.                                            

Barefoot Anterior and Side-lying© workshop
1 day - 8 CEU - $199
Pre-requisite: Therapist understands anatomy and physiology                                                  .

This course can be taken with Barefoot Basics or by itself. It is periodically taught right after Barefoot Basics for convenience and for those therapists who want more in-depth knowledge of anterior work. Therapists will be taught a protocol that will integrate anterior and side lying strokes. The client's eyes are comfortably draped in the anterior routine so he/she doesn't stare up at you! Side lying strokes can be used in conjunction with sports massage or when working as a team with your clients to locate the source of pain patterns and to treat them.

Deepfeet Two © - Two Footed Strokes Workshop
2 day - 16 CEU - $299
Pre-requisite: Certified graduate of Barefoot Basics.

This dynamic course is best suited for the barefoot basics graduate who has had time to acquire some clinical experience. For those who feel they are ready to learn advance concepts using two feet with more body compression, this specialty course is for you. You will need a healthy fitness level, with upper arm and abdominal strength to deliver comfortable two footed moves to your training partner. Students will learn two-footed posterior strokes that are gliding to be combined with the sequences and protocols learned in Barefoot Basics. Theory and lecture focuses on specific back conditions while identifying and qualifying clients for this treatment.

The Fusion-Blend © Workshop
1 day - 8 CEU - $199
Pre-requisite: Deepfeet Two.

This elite course is considered to be the final mastery of putting all levels of training into practice. You will be shown the art of fusing science, movement, and rhythm into a seamless, flowing barefoot dance. These gravity-assisted myofascial movements include pivots, turns, cross-over and exchanged foot and hand-rail strategies that allow you to blend appropriate strokes into a massage with no beginning, middle or end. This truly is the essence of our service mark and mission statement, "The deepest most luxurious massage on the planet!"

Dearest Mary-Claire,
Thank you so very much for your skills and patience and sense of humor! My clients love ashi!
I do want to thank the big guys again for letting us (me!) practice on their beautiful bodies!
Jane and I will both miss our adventures in Ohio! Please come see us sometime! Thanks again!

--Peace, Beth Miller; Noblesville, IN

Mary-Claire is very knowledgeable about Ashiatsu and communicates her knowledge very effectively. I feel I could not have had a better instructor!

 --Donna Hartmann; Cincinnati, OH

Thank you from the bottom of hearts, the soles of our Ashi feet and the top of our spirits for bringing your beautiful smile and energy to us! Your time and dedication are not in vain! You've made this class exhaustingly fun!

--Leigh Hatton, LA

______________________________________

Some Frequently Asked Questions:

Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy should be available to most clients who need deep tissue work. This session can be modified for light pressure to very deep--in fact, I have massaged clients weighing well under 100 pounds to over 375 lbs. Ashiatsu is a great way to alleviate discomfort of tight muscles in large muscle groups.

During our Ashiatsu class, you will receive the strokes for about 2 hours on 2 days of the workshops. If you have health issues that may prevent you from receiving work during class, please contact me prior to training at fredettemassage@fuse.net.

Unlike some other forms of barefoot massage, this ashiatsu technique is done with the client on the massage table, and massage cream is used. Overhead parallel bars are used for the massage therapist's balance. Consider being one of the deepest massage therapist around--train in Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy!

Register here for Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy class!

Ruthie Hardee, founder of Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy (AOBT), had seen various types of barefoot massage as a child while traveling with her missionary parents. She witnessed different styles of barefoot massage in Manila, Africa and the Indies.

Although many of the roots of Ashiatsu are Eastern ("ashi" means "foot, while "atsu" translates as "pressure"),  ashiatsu therapists in the United States use a distinctly different style of barefoot massage. Traditional barefoot shiatsu is done through clothing on a mat. With Chavutti Thirummal, performed in India for over 1000 years, the therapist typically uses a rope tied end to end and glides along the completely undraped client. Other forms of barefoot massage massage require props for balance such as chairs, poles a single bar, bamboo rods and even chains.

Hardee, however, wanted her style of barefoot massage to be luxurious and comfortable for both the client as well as the therapist. Hence, the system of parallel wooden bars placed over the massage table. The  ashiatsu therapist is able to use the bars overhead for balance while she or he glides gracefully over the client's lubricated skin. Hardee began Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy training for therapists in over 10 years ago.

While other forms of ashiatsu massage take into consideration breathing patterns, chi, and other energetic work, AOBT focuses on muscle and bone. Many orthopedic surgeons, chiropractors and physicians are fans of Hardee's style of barefoot massage. As Dr. Eric Dieffenbaugher, owner of Progressive Chiropractic Health and Wellness in Fairfield, OH says, "Ashiatsu is a wonderful adjunct to chiropratic care, in particular in regards to patients with lumbar disc problems because of it's deep compression and ability to traction out the spine."

This Western style of barefoot massage can be very deep but can also be modified for those who don't like as much pressure. While contraindicated for such clients as those who have uncontrolled blood pressure, women who are pregnant or are trying to conceive, and those on heavy blood thinners, this ashiatsu massage treatment can be very helpful for those clients with chronic low back pain. Ashiatsu massage is known to help improve posture and relieve pain, and yet do it in a gentle but deep fashion.

In fact, many spas throughout the country list Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy on their menu. Canyon Ranch health spas offer this style of barefoot massage in their locations in Tuscon, AZ, Lenox, MA, onboard the Queen Mary 2 cruise ship and at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. Ashiatsu can also be found at prestigious massage spas such as Urban Oasis in Chicago.  The Insider's Guide "Best of the Rockies"  lists Ashiatsu massage at Park Hyatt Beaver Creek as one of the "Most Memorable."

Sports enthusiasts who require deep work are typically harder for massage therapists to work on because of their muscle density. But by using gravity assisted effleurage, trained therapists can save some energy, reduce fatigue and save their wrists by performing this style of barefoot effleurage. In fact, the September/October 2007 issue of Luxury Spa Finder list Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy as their "ultimate skier's massage."

Ruthie Hardee and her team of dedicated instructors currently teach four classes in barefoot massage. I teach on a regular basis in Cincinnati, OH and conduct ashiatsu training in Denver, CO, on a regular basis. Portable Ashiatsu bars allow me to travel and train ashiatsu therapists throughout the Midwest.

Barefoot Basics are one footed strokes suited for the posterior side of the client's body. Any therapist with grace and coordination can learn these strokes, and she or he learn to shift body weight according to the client's needs. In Anterior/Side-Lying, the massage therapist learns both clinical side lying work as well as a luxurious spa approach to the anterior side of the client's body. The client's eyes are comfortably covered during this anterior massage, and all neck and pectoral work is done with the LMT seated on a stool. Arms and legs are included in the anterior protocol as well.

The advanced class of Deepfeet 2 teaches the massage therapist to use his or her entire body weight in two footed posterior strokes which are well suited for larger clients who really need or enjoy deep tissue massage. Therapists need good upper arm and core strength to give this wonderful two footed massage. And finally, the Fusion-Blend is considered to be the final mastery of all the posterior strokes, and it may be taken after Deepfeet 2.

As author Toby Osborne says, "Of course, whether you try Ashiatsu because you want to recharge your chi or relax your body, barefoot massage has an illustrious past that's worth celebrating."

If you're interested in trying Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy (otherwise known as AOBT),  Hardee's website Deepfeet.com  has a therapist locator service for all the states with certified Ashiatsu therapists. Not all AOBT therapists choose to list on the site, but you can always contact Ruthie at Ruthie@deepfeet.com if you can't find a certified Ashiatsu therapist in your area.

Here are some  Ashiatsu FAQ:

Wondering about the Ashiatsu portable bar dimensions? Weighing in about 75 pounds, they are 7'11" high, 6' long and 68" wide (a little over 5 1/2 feet). They set up in about 20 minutes and can be taken down in about 10 minutes. The portable bars are great for sporting events, poolside massage, health fairs, massage training sessions at your location, etc. You'll find pictures of them on my Ashiatsu massage class page and on the testimonial page. The dimensions of the Hardee Ashiatsu bars make them a spectacular site for outdoor events.

Where did Ashiatsu bar therapy come from? Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy is an adaptation of ancient techniques from India, Thailand, the Phillipines and Asia. Our professional training program combines some of the styles of ancient bodywork by using the healing power of heels and other parts of the therapist's foot. With other forms of therapeutic foot pressure, a therapist or warrior would perform ashiatsu with his feet while using body weight and deep compression pressure along with healing oils. Unlike this style of ashiatsu floor massage, our professionally trained therapists use their feet to massage while the client receives their barefoot shiatsu massage on a massage table. Although many clients would say that the ashiatsu training allows the therapist to walk on a client's back, it's really the therapist uses their body weight to effleurage and massage more like a dance--graceful, fluid and smooth in their unstressing techniques.

What about the guys? Male massage therapists can certainly learn Ashiatsu massage as well. Men have just as many wrist, back and thumb issues as female massage therapists. Yet when they learn Ashiatsu, they can learn to give a full body massage much more easily. Barefeet massage originated in several countries with men actually doing the footwork. We're just coming around full circle in the United States with male massage therapists training in Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy.

Chiropractors, medical doctors and homeopaths are often clients of alternative health. Our Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapists and instructors throughout the country use this style of deep tissue massage to work out the kinks, knots and stress of thousands of clients throughout the U.S. Using feet and massage together are very beneficial to both the massage therapist and the client.

Do you need massage therapy CEU's for your continuing education? Our classes are approved for NCBTMB and ABMP category A continuing education units. For more information about barefoot and bamboo massage, you can check out my barefoot-massage blog. Another one is Ashiatsuworkshops.

Founder Ruthie Piper Hardee began teaching Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy courses in 1995. Her style of barefoot ashiatsu massage using an overhead bar system revolutionized deep tissue massage in America. Our continuing education barefoot training classes are unparalleled in quality and teacher/student ratio. You can click on the logo to visit the national website.

Class costs are as follows:
Barefoot Basics, 25 CEUs, $550
Deepfeet Two, 16 CEUs, $299
Anterior/Side-Lying, 8 CEUs, $199
Fusion-Blend, 8 CEUs, $199

Class descriptions can be found here.  Study with the original source!