Raising the bar on massage therapy

Moore also learned that doing the work, particularly on her larger and more muscular clients, took a toll on her body. So, several years ago she began training in Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy, which melds elements of the ancient practice of ashiatsu - or "foot pressure" - massage with Western techniques. The key is the use of a raised table and overhead bars to support the therapist's weight.

"It's much more effective for my clients to use my body weight and my foot, which is much larger than my hand, to apply just the right amount of pressure," said Moore, who weighs 122 pounds. "It's also a lot easier on me."

Ruthie Piper Hardee developed the bar therapy regimen and is credited with bringing this rapidly growing form of massage into the US mainstream. "You could say it's a barefoot bonanza that's really sweeping the country," Hardee, 52, said in a telephone interview from her Denver office. Since the 1990s, Hardee's program has trained nearly 4,000 practitioners in Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy, including Moore, who is certified in advanced levels.

Those therapists use wooden bars bolted into the ceiling or a portable apparatus with overhead bars to maneuver above their clients and to support a portion of their body weight as they vary the amount of pressure they apply with one foot, or sometimes both feet. That combination helps create "the longest stroke ever and the most luxurious massage on the planet," according to Hardee.

I was eager to find out whether Moore could back up that claim. Soon after arriving at her small but comfortable studio for my 90-minute session, I was lying face down under the covers on the massage table, which was slightly wider than normal to accommodate Moore's footwork. On the floor under the face cushion that cradled my head, she mixed some Japanese mint oil with hot water and the resulting fragrant steam brought my sinuses alive.