What is walking on someone's back called?

January 4, 2005 1:49 PM

I looove it when my girlfriend walks on my back - nothing gets out those big knots like a well-placed heel. Is there a name for this? Any suggestions on improving/refining the technique? Any dangers, providing she doesn't step right on my spine?
posted by gottabefunky to health & fitness (2 comments total)

Try googling for "barefoot shiatsu"
You might want to consult an experience practicioner. I know my shiatsu masseuse (an old Chinese man) has enough power in his hands to produce the same effect. Nothing else really works for me as well.
posted by vacapinta at 2:47 PM on January 4, 2005

Perhaps not what you asked for, but a chiropractor once told me that the reason trained bears were so popular in the early Russian circuses was that between performances their trainers would get them to walk up and down the backs of paying customers. The big, soft pads of the feet prevented injury, while the large weight really did a massage. Since these were travelling circuses, most of the customers were serfs who frequently injured their backs doing the hard labor that was their lot.

I tried googling and wikipediaing for more on this, to no avail. It might be apocryphal, but it seems somehow reasonable, given the era and the venue.
posted by RMALCOLM at 8:16 PM on January 4, 2005