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  • All about Reflexology

    All about Reflexology

    Updated 8th April 2025

    Therapist giving a foot reflexology treatment Derived from Eastern medicine practices, Holistic treatments are non-invasive therapies which aim to treat underlying issues. They work on creating harmony within in the body through connection with energy points or meridian lines to work on overall health and well being. They compliment the western approach of medicine by offering an additional method for relaxation and stress relief which can benefit a variety of clients. One of the most popular Holistic treatments is Reflexology. In today’s blog we’re going to put a spotlight on this ancient treatment giving you and insights into the benefits and practices.
    What is Reflexology and how does it work? Reflexology is an In-depth foot treatment designed to relieve stress, relax and rebalance the body. The treatment focusses on reflex areas on foot which correspond to all of the glands, organs and parts of body. Pressure is applied using thumbs/fingers to reflex points on feet to stimulate theseย specific parts of the body encouraging a balance affect.
    Reflexology uses zone therapy which was developed by Dr William Fitzgerald.ย Dr Fitzgerald believed the body could be divided into longitudinal zones runningย from the top of the head to the tips of the toes, he found that those parts of the body in each zone are linked by a flow of energy and that the parts of the body in each zone can have an effect on each other. Body meridians chart The body systems are represented on the feet a good way to learn this areas is to see the two feet together as a mirror for the body. For example, the brain reflex is found on the top of the big toe, the spine runs from the big toe down to the heel on each foot. The right foot governs right-hand side of body, left foot governs left-hand side of the body. The image below details the organs and where they are found.
    Foot reflexology chart
     
    What are the benefits of Reflexology?
    • Stress relief โ€“ stress is responsible for 75-85% of illness
    • Improves circulation โ€“ body relaxes during reflexology โ€“ tension that restrictsblood flow is reduced enabling the blood to flow more freely
    • Helps eliminate toxins from the body (improves the function of the lymphaticsystem and stimulates the excretory system)
    • Balancing โ€“ improves the balance between the systems of the body so boostingthe immune system.
    What is the role of the Reflexologist? Reflexologists should never medically diagnose during a session with a client, the treatment is merely to focus on rebalancing the body and its systems. This is done by providing a relaxing treatment using pressure with fingers and thumbs to the reflex points not he client’s feet in order to stimulate various parts of the body. Reflexology is best completed In a series of treatments, most clients start to notice a difference after 3-6 weekly treatments. In general it’s recommended that a client have 4-6 treatments in a course.
    How much canย I charge for Reflexology?ย  How much you can charge for a reflexology can vary depending on where you are practicing. On average in the UK the treatment can currently cost between ยฃ25-ยฃ60 a session. It’s worth doing your market research to see what other practitioners are charging in your local area. How do I become a Reflexologist?ย  Our two day intensive Reflexology course will provide you will all of the information, techniques and hands on practice you need to get started with your Reflexology. Over the two days you will learn:
    • Health, safety & hygiene
    • Consultation techniques
    • Contraindications
    • Theory of reflexology
    • Reflexology massage movements and modifications
    • Treatment procedure for working on the feet
    • Massage mediums
    • Practical tuition on performing a reflexology treatment on the feet
    • Aftercare advice

    Learn Reflexology skills with our Accredited Classroom or Online Course. Book your place securely online:

  • Getting Started with Online Courses

    Getting Started with Online Courses

    Updated 1st November 2024. Achieving a recognised beauty qualification couldn’t be easier with our Accredited Online courses. Learn at your own pace, in your own time and start your own business! If you’re new to Online Courses this blog will be a useful guide through getting started with your Online Course. Person studying an online course on a laptop

    What’s Involved

    Our online courses are completed through our industry leading, user friendly Online Student Portal. You receive access to a wealth of high quality learning resources, written by beauty professionals including comprehensive e-manuals and detailed step by step video demonstrations. You can watch the videos as many times as you need. We include fun multiple choice online tests which are great for checking your understanding and can be retaken instantly, as often as you need to pass. When you feel ready, you will practice on friends / family or training hand / head as relevant to the course. You need to provide evidence of 3 case studies which are submitted easily by email and assessed against industry standards to ensure your proficiency with the treatment skills. Individual feedback to help you improve and you simply resubmit as needed until you are at a successful level to achieve. Typically students complete these courses within 2-6 weeks (committing around 2-10 hours per week to study), although you have 12 weeks to access the course resources on the portal should you need to go slower. Students can take up to 12 months to email over their case study evidence for certification, so plenty of time to practice your skills to full confidence.

    The Student Portalย 

    Once you have registered for your course you will receive an email with your link to access the Student Portal. The Student portal can be accessed through desktop, tablet and phones. If you are using a tablet or phone there is an app available to download, simply visit the App Store and search SAP LITMOS. When prompted for a domain enter: thebeautyacademy followed by your log in details. We recommend your first point of call when you log in is the additional resources tab in your course, here you will find your practical case study materials, including consultation and feedback forms. Save this pdf file to your device or print for use when ready to start practising.

    Guidance on Case Studiesย 

    You will receive a detailed list of required products and equipment as part of your online course resources. Optional, selected kits are available to purchase through our website. Other beauty wholesale companies are available such as Salon Services or websites like Amazon, to allow you to source basic items to get started. Courses are not brand-specific so you can use any brand / supplier you prefer for case studies. When you have completed your case studies email in to [email protected] and attach your before and after photos along with your client consultation form and feedback form for each treatment required. Your case studies will be evaluated with your certificate and/or feedback provided by email within no more than 7 working days.

    Getting Started Once Qualified

    Once you’ve achieved your online course certificate(s), you can purchase public liability (beauty treatment) insurance to begin offering your services to paying clients. We do not provide insurance ourselves but recommend several leading insurers. You can find more about our recommended insurers on our website. You’ll already have your products from completing your case studies. You’ll need a brand for your business – a solid name and logo. You also need to decide what basis you want to work on – from home, mobile etc. You’ll also need to register for self-assessment if starting your own business with HMRC for tax reasons. You will also need to keep records of any income earnt and any costs (along with receipts). You may want to seek advice from an accountant to get this set up initially. If you’re new to running a business, you may find our Starting a Business in Beauty Course useful. For marketing, you’ll need to set up social media profiles on Instagram, Facebook and even Tiktok to begin promoting your beauty business. You can also get word of mouth promotion by networking with other local businesses (e.g. hairdressers, wedding suppliers etc.) or local organisations (schools, parents groups, charities etc.) to promote your services, perhaps with an open evening offering taster treatments or gift vouchers for raffle prizes. You may want to print some business cards and a price list to share with them. Always remember to take before / after photos of your results to share online and encourage clients to share their lashes or nails on social media tagging you to help gather word of mouth. It will take a little time and patience to build a loyal client base. It is recommended to promote discounted block bookings for a course of treatments or encourage clients to book their next treatment before they leave each appointment. This helps plan future business and get your appointment diary full. Gift vouchers are also a great way to get some initial income flowing, especially around seasonal events like Mother’s Day or Christmas. If you need help with your selling skills, you might like to consider our Sales Skills for Beauty Course. From client feedback you gauge what future treatments you might like to learn and offer, taking on further Online Courses as required to develop the skills to keep your business going from strength to strength. Typically it takes around 6-24 months to establish a new business. For inspiration, why not take a look at some of our previous students’ success stories.

    See a sample of our Online Student Portal & Quality Course Content
    Shop All Online Courses
  • Why it can be great to start small…

    Why it can be great to start small…

    When looking to start a new career in the beauty industry, it can be so easy to fall into the trap of thinking you MUST train in every single treatment on the market from the get-go. But the cost of this and also just knowing how then to launch your business without any particular unique selling features or areas of specialism can be really difficult when coming to an industry with a lot of competition already. Our blog highlights why it can actually be great to start small, focusing on particular treatments, building your brand and then moving on to other treatments as your client base actually wants, rather than what you think they will want…

    Our offers this month are all about helping you to focus on learning a particular set of beauty skills so that you have a ready to launch business. Whether that is focusing on being a lash and brow artist, make up artist also offering lash treatments, a nail technician or a beauty therapist offering the Big 4 (facials, waxing, manicures and pedicures). This is because we know the industry well and we know what works.

    Be a Specialist in your Chosen Field

    While having a diverse range of beauty skills from the off is great for those looking to gain employment in a salon (where they will be expecting you to be able to offer treatment to every client that may walk through the door); when starting your own business this is not always feasible and rarely necessary. Most beauty start-ups will focus on a niche within beauty so that they can be offering treatments that are their passion, work to their best natural talents but also ensure they are 6specialists in what they have to offer through having day to day, in-depth knowledge and practice of offering those treatments. It also allows you to focus on learning all you can within the industry around those specific treatments, whether that is through taking advanced courses or reading up on industry expert blogs and publications.

    More Affordable and Profitable

    It also makes starting your own business much more affordable. You can focus on booking onto the best training courses within the treatments you want to learn and then commit remaining funds to getting started with insurance, kits, products and tools as you need to start building your client base. If you try to learn everything, it can be very costly both in training and kit requirements meaning you may not then be able to afford the best products or tools to work with once you start working with clients which can make your treatments less attractive versus competitorsโ€™. It also puts a huge pressure on you in the first year to have to make too much money to reclaim your costs and before you get to enjoythe boost of being in a profit.

    Your Business is Focused

    Starting with treatments you know are popular in your area, which you enjoy offering and you know you have knowledge of (whether from having previous treatments yourself or through beauty magazines you read for example); really is the best way to getting your business started on the best foot forward. It allows you to focus your marketing whether that is a website, Facebook business page or adverts in local press to really shout about what you do. You can have a very clear branding message too on your price list and business card, rather than being confused by trying to offer too many services too soon. The greatest advantage is that you start with a popular service, start establishing clients and from there you can ask your target market what else they like receiving and would like you to offer so you can be sure to enrol for further courses that allow you to capitalise on this. Once you get working in the industry you can see what you enjoy too. So many therapists have fallen into doing treatments they donโ€™t really enjoy, simply because they feel they must, to justify training within them. Start with what inspires and excites you and you canโ€™t go far wrong in building a business and a career you truly love.

    Be More Competitive

    By training in specific treatments to begin with, you can keep your costs down which allows you to launch with very competitive prices versus your local competition. Once you have experience under your belt, you can raise your prices to become a premium service but having that initial competitive edge really does help to springboard you into a thriving business very quickly. Also focusing your treatment offer allows you to put together lucrative packages (both for you and your clients e.g. offering a brow service alongside lashes to frame those windows to the soul; or indeed waxing alongside pedicures to help with those fluffy toes!). Having a specialist business within beauty also allows you to have less kit lying around unused, taking up your precious workspace and minimising the amount of kit you have to take around with you if working mobile.

    You Can Always Diversify Later

    Remember by taking a couple of specific courses or indeed a package which focuses on a niche of the beauty industry, you are in no way limiting yourself. You can always take additional courses, whether further 1 day fast track, accredited courses or indeed our flexible, online, recognised learning courses. You could even upgrade to an internationally recognised qualification such as the VTCT awards in order to gain employment in a salon or spa, once you have gained experience or should a further opportunity arise beyond self-employment. You might even go on to training to teach beyond a VTCT award, so there really are huge options ahead.

    All you have to do is take the first step, decide which 1-3 treatments you love the most and give us a call on Freephone 0800 999 2277 to arrange booking onto the best training course option for you. Itโ€™s no obligation and our course advisors are all fully qualified beauty therapists with vast experience of the industry, so can certainly point you in the right direction.