Learn · For Practitioners
BLSTM Bilateral Leveraged Soft Tissue Mobilization
BLSTM is the soft tissue method built on bilateral leverage. You work through two linked attachments, with sustained compression and glide along or across the fibres. Your hands steer, and the tool carries the load.
Looking for a myofascial release or IASTM certification? BLSTM is the method we teach and certify: techniques you already know, delivered with Trigger PRO by Bilathera and organised by one protocol, Prepare → Release → Observe.
What it is
One principle, one method, one tool
Three names, each with one job.
Bilateral leverage
Two levers joined by a tension strap. Each pivots on the strap coupling, closer to the attachment than to your hand, and your two hands brace against each other through the strap.
How it works: Bilateral leverage
BLSTM
Bilateral Leveraged Soft Tissue Mobilization: what you learn, practise, get certified in and record in your session notes.
Trigger PRO
What BLSTM is done with: two levers, one tension strap, seven attachment types. Worn on both hands, so your grip stays relaxed.
Inside BLSTM sits the P.R.O. Protocol: Prepare → Release → Observe, the sequence every session follows. See the protocol
What it adds
What BLSTM adds to what you already do
You already compress, glide along the fibres and work across them. BLSTM keeps those techniques, and your assessment, as they are. What changes is how the load gets to the tissue.
Leverage your skill.
Every hands-on technique comes down to four variables: how much pressure, where, which way and for how long. BLSTM turns each one into a setting you choose and can repeat.
- How muchx2 force leverage
- Any pressure from light contact to full depth, for a fraction of the grip effort, whatever the size of your hands. You grade it as a dose: light, moderate, leveraged.
- WhereTwo steady points
- One-sided pressure pushes compliant tissue away; two converging contacts hold it. The contact stays on target, steady through the hold and even on both sides.
- Which wayFree to move
- The strap holds the two levers together, and every other movement stays free. Compression, glide along or across the fibres, rotation, and contact held while your client moves all stay open.
- How longWorn on the hands
- The load comes off your thumbs and wrists, so a hold ends when you decide, and the pressure in your last session of the day matches the first.
Your notes record those settings in one line:
Target → Tip → Application → Technique → Pressure → Dose → Response
BLSTM, IASTM and myofascial release
BLSTM is instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM), done with a bilaterally leveraged tool. Most IASTM works with one edge stroked along the skin. With Trigger PRO, two attachments converge on the target from both sides, so the pressure stays stable and focused. That makes BLSTM suited to deep, technical soft tissue work: holding a precise point, working dense tissue, keeping steady contact through a glide.
The two work well together. Already certified in IASTM? BLSTM adds stability and two converging contacts to the instrument-assisted work you already do. The same goes for myofascial release: the compression and glide you use, delivered through a compound lever arm system built around your hands.
What you learn
Modes, techniques and dosing
These are the building blocks by name. The course teaches when and how to use each one.
Three modes
How the two attachments work together- Bilateral Bracketing
- Both attachments work, one on each side of a symmetrical region, such as either side of the lumbar spine, or flanking a single target.
- Anchoring
- One attachment holds still as counter-support, often the broad Anchor, while the other works, often the Cone. Used on one side of a region or on uneven shapes, such as steadying the lateral scapula while you work levator scapulae.
- Active
- Contact held while your client moves through their range.
Four Release techniques
Compression or directional glide- Trigger Point CompressionTPC
- Sustained pressure into a focal point.
- Broad CompressionBC
- Sustained pressure across a wider area.
- Longitudinal Myofascial GlideLMG
- A controlled glide along the fibre line.
- Cross-Fiber MobilizationCFM
- A controlled glide across the fibres.
Fibre architecture guides the choice: along the fibres for parallel muscles, across them for pennate ones. Your palpation has the final say.
Three pressure levels
A dose, not a depth- Light
- Fingertips on the handle. Steady contact with minimal force.
- Moderate
- Whole hand around the handle. Firm, controlled compression.
- Leveraged
- Back of the hand against the back hand support (BHS). The top of the range, within your client's tolerance.
Deep isn't the goal. Control of the dose is.
On the tool side: six attachment designs plus 30 mm extenders, chosen by tissue depth, target size and sensitivity. See every attachment
See them applied in your profession: For practitioners
The P.R.O. Protocol
Prepare, Release, Observe
Every BLSTM session follows the same three steps. They mirror the assess, apply, reassess loop you already work in, so the protocol gives your clinical reasoning a structure without taking it over. Assessment and the choice of technique stay yours.
The P.R.O. Protocol
- PrepareTarget, tip and mode. Fit the back hand support, set your position and your client's, and tension the strap before you press.
- ReleaseCompression (TPC, BC) or directional glide (LMG, CFM), dosed light → moderate → leveraged. Bring in movement when your client is ready.
- ObserveReassess with your own measures. Then continue, modify, stop or progress, and note it in one line.
The course adds the detail: dosing, safety and high-risk structures, and documentation.
The same three steps in everyday words, for new owners and partners: the everyday version on Get started.
How to learn it
How to learn BLSTM
Start free, then go as far as your practice needs.
- Available now
Start free
Set up Trigger PRO and run your first 10 minutes with Get started. Then see how it fits your profession: For practitioners.
- Launching 2027 · included with Trigger PRO
BLSTM Level 1 · Online
The foundations: three modes, four Release techniques, pressure dosing and the P.R.O. Protocol. Short video lessons, a quiz and a certificate.
- Monthly in Korea · elsewhere on request
BLSTM Level 2 · In person
P.R.O. in depth, movement work and combinations, hands-on with an instructor, ending in a practical assessment. In Korea, classes run every month with our partner RedBalance. Elsewhere, we run classes on request for clinics, teams and schools.
- From 2027 · by invitation
BLSTM Instructor
For Level 2 graduates who want to teach BLSTM in their region or language.
Not sure it fits your practice? For Practitioners walks through each profession.
Certification & CEU
Certification and CEU status
Your certificate
Each level ends with an assessment and a Bilathera BLSTM certificate. It shows you've completed our training and passed the assessment. Your scope of practice stays the one your licence gives you.
CEUs
BLSTM is not CEU-approved yet. Courses award a Bilathera BLSTM certificate, not CEUs or a licence. We're preparing a CEU-eligible version with an approved partner; approved boards will be listed here.
Why the wait: continuing-education boards approve courses about a method, not about a product. The CEU version is being built around the method, with Trigger PRO as the tool used in the hands-on lab.
Teach it
Teach BLSTM
BLSTM is built to be taught: three steps, a handful of named techniques, one line of notes.
Schools and universities
Students pick up leverage quickly, before habits set in. Tell us your programme and class size, and we'll quote class sets and arrange an in-person class.
Clinics and teams
Train your team together in one Level 2 class. Equipping the whole clinic? We quote volume orders.
Instructors
The instructor track opens in 2027 for Level 2 graduates. Want to teach BLSTM in your region or language? Tell us now.
FAQ
Questions practitioners ask
Do I need a Trigger PRO to learn BLSTM?
Yes. BLSTM is done with Trigger PRO, because the tension strap linking your two hands is where the leverage comes from. Level 1 online will be included with every Trigger PRO. For a group class, ask us about class sets.
Is BLSTM a form of IASTM?
Yes. BLSTM is instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization done with a bilaterally leveraged tool. Where most IASTM uses one edge stroked along the skin, two attachments converge on the target from both sides, so the pressure stays stable and focused for deep, technical work. It complements an IASTM certification rather than replacing it.
Is BLSTM a myofascial release certification?
BLSTM certifies you in its own method. It covers much of the same ground as myofascial release courses (sustained compression, glide along and across the fibres), delivered through two steady points with leverage behind the pressure. It doesn't certify you in another school's technique.
Do BLSTM courses count as massage CEU courses?
BLSTM is not CEU-approved yet. Courses award a Bilathera BLSTM certificate, not CEUs or a licence. We're preparing a CEU-eligible version with an approved partner; approved boards will be listed here.
Who can take BLSTM?
Physical therapists, massage therapists, chiropractors, osteopaths, athletic trainers and students in those fields, each within their own scope of practice. Using Trigger PRO at home or on a partner? You don't need BLSTM: start with Get started.
Is there published research on BLSTM?
Not yet. BLSTM is a way of delivering techniques you already use, and we don't claim outcomes for it. Independent research is the next step; papers will appear on our Research page, alongside our summaries of existing studies on manual therapy and practitioner strain.
Next
Where to next
Ask about BLSTM training
Tell us where you practise and what you want to learn. We'll point you to the next class, or let you know when Level 1 opens.
Ask about trainingSee BLSTM in your profession
Physical therapists, massage therapists, chiropractors, osteopaths and athletic trainers.
For practitionersTrigger PRO is patent pending (US 18/584,889; PCT WO2024176178A1).
Trigger PRO is a manual massage tool for general wellness and fitness use. It is not a medical device and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
