Meet Lara Johnson | Doctor & Founder, Yellow Brick Physical Therapy

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lara Johnson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lara, what is the most important factor behind your success?
Being different. Following my heart and going deeper beyond the surface was the hardest way and the most important one, because it set me apart. I don’t know of any PT or healer around who does what I do the way I do it. The reason Yellow Brick PT is successful is my ability to solve the hardest problems (like back pain, sciatica, a pinched nerve in the neck, or tendinitis) and my connection with the whole person. By being different, my patients get the long-term results they weren’t getting from exercises, massages, needles, or adjustments, and a less clinical, more personal experience.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Just like no two snowflakes are the same, not all physical therapists are the same. Many patients come to me after days, weeks, months, or even years of treatments that didn’t work. Sidelined from activities or from life because they are in such pain that the smallest tasks are too much for them. Usually I am their last resort, then they say they wish they called me sooner.

My patients say this is because my method works. I look at the whole body, not just the area in pain. Then I treat the root problem. Which is why patients find relief in just a few treatments. The best part of my day is seeing life come back into their eyes, family members tell me they got up and went for a mile walk which they haven’t done in years, or they got through a day of work without pain.

These treatments are not just for those in pain, these methods also work for athletes. My treatments allow patients to stay healthy through long training blocks to complete their first marathon or fourth 100 miler. They know I’m an endurance athlete too, and that I get them. Seeing them surpass their expectations of themselves is so rewarding! It’s the most rewarding part of owning my business: healing people, understanding them, teaching them, celebrating them.

I’ve been fortunate to also teach classes in fitness and yoga, meditation and running. I was a collegiate and post-collegiate distance runner for many years, and now I co-lead annual meditation retreats for runners. I enjoy helping athletes of any kind become more grounded and present, to appreciate sustained health and lifelong self-discovery like I have.

The biggest challenges I’ve faced as both a clinician and a business owner have been personal: valuing myself and trusting myself. It seems the more I’m able to do so, the bigger the return: helping amazing people stay healthy and active long-term, and inspiring them to value and trust their bodies and selves too.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Love this question! Okay, here are my top suggestions for spending time in beautiful Boulder in the summertime:

For my runner friends – I would take them on a run up my favorites: Mt Sanitas or Betasso or Hall Ranch or even Brainard Lake, then a cold bath in the Boulder Creek for recovery.

For my foodie friends – I would take them to Sherpas or Dushanbe Teahouse for something exotic, Flagstaff House for fancy, or Flower Child for healthy; Walnut Cafe, Tangerine or the Buff for breakfast.

For my music-lovers – Chautauqua Theater, Boulder Theater, or Pearl Street Mall for summer concerts.

For my movie-goers – up to Fort Collins (I grew up in Northern Colorado) to the Holiday Twin Drive-In theater, one of the few drive-ins still around!

For my adventure seeking friends – we’d road trip to one of the many beautiful Colorado mountain ranges to hike or run, or canoe on the Colorado or Green River (we’d bring my sister along for the canoe expertise!).

For my smartie friends – hit up local galleries, Boulder Book Store, the Clyfford Still museum in Denver, the beautiful Boulder Public Library, or sit by the Boulder Creek and read books all day with our feet in the water.

Lastly, for my “doing it for the ‘Gram” friends – I would take them to Chautauqua for the Flatirons backdrop, to the top of Green Mountain for the views of cities and peaks, and to downtown Pearl Street Mall for the people-watching, dog-watching, murals, and random sightings of interesting things.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Years back I met Fredrick Vasquez and he changed my life. He planted a seed by helping me with my running injuries when I was a collegiate athlete, and then my mom with a pinched nerve in her neck. Her pain was so severe that she couldn’t even ride in a car. Much later as a DPT, I saw Fredrick’s patients getting results so much faster and for longer than I ever had seen in any other clinic before. Right then and there, I knew. I knew this was how I wanted to practice medicine. Because it’s not practicing medicine at all, it’s practicing health.

With his recent passing, I continue his legacy with my method of treatment to heal patients. I am forever grateful and I dedicate this shoutout to him!

And also to my incredible parents, who never pushed (I did plenty of that on my own), but always supported and encouraged me. Inspiring me to teach, to travel, and to above all be me.

Website: www.yellowbrickpt.com

Instagram: @drlarajohnson

Linkedin: Lara Johnson

Twitter: @drlarajohnson

Facebook: Lara Johnson

Youtube: Lara Johnson

Other: Running & Meditation Retreat, Sept 2-5, 2022: https://www.dralamountain.org/program/run922-running-with-the-mind-of-meditation-and-yoga/?utm_source=presenterweb&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=run922-running-with-the-mind-of-meditation-and-yoga/&utm_id=Runner922

Image Credits
Laura Barisonzi, Marty Kibiloski, Jim Berry