Physical Therapy

Meet Dr. Jon Sakoda

Jon was born and raised on the beautiful southern shore of Oahu, and moved to Santa Barbara to attend Westmont College in 2005. He then completed his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree at Chapman University in 2013, underwent a year long residency through the USC/Kaiser didactic coursework and curriculum, and became an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) shortly thereafter through the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS). After finishing his studies, Jon moved back to Santa Barbara where he has been practicing physical therapy both at Variant Training Lab and at Hayashida/Sutter Physical Therapy for over a decade.

Jon has a passion for combining evidence based PT practices with movement analysis and training, helping people move well, feel well, and thrive in whatever their life demands. In today's world, physical therapy is most often utilized after a body tissue becomes painful. This approach is excellent for uncovering root causes of pain and finding permanent solutions. However, most people don't think to seek out PT when they are healthy and not in pain. A large part of Jon's focus at Variant Training Lab is injury prevention, which includes identifying movement dysfunction before problems occur. Physical Therapists are movement experts, and correctly and accurately identifying movement dysfunction plays a vital role in injury prevention.