Meet the team
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Meet the team 〰️
When you come to Studio Brava, you are more than just a client…you’re part of our family! From the front office to the treatment room, our friendly team creates a warm, welcoming environment with personalized attention that makes patients feel truly cared for at every stage of the physical therapy process.
Although each staff member’s role is different, they all have integrity, dedication, and a shared commitment to supporting patients to regain their highest level of health and well-being. That is why our clients not only continue to return to Studio Brava, but enthusiastically refer their family, friends, and colleagues to our practice.
Cristina Popescu
Licensed Physical Therapist
Cristina Popescu has innate abilities, and an affinity, for helping people in need. She connects with them. She works to improve their lives. This started at an early age in her native Romania when she was called upon to help meet the daily needs of her stroke-affected grandmother. Despite her grandmother’s inability to speak, express emotions, walk, or simply take care of herself, she received loving care from Cristina and her mother; and this continued every day for nine years. Meanwhile, at school, and undoubtedly influenced by the state of her grandmother, she found herself connecting with kids with disabilities. This, despite the fact she was a nationally recognized track athlete. She had options, yet she chose to protect, comfort, and befriend the less fortunate.
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She empathized. She saw them as people, people who were trying to continually improve and live a life of dignity and significance. Her track prowess brought her fame. She was a national junior champion heptathlete and hurdler. Unfortunately, it also brought injury and pain. She severely damaged her left knee, thus ending a promising career on the track and starting a regime of rehabilitation in the clinic. Again, staying positive, creative, and undaunted, she turned the experience into a positive and focused her energy on becoming an expert rehab professional; and this is what she is today. Cristina services everyone from elderly patients recovering from surgery, dealing with joint ailments, back ailments, arthritic conditions, etc. to young and middle-aged athletes trying to get back on the field, court, mat, track, or in the water. Whatever the case, her vast knowledge of anatomy, deep understanding of pain relief, along with her clinical experience, allows her to employ a uniquely compassionate, confidence-inspiring approach, one that enables her patients to quickly and consciously regain their health, fitness, and vitality, and get back to the activities that bring them joy.
Faraz Sadighim
Licensed Physical Therapist
Faraz Sadighim, DPT found his passion toward anatomy and human body movement during his time at University of California, Los Angeles where he studied Psychobiology. After graduating from the Physical Therapy program, he immediately started working at hospital and rehabilitation facilities where he treated patients from post orthopedic surgeries to neuro patients. Faraz has worked in other outpatient facilities where he treated patients with different diagnoses. His passion is to treat patients, help them achieve their goals and return to their normal lifestyles.
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Faraz received his doctorate degree in physical therapy at Western University of Health Sciences. His goal is to achieve further credentialing including Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), Sport Clinical Specialist (SCS), and Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS). Outside the job, he enjoys spending time with his family and focusing on continuing his education.
Blake Barnes
Soft-Tissue Therapist
As Studio Brava’s bodywork and corrective exercise specialist, Blake is extremely dedicated, knowledgeable, and always goes the extra mile. He believes that the body is a puzzle—when someone is not moving right, it’s his job to find the missing piece and support the body in moving more efficiently to achieve the desired results. His main focus is helping clients increase their range of motion through soft-tissue massage, targeting specific muscle groups that cause any dysfunction, compensation, or pain. He also guides clients on how to work out efficiently using the right muscles and form to avoid future injuries.
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Blake’s background as an athlete set him on the path of an ongoing educational journey. First, he earned a bachelor’s in physical education with a pre-physical therapy focus from Cal State Dominguez Hills. Next, he was certified by NASM as a personal trainer and corrective exercise specialist for performance enhancement; then he became a certified massage therapist, after studying anatomy, movement, and clinical manual therapy approaches to fixing dysfunctions in the body. Currently, he is in the process of completing a kinesiology program.
Working here while he earns his latest degree allows Blake to blend his massage and fitness skills with the rehabilitation process, while always striving for more and better treatment techniques. He also enjoys the friendly environment and the passion shared by the entire staff to help people heal their bodies while building a family culture.
Demetri Theodore
Personal & Group Trainer
Demetri’s training philosophy is based on functionality, body and mind balance, and proper recovery (sleep, nutrition, myofascial release, and flexibility). This integrated approach has been refined over 15 years of personal and group training experience, both for competitive athletes as well as for those simply wanting to improve their strength, mobility, agility, and fitness. Demetri is available for individual and small group training, and actively promotes a relaxed, fun, yet purposeful workout experience.
Certifications:
Nasm Certified trainer, corrective exercise specialist
ACSM Certified trainer
NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
Precision nutrition level 1
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Animal Flow
NLP Practitioner Coach
American Safety & Health Institute CPR/AED certified
Education:
Bachelor degree in Physical Education and Sports Science
Enrolled in a master degree in clinical psychology
Thomas Elliott
Personal & Group Trainer
Thomas is a former English professional footballer who played striker for Leeds United and several other clubs. Due to injury, Thomas retired early which, in turn, inspired him to focus on physical rehabilitation, injury prevention, and performance enhancement. This led to a Personal Training Diploma and numerous other certifications. Thomas now works daily on improving his own health and fitness so he can share insights and ideas with his nutrition clients as well as with his personal and group training clients.
In addition to speaking proper English, Thomas enjoys seeing his clients move pain-free and maximize their fitness and athletic performance through conscious movement and positive habit formation.
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When not coaching or training, you can find Thomas at the gym, enjoying physical activities with friends, or investigating the latest research on heath, fitness, and athletic performance… and, of course, he still enjoys proper futbol.
Maja Damjanov
Care Coordinator and Client Relations Manager
Maja is the cheerful face and gatekeeper of Studio Brava. With more than a decade of administrative and marketing experience and her winning personality, she keeps our office on track, while treating everyone with patience, kindness, and consideration. As a result, new clients book appointments right away after speaking with her and patients always look forward to returning for their next physical therapy session.
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Raised by parents who were both doctors, Maja was drawn to the medical field even as a young child. While growing up, she was very empathetic, always expressing compassion for other people’s emotions and concern about their well-being. Today, she loves working with the deeply caring professionals at Studio Brava, who consistently give more than 100% in support of their patients, which is a rare quality to find.
Eric Wolitzky
Business Coordinator
Eric serves as the link that connects the Studio Brava clinical team to the outside world with full-speed dedication, agility, and creativity. Among his responsibilities are business growth planning, marketing strategy, promoting the clinic to physicians, and recruiting new team members.
Raised in the late 1970s to a pioneer in the resort industry, Eric learned the fundamentals of marketing at a very young age and launched a successful real estate and sales training career in the early ’80s. After studying abroad for six years, he moved to Los Angeles and made a name for himself in food production, eventually becoming a hospitality management consultant for two decades. His extensive business development, sales, and hiring experience has given him the ability to understand and fulfil the needs of customers in any business sector.
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Always upbeat, Eric believes that every day is a great day, it just depends on how one decides to position themselves within it. He appreciates that the Studio Brava team is always striving for the highest level of excellence for its clients, which creates momentum that supports ongoing growth and expansion.
