About Me
Yuka Sugiura
I’m a Neuroperformance Coach, and I believe in transformation.
After a long career in the software industry, I switched lanes (switched highways, really) and became an Orthopedic Pilates and Massage Therapist and at about the same time began coaching gymnastics.
In my quest to find new approaches and tools, I discovered that a key piece to creating more profound shifts in the body was to put the brain and nervous system first. A brain-based approach is helping me answer the questions that drive me as a coach and therapist:
How can I help athletes build the resilience and injury resistance that allows them to remain healthy, in the gym or on the field, in the game as much as possible and for as long as possible?
How can I help them trust their bodies and move from feeling stuck to feeling unstoppable?
What if every turn required 3% less effort and created 3% less impact on bones, tendons and ligaments? What if training just felt easier?
I want to help the athletes I work with do and feel those things so they progress and thrive on their path towards big dreams.
The Optional Team at West Valley Gymnastics. They’re my inspiration. They’re a huge part of why I do what I do now.
I’ve been fortunate to support recreational to nationally- and world-ranked athletes and dancers, helping them resolve pain or limitations that were keeping them from performing fully. Among the clubs and schools they represent:
Stanford University
West Valley Gymnastics School
California Sports Center
Los Gatos Ballet
Los Gatos High School Football
Nor Cal Dance Arts
San Francisco Ballet School
& schools across the country
Speaking & Presenting
Stanford University Sports Medicine
USA Gymnastics National Congress
USA Gymnastics Region 1 Congress
Education & Certification
Z-Health Performance, Master Practitioner Certification: Applied neuroscience training covering mobility restoration, neuromuscular re-education; vision & balance training; neuromechanics, neural threat modulation; and vision training for sport.
Certified Hendrickson Method® Orthopedic Massage and Manual Therapy Practitioner
Certified Orthopedic Pilates Therapist
Certificate in Dance Rehabilitation: Dance medicine training led by the Physical Therapists for the New York City Ballet and School of American Ballet.
Certified Bikram Yoga Instructor
B.A. Brown University
AS HEARD ON…
Gymnastics Growth Show
with Nick Ruddock
Conditioned to Win
with Lisa Mitzel
Perform Happy
with Rebecca Smith