Our Team
Our highly skilled team of physical experts are ready to help you work out every muscle to reach peak physical condition in order to get back the enjoyment and the mobility of life. Let us show you how our family at OptimisSportPT will treat you with patience and kindness as we answer any of your questions and build a plan to get your body moving well.
Ryan Kahanu, PT, DPT Clinic Director
Ryan Kahanu graduated cum laude from Colorado State University in 2009, earing a Bachelor of Science in Health and Exercise Science with a concentration in Sports Medicine, and a minor in Spanish language. He then moved to Los Angeles and obtained his Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of Southern California in 2012. Since then, Ryan has worked with patients in an outpatient orthopedic clinic, home health, and has traveled to Beijing to work with and treat elite athletes in preparation for the 2013 All China Games. Ryan is certified in Movement Links, where he uses a movement-based approach to assess and treat musculoskeletal pain dysfunctions by identifying and managing both the sources and contributing factors of pain. He is a former competitive gymnast, and enjoys using movement analysis to help other athletes achieve their goals, whether for competition or recreation.
Ryan enjoys hiking, traveling and learning foreign languages. He enjoys taking on a challenge of learning a new language in order to speak to people in their native tongue. Ryan is fluent in Spanish, and has a working knowledge of Russian, French, Italian, and Portuguese. Born and raised on Oahu, Hawaii, Ryan enjoys the clear skies and ocean breeze that Pacific Palisades offers.
Frank Thomas
Frank Thomas graduated from Pepperdine University in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Sports Medicine. In his time at Pepperdine, he worked with the school’s Campus Recreation department to focus on getting students to participate in physical activities that are offered at the school. Frank also worked with the Volunteer Center at school, where he led many student excursions to organizations in the Los Angeles and Ventura counties, focusing on health and wellness of these communities. Frank spent a month abroad in Uganda and Rwanda, where he learned about the operations of various non-profits in the region. This last summer Frank worked with a professor of neuroscience at Pepperdine on a functional fitness class at the Senior Center in Malibu. The focus of the class was to help improve cognitive function of seniors, in addition to building muscular strength and flexibility. Earlier this year, Frank and a group of students from Pepperdine University presented their research on ACL injury risk related to jumping activities at the American College of Sports Medicine South West Conference in Long Beach. He and this group are working on getting their research published, and continue presenting at future conferences.
Frank grew up in Malibu, taking advantage of wonderful landscape and weather in the area. Growing up, he learned hard work and dedication by working for his parents in their small family business. Frank has many years of experience playing soccer and baseball and has recently taken up playing rugby. He loves to run, hike, kayak, photography, and anything that involves being outside. Frank plans on working for a couple years post undergraduate studies, and then will work towards going to grad school to study to become either a Physical Therapist or Physician’s Assistant.