Ciara is a physical therapist with a lifelong passion for movement, running, and helping people stay active at every level. Her path to physical therapy started early—in fifth grade, when her yearbook asked where she saw herself in 15 years, she confidently wrote: I will be a physical therapist. Outside of the clinic, she can often be found lifting weights, hiking the mountains of western NC, and cheering on Duke Blue Devils basketball.

Originally from New Jersey, Ciara was a multi-time state champion in distances from the 800 to 3200 meters and national title winner in the 4×800. She competed as a collegiate runner at Cornell University, specializing in the 800 meters, and will be inducted into her high school’s Hall of Fame this year. Her own experience navigating a wide range of orthopedic injuries as a competitive runner sparked her interest in understanding the root cause of injuries and how to address the driver rather than just the symptoms.

She earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Duke University, where she served as a research assistant for the Center for Excellence in Manual and Manipulative Therapy (CEMMT), a research-focused platform dedicated to making evidence-based practice more accessible.

Ciara enjoys treating lower extremity and spine conditions in runners and active individuals of all backgrounds. Her approach is empowering and collaborative, centered on helping people move the way they want to move and supporting them in being as active and athletic as possible. She incorporates manual therapy, strength training, and offers 2D gait assessment to guide individualized, evidence-based care. She currently practices in Apex.

“I’m an experienced distance runner but while preparing for the Boston Marathon I started dealing with left knee pain. I followed a recommendation to visit the Running PTs and it was the right move. In my particular case, they were able to immediately reduce pain so that I could continue training, come up with a treatment/strengthening program to address the problem, and suggest proactive changes to my routine to reduce it from happening again. I would highly recommend this group!”

Erik S.