Pat Buchanan, PhD, is a coach specializing in female athlete longevity at the intersection of sports medicine, neuroscience, and performance. She earned her AB at the University of North Carolina while playing basketball. She later earned an MS in Physical Therapy from the University of Indianapolis where she discovered Moshe Feldenkrais’s method of using movement to increase awareness, reshaping her view of brain-body-performance connections. She completed professional training in this approach and, in the process, was introduced to Esther Thelen, whose research in dynamic systems theory and motor development transformed movement science. Pat pursued her PhD in Human Performance under Thelen at Indiana University, who also trained in the Feldenkrais Method during that time. These threads formed Pat’s holistic approach, focused on lifelong neuroplasticity and building awareness to reduce injury risk and unlock untapped performance.

Pat's career eventually took her to Beijing, where she worked with Chinese athletes ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games. Today, she coaches high-performing female athletes to stay in play, sustain peak performance, and confidently step into longer, more aligned careers. She is the author of Relieve Your Pain and is based in Boone, North Carolina.

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