ABOUT BLUE CRANE

My name is Michelle Walendowski, Doctor of Physical Therapy and owner of Blue Crane - a boutique private practice offering integrative physical therapy and customized yoga. I specialize in helping individuals with nagging injuries and unresolved aches and pains, particularly those within the yoga community. I work closely with my clients to adjust their yoga practice to accommodate age-related changes and prevent injuries, with the ultimate goal of helping them sustain and broaden their practice for enhanced well-being across their lifespan. My approach is holistic and personalized, ensuring that each client receives the care and guidance they need to fully engage in their yoga and progress towards their individual wellness goals.

CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

“I first started seeing Michelle after seeing a series of physical therapist, acupuncturist, and chiropractors with no luck with pain reduction after an injury from a car crash. Can’t express how talented and skilled Michelle is. She helped me be able to signal safety in my body for the first time since I was in that car crash. She provided me with the tools to help me navigate my day with less pain and stress. My quality of life dramatically improved when I implemented her recommendations. Couldn’t ask for better results! Michelle is so wise and kind. I am very grateful to have worked with her!”

- Jesselyn V.

“I saw Michelle Walendowski after a fall and significant injury to my ribs and lower lumbar. I was nearly disabled and experiencing tingling in the feet from it. Michelle worked with me via Telehealth during the COVID pandemic and rehabbed me entirely. We worked together virtually for 8 months by video and she tailored my program by making me custom videos to follow her when we were out of session. The blend of yoga technique and PT was totally in line with what I needed and wanted given I was a former Yoga enthusiast. She also was able to see how I slept (bed I was using), how my at-home office was set up (how I was typing) and how I was doing exercise to ensure I was not re-injuring myself. She also was able to chart all of my daily activity and review my MRI and physician notes to coordinate my care. She provided excellent clinical knowledge. I would refer her out to anyone needing help with an injury! I am so grateful to have my mobility back - as a very busy executive in hi-tech and venture capital - she was able to accommodate my busy schedule and life style as a practitioner.”

- Missy K.

“Michelle has been a miracle worker for me. I was experiencing pain in my knee whenever I walked up stairs and I had to limit my hiking routine. After working with Michelle for just a few sessions the pain was greatly diminished and I was able to do my normal hikes, and now as I continue to follow her guidance I am almost back to normal. Unlike the knee specialist and the first physical therapist I saw, Michelle asked detailed questions and really listened to my answers. Her probes made me remember issues that I'd never connected to my pain, and then she spent time on her own researching those issues. She gave me specific exercises that built on my existing yoga practice, which made it easy for me to follow the routine consistently. With each visit she adjusted the exercises to keep challenging me as I got stronger. I wasn't sure how well all this would work over video but it wasn't a problem -- I just adjusted the camera as I did the exercises and she was able to figure out how to guide me. Michelle clearly knows what she's doing and she genuinely cares about helping people live without pain -- what more could you ask for?”

— Ellen I.

“Caring and thorough! Best PT I’ve been to!”

— Alicia B.

“Michelle DELIGHTS in teaching her students what she has learned through extensive Yoga, Body Work, and most recently Physical Therapy Training. She is committed to continual learning and it shows. Michelle is a dedicated Yoga Teacher AND Practitioner. Now, her Physical Therapy Training allows the teaching of Yoga Techniques which enables her students to practice safely and in optimal alignment to prevent injury or re-injury.”

— Kathleen C.

“Out of my 13 years of practicing yoga and having many many different kinds of yoga instructors over the years, Michelle is THE best yoga instructor I have practiced with. She has a very gentle, spiritual, and magic way about her that no other teacher does. I LOVE her classes because Michelle not only is personal, but all her classes are diverse, creative, and fun. I particularly love her delivery style and techniques. She is a master of combining the poses to her delivery techniques and styles flawlessly. Her soft voice, her gentle adjustments, and her instructions from one pose to another all flow together like a soft stream flowing in the quiet woods with no interruptions. What also makes her stand out is that Michelle pays attention to her students. She can tell when I have an injury from observing the constraints I have in my pose(s) and she comes over to check in on me. She is on target each time! Then, she also gives me some extra attention by coming over and very gently “massaging”, adjusting my injured area and helping me tweak my pose. What more can I ask for!?!? Michelle is the best of the best yoga instructor out there.”

— Phu L.