LITTLE SILVER - Dr. John Connors became a podiatrist for a simple reason. He grew up an athlete and knew the pain of injuries, and wanted to help others.

“I just knew I was passionate about working with athletes from the get-go,” said Connors, owner of a podiatry practice in Little Silver. “I understood the industry and I was positive that I was cut out for this kind of work. It’s all about knowing the trade and knowing how to treat the people that come into your office seeking help.”

In high school, Connors took part in sports such as football, track, basketball and swimming.

“During my days in high school, I played different sports and broke various bones,” Connors said. “I have had a lot of sports injuries and have been in and out of surgeries as a young man for as long as I can remember. That time of my life really prompted my interests in sports medicine and becoming a doctor at an early age. I had a lot of experiences that required me to undergo surgeries, as well as rehab, physical therapies and working with athletic trainers. In the end, I figured I was the most knowledgeable person to diagnose and treat other athletes like myself because of my past. It just made sense.”

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Connors attended West Chester University in Pennsylvania on a swimming scholarship. “I loved swimming, but as time progressed, school got harder,” Connors said. "I decided to continue studying hard, but I took what I had learned with my sports background and pursued a path treating athletes that dealt with sports injuries just like me.

"After graduating from West Chester in 1982, I went to The Illinois College of Podiatric Medicine in Chicago and graduated with a degree in podiatry in 1987. I knew that, what the doctors did for me as an athlete, I wanted to do for other people. I just wanted to help and I became the most qualified person to do so.”

Connors stayed physically fit by doing triathlons and marathon running while building his career.

'It was all about hard work'

“After doing my residency in New York City, I opened my own practice there as well in 1992,” Connors said. “Even though the city was a perfect place to do a podiatry practice because of all the athletes and other potential clients there, I opened a second office in Little Silver, New Jersey, where my clients are still very health conscious, and everyone exercises. It was not the same as New York City, but there were plenty of people that needed treatment for foot and leg injuries because of how active they were. Both locations had a different dynamic from one another but went hand in hand with the type of clientele I would take on.”

Connors started with almost no customers and had to build his reputation.

“It was all about hard work,” Connors said. “I knew what my business model was going to be and that I would treat the best athletes in the world. I made it happen by doing what was necessary and I hit the ground running. I really had to promote myself and get out there and meet people. No one gave it to me. Whether it was in the city or in the New Jersey suburbs, I did everything I could to build from the ground up. It was all about the hustle.”

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Along the way, he hired two former athletes and podiatrists, Dr. Kathleen Trotter and Dr. Ana Sanz, who is now his wife.

“I met Ana in medical school,” Connors said. “We hit it off and I eventually moved her into my practice because she was very qualified and had the passion that I had for wanting to help and be a healer of sorts to our customers.

"Katy was a patient of mine when she ran for Red Bank Regional High School back in the early 2000s and she was influenced by the way I treated her when she was a high school athlete," Connors continued. "She knew from an early age that she wanted to do this job and put in the work to get here. She was avid to make her way in this practice and she has already accomplished great things, as has Ana.”

'Back in the game'

Connors and his team treat cases that range from feet to lower leg injuries. Some of their clients are professional athletes and celebrities.

“Our practice is on the forefront of new technologies and new procedures such as platelet-rich therapy, plasma therapy, stem cell therapy and shockwave therapy,” Connors said. “We treat all types of injuries and we are committed to the rehabilitation factor that gets our clients back in the game, so to speak.”

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Connors would like to have his children come to work in the family business.

“We have three children, and they are great athletes too,” Connors said. “I would love for them to go into medicine and dive into this practice to continue our legacy. We love what we do and it’s fun coming to work. It’s all about athletes treating athletes and we take great pride in what we do.”

Dr. John Connors

Location: 200 White Road, Suite 214, Little Silver

Phone: 732-741-2300

Website: www.doctorconnors.com

Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Little Silver podiatrist John Connors learned through sports injuries