Dr. Thomas Cunningham, MD

8 snips

Jun 7, 2023

Dr. Thomas Cunningham, an elite climber and board certified emergency medicine physician, shares his struggles and breakthroughs in training, nutrition, tactics, and the mental game. He discusses evidence-based strategies for climbers of all levels to optimize their time and improve their climbing goals. They also touch on weather challenges, tracking progress, the role of carbs in climbing performance, consistent warm-up routines, overcoming the fear of failure, and more. Follow @thomascunninghammd and @thestruggleclimbingshow on Instagram for more insights.

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Introduction

00:00 • 5min

Weather Challenges and Compressed Climbing Seasons

05:10 • 2min

The Concept of Struggle in Rock Climbing

06:55 • 17min

Tracking Progress and Training Schedule

23:27 • 11min

The Role of Carbs in Climbing Performance

34:15 • 12min

The Importance of Consistent Warm-Up Routine for Climbers

46:38 • 14min

Overcoming the Fear of Failure

01:00:20 • 24min

Wrapping Up the Conversation with Dr. Thomas Cunningham

01:23:54 • 4min

Various Topics, YouTube Subscriptions, Patron Support, Carbon Neutral, and Membership in the Plugtone Audio Collective

01:28:12 • 2min

Elite climber Dr. Thomas Cunningham shares his struggles and breakthroughs in Training, Nutrition, Tactics, and Mental Game. - Dr Thomas Cunningham is a weekend warrior… who climbs at an elite level. He’s a board certified emergency medicine physician who has published several papers, holds multiple patents, and is currently working as Research Faculty at the University of Louisville. He’s also a husband and father of three littles. The guy is as busy as can be, but can he climb? Yeah. He just sent the super classic Red River Gorge test piece, Southern Smoke, which is pretty much the pumpiest 14c sport route you can imagine, and he’s working on the 9a direct start for that. He has also bouldered 8a, trad climbed 8a, and put up FAs up to 8a… and he probably puts in less time than you at the gym or the crag. Today he shares his scientific method as it comes to training and nutrition, and what he feels all of us – from beginners to pros – can do to optimize our time and level up in whatever our climbing goals are. - CHAPTERS: Struggle: 0:06:58 Training: 0:08:57 Nutrition: 0:32:34 Tactics: 0:45:49 Mental Game: 1:00:20 Purpose: 1:11:12 Takeaways: 1:26:54 - Follow along on Instagram @thomascunninghammd and @thestruggleclimbingshow. Gain (zero cost!) access to Dr. Cunningham's newsletter, blog, and research papers... or book a consult to really take things up a level: www.thomascunninghammd.com Interested in Thomas's fitness tracker of choice? Get a free WHOOP 4.0 and one month free by CLICKING HERE. - The Struggle is on YouTube, y'all! I'm so psyched. Watch the best moments of my interviews with the sport's best climbers come to life with amazing footage and actionable takeaways that'll help you to level up your Training, Nutrition, Tactics, and Mental Game. Check it all out at YouTube.com/@thestruggleclimbingshow. - PhysiVantage is the official climbing-nutrition sponsor of The Struggle. Visit www.physivantage.com/discount/STRUGGLE15 to receive 15% off your full priced nutrition order. Crimpd is the official fitness app sponsor of The Struggle. Visit Crimpd.com to download the app for FREE and take your training to the next level. - The Struggle is carbon-neutral in partnership with The Honnold Foundation, whose mission is to promote solar energy for a more equitable world. - Want to be a podcast hero and score yourself some rad limited edition swag? Support the show and the climbers who make it by becoming a Patron at www.patreon.com/thestruggleclimbingshow - Still reading? You deserve a free sticker: Please rate and review the show -- it really helps us to reach a wider audience! Snap a pic of your review, post to IG, and tag @thestruggleclimbingshow so that we can find you, and we'll send you a sticker just because you're rad. - This show is produced and hosted by Ryan Devlin. The Struggle is a proud member of the Plug Tone Audio Collective, a diverse group of the best, most impactful podcasts in the outdoor industry. - The struggle makes us stronger. Let's climb hard and do good things in the world!