In this episode, I talk with neurologist and headache specialist Dr. Danielle Wilhour about migraine headaches and how they affect climbers and athletes, in general. We discuss common triggers, exercise and recovery, hormonal influences, and the role of medications, supplements, and lifestyle factors in managing migraines. Dr. Wilhour also explains the different phases of a migraine and shares practical strategies for prevention and treatment.

In this solo episode, host and integrative nutrition therapist Neely Quinn digs into a topic that doesn't get enough airtime in the climbing world: food anxiety. Neely breaks down the most common reasons climbers feel stressed about what they eat — from carb fear and fullness phobia to rigid food rules and weight-gain worry — and shares practical, compassionate strategies for each one.

She also opens up about her own recent experience adjusting her diet after starting hormone replacement therapy, and what it looked like to approach that change as a scientist rather than from a place of shame. Whether your anxiety around food is mild or it's genuinely affecting your daily life, this episode will leave you with new ways to think about eating — and more space in your brain for climbing.

Topics covered: carb fear, fullness anxiety, food myths, food rules, weight management, eating disorder resources, and working with a nutrition or mindset coach.

In this episode, Coach Alex Stiger and I talked about the ways we see our clients overtraining and the consequences it has on their bodies, minds, and climbing performance. We also share how we overdo it ourselves, and how that has affected us. We go into the causes of overtraining: feeling like more is better, fearing falling behind, not knowing how much training is enough, and as Alex calls it, "chasing fatigue." I talk about the ways I work with my mindset coaching clients on this to help them gain perspective and talk to themselves differently.

Coach Matt Pincus came on the show to talk about something he knows a LOT about: board climbing! It’s a popular topic and he gets a lot of questions from his clients about which board to use, how to use it, and for what, so we’re going to cover a bunch of info about it today. Matt is one of our coaches here at TrainingBeta and he uses boards in his own training and in his clients’ training (and just for fun and performance purposes).

• Most common questions he gets from clients about boards
• Who should NOT use boards, if anyone
• Training value of boards
• Pros and cons of the popular boards (Moon, Kilter, Tension, spray wall)
• 3 session types to train each of the energy systems
• Common pitfalls with board climbing
• What to use the boards for
• What grades Matt sends on boards vs. outdoors
• How to not get wrapped up in board grades

• Performance Bouldering Training Program ($18/mo with a 7-day free trial)
• Performance Route Climbing Training Program ($18/mo with 7-day free trial)
• Train with Coach Matt Pincus

If you want Matt to help you with your own goals, whether they’re with bouldering or route climbing, he’s available for month-long commitments where he’ll talk with you over zoom and create a program for you and keep in touch with you via the TrueCoach app throughout the month.

He’ll help you get stronger and he’ll cater to your specific goals so that the timing is right for you to send when it’s time to send.

Therapist Emma McAdam discusses using exposure therapy, mindfulness, and self compassion to decrease fear of falling in climbing. Emma is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Utah who has a youtube channel (@TherapyInANutshell) and online courses on her website www.therapyinanutshell.com where you can learn therapeutic tools on your own time. I really appreciate Emma's warm, down-to-Earth approach and her relatable way of speaking and teaching. Emma is also a climber and has a video specifically about how to use exposure therapy and self-compassion to decrease fear of falling in climbing.

What we covered in the interview:

• Where to start with fear of falling
• How to practice teaching your brain it's safe to fall
• 2 things that fuel anxiety
• What is the emotion of fear asking you?
• Building an exposure hierarchy
• How to practice falling in a productive way
• Difference between risk "tolerance" and risk "choice"

In this episode, Coach Alex Stiger gives some sage advice to beginner climbers about how to get off to a great start in your climbing journey. Alex is a climbing coach to all levels of climbers all over the world, but she was also the program director and head coach at a climbing gym for years. She knows a LOT about the proper ways to spend your time, invest in resources, and self-reflect in order to become the best climber you can be in the shortest amount of time.

• Classes and instruction you should get
• 6 Biggest mistakes to avoid (shoes, poor movement habits, etc.)
• 8 Technique and skill tips that will make a huge difference
• How to avoid injury
• Cultivating good climbing relationships

I think that even if you’ve been climbing for a couple of years, this episode could have a lot of great information for you, or if you hang out with beginner climbers, this episode will give you a lot of knowledge to share with them!

Join Alex's wait list to work with her as your coach at trainingbeta.com/waitlist.

In this episode I do a full mindset coaching session with Maren Krammer, a 33-yr-old climber who struggles to feel like she is a part of the community when she’s surrounded by stronger climbers than herself. She feels shy, stifled, and unwilling to try hard for fear of judgment and rejection from others. It affects her self-esteem and hinders her climbing progression, and she wanted to work through it.

We do a full 60-minute mindset coaching session where we break down her thoughts, emotions, limiting beliefs, and gremlin talk (the voice that says “you’re not good enough”). By the end, Maren has a clearer understanding of why she feels so intimidated around stronger climbers and tools to help her be confident in herself and feel more a part of the community.

If you want to work with me one-on-one, I’m accepting new mindset coaching clients. We can work on your fears in climbing, performance anxiety, and anything that is holding you back from enjoying climbing. Go totrainingbeta.com/mindset for more info.

Natalia Grossman is a 24-year-old American professional climber who lives in Salt Lake City, Utah. She broke onto the World Cup scene in 2021 when she became the overall Bouldering World Cup champion and finished in second place in the overall Lead World Cup. That same year, she won World Championships in Moscow in Bouldering and placed 2nd in Lead.

She proceeded to win the overall Bouldering World Cup in 2022, 2023, and 2024, making her the most successful American World Cup climber in history. In 2022 she came in 3rd place for the overall Lead World Cup season. In 2023 she also won the Pan Am Games in Santiago in both Bouldering and Lead. She qualified for the Olympics in 2024 and finished in 11th place.

In February of this year (2025), she unfortunately tore her ACL and meniscus, and sprained her MCL during a training session and had to have surgery. She is now about 9 months out from surgery and has won both competitions she entered: the Lead North American Cup in Salt Lake in August and the Bouldering Pan American Cup in Colombia in November.

Besides competition climbing, she has sent up to V14 and 5.14c outside, but has focused most of her time and training on World Cup comps. Natalia graduated from University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in psychology and is considering getting her master’s in mental health counseling.

In this interview, we talk about her comeback from her surgery, her mindset for competition climbing, and her training, among many other things:

• How she injured herself
• Her injury rehab and how it’s changed her as a climber
• How she got so good at climbing
• What impact her coaches have had on her
• What sets her apart from other climbers
• What it’s like competing with your best friends
• How the pressures to be light have affected her
• What she eats
• What she sacrifices to be a champion
• How she trains

It was an honor to interview someone I have watched compete for years (I love watching World Cups!), and I appreciated Natalia giving us her time and being so vulnerable in sharing about her life.