In Episode 008 of A Medicinal Mind: Wisdom and Well-Being, we welcome the innovative creator of the world’s largest integrative medicine conference, the Functional Forum and integrative medicine visionary James Maskell.

I was quite fortunate to connect with James in October 2016 at a Functional Forum event in Washington D.C. and have since collaborated in creating and releasing my E-Book on Functional and Integrative Medicine Education. James has been perhaps my single biggest influence pushing me to become an educator and advocate for functional medicine and is a tremendously passionate role model for anyone seeking to reverse chronic disease and achieve optimal health.
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Back in March of this year, I was honored to be a part of James’ podcast The Evolution of Medicine’s Functional Forum, where we discussed the vision and purpose of the functional medicine education resource E-Book and the greater need to expand medical education beyond medical school walls and hospital wards.

As a continuation of this conversation, we share today in a reflective and hopeful conversation addressing
1. A brief State of the Union for the Functional Forum and Functional Medicine education as a whole.    

• What are we doing well as a community?
• How and where have we progressed?
• What are the biggest challenges yet to be faced?

2. Updates on educational opportunities through the Institute for Functional Medicine

• New pricing for medical students and residents
• The opportunity to attend conferences via online streaming
• A new foundational and inexpensive online module offered through the IFM for those just getting started in Functional Medicine or wishing for a robust refresher.

3.  Ways to continue to grow community and promote this type of care in the next generation of clinicians.

• Where is the best place to start a practice?
• How do we engage more medical students? Residents? pushing them to start a private practice in the first place
• Is a church an ideal starting place for a Functional medicine micropractice?

    
4. James’ latest projects and visions for the Functional Forum

• Journey to 100. Can we get human life expectancy to 100?
• How the Functional Forum is adapting and evolving to meet the needs of each community
• How they are supporting innovators bringing CME and medical students into the Functional Forum meet-ups

I was so thrilled to share in this conversation with James and hope you enjoy and feed off the the tremendous energy and passion in this exhilarating discussion.

To learn more about Functional Forum you may use the link below:
http://functionalforum.com/about/

To access James’ book, Evolution of Medicine, you may use the link below:
http://goevomed.com/start/

And to learn more about Age 100, a world-exclusive conference dedicated to living a long and healthy life, you may use the link below
https://journey100.org/join

Enjoy the show!

​In Episode 007 of A Medicinal Mind: Wisdom and Well Being I have an amazing conversation with innovative family physician and leading expert in nutrition science and obesity medicine, Dr. Spencer Nadolsky DO.

Spencer is a board certified family and obesity medicine physician who incorporates his passion for exercise and nutrition science into his individualized care for patients seeking to improve their health through lifestyle medicine.
Spencer initially discovered his passion for fitness and nutrition as a heavyweight wrestler at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill.

Following his college athletic career and subsequent medical school training at the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM), Spencer went on to complete his residency training in family medicine through the Virginia Commonwealth University-Riverside Family Medicine program just 15 minutes up the road from my childhood home in Newport News, Virginia. Right now he is currently accepting patients into a new, revolutionary online clinic called SteadyMD. When he is not in the office, Spencer enjoys lifting, cooking, and taking long walks after meals with his wife and fellow physician Dr. Jenna Nadolsky MD.

​In our conversation, Spencer shares his personal story and growth as a traditionally trained family physician now practicing lifestyle based medicine.

During the podcast, we discuss:

The Concept of Membership Based Direct Primary Care and more specifically the new telemedicine based online platform Steady MD

1. What types of doctors can one find using this platform?
2. What kind of experience would I have as a patient
3. What types of patients are choosing this type of care in general?

Spencer’s Clinical Approach and Patient Centered Treatment.

1. Do we need the Physical Exam and Annual Physical?
2. The importance of a comprehensive clinical history
3. What is true preventive medicine?

The Role of Social Support and Community Networks to Support Health.

1. Spencer’s Facebook Support Group “The Cruise Ship”
2. The evolution of group health education

Spencer’s Background in Obesity Medicine and Clinical Approach to Weight Loss

1. Spencer’s book: The Fat Loss Prescription

I was so fortunate to stumble across Spencer in my own back yard and am so thankful to have been able to grow a personal and professional relationship with such an innovative visionary in lifestyle medicine.

Learn more about Dr. Nadolsky’s work with his book: The Fat Loss Prescription
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1518824226/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1518824226&linkCode=as2&tag=drspencom-20&linkId=WKI56AGEB5S3FH4Z

Stay up to date with Dr. Nadolsky on his website:
http://drspencer.com

Learn more about SteadyMD:
https://www.steadymd.com/

I hope you enjoy the show!

Jonathan's Keynote Address: The Pause and Resiliency as part of the
University of Virginia's Compassionate Care Student Ambassador Sponsored
Self-Care Day. 

In Episode 5 of A Medicinal Mind: Wisdom and Well-Being we share in an engaging conversation with world class Cross-Fit athlete and recent medical school graduate Julie Foucher.
 
As you will hear in our discussion, I first discovered Julie as part of her inspiring podcast: Pursuing Health and more specifically after her episode with our mutual friend and the mastermind behind the Evolution of Medicine and the Functional Forum: James Maskell.
 
Between the two of us, we share tremendous passions for lifestyle medicine, fitness and utilizing a functional/ancestral approach to restoring health and maintaining wellness. We additionally are both about to embark on new journeys as first year family medicine residents.

Before I lay out the specific details for today’s show, I want to share a little bit more about Julie and her amazing life story.
 
Julie is a four-time CrossFit Games athlete and finished on the CrossFit Games podium twice (2nd in 2012  and 3rd in 2014) both during her time in medical school and has never finished outside the top 5. Julie also has a growing interest in Functional Medicine, having completed her medical school training at the Cleveland Clinic and is about to begin her residency training with the Cleveland Clinic’s Fairview Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program. Her passion lies in combining what she has learned through all of these modalities to inspire and empower others to live a lifestyle that supports optimal health. She additionally hosts the previously mentioned podcast Pursuing Health, where she shares inspiring stories of individuals from all walks of life.
 
During our discussion, besides reminiscing and reflecting about our own medical school journeys we dig into some really important questions facing medical professionals, medical trainees and our nation as a whole.
 
In the podcast you will hear:
 

1. Julie’s fascinating background as medical student and Cross-Fit athlete, balancing grueling training with the rigors of medical school
2. How Cross-Fit and exercise in general can be used and scaled for both the experienced athlete and novice beginner
3. Julie’s approach for addressing health concerns through a multifactorial program including diet, stress management and of course, exercise
4. A thoughtful discussion into the concept of exercise vs. movement, how one can grow through traumatic life events including major injuries and the importance of engaging in the process versus simply being motivated by a perceived outcome.
5. And lastly,  Julie shares her latest projects and her intentions for holding a space designed to heal and nourish.  Did you know Cross-Fit is actually the ideal place to be vulnerable, to connect and to grow?

 
Enjoy this powerful conversation from two young professionals seeking to change the way medicine is practiced and what the “practice” of medicine even means.

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Stay up to date with Julie on her website, www.juliefoucher.com, her Instagram, @juliefoucher, Twitter @Julie_Foucher, or Facebook, JulieFoucherCF, and her podcast Pursuing Health with Julie Foucher. 

A huge thank you to Julie for taking time to share in this conversation and I hope you all find some nourishment in this thought provoking and emotional discussion.

Enjoy the show!