Nerd Health

Emergency medicine is no stranger to stress, burnout, and the struggle of balancing long shifts with personal health. In this episode, Andy, John, and Tanner team up with health coach Paul Clingan to talk resilience, fitness, nutrition, and the Force in building healthier lives.

Whether you identify with Jedi discipline, superhero origin stories, or the grind of leveling up in your favorite game, the episode is full of practical tips to help you start where you are and build momentum.

Mindset Shifts for Burned-Out Brains

Burnout is real, especially in emergency medicine. But what if the same mental tools we use in our nerd worlds—anchors, propellers, even the dopamine hits from winning small battles—could help shift perspective?

Paul shares strategies for:

•       Talking to people who feel like they have no time or energy for health.
•       Building momentum when motivation is at zero.
•       Using nerd metaphors to reframe challenges as quests rather than chores.

Actionable Takeaway: The Minimum Effective Dose. Just like in medicine, the smallest meaningful intervention counts. You don’t need a perfect workout or meal plan—just one small move that nudges you forward.

Fueling the Shift

“You can’t outrun a bad diet.” For anyone who’s ever reached for the vending machine mid-shift, this one hits home.

Topics include:

•       Key plays for eating on chaotic schedules.
•       Managing protein goals and avoiding energy crashes.
•       Resisting the Dark Side (aka pizza and breakroom donuts).

Paul offers practical tips for meal prep, protein hacks, and healthier snack swaps—even when your schedule feels unpredictable.

Fitness for All

Fitness doesn’t have to look like Instagram highlight reels. Sustainable progress means making fitness fit your life, not the other way around.

We talked about:

•       Starting with 1–2 small, high-yield changes.
•       Don’t be discouraged by missed goals—trying and not executing perfectly is still better than not trying at all.
•       Why “imperfect action beats perfect inaction” every single time.

Actionable Takeaway: Treat health like a science experiment—test small hypotheses and keep iterating until something sticks.

Taking the First Step

Feeling paralyzed by where to start? The group leaves listeners with this advice:

•       Use temporal landmarks (like the start of a new rotation) to build automatic habits.
•       Stock simple, healthy wins (like protein bars in your locker).
•       Don’t overthink the first step—just start moving.

And remember: every hero’s journey begins with one choice.

Take-Home Points

1.   Start small. One meaningful change (your Minimum Effective Dose) is enough to begin building momentum.
2.   Progress > perfection. Don’t get discouraged by missed goals—imperfect action is better than no action.
3.   Fuel and frame wisely. Simple nutrition swaps and nerd-friendly metaphors can turn health into a sustainable, even fun, side quest.

Post by Jordan Palmer, DO PGY-2

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