TicFit: Training & Tourette Syndrome

In this episode, host Raquel Cunningham sits down with Dr. Jeff Spencer; Olympian, performance coach, and mentor behind 8 Tour de France winning teams and over 40 Olympic gold medals. Dr. Spencer shares his unique perspective on the mind-body connection, explaining the difference between a rigid "mindset" and an adaptable "champion's mind". Drawing from his own experience as a cyclist in the 1972...

In this episode, we dive deep into the world of Tourette Syndrome with Kathy Giordano — a dedicated educator with over 35 years of experience as a Tourette Education Specialist, middle school teacher, mother, and now Global Education Committee Chair for TTAG. Kathy opens up about her work educating others on Tourette and its often-misunderstood co-occurring conditions — including rage and disinhib...

LEARN how you UNDERSTAND movement, KEEP going and it will be EFFECTIVE. How do we develop new movement patterns? Do we copy what others do, listen for intricate instructions, just try it out, or do we dive into the mechanics? The big four learning styles in the gym are visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and conceptual. Do you know which one you rely on the most? If you’re a coach, do you assume everyo...

Muscles move our bones and bones move our bodies. In this conversation with strength and conditioning coach Katie St. Clair, we explore the fluidity of rotational movement and how each individual can expand their movement options. Tics are anything but fluid, however, by understanding movement mechanics we can develop a more personalized toolbox to pull from when our muscles adapt to our tics or i...

What is the difference between a tremor, a spasm, and a tic? They are all neurological symptoms so what influence do voluntary movement choices have on each one? How do we create sensory safety in the body when your body moves without you asking it to? In this discussion with Meghann Koppele Duffy, co-founder of the Neuro Studio, we take movement principles and challenge them when used with neurol...

Robert Linkul is no stranger to adversity, and his journey—both personal and professional—has fueled a powerful mission: combating sarcopenia in older adults. Tourette Syndrome is still largely thought of as only a youth neurological condition, which is a misconception. In reality, many adults continue to experience tics throughout their lives, often without proper recognition or support. In this...

Why do we even care about mobility work? Kelly and Juliet offer rich, deep explanations on the influence of your "non-training" hours. Our training hours should allow us to move and do the activities that we love throughout our lifetime, especially those activities we love outside of the gym. Every human experiences pain whether they have tics or not. In this back and forth discussion, we bring to...

Fascia, tics, muscles, and breath! Whether you have tics, are a clinician in the Tourette and tic community, or are fascinated by movement; both voluntary AND involuntary, this discussion helps drive that narrative that tics can be intriguing but they are not entertaining. Jill Miller brings tactility to breath work for all movers and we pull out components that can be wildly beneficial to the Tou...

Sleep. We all need it yet most of us struggle with it. Enter Ben Mooney, occupational therapist specializing in sleep science, here to make it all make sense. As someone with Tourette Syndrome himself, his genuine compassion and curiosity for each individual helps him guide others. His 25 years of experience show in this discussion of a very complex life need. I wish you good sleep. Mooney Wellnes...

This is a compilation of everything I have learned in the past 20 years about training with Tourette Syndrome, for both myself and others. I debuted this presentation at the National Tourette Conference, Tic-Con, in 2024 to be a resource that we can continue to build upon. I explain the differences between movement and exercise, key training variables, the anatomy of diaphragmatic breathing, and s...

We welcome our first fitness professional, trainer and actor, Ronald Gonzales-Trujillo. We do a movement break down spotlighting hinge progressions/regressions and how they might be applied towards lower body tics with CBIT principles in mind. We also discuss how progressive overload, programming for different goals, and centrating joints can become tools to add to the Tourette management toolkit....

What is going on inside our brain when we have involuntary tics? Where does movement come from voluntarily? We speak with clinical researcher, Dr. Christine Conelea about circuits, brain circuits not circuit training. She is Director of the Minnesota Tic and Compulsivity (MnTiC) lab and is leading the way with research on ways to help those with Tourette Syndrome, OCD, anxiety, and other tic disor...

In this more personal episode, we look at music and it's influence on the co-occuring conditions to Tourette, like anxiety, insomnia, depression, and OCD. We discuss how music affects Raquel's co-occuring conditions and what she did about it. Just like tics manifest in unique patterns, so do our playlists. 90's Music Nostalgia Coloring Book: https://www.amazon.com/90s-Music-Nostalgia-Coloring-Book...

Dr. Debi Hinerfeld shares her wealth of knowledge in the field of occupational therapy, health science, and CBIT. We cover a lot of ground around life with tics while discussing internal sensory systems and co-occuring conditions to Tourette Syndrome. Throughout this episode we talk about the importance of weight-bearing exercises, balance training, stability, mobility, and movement and how it pla...

In our first guest interview we welcome Shannon Floyd, OTR/L! Shannon is an experienced occupational therapist who specializes in CBIT, the only evidence-based non-pharmaceutical treatment for Tourette Syndrome. We discuss the many different ways an OT can help someone with TS, what CBIT-is for those unfamiliar with it, and how exercise can play a role in all of it. Contact: shannon@floydpediatric...

Moving and strengthening in different planes of motion contribute to well rounded training programs. When we look at our tics through different planes of motion, we have a new outlook to explain, describe, and understand motor tics. Using this outlook as a tool to understand ticcing mechanics can lead to more informed choices about what exercises or movement patterns will guide you towards your go...

Episode 2 discusses training muscles that are antagonists to ticcing muscles. Two books that have had a huge influence on how I train are "Becoming a Supple Leopard" by Dr. Kelly Starrett and "Body by Breath" by Jill Miller. We also cover compensatory patterns and co-contracting muscles. There's a lot packed into a 15 minute, hence can open....worms everywhere. Disclaimer: This is for educational...

Hi! Welcome to TicFit the podcast. A platform to discuss how tics impact our bodies and how we can find meaningful movement to address tic related pain, develop body awareness, and use the gym as a place to tic freely. In the first episode, we discuss what tics feel like and how we hope to build upon the things we know about Tourette Syndrome while exploring topics in exercise science. A mover fro...