Tom Herbert is a leading international climbing nutrition strategist, facilitator, and mindsetter. His contextual, behavioural, and neuroscientific coaching approach has supported over 400+ unique sport and boulder rock climbers across 24 countries, performing from V4 to 9a+. Hobbyists, international IFSC competitors, and some of the most accomplished rock climbers in the world.
—> What do climbers think about their coaching?
—> What is cognitive behavioural nutrition?
Climbing Nutrition Coaching
When I booked the coaching, I was expecting nutrition coaching for my climbing performance, but what I got was so much more. I can laugh, I can cry, I can talk about my fears, my goals and successes. Your coaching is so valuable to me.
Katharina, Austria
Supporting your journey
useful. coaching is £250 for 6 weeks, provides unlimited video calls, and decreases in price each month the longer we work together!
Coaching for real life
Your life doesn’t fit on a PDF, and your plans will change. useful. coaching isn’t downloadable—it’s real-time guidance helping you build psychological flexibility for making values-based choices in an unpredictable world. Book your coaching start.
Coaching not consultations
You get unparalleled support with direct messaging and unlimited video calls—we meet as often as you need. Your success is built through our ongoing conversations, solution-focused coaching, and guidance whenever you need it. Read my coaching reviews.
Brain, body, behaviour
Your thoughts, emotions, physical state, and actions all influence each other in an interconnected system. useful. coaching applies third wave cognitive behavioral principles to help you create sustainable changes in your mind and body. What is Cognitive Behavioural Nutrition?
Eat, train, adapt, repeat
You’ll learn how to increase your athletic capacity by managing “load, stress, adaptation (not strain).” You’ll dramatically change your understanding of food and supplementation using the concept of “signals and substrates”—leveraging nuanced nutrition timing to perform better, sleep deeper, and recover faster than ever before.
Body composition for life
Your body is not a ledger—it does not keep track of your energy and nutrition needs the way you think. You’ll learn how to manage energy and nutrient availability to sustain lifelong athletic development, healthspan, longevity, and unique optimised body composition. Book your coaching today.
Coaching Reviews
I had a wonderful experience working with Tom. Firstly, he made me feel safe to discuss weight management, which was especially important to me, given the understandable cultural pushback against dieting in climbing. It was the first time where I felt validated in wanting to climb in a slightly different body.
Anon, USA
Just wanted to say thanks for your help with the project!
Hazel Findlay, UK
I still hold that working with you for that period is one of the most valuable things I’ve done for health and climbing, as I’m a lot more confident that what I’m putting in my body is working for me in the best way possible.
Robbie Phillips, UK
Tom did not just hand me a diet plan, he equipped me with strategic nutritional tools and taught me how to use them. He also offered a safe space for me to share when I was feeling low with respect to body image or performance and never failed to remind me that that’s life and we are not robots, things happen, and even simply from a scientific perspective, one day off will not reverse all the progress.
Ellie, UK
10/10 would recommend Tom to anyone, especially women who need some help getting beyond their undereating tendencies!
Erin, USA
Media Interviews
If you host a podcast, Youtube channel, coaching platform, organise workshops or events, and are in interested in inviting Tom Herbert to chat or present on any aspect of climbing nutrition and/or climbing nutrition coaching, do reach out: contact@useful.coach
Lattice Training Podcast – Creatine for Climbers: Game-Changer or Overhyped?
The Struggle Climbing Show – Tom Herbert: Pro Clinic on Fueling for Better Performance, Recovering Faster, and a Method to Cut Weight Without Cutting Calories
The Careless Talk Climbing Podcast – E104: Tom Herbert - Supplements, fueling and nutrition tips from an elite climbing nutritionist
The Careless Talk Climbing Podcast – E14: Tom Herbert - Climbing Nutritionist
The Careless Talk Climbing Podcast – E15: Tom Herbert - Climbing Nutritionist, losing weight safely for climbing
Catalyst Climbing Youtube – Nutrition for Climbing | with Tom Herbert
The Nugget Climbing Podcast – Tom Herbert (Part 1) - Eating More to Train Harder, Protein Synthesis, and Carbohydrate Timing
The Nugget Climbing Podcast – Tom Herbert (Part 2) - How to Relax to Improve your Passat Reserves, and Tom's Life Story
The Curious Climber Podcast – Tom Herbert: Being Useful
In The Flow Nutrition Podcast – Performance Nutrition Perspectives for Climbers and Beyond with Tom Herbert
Andrew MacFarlane Youtube – Climber Nutrition - Optimise Your Training
Andrew MacFarlane Youtube – Nutrition And Supplementation For Climbers
Andrew MacFarlane Youtube – I Trained Like A Pro Climber For 1 Month
ClimbSci Podcast – ClimbSci - Better Climbing Through Science
Climbsci Podcast
Launched in 2017, and hosted by Tom Herbert (usefulcoach), and Brian Rigby (Climbing Nutrition), ClimbSci is an evidence-based webcast covering scientific topics related to climbing and climbers, notably nutrition, training, recovery, and performance.
Though new episode releases are currently on pause, the primary climbing nutrition episodes covering protein, carbohydrate, and fat are excellent resources for the background science and practical intake recommendations.
Search for “ClimbSci” in your podcast software, or visit ClimbSci - Better Climbing Through Science to subscribe.