Monday Motivation - April 8th

Good morning,

My name is Gopal Handa and I am a chiropractor at the Kew Chiro.London clinic. Originally from south-west London, I joined the team in January and am loving working with our local community to help keep spines aligned! In my spare time I enjoy reading non-fiction books, listening to podcasts, playing ping pong, salsa dancing and the occasional Netflix binge.

Speaking of Netflix, climbing movies aren’t usually my bag but somehow this film kept showing up on my recommended list, so I thought I’d give it a shot.If I said the names “Tommy Caldwell” and “Alex Honnold” most people would shrug, but these two guys have both ascended a 3,000ft wall, albeit with slightly different handicaps. I found these two stories so inspirational, and it really struck me about the fortitude of the human spirit. Warning, I’m going to give some spoilers away below…

Tommy Caldwell started climbing from a young age. He won competitions, he met his partner through climbing, and he began climbing around the world with his now wife.However, whilst climbing in the former USSR (now Kyrgyzstan), they were unfortunate enough to be taken hostage and starved for six days. Thinking they were going to die, Tommy reached deep within and acted, and – somehow – they escaped.

Upon their return, the emotion from the situation caused them to separate and now the only climbing partner he ever knew and trusted was gone. But he returned to climbing, only to then suffer a DIY accident, which sliced his left index finger clean off. It should have been ‘game over’, but not for Tommy. He adapted his training. He set new goals. And then he climbed the 3,000 ft El Capitan in Yosemite National Park with nine fingers.

For those of you who have seen Free Solo, you’ll know Alex Honnold basically did the same thing Tommy did but went one step further – he did it with no ropes and no harnesses, just him alone with his chalk. Imagine being 2,500 feet up on the side of a rock with the knowledge that a small slip, a slightly unstable hold, or a loss of concentration would surely lead to your demise. Wow.

If you’d like to hear more of Alex’s story, you can check out his TED talk here. And for a thrilling night on the sofa, check out Tommy’s sweaty palm Netflix movie, The Dawn Wall, here.

Hasta pronto!

Gopal