Mark T. Cucuzzella MD, FAAFP

Mark Cucuzzella, MD, is a professor at West Virginia University School of Medicine. He is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force, designing programs to promote health and fitness in the military with the USAF Efficient Running Project. In his community and medical school, he has been a tireless promoter of nutritional interventions in patients with any spectrum of the metabolic syndrome and introducing low carb options for hospital patients. Dr. Cucuzzella is a member of The Nutrition Coalition advocating for scientific scrutiny in nutritional policy, and he is the founder and lead teacher for Healthy Running CME Courses. Healthy Running courses bring together all the disciplines of sports science and sport medicine as well as coaches and running enthusiasts who desire to help their athletes and themselves have long healthy careers in the sport. Dr. Cucuzzella was a lead writer of one of the first grants supporting education of medical students in nutrition and physical activity through the MEDCHEFS program, now in its fourth year. A competitive runner for over 30 years with more than 100 marathon and ultramarathon finishes, he has a unique streak of 30 years running a marathon under three hours. He has won the Air Force Marathon twice. He is the race director of Freedom’s Run race series in West Virginia and director of the Natural Running Center, an education portal designed to teach healthier running. Dr. Cucuzzella’s innovative work and story has been featured in the New York Times, NPR, Outside Magazine, Running Times, Runners World, Air Force Times, the Washington Post, JAMA, Blue Ridge Outdoors, and other medical and media outlets.