What is a Health Coach?
You may have heard the term “health coach” bounced around or perhaps you’ve never heard of the term at all. Health coaching is becoming a revolution as coaches are popping up in doctor’s offices, gyms, spas and private practices all over the country. So what exactly is a health coach?
A health coach is someone who educates and supports clients to achieve their health goals through behavior and lifestyle changes. They are educated in the fields of wellness, nutrition, mentoring and bio-individuality. They are trained in lifestyle coaching techniques to help you uncover what’s been holding you back and discover what will bring you success in your overall health goals. Health coaching looks at your entire lifestyle, not just solely the food you eat.
It’s likely that at some point in time, you’ve been told to eat this, not that, or have tried some diet or exercise program that was unsustainable. There are tons of diets out there from Paleo, Whole30 and Beach Body to name a few. Maybe it provided a quick fix, for instance you lost a few pounds. But more likely than not, the results didn’t stick.
This is where health coaches come in. We help you implement small changes, at a pace that is comfortable for you, so that you can achieve the results you want to meet all of your health goals.
Whether you’re looking to get healthy, lose weight or increase energy, health coaches take the time to listen to concerns, help you discover why and where you are struggling, and help you navigate the world of contradictory nutritional advice to figure out exactly what works for your body.
Everyone is unique – what works for one person may not work for someone else. This is why no one diet works for everyone, or may only work for a small amount of time. Health coaches don’t promote one specific type of diet or one specific way of eating. They help you experiment with finding what will work for your specifically and how to change up your diet and lifestyle as you continue to grow.
In addition to private practices, health coaches are teaming up with doctors and nutritionists. Working together they are helping individuals struggling with chronic disease such as obesity and diabetes, to help improve their health and keep lifestyle-related illness at bay.
It’s also important to understand what a health coach is not. A health coach isn’t a doctor who prescribes medications, nutritionists, or personal trainers. Health coaches do not give you orders pass or pass judgement for not meeting your goals. They understand that life happens, that we’re all human, and work with you and support you in every way to help you achieve your goals.
We are at a time where lifestyle related disease is through the roofs. Oftentimes, we are aware of what we “should” be doing, but need a little extra tough love, motivation and support along the way to meet our goals. Health coaching looks at you as an individual and supports you in meeting overall health goals. It’s time to take back your health and thrive.