What exactly is a health coach?
When I was going through my health issues and trying to work out what was going on with my body, it wasn’t until I sat down with a naturopath that I learned a new approach to healthcare. I wasn’t rushed through the appointment. I was made to do all the talking while she listened intently. She didn’t speak over me and most importantly she didn’t talk down to me. I felt heard and that there was hope in finding some answers to healing by actually getting to the real root cause of my symptoms.
It was in that moment that I realised THIS is how it should be. A partnership where practitioner and client co create the desired outcomes, taking into account the whole person, not just “fixing” symptoms.
But just as allopathic medicine goes, any follow up was left to me to do. There was a rough guideline or timeframe to revisit but in the meantime I was sent on my way to complete the tasks…which meant it was easy for me to fall off the wagon. Because let’s face it, we’re all busy.
Fortunately it was a big enough priority for me, and once I started to heal physically and emotionally, I knew this was the work I wanted to do. To sit with people. To hear them out. To understand their life story. Uncover their health history. To help them heal. To be a change agent.
Enter health coaching.
Health coaches work with their clients ongoing to reach their desired outcome whilst providing accountability.
We ask the big questions that only you have the answers to. How you are coping at work? What is your inner critic saying to you? How is the support of family/friends around you? What are your dreams and desires?
As a certified health coach whilst my training revolves around being able to coach, guide and mentor, my heart yearns to empower women. Just as I felt empowered all those years ago to reclaim my own health.
An effective coach is able to provide you with the tools to navigate your day to day without having to rely on fad diets, restrictive eating, punishing workouts and drastic changes to your lifestyle. We help you to make informed decisions that lead to the change you seek, but also help you stick to them!
My role as your close confidante is to cheer you on but also call you out on your bs #realtalk when needed! You learn new skills as you adapt to a new way of thinking about your health and make choices that align with you (vs just being told what to do). You set the goals and you will be the one to achieve them by making sustainable changes that improve your overall health and happiness by ditching some things we know are playing a key role in holding you back from shining brightly in this world.
What a health coach isn’t
Now that you have a better understanding of what a health coach IS, it’s just as important to know what a health coach ISN’T.
Health coaches DO NOT:
Diagnose, treat or cure
Replace nutritionists or dieticians (or other health practitioners) but rather work alongside these professions to help bridge the gap
Prescribe a therapeutic diet or supplements
Work with people who have complex advanced diseases such as cancer
Suggest clients to stop or change prescription medications (medical supervision is always supported)
Operate like a therapist (the focus is on forward thinking vs what has occurred in the past)
Chris Kresser says it best when he describes the core work of health coaches;
Health coaches are not advisors, mentors, friends, counselors, or diagnosticians—they’re health behavior change specialists. They support people in discovering their own strategies and motivations for change, overcoming obstacles, and implementing protocols that have either been prescribed by a clinician or nutritionist/dietitian or that the client has chosen to implement on their own.
As your Health Coach, I will listen carefully and we’ll navigate the world of contradictory nutrition and health advice together to explore what truly works for you.
To decide if health coaching is right for you, I invite you to schedule a FREE 30min chat with me.
During this session, we will discuss your health and lifestyle to determine how I can best support you in achieving your goals.