What is a health and wellness lifestyle coach?

As your coach, I will partner with you and facilitate you in reaching your health and/or wellness goals. We begin by having a conversation where I explain how coaching works and get to know you a bit, while you get to know me. You decide if you're comfortable working with me. This is important because you need feel at ease in our relationship. I will listen closely and intently to what you say without judgment, and will ask you questions to get you thinking – all the while honoring your wisdom and feelings. So essentially I am reflecting back to you, like a mirror, how you are “seeing” yourself. This creates new awareness and perspectives on how you are perceiving aspects of your life.

I help you to recognize obstacles and how things you tell yourself may be holding you back. Together, we outline your goals and make plans to move toward achieving them, and with your permission, I hold you accountable to what steps you set to take. With your desire and willingness to change, I am the “channel” that enables you to move past those obstacles and create the awesome life you desire, and deserve! You owe it to yourself and all whose lives you touch to be the best you can be.

Who can benefit from coaching?

Coaching is appropriate for anyone desiring change in their life and is feeling “stuck”. Whether it’s managing stress, losing weight, eating better, working on relationships, navigating career changes – the list is endless as coaching can be about anything that you feel is holding you back and getting in the way of a life of fulfillment and wellness. Deep listening is one of the keys of good coaching, because there is no magic solution that applies to everyone. The beauty of our humanity is we are each unique and whole individuals who arrive at our own solutions once we have the help of a non-judgmental listener to serve as our guide and create awareness within us. There is nothing more powerful and motivating than coming to your unique realization, with the help of your coach. That is why advice-giving doesn’t work and is not the answer. Chances are, you already know many of the “facts” surrounding what you want to do. I have been coached on many occasions myself and have seen first-hand the power in coaching. Coaching requires that you are willing to work for change, and requires that you be honest with yourself and your coach.

Does coaching need to be done in person?

No. Coaching can be done by Zoom, telephone, or in person – whichever is most convenient and desirable for you. Coaching is just as effective by phone as it is in person. If I am coaching someone local to my area, I always offer to meet in person initially. It is always the client’s choice how we work together.

What does a coaching session look like?

In our first session we determine if I am the right coach for you. We explore your goals and create clarity on what you wish to accomplish through coaching. This first session is complementary, and usually lasts about a half hour. After the initial session, we talk weekly or 2-3 times per month. During this time, you decide what specific topic you’d like to explore. During our sessions, we explore those topics, reflect on progress, celebrate what has been achieved and explore what obstacles you may have faced. There is no failure — only learning. Often you may find that your fears and stories you tell yourself are holding you back; so we discuss those and the thought processes behind them to create awareness. Through our dialogue we explore your challenges and your feelings and what your next steps are. We clarify these steps and what action you are willing to take before the next session. Great shifts often occur with this dialogue as awareness is created and new perspectives are considered. During our coaching time together, you will learn so much about yourself!

At times I may present information or resources for you upon request. When I do this I am exiting “coaching mode” and entering “teaching mode”. Coaching itself is not advice-giving and loses its power if the coaching model is not adhered to. I am highly trained and certified using this proven method of facilitating change.

What is a typical coaching time-line?

Our first meeting, which is complementary, will take approximately 30 minutes. During this first session you determine if I am the right coach for you, because the coaching process requires trust and it is very important that you feel comfortable talking with me openly and honestly. We also discuss what you are looking to gain from coaching, and I answer any questions you may have about the process.

Typically, coaching lasts a few months, sometimes less and sometimes more, depending of course on your needs and whether we meet weekly or twice a month. Because change takes time, a commitment of 12 weeks is standard and is what is typically needed for lifestyle changes to become your new normal. You will have “homework” between sessions, designed by you, discussed together and agreed upon by you. This could be reflecting on a question, journaling, adhering to an exercise commitment, etc. It is important to remember that coaching is a process, and change does not typically happen overnight. With your commitment, amazing shifts in your life can happen through coaching. Together, we can help you to feel incredibly empowered!

How is coaching different from counseling or psychotherapy?

Coaching is rooted in positive psychology using skills and tools that facilitate behavior change. It is an equal partnership where you decide what steps you are willing to take. In psychotherapy, the therapist is the expert who directs the client. Coaching is rooted in the belief that the client is the expert of his or her life. I am the facilitator who assists you to arrive at your own decisions. Coaching is also focused on the present and future, because it is based on what you wish to change and how you desire to move forward in life, and not what others want for you. It is not concerned with diagnoses or psychological issues. Coaching is for people who are generally psychologically healthy. Individuals who are suffering from clinical depression, are having difficulty resolving issues from the past, or have other psychological disorders are recommended to seek therapy.