27 Jan Why Hire a Health Coach?
It seems like there’s a coach for everything these days. From careers to relationships, accountability to creativity, there’s someone out there who specializes in coaching people on a niche subject or skill.
Maybe you think hiring a coach is a waste of money. After all, the internet has a wealth of free resources on any topic imaginable. You can do the research and reach your goals all by yourself. You just have to find the time between school and soccer practice, work and washing the laundry…But how long do you really stick to those ambitious routines you set for yourself?
Or maybe you’re thinking: what can a health coach do that my doctor can’t?
Well, here’s the thing: there are some key differences between holistic health coaches and Western medicine. Let’s take a look:
Conventional Medicine vs. Holistic Health Coaching
First, conventional medicine tends to take a “one size fits all” approach. Doctors focus on giving you a diagnosis, then use conventional means to treat whatever they think ails you. This impersonal approach is not their fault. It’s just the way our healthcare system is built.
On the other hand, holistic health coaches focus on the patient (i.e. YOU). We look at your body as a microcosm of your life and assess all the potential underlying causes for your ailments. Then we develop a health plan that’s tailored uniquely to you – one that addresses all areas of your life for a comprehensive and balanced solution.
Second, while conventional medicine is diagnostic, holistic health coaching treats your disease at the core and takes things one step further. Holistic health coaching also encompasses preventative health.
According to the CDC, the US spends 86% of our healthcare budget on chronic illnesses, many of which are preventable by lifestyle means! The problem is that most people – by no fault of their own – aren’t equipped to make healthier lifestyle choices because Americans are severely undereducated about healthy living.
Between conflicting information on fad diets and ads for high-sugar, high-fat foods fighting for our attention, it can be overwhelming and exceedingly difficult to figure out what works for our bodies – and what doesn’t. Holistic health coaching – and functional medicine in particular – recognizes each person’s biochemical individuality.
We treat the patient, not the disease.
So, why hire a health coach?
When a pipe breaks, you hire a plumber.
When tax season rolls around, you hire an accountant.
When you go through a rough patch in life, you hire a therapist.
My point is that when it comes to the important things in life, you entrust professionals to help you navigate the challenges you face. And what could be more important than your health?
Here are just a few of the potential benefits to working alongside a functional health coach:
1. We will help you set (and track) realistic goals.
Remember the last time you set a New Year’s resolution? How long did it last? If the answer is a month (or even a day!), don’t beat yourself up about it.
Over 90% of New Year’s resolutions are health/fitness related and countless studies show that they just don’t work.
There are a number of reasons for this – both psychological and practical – but one of the biggest is that the goals we set for ourselves are too lofty, and we expect results too fast. We look at our resolutions as a sprint when in fact, they’re marathons. So it’s no wonder we get disheartened when we haven’t shed our target 20 pounds in two week.
Health coaches use goal setting and accountability-based strategies to help our clients better understand and address their health issues in a more realistic way. We break down your pie-in-the-sky goals into smaller, attainable wins. Then we help track your progress so you take pride in your growth and stay inspired on your path.
This last bit may seem simple enough, but it’s actually a lot harder to objectively track your own growth and achievement, so having an outsider to help you celebrate and commend those efforts can help keep you on track.
2. We will help you see the bigger picture
When we set health goals, we can get very clear on what it is we want, but more often than not, we don’t stop to think about why we want it.
Maybe you want to lose weight. But why is losing weight important to you?
Is it so you can feel sexy and confident when you slip into that old dress you found buried in the back of your closet?
Or is it because you want to be able to keep up with your kids?
Knowing your “why” can make all the difference when it comes to following through on your health goals. Because when you know your “why” you are better able to envision your future self. You can better imagine the transformational impact this change will have on all areas of your life: your work, relationships, success, and confidence.
And if you forget the big picture when faced with new challenges, health coaches can walk you through exercises to manifest that vision – that future you – more clearly.
3. We will keep you accountable.
The most expensive supplements, most foolproof meal plans, most advanced fitness regimens won’t make an ounce of difference if you don’t actually do something with them.
Unfortunately, when we set our own goals, we can often sink into the quicksand of “background research” so that we never even pass the starting line. We get so caught up, or excited even, in imagining and designing the path forward that we use up all our energy before we even begin our health journey.
Health coaches keep you accountable by setting measurable benchmarks and holding you to them. We schedule regular coaching sessions and check-ins. We give you assessments to measure your progress. And it works.
Studies show that people are more committed to their goals (and more likely to attain them) when they share them with someone they perceive as an expert. And the bigger the goal, the harder it is to hold yourself accountable.
4. We can filter out the fluff to give you tools that work for you.
Sure, the internet is a wealth of information. But no matter how good Google’s algorithms get, it will never know you and your needs like a friend or counselor can.
As coaches, we spend years studying diverse fields and practices to build up an arsenal of tools to inspire, motivate, manage stress, and – of course – restore health. And in our work, we hold space for our clients so that we come to know all their fears, anxieties, and aspirations. This means that as we get to know you, we can design a custom health roadmap filled with tools tailored to your unique physiology and specific goals.
It may take some trial and error to find the tools that work best for you. But we save you the time, energy, and frustration of filtering through all those fad diets and wellness trends.
5. We help you see beyond the scale and improve your confidence.
You are a talented and capable person. You are, no doubt, successful and sharp. But when it comes to goal setting, self-doubt is our greatest saboteur and we tend to get hung up on things that don’t really matter – like the number on the scale.
Your weight is a poor metric of your success, and it inevitably fluctuates so it can drag you down and erode your positive self-image.
As a functional health coach, I help you learn to understand your body as an elaborate ecosystem with each part working in conjunction to affect your overall health. We run labs and pinpoint the numbers that actually matter – like hormone levels and gut flora counts – and empower you to take the reins in designing your own health roadmap.
Most importantly, we help you learn to live more intentionally, practice gratitude, celebrate the small victories, and find your bigger purpose – something outside yourself that lights you up and inspires you. All of this serves to improve your self-esteem and energize you on your health journey.
So what do you think? Are you ready to see how a coach can help you finally reach your health goals? Are you ready to get back to feeling fully alive?
Book a FREE discovery call and let’s talk about how I might be able to help. Even if we don’t wind up working together, you’ll walk away from our call with actionable steps you can take to start seeing real improvements in your well-being.
I hope to hear from you soon!
Love and Blessings,
Jennifer
To learn more about the services and programs I offer, simply click here.
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