On Becoming a Health Coach

I just got off the Graduation Celebration call for my Institute for Integrative Nutrition health coaching program. It’s official. I am now a certified health coach. Whew!

My Health Coach Journey

My journey toward becoming a health coach started sometime in the spring of 2012 when I was doing preliminary research for my book (still in progress). I was sitting at the kitchen table and started thinking about all the problems with our health system, how sick our nation is, and the fact that only a small percentage of the healthcare budget is spent on prevention.

I was thinking about doctors and nurses and how they are trained to treat sick people—not how to keep people well in the first place. And I had a thought that I scribbled in my notebook:

In addition to doctors and nurses who specialize in treating sick people, do we need “wellness coaches” who work on preventing illness in the first place?

Nutrition + exercise + mindfulness + sleep + conflict resolution + community building.

Needs to be covered by health insurance & incorporated into school curriculum. Need a masters program for this.

Turns out wellness (or health) coaching already existed. When I found out, I knew right away that this was my calling. And I didn’t need a masters degree! I just need to be able to ask high mileage questions, hold people accountable, and be available to listen without judgement.

I started my health coach certification program in September of 2012 and 100+ hours of lectures, four exams, one coaching group, and a number of health histories later, I am finally a certified health coach!

So What’s Next?

Since I passed my final exam a couple of weeks ago, I’ve been celebrating reaching this milestone. I think it’s important to stop and breathe and enjoy successes. But it’s also fun to look ahead!

I’m so excited to start working with clients on both health coaching and business coaching. Since I work full time, I won’t be taking on a lot of clients to start out, but I am looking to add around 5-6 clients over the next year as well as form 2-3 coaching groups focused on various goals. If you have suggestions for a coaching group themes, I’m all ears!

To take my coaching to the next level, I’m also going for an International Coach Federation certification. This means completing 100 hours of coaching with eight different clients, working with a mentor coach (I found somebody wonderful!), and submitting a recorded coaching session.

And of course, I’ll continue to share thoughts on wellness and life simplification right here.

Thank You

I’m feeling insanely grateful to you, the readers of this blog, friends, family, and everybody else who has been cheering me on along the way. It’s a little nuts to go into a completely new field when you’re 39 (but not uncommon). I appreciate your support and vote of confidence.

Good night.