Jenny Pena, NBC-HWC

Many people ask, what is health coaching? What can a health coach provide for me?

If I wanted to simply the definition of a health coach I would say that it is a trained professional who helps you make changes that support your health. Another way to describe health coaching is as a supported self-management intervention.

Health coaches can work with clients one-on-one or with a group to empower them to achieve self-determined goals related to their health and wellness. Using health coaching techniques, the health coach helps clients create their vision, identify strengths as well as areas with opportunity of improvement, categorize their areas of focus and interest, establish smart goals and provide support through the journey towards success.

Health Coaches have skills and competencies to activate internal strengths and identify and enlist external resources that facilitate sustained positive health outcomes. Health coaching places little emphasis on the disease process but rather seeks to increase healing resources. By listening and helping clients increase awareness, coaches provide powerful reflective support, monitor progress, identify multiple ways of achieving goals, and celebrate success.

A Health Coach’s scope of practice includes providing: general wellness and nutrition information; options, recommendations, guidance, motivation, skill-building to establish healthier lifestyle routines; and other support mechanisms for achieving client-focused personal health goals.

Health coaching is quite different from both conventional and alternative medical models that diagnose and treat. While conventional and alternative medicine often seeks to fix problems, health coaching focuses on realistic and desirable healing goals that unique for each client. While doctors are medical experts, health coaches are nonjudgmental partners exploring health priorities.

How do health coaches do what they do? The health coaching process can be described in 3 basic steps.

• First, explore and build self-awareness, which includes awareness of strengths and weaknesses, plus hopes and dreams for positive health outcomes. This is typically done during the first session that I call Wellness vision but you may hear it called Health History session as well.
• Second, take action steps—the ongoing coaching process in which the coach facilitates the client’s regular cycles of learning to strengthen healing resources, increase internal motivation, and overcome obstacles to change. Long term goals are identified during the wellness session and then actions are broken down into simpler goals to accomplish short term that will build up into the vision of the client.
• The final element, monitor and evaluate, includes setting an appropriate scale for maximizing change, keeping the program on track, identifying next steps for sustaining growth and development, and recognizing and acknowledging success with the client. Being clear on how to measure progress, identify any challenges and have a plan to overcome those things.

If you are interested in exploring how health coaching can benefit you and evaluate if we could partner and support you in your wellness journey, schedule a 20-minute discovery call (free of charge) to discuss.