Perhaps You Can Relate

Do you know people who seem to be able to change and sustain their lifestyle habits with ease? If they want to become fitter, they exercise more. If they want to reduce stress levels, they set boundaries at work. If they want to lower their blood pressure, they cut back on salt. End of story.

Then there’s the rest of us. We sign up for a gym membership, then never set foot in the gym. We find our bliss in meditation but find a million reasons not to do it. We know we need to eat healthier but we’ve tried many times before and it would simply be too discouraging to fall short yet again.

Here’s where wellness coaching comes in.

Empowerment is the Key

If you want to progress in an area of your wellness, but are feeling stuck, a Wellness Coach can help. The essence of what we do is support you through the change and help set you up to sustain it long term. It’s about empowering confidence and positive change. Not in a cheerleading kind of way, but by using a variety of skills drawn from essential behaviour science. As psychologist Martin Seligman puts it:

“It is not about fixing what is broken; it is nurturing what is best within ourselves.”

You can put to rest any concerns that you will be judged or told what to do. It’s a collaborative approach and you set your own goals. Through this process we bring into focus your values, desires and your strengths. We leverage them as catalysts for change. Coaches encourage a spirit of curious experimentation as you try out various paths of your choice toward your goal.

A Success Story

One of my clients wanted to improve her eating habits. She was stuck in a rut with food that didn’t nourish her. She knew she’d benefit from eating more fruits and vegetables, yet she struggled to make the change.

Through the coaching process, we took a step-wise approach focussed on her desire to preserve her vitality as she ages, as well as her introspective and inquisitive nature. Through trial and success, week by week she learned what worked for her and what did not. Over time she felt more comfortable and more confident about reaching her goal. She celebrated and built on her wins. And she slowly but surely adopted her new approach to eating.

Why I Became a Wellness Coach

I’ve been writing for several years now about the evidence-based health benefits of eating more plants. I know that some people were convinced that eating more plants would be good for them, but they never made a change in that direction. I wondered why. I figured in the end it was in part because many of us struggle with the behaviour change necessary to eat differently than we do now. Change can be hard. Sometimes so hard that we may not even consider the possibility.

With that in mind, the Mayo Clinic Wellness Coaching Program caught my attention. It’s based on their unique and successful approach to helping people quit smoking (talk about a difficult behavioural change!). The Mayo Clinic has a team of Wellness Coaches to assist their patients who’ve been advised to make lifestyle changes to improve their health. Mayo also teaches their wellness coaching approach and skills to those of us who want to help people meet their wellness goals. I’m thrilled to have undergone the program and become a Mayo Clinic Certified Wellness Coach. I love incorporating this expertise with my nutritional science knowledge and clinical research experience to help people move toward plant-based eating, one bite at a time.

If you’re interested, feel free to contact me for more information. Coaching sessions can be conducted in person (in the London, Ontario area), by phone or video calling.