What is the time commitment for me?
Private Health Coaching: If you sign up for a program, we will have a 60 minute Zoom call every other week for as long as your program lasts. Typical programs are 3 or 6 months long, but private coaching is 100% customizable. Most often clients choose a 6 month program for private coaching as they see the best, and most lasting results in this duration. For group coaching, this depends on the group coaching program. See the individual program details under “Services”.
What if I’m interested in your health coaching services, but not sure if it’s a right for me?
Trust me, I want it to be a good fit for you as well. This is why I suggest a 30 min FREE Health Coaching strategy call first. This session is not only for you to see if I’m a good fit, but also for me. I want to make sure I’m also a good fit for you! I want YOU to get the most out of making your health changes and if I (or you) don’t feel that we are a good match, then there is no need to go further. Yet, I may have other coaches or healthcare practitioners to recommend. The relationship of a client and coach needs to be comfortable, trusting and safe. Your health and well-being is a very personal matter. Keep in mind, I know many other coaches, so if you are still interested in personal coaching, then I can also refer you to another that may be better suited for your needs. I’m here to support you, not matter what.
Can I choose to meet in person, via video conferencing or just by phone?
Yes, yes, and yes! You can choose what works best for you. In this day and age, coaching virtually is what I do most often, and it works perfectly! This saves so much driving time and is much easier to fit into your schedule too. Many clients prefer this method most, especially busy professionals that travel or parents who have kids. Yet, I do ask that you please devote this time with me. Don’t use this time to multi-task, like doing laundry and dishes. Instead, dedicate this time… for you. You are paying for my services and I want it to be the best, and most productive, hour of your day! Find a quiet space in your home, car, or whatever. Get comfortable. Bring a notepad and relax. Consider this your self care time. I do recommend that you clearly communicate with your loved ones on the time you are committed for your coaching. Bring them along on the journey and come up with a plan to help you devote time for your well-being. Ensure you ask them to respect the time you have for coaching and ask them to allow you the time and space as well. This also includes your business leaders and teammates as well, especially if you are using a free work hour to take a coaching call. The more clear you are with others, the better this experience will be for you. They want to support you, and trust me when I say this, you are being a great example to them too.
What occurs between health coaching sessions?
When I do personalized private health coaching, I truly customize it to meet your needs. Although I’ll ask you lots of questions to learn more about about your goals, desires and interests, the coaching calls are conversational in nature. Sometimes we will be strategizing and coming up with a plan of action too. Depending on your specific needs, and with your approval of what you’d like to receive, I’ll spend time outside our coaching sessions putting together resources which could include things such as recipes, non-online resources, reputable health articles or studies, health lifestyle change techniques, and more. It all is customized to your needs and we have discussed. I love to educate my clients so they truly understand what they need to do and how to do it best. I want them to feel empowered! There is a lot to be learned about yourself, but also information that could further expand what you are looking to achieve. Not one client is the same as another, so I won’t give you the exact same information I give everyone else… because YOU aren’t like anyone else! Also, realize this… we also go at the pace you that works for you. Your life is unique and everyone needs the ability to take actions in a way that best suits them, their lifestyle and their goals.
Where did you go to school for Health Coaching?
As I started out on my own health journey starting in 2011, I stumbled upon a flyer at a local yoga studio for a health coach and soon hired her. She was an immense “push” for me which allowed me to jump into the next level of my wellness journey. While under a program with her, I began to inquire about her health coach education background. She introduced me to the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN is located in New York City). It’s a global school for health coaches, educating thousands of coaches each year. I signed up for an intense one-year program and I graduated in July 2014. I absolutely LOVED it! I studied hundreds of dietary modalities and was taught by world renowned instructors such as: Dr. Mercola, David Avocado Wolfe, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, and many more. In 2018, I advanced my studies and took an additional 6-month course specifically in hormone health through IIN. Then, with the advancement of health coaching, in May of 2016, The National Board of Health and Wellness Coaching partnered with the National Board of Medical Examiners to launch the certification, National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). I passed this exam in December 2020. I’m also a Certified Worksite Wellness Specialist and Clarity Catalyst Facilitator (a Stanford University-based mindset program).
Explain your experience with employee wellness.
After I graduated from IIN in July 2014, I was still working for a large corporation and noticed that there was an interest in wellness amongst some of my fellow employees, but no outlet to do so. So in October 2014 I started a Focused Inclusion Network (F.I.N.) supported by the Inclusion and Diversity Team. This F.I.N. is like a “club” or employee community around a specific topic or area of interest. There are many of them, such as Photography, Parenting, etc. My employee wellness F.I.N. centered around all aspects of health and wellness. It was a community of employees who had interest in wellness, who supported each other and all were welcomed, no matter what level and experience they had. They provided recommendations, shared personal stories, provided insights to company-provided resources, encouraged each other, and more. Social support is one of the keys to making change quickly and effectively. No one should go alone. This group grew to almost 1000 employee members by December 2020 with a variety of events from weekly meditations, monthly support of health teach outs from the HR Wellness Program and even leading an annual Leadership Wellness Challenge (a step challenge led by executives across the company). The group became very successful and influential working with many cross-functional support including executive leadership, HR Wellness Program, onsite health care providers, other F.I.N.s and E.R.G.s (Employee Resource Groups). In leading this work, I got to meet so many employees I may not have otherwise met, I learned what a wellness program could look like, how to drive engagement in an effective and low-cost way, and understood that people enjoyed learning from each other and loved the mutual support as well. Please feel free to ask me more about this at any time. Also see “Services” section for information on how I may be able to support an employee wellness program at your company. I often conduct multi-day workshops, lunch-and-learns, employee group coaching and even help companies improve their employee wellness engagement strategies.