Improve your odds of achieving your own health and fitness goals
Many people I meet have read my columns and are impressed by my clients' success stories but aren't sure if personal wellness coaching would work for them. For some, the things they prefer to eat may be different from those mentioned in the stories or it may be harder for them to carve out time for exercise. What they may not see is that almost everyone can find a strategy that fits their lifestyle if they make it a priority. In this column, I show how personal wellness coaching has helped three of my clients set and meet their goals.

Working through barriers

One of the advantages of personal wellness coaching is that it provides you with help in establishing realistic health and fitness goals that fit your lifestyle. It also provides for you a base of support and strategies for working through any barriers in reaching them, such as time constraints, individual food preferences, medical issues and other challenges. A great new diet that worked for a co-worker or neighbor won't necessarily work for you. If it doesn't address your health concerns, including the foods you like, and work with your lifestyle challenges, you may be setting yourself up for failure. Personal wellness coaching takes an individualized approach, greatly increasing your chances of success.

Mark came to see me about three years ago with a desire to get back into distance running. He was 38 years old, and his long- term goal was to complete a 50-mile trail run by the time he reached his 40th birthday. We've been working together for the past several years to help him reach that goal. Here is what he has to say about the benefits of personal wellness coaching:

"My goal when seeking personal wellness coaching was to get back into condition. I had run track in junior high, high school & college so I knew the feeling of being physically fit. Furthermore, I had done a couple of marathons and truly enjoyed the personal accomplishment of achieving my goals. However, the increased demands of work, family and other stresses left little time to train (or evaluate my eating habits). I was looking to achieve some effective changes that would truly improve my health and help me to incorporate a training program that worked with my schedule.

I have been very successful in achieving my goals. I have been able to integrate sound, healthy eating habits with realistic training goals.....all the while continuing my family and work commitments. Now I look at a year in terms of my training/racing months and then my off-season months. My fitness goals have also gone beyond the marathon that I did about 14 years ago.....as a matter of fact, I did a 50K trail race in Oregon last year. And will do it again! My enthusiasm and energy is great and my goals just keep growing. Probably the best change has been my eating. I am much more aware of eating a balance of foods (i.e. starches, veggies, fruit, etc). and it has become very natural for me as well as the rest of my family. Our family eats a much better balanced menu for all meals. My wife is getting into the holistic approach of eating and exercising in a realistic sense. Realistic meaning that it is a program that is integrated into her regular schedule. Realistic changes that anyone can be successful at.

There are 2 things that Heather has emphasized time and time again: 1) Any health/fitness goal needs to be realistic given your regular routine (to be long term successful). 2) Eating healthy 8 days out of 10 will reduce falling off the wagon and guilty cycles that generally turn into a downward spiral. How many times has anyone started a program (fitness or nutrition) only to fall off of it a few weeks or months later? That was me a few years ago. It was a vicious, frustrating cycle that has finally been beaten. Lastly, I like the accountability with Heather (my coach). There are often things she can see in my program that I may miss in my day to day schedule." Mark Burke, 40 year-old runner

Transitioning through lifestyle changes

Another benefit of personal wellness coaching is the ability to adapt your program to fit your changing lifestyle needs. I have a number of clients who I've worked with over a period of several years. We've developed strategies to help them maintain their health and fitness programs during periods of transition in their life. Some of them were taking on new fitness goals, others have experienced medical challenges, health issues, or just changes in their personal or professional lives. In all of these cases, we were able to adapt their nutrition and fitness plans to fit their new lifestyle, allowing them to continue on the path towards their health and performance goals.

Cydly was an avid runner who experienced weight gain as a result of decreased activity from a running injury. We worked together to develop both an eating plan and exercise program to help her reach her weight loss goals. Towards the end of the year she experienced a significant change in her health status, which required some adaptations to her program. Here is her story: "Originally, I was trying to lose weight that I'd gained after getting plantar fasciitis. I was not as diligent about engaging in other types of cross-training activities as I should have been, and was about 10 pounds over my optimal weight. I knew that I needed to eat less, but I wanted a nutritional "tune-up" on what to eat when, and how much would be appropriate given my level of physical activity. I was able to lose some weight and keep my energy level up. I also felt better after making the eating changes suggested. However, I got pregnant about six months ago and things changed. My goals went from weight loss to sensible weight gain and ensuring that my pregnancy nutrition needs are being met. I'm happy to report that so far I've felt great (albeit larger)!)

Although I already was a healthy eater prior to starting wellness coaching, it has really helped me to focus on eating smarter, and making sure that my "machine" is properly fueled for whatever activities I've got going on." Cydly Smith, 40 year old runner

Staying Motivated

Some of my clients come in thinking they can make enough lifestyle changes to accomplish their goals in one or two visits. What they often find is that working on long-term health and fitness goals can be challenging. Energy and enthusiasm can wane after a period of weeks or months, often before long-term goals have been reached. Working with a personal wellness coach can help to keep your program effective and refocus your efforts when new lifestyle challenges occur. Many of my clients are working on goals that require an extended period of lifestyle change. Ongoing wellness coaching can provide the support and accountability needed to help you work though the difficult times, and to stay on track until you reach your ultimate health or fitness goals.

Miriam was a competitive distance runner who experienced some significant injuries during her past two running seasons. She was concerned that her eating habits were connected to her recurring injury problems. We worked together to develop a more balanced eating plan and training program that would promote recovery and fuel her body for her distance running goals. This is how she describes the benefits of long-term personal wellness coaching: "I had gotten injured in my two preceding marathons, so I wanted to successfully complete a marathon without injury. I had had two stress fractures in a year. My goal was first to stay injury free, specifically fracture-free. I also knew that I had nutritional issues that were likely linked to my injury problems. I had wanted to reduce my body fat, but as I learned about my eating issues and began to recognize my problems, I became more focused on eating nutritiously and eating the quantities that my body needed. I learned to accept that my body would find a balance between muscle and fat that was appropriate for me. I have not been injured in the past year and a half. I ran the Portland marathon in October and finished without injury. My body fat has been coming down slowly and I have increased my lean body mass. I feel much better than I did when I was depriving myself of food. I feel I have been successful. It has gotten easier and easier to eat plenty without questioning every bite that goes into my body. I have learned to listen to my body and eat when I am hungry.

It has helped me identify the issues I have around eating and competition. I have learned a lot. The competitive running community can be a difficult place to be. I felt that I needed to be excessively thin and lean to compete. I learned that if you are depriving yourself to get there, it will catch up with you and there are long-term consequences. A person can only run so long on inadequate calorie intake and low body fat. Eventually your body will break down.

Long term wellness coaching has helped me to keep focused on staying healthy. It reminds me that proper nutrition will help me meet my long term goals. By sticking with wellness coaching, I have continued to move forward and I no longer fear falling into my old ways. Wellness coaching has provided another level of support in my training." Miriam Jaffee, 25-year old runner

Evaluating your success

Working with a personal wellness coach can provide you with a more objective assessment of your ongoing success. They can assist you in obtaining objective measurements like body fat testing, blood work analysis, fitness assessments, and other measures of health and performance that can show concrete improvements in your progress. Many people tend to be impatient and become discouraged when success doesn't occur as quickly as they would like. Having a coach to assist you in evaluating your progress is a good way to help you stay on track, especially when you're working on long-term goals.

If you'd like to find out how personal wellness coaching may benefit you, feel free to give me a call. I'd love to help you develop a nutrition and/or training program that will assist you in your journey towards your health and fitness goals!

Heather Nakamura, MPE, MS, RD is a registered dietitian with Masters degrees in both Nutrition and Exercise Physiology. She develops nutrition and training programs for active individuals. (206) 595-2688.