For me, it was a slow road into health and wellness coaching. I took many different turns before landing solidly in this field. Truth be told, because it is a relatively new and emerging field, I wondered how effective a coach could be at assisting others in making lifestyle changes that support their long term health and wellness. No matter which way I turned, what I read, or studied, I continued to be drawn back to the field of coaching. The more I researched, the more I discovered a growing body of evidence, including clinical research, that supports the benefits of health and wellness coaching and the shift to it becoming part of the standard of healthcare (Gordon, N. F., Salmon, R. D., Wright, B. S., Faircloth, G. C., Reid, K. S., & Gordon, T. L., 2016). In fact, all over the country we are beginning to see health and wellness coaches working everywhere from large corporations to small universities, as part of bigger medical organizations to working within private practices and mental health care facilities. We are growing in practice because, with the proper training, we are effective at supporting people in changing their lives. Further, governing bodies such as the National Board of Health and Wellness Coaches (NBHWC) are working tirelessly to ensure the credibility and ongoing education of its coaches making us some of the most highly trained coaches on the market. A practice rooted in social learning theory, positive psychology, Transtheoretical Model of Change, Appreciative Inquiry, and Motivational Interviewing, health and wellness coaching has been proven to increase client’s self-efficacy, sense of autonomy, and self determination leading to lasting lifestyle changes and improved states of health and wellbeing. This leaves only one question,
What would it take for you to make one change to improve your quality of life?
