Weight Loss Coaching FAQs 

• Do I have to be local to you to become a coaching client?

Not at all. I coach people throughout the United States.

• Where are your weight loss coaching sessions conducted?

All coaching sessions take place by phone or video call, so you can talk to me wherever you are.

• When are coaching appointments available?

Most sessions are weekdays, with evening and weekend appointments available upon request.

• What happens if I need to ask a question or share something between coaching sessions?

No worries, I’m here for you! Being able to ask questions, share things that happen and ask for a little extra encouragement and support are essential to your success. All coaching packages include unlimited email and text access to me personally between coaching sessions for the duration of the program.

• Do I have to follow a special diet?

Absolutely not!  It’s my belief that no food should ever be off limits. My philosophy is that as long as a less than ideal food is made over into a healthier version, is substituted for with something equally satisfying, or in the rare cases where neither of those is possible, is consumed in small quantities as a treat, and ideally on an active exercise day, it’s never off limits.

• Will you give me a meal plan to follow?

No. I’m not a Registered Dietician and that would be beyond the scope of my practice. However, I don’t believe that meal plans are realistic for sustainable weight loss that fits with who you are. You can get proper nutrition and achieve healthy weight loss without being so structured.  In fact, it’s the structure that often leads to feelings of deprivation which makes it hard to keep weight loss efforts going. 

When we’re going about our day, it’s tough to stick to a meal plan when real life often dictates eating on the go, eating out and social occasions—and this is where many people run into trouble. If they aren’t on their plan, they don’t know what to do. I believe that learning to eat with proper balance between what your body needs for fuel each day vs. what you’re burning off overall without a meal plan is more realistic and is the approach I take.

If you have special dietary needs that require meal planning, then I will work in conjunction with your licensed nutrition professional or refer you to one.

• Can you coach me if I’ve been on Weight Watchers®, Jenny Craig®, Nutrisystem® or another weight loss program already in the past without success?

Absolutely! I work with many people who have previously been on a commercial weight loss program and regained the weight.  

While these commercial weight loss programs offer a sound approach, keep in mind that the “counselors” they employ are typically not highly experienced Nationally Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coaches from nationally-recognized programs. They’re usually people who have done the program themselves, have gotten additional sales training from the company and are not necessarily supervised by weight loss professionals. They are usually on sales quotas and work on commission to sell the program’s food, supplements or products and there’s less incentive to teach you to lose and maintain weight using your own food.  Another thing to watch out for is that some of them are now leaning into weight loss drugs.

Most importantly, while some of these programs claim to individualize, most are only set up to allow minor deviations from their standard plan. And this is exactly why I end up coaching many people who have been on a commercial weight loss program and have gained all the weight back—they never got behind the “whys” of why they personally gain and regain weight, and a plan to overcome these obstacles for good that fit them uniquely.

• Can you coach me if I’m a vegetarian or vegan?

Absolutely!  I was both a vegan and then a vegetarian for several years previously, and then I found for me, a flexitarian diet (mostly meatless with primarily fish and some poultry, and for me no red meat) worked best. So, I’ve been there and can definitely support you in your weight loss and weight maintenance efforts following such an eating style. 

It’s not about what diet you follow (if it’s nutritionally sound and not a fad). It’s about making it a realistic and sustainable effort that becomes a way of life that fits who you uniquely are.

• Can you coach me if I have a medical condition?

It does depend on the medical condition, but typically if I receive medical clearance from your healthcare professional that it’s okay for you to work on losing weight, it’s not an issue. Doctors are pleased to know that their patients are working with a Nationally Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach who is qualified to personally see to it that you finally get down to a healthy weight in a healthy way.  It makes their job much easier too!

• Do I have to buy any products or supplements from you?

Definitely not! Unfortunately, there are a lot of network marketing programs out there who try to capitalize on quick weight loss fixes (that don’t last), and people who are trying to make a quick buck by selling shakes, supplements and other products of questionable value.

They then call their people Health or Wellness Coaches when they don’t have any formal training or nationally-recognized certifications in weight management programming, exercise programming, behavior change, nutrition and exercise science, screening, assessment, coaching skills and the needs of special populations. Plus, many of these people hocking shakes have never even been overweight and have no idea what it’s like to struggle with losing weight and keeping it off!

When you work with me, you’re working with someone who is Nationally Board-Certified as a Health and Wellness Coach — one of the first coaches in the country to have earned this designation which is a collaboration between the National Board of Medical Examiners and the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching and Wellcoaches (which is endorsed by the American College of Sports Medicine) and the American Council on Exercise that I have demonstrated proficiency in these crucial subjects. Plus, I’ve been in your shoes having struggled in the past with my weight and emotional/stress eating issues, so I “get” you!

The answer to being the healthiest and happiest you simply does not come from a specific product or pill, it’s about understanding why you gain and regain weight, coming up with appropriate fixes that are a fit with who you are, and then learning to make healthy choices on a consistent basis that are sustainable without feeling deprived.

• Do you design my exercise program and work out with me?

I am an American Council on Exercise Certified Personal Trainer and use that knowledge in our work together but will not be operating in that capacity as your Coach. My job is more about why you either don’t exercise or have trouble sticking with exercise, and then getting you in a place where you overcome your obstacles to exercising regularly in a way that works for you.  

• I’m not a fan of the scale. Do I have to weigh myself daily?

Absolutely not!  Many people have very powerful emotions that come to the surface when it comes time to step on the scale.  We’ll work together to find your comfort zone when it comes to tracking your progress. While it is helpful to gather this data at a consistent interval of your choice, it’s even possible to skip the scale altogether if it is truly an obstacle for you and use alternative measures of your success.

• How quickly will I lose weight?

How fast you lose weight depends upon your individual effort, how closely you stick to your calorie and exercise targets, whether you’re male or female, how overweight you are, your stress levels, your sleep, and your metabolism.  But, in general, we’re looking to lose weight at a safe rate that stays off for good.  You shouldn’t be in a rush!  You didn’t lose weight overnight, so you can’t expect it to come off just like that either. But it will come off.

Initially, if you do your part, you’ll probably lose two to five pounds the first week (and probably around 7 if you're obese).  Now quite a bit of this will be water weight, but it’s still something.  Over time, you’ll keep losing safely at a rate of anywhere from a half a pound to two pounds per week (for those who are overweight; obese individuals may lose up to three pounds per week safely).  Some weeks you’ll lose and some you won’t, but your overall trend will be down.

Keep in mind, that it took me a year and a half to lose 48 pounds to take me to the low end of normal for my height and frame because a slower, but steady rate worked best for me.  Sometimes I actively worked on losing weight and sometimes I didn't and just went for weight maintenance, and it stayed off this time as a result!

•  I’ve tried to lose weight lots of times without any luck, how will this time be different?

Most people try to lose weight on a fad diet which is doomed to failure for many reasons. Typically, it’s because they were trying to do it using methods that were not something that they could stick with long enough to lose weight, and what they were doing was actually slowing down their metabolisms.

But even people who healthfully try to lose weight often don’t succeed because they never get down to the actual reasons why they gain weight, and then have a plan that specifically works for them on how to overcome these obstacles for good without feeling deprived.  In addition, people often set very unrealistic goals and set themselves up for failure when they don’t reach them which is demoralizing and leads them to believe they can’t lose weight, when they absolutely can.

The fact that you’ve lost any weight before means you know you can be successful at losing weight, you just need to make some changes to make it happen for good.

• I’ve lost weight before and I always gain it back, how will I keep it off this time?

What most people don’t realize is that it’s not about losing the weight as much as it is about keeping it off! One of the issues is that they think that making healthy changes is temporary—that once they hit goal weight they can relax and do what they want and it’s the end of the journey.  If you want to keep the weight off, there is no end, you must stick with what got you into your new healthy, slim, sexy body—with some modifications of course.

Plus, you’ll keep the weight off this time because together we’ll have a plan in place for living with your weight loss success. You’ll have the opportunity to keep working with me to learn how to maintain your weight for good and get my support for how to live happily ever after at your new weight. 

When people lose weight, they say “I’m never going back to where I was” but studies show that within five years, most people regain the weight they lose and then some (and I’ve been there, done that, too so don’t feel bad). That’s because they don’t have me as a Coach who has personally gone through the exact same thing — the aftermath of weight loss and then finally learning to keep the weight off so it will be different this time.  You worked so hard to get the weight off, together we’ll make sure that this time it really does stay off!

• How long will I need to coach with you when I become a client to achieve my goals?

Studies have shown that it generally takes six months to establish a new behavior, so we want to give it at least three months to accomplish meaningful change that starts you towards your final weight loss goal. Keep in mind the safe rate of weight loss of one to two pounds per week for most people, and the body lets go of weight when it is ready.  

• What does your coaching cost?

I like to think of it as not a cost, but one of the most worthwhile investments you can ever make in yourself. When you think about all that you’re missing out on in your life right now because your weight is holding you back, and how many years you may be cutting your life short because of what the extra weight is doing to your body, I think you’ll agree.  

• Can I just do a single session with you without a 3 or 6 month commitment?

I do offer a special VIP/Retreat Day for laser coaching. However, real success happens when you're all in and give yourself at least 90 days of full coaching and support with me as your expert guide. Most of the people who have chosen to start with me with a single session, quickly realize how much more they benefit by having access to me as their Coach ongoing day in and day out.

• Do you offer a guarantee that I’ll lose weight?

Based on all of the clients I’ve coached, and what I know is possible, I can’t imagine that you’d be the only person that my proven program based on the National Board standards, Wellcoaches/ACSM and ACE models and my personal experience in losing weight and maintaining my weight loss wouldn’t work for.  There’s no reason why you would be the exception here.

If you follow the program, take it seriously, and do the work that you choose weekly, you can absolutely expect to lose weight and inches at a safe, steady pace and feel much happier, much more energetic and much healthier than you are today. If I take you on as a client, it’ll be because I believe in your success… and if you don’t quite believe it yourself yet, don’t worry as very soon you will!