Anyone who has embarked on a fitness journey will be all too familiar with the fluctuations in motivation that threaten to derail your progress entirely.
Whether you’re looking to achieve peak performance or want to adopt healthy lifestyle habits, making changes to your diet and activity levels is no easy feat when doing so alone. At some point, that burst of motivation that saw you bounding into the gym and cooking healthy dinners is likely to wane.
Thankfully, health coaches are here to prevent you from giving up on your goals. Armed with psychological and motivational strategies, these coaches can help you achieve optimal health by holding you accountable, tracking progress, setting realistic goals, and teaching you the skills required to take control of your well-being.
If you want to achieve optimal performance, health coaching is an essential tool in your arsenal. Along with learning the tools required to adopt healthy habits and make behavioural changes, a health coach can support you along your fitness journey and offers a range of science-backed benefits.
Curious to know more about what a health coach does, their effectiveness, or how health coaching can help you on your fitness journey? Here, we’ll cover everything you need to know about health coaching for health optimisation.
What is a health coach?
A health or wellness coach is a trained professional who uses psychological and motivational strategies to work with individuals to achieve their goals and make positive changes to improve their health.
Considered experts in the field of human behaviour and motivation, health coaches empower individuals to integrate healthy habits into their lifestyle, identify those areas that may need improvement, and devise strategies to overcome certain challenges. In this way, they differ from personal trainers who instead focus on effective exercise and fitness programs, typically with a focus on weight loss and strength training.
Health coaches may specialise in certain fields, such as lifestyle medicine, exercise science, and integrative nutrition, but they are all skilled in using evidence-based strategies to improve an individual’s health, such as cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) and motivational interviewing techniques.
Individuals may look to wellness coaching to overcome or manage the following health challenges:
- Weight loss or weight management
- Smoking
- Addiction
- The after-effects of a traumatic health condition such as a heart attack
- Behaviour change relating to health and wellness
- Chronic stress
- Sleep
- Nutrition
- Exercise
- Chronic disease management
- Time management
Whether you want to include more exercise into your daily routine after living a more sedentary lifestyle, need support giving up smoking or alcohol, or want tips on how to reduce stress, a health coach will work with you to address these issues.
What does health coaching involve?
Health coaching involves working with you to evaluate your lifestyle, diet, and habits around exercise and well-being. After considering these factors and your goals, a health coach can provide solutions, support, and guidance.
This might look like motivational interviewing, positive psychology strategies, working on goal setting that’s specific and achievable, and tactical strategies to implement positive lifestyle changes.
A session with a health coach will typically involve discussing your health goals, limitations, and challenges as they seek to understand your motivations and certain behaviours. Then, a health coach will work with you to create changes that allow you to take control of your health journey, which may involve a customised plan surrounding diet, exercise, wellness, or recovery, or strategies you can take action daily to keep showing up for your health.
A health coach will:
- Empower you to make positive changes and identify areas of weakness, improvement, or unhealthy habits that may be holding you back from achieving your goals
- Listen attentively to your vision and goals, and only help to provide a framework that is manageable and works with your lifestyle
- Help you to anticipate and overcome challenges and give you the skills to find solutions you may not have thought of previously
- Provide guidance on your journey without judgement
- Equip you with skills to problem-solve so you can make the best choices for your health in the future as new goals are set and new challenges arise
How effective is health coaching?
Just as elite athletes will enlist the services of a coach to improve technique, recovery, and athletic performance, any individual who wants to improve their health and lifestyle should consider working with a health coach.
The fact is that health coaching is extremely effective when it comes to a range of health issues, including weight loss, chronic conditions, diet and exercise, addiction, and stress reduction.
A study found that health coaching led to “clinically relevant improvements in multiple biomarker risk factors” such as cholesterol, blood pressure, body weight, and cardiorespiratory fitness, making it extremely valuable [1].
Another study found that for individuals with multiple chronic conditions, managing lifestyle changes for optimal health can be challenging, particularly if tasked with making health behaviour changes [2].
In this instance, health coaching was found to be an effective tool in facilitating the uptake of health behaviours and is seen as a “patient-centred intervention approach that uses solution-focused techniques to enhance motivation and positive action”.
This is why we use coaching as part of Compound's program, to help you achieve your health goals. We pair you up with a performance coach who onboards you into the program and monitors how you're going, staying in regular contact via a messaging app as well as video calls.
They also work to orchestrate a wider team across clinical, diet and PT, and are backed by the considerable knowledge of our advisory panel of experts.
As a Compound member, you also have access to your own Australian Compound doctor who is with you for every step of the journey, and is well-versed with the latest in preventative healthcare and performance.
How can health coaching help on your health journey?
Regardless of your goals, health professionals (like health coaches) can provide guidance and support to help you every step of the way.
As well as gaining the tools and knowledge required to take control of your health and make informed decisions, you’ll also be able to make behavioural changes that become part of your daily routine. In doing so, you’ll create sustainable habits that ultimately lead to success and optimised health.
Still unsure how a health coach can help on your health journey? Consider the following benefits health coaching can provide.
Accountability to your fitness plan
For long-term, sustainable results, you need a consistent routine that makes a healthy diet and exercise a fixture of your daily life.
By holding you accountable to your goals, a health coach can support you in staying on track and showing up consistently, even when your motivation wanes, and you need help staying committed.
For example, studies have found that people trying to quit smoking were 73% more likely to be successful in quitting when working with a health coach [3].
Informed diet choices
When it comes to overhauling your health, one of the biggest struggles is improving your diet. Thankfully, a health coach can give you the knowledge necessary to make informed nutrition choices, setting you up for sustainable weight loss or weight management.
In a study of 11 different trials, researchers found that people who enlisted the services of a health coach ate more fruits and vegetables and less unhealthy fats than those who didn’t work with a health coach [4].
Set realistic goals
Too often, we set lofty goals when it comes to weight loss or peak performance. A health coach can work with you to understand your vision and then develop specific, realistic, achievable goals with a clear timeframe so you can move forward with ease.
Weight loss
If you’re looking to lose weight, a health coach can see you achieve your goals quicker than if you were doing it alone.
According to a clinical trial conducted on 415 people, those who met with a health coach virtually or in person lost more weight than those who were left to lose weight on their own [5].
Improved sleep
Wellness coaching takes a holistic approach to one’s well-being, and sleep is an essential part. Studies have shown that health coaching can be instrumental in improving sleep hygiene, which in turn improves your quality of life.
Celebrate wins
When motivation falters, it can be difficult to keep going. In these instances, a health coach is particularly useful. Along with providing emotional support and guidance, they can also help track your progress so you can visualise improvements in your health and celebrate each win.
Overcome challenges
No matter where you are in your health journey, it’s inevitable that challenges will arise. Whether they present in the form of an injury, a health-related accident, emotional setbacks, or a change to your routine, a health coach provides knowledge and tools to anticipate obstacles and overcome them.
How to access health coaching
Now that you know the benefits of a health coach and how they can help you on your fitness journey, you’re probably wondering where you can access health coaching.
Wellness coaching is available on a range of platforms, from in-person consultations to online platforms. Some healthcare providers also offer coaching as part of their services, so be sure to check in with your doctor or health professional to see if this is available.
If you're looking to invest in your health, with the help of our Compound preventative healthcare experts, we're here to help.
We see health and performance as an investment — one that grows through data-driven insights, gradual changes, and hard work.
Compound’s program is executed in 3 stages — starting with a suite of diagnostics to get the clearest picture of health you’ve ever had, using tools like DEXA scans and a VO2 max test. This is followed by a complete diet, health and training program, all guided by an expert coach.
The final piece of the puzzle is medical treatment, supplements and hardware that you need to boost performance and meet your goals.
Once you commit, our team is dedicated to ensuring you see returns. Your part won’t be easy but we’ll equip you for success like never before.
Anyone who has embarked on a fitness journey will be all too familiar with the fluctuations in motivation that threaten to derail your progress entirely.
Whether you’re looking to achieve peak performance or want to adopt healthy lifestyle habits, making changes to your diet and activity levels is no easy feat when doing so alone. At some point, that burst of motivation that saw you bounding into the gym and cooking healthy dinners is likely to wane.
Thankfully, health coaches are here to prevent you from giving up on your goals. Armed with psychological and motivational strategies, these coaches can help you achieve optimal health by holding you accountable, tracking progress, setting realistic goals, and teaching you the skills required to take control of your well-being.
If you want to achieve optimal performance, health coaching is an essential tool in your arsenal. Along with learning the tools required to adopt healthy habits and make behavioural changes, a health coach can support you along your fitness journey and offers a range of science-backed benefits.
Curious to know more about what a health coach does, their effectiveness, or how health coaching can help you on your fitness journey? Here, we’ll cover everything you need to know about health coaching for health optimisation.
What is a health coach?
A health or wellness coach is a trained professional who uses psychological and motivational strategies to work with individuals to achieve their goals and make positive changes to improve their health.
Considered experts in the field of human behaviour and motivation, health coaches empower individuals to integrate healthy habits into their lifestyle, identify those areas that may need improvement, and devise strategies to overcome certain challenges. In this way, they differ from personal trainers who instead focus on effective exercise and fitness programs, typically with a focus on weight loss and strength training.
Health coaches may specialise in certain fields, such as lifestyle medicine, exercise science, and integrative nutrition, but they are all skilled in using evidence-based strategies to improve an individual’s health, such as cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) and motivational interviewing techniques.
Individuals may look to wellness coaching to overcome or manage the following health challenges:
- Weight loss or weight management
- Smoking
- Addiction
- The after-effects of a traumatic health condition such as a heart attack
- Behaviour change relating to health and wellness
- Chronic stress
- Sleep
- Nutrition
- Exercise
- Chronic disease management
- Time management
Whether you want to include more exercise into your daily routine after living a more sedentary lifestyle, need support giving up smoking or alcohol, or want tips on how to reduce stress, a health coach will work with you to address these issues.
What does health coaching involve?
Health coaching involves working with you to evaluate your lifestyle, diet, and habits around exercise and well-being. After considering these factors and your goals, a health coach can provide solutions, support, and guidance.
This might look like motivational interviewing, positive psychology strategies, working on goal setting that’s specific and achievable, and tactical strategies to implement positive lifestyle changes.
A session with a health coach will typically involve discussing your health goals, limitations, and challenges as they seek to understand your motivations and certain behaviours. Then, a health coach will work with you to create changes that allow you to take control of your health journey, which may involve a customised plan surrounding diet, exercise, wellness, or recovery, or strategies you can take action daily to keep showing up for your health.
A health coach will:
- Empower you to make positive changes and identify areas of weakness, improvement, or unhealthy habits that may be holding you back from achieving your goals
- Listen attentively to your vision and goals, and only help to provide a framework that is manageable and works with your lifestyle
- Help you to anticipate and overcome challenges and give you the skills to find solutions you may not have thought of previously
- Provide guidance on your journey without judgement
- Equip you with skills to problem-solve so you can make the best choices for your health in the future as new goals are set and new challenges arise
How effective is health coaching?
Just as elite athletes will enlist the services of a coach to improve technique, recovery, and athletic performance, any individual who wants to improve their health and lifestyle should consider working with a health coach.
The fact is that health coaching is extremely effective when it comes to a range of health issues, including weight loss, chronic conditions, diet and exercise, addiction, and stress reduction.
A study found that health coaching led to “clinically relevant improvements in multiple biomarker risk factors” such as cholesterol, blood pressure, body weight, and cardiorespiratory fitness, making it extremely valuable [1].
Another study found that for individuals with multiple chronic conditions, managing lifestyle changes for optimal health can be challenging, particularly if tasked with making health behaviour changes [2].
In this instance, health coaching was found to be an effective tool in facilitating the uptake of health behaviours and is seen as a “patient-centred intervention approach that uses solution-focused techniques to enhance motivation and positive action”.
This is why we use coaching as part of Compound's program, to help you achieve your health goals. We pair you up with a performance coach who onboards you into the program and monitors how you're going, staying in regular contact via a messaging app as well as video calls.
They also work to orchestrate a wider team across clinical, diet and PT, and are backed by the considerable knowledge of our advisory panel of experts.
As a Compound member, you also have access to your own Australian Compound doctor who is with you for every step of the journey, and is well-versed with the latest in preventative healthcare and performance.
How can health coaching help on your health journey?
Regardless of your goals, health professionals (like health coaches) can provide guidance and support to help you every step of the way.
As well as gaining the tools and knowledge required to take control of your health and make informed decisions, you’ll also be able to make behavioural changes that become part of your daily routine. In doing so, you’ll create sustainable habits that ultimately lead to success and optimised health.
Still unsure how a health coach can help on your health journey? Consider the following benefits health coaching can provide.
Accountability to your fitness plan
For long-term, sustainable results, you need a consistent routine that makes a healthy diet and exercise a fixture of your daily life.
By holding you accountable to your goals, a health coach can support you in staying on track and showing up consistently, even when your motivation wanes, and you need help staying committed.
For example, studies have found that people trying to quit smoking were 73% more likely to be successful in quitting when working with a health coach [3].
Informed diet choices
When it comes to overhauling your health, one of the biggest struggles is improving your diet. Thankfully, a health coach can give you the knowledge necessary to make informed nutrition choices, setting you up for sustainable weight loss or weight management.
In a study of 11 different trials, researchers found that people who enlisted the services of a health coach ate more fruits and vegetables and less unhealthy fats than those who didn’t work with a health coach [4].
Set realistic goals
Too often, we set lofty goals when it comes to weight loss or peak performance. A health coach can work with you to understand your vision and then develop specific, realistic, achievable goals with a clear timeframe so you can move forward with ease.
Weight loss
If you’re looking to lose weight, a health coach can see you achieve your goals quicker than if you were doing it alone.
According to a clinical trial conducted on 415 people, those who met with a health coach virtually or in person lost more weight than those who were left to lose weight on their own [5].
Improved sleep
Wellness coaching takes a holistic approach to one’s well-being, and sleep is an essential part. Studies have shown that health coaching can be instrumental in improving sleep hygiene, which in turn improves your quality of life.
Celebrate wins
When motivation falters, it can be difficult to keep going. In these instances, a health coach is particularly useful. Along with providing emotional support and guidance, they can also help track your progress so you can visualise improvements in your health and celebrate each win.
Overcome challenges
No matter where you are in your health journey, it’s inevitable that challenges will arise. Whether they present in the form of an injury, a health-related accident, emotional setbacks, or a change to your routine, a health coach provides knowledge and tools to anticipate obstacles and overcome them.
How to access health coaching
Now that you know the benefits of a health coach and how they can help you on your fitness journey, you’re probably wondering where you can access health coaching.
Wellness coaching is available on a range of platforms, from in-person consultations to online platforms. Some healthcare providers also offer coaching as part of their services, so be sure to check in with your doctor or health professional to see if this is available.
If you're looking to invest in your health, with the help of our Compound preventative healthcare experts, we're here to help.
We see health and performance as an investment — one that grows through data-driven insights, gradual changes, and hard work.
Compound’s program is executed in 3 stages — starting with a suite of diagnostics to get the clearest picture of health you’ve ever had, using tools like DEXA scans and a VO2 max test. This is followed by a complete diet, health and training program, all guided by an expert coach.
The final piece of the puzzle is medical treatment, supplements and hardware that you need to boost performance and meet your goals.
Once you commit, our team is dedicated to ensuring you see returns. Your part won’t be easy but we’ll equip you for success like never before.
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