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Health Coaching

Health Coaching

Certified Health Coaching

As experts on human behavior and motivation, health coaches help clients achieve their health goals and empower them to integrate healthy habits into their lifestyles. In health coaching, both the coach and the client talk about health issues that fall within an overall wellness vision. Together, we devise goals and strategies for achieving the client’s goals. As a Certified Health & Wellness Coach, I partner with clients seeking to enhance their well-being through self-directed, lasting changes aligned with their values.

What is my role as a health coach?

My role as a health coach is to help clients recognize and sustain new healthy behaviors. My purpose as a coach is to help you navigate the change process and support your behavior choices, not to tell you what to do. That may seem strange at first, but this approach has been shown to be much more effective in creating sustainable behavior change.

My role in our coaching partnership is to serve as your partner, ally and guide. This whole session is about you – you will set the agenda and you will set the weekly goals and action steps that feel right for you according to what you want to accomplish. After all, you are the expert on yourself! I am here to ask questions, act as a sounding board, and brainstorm when applicable.  I honor the fact that each client is an expert in their own life, while ensuring that all interactions are respectful and nonjudgmental. I display an unconditional positive regard for my clients, and a belief in their capacity for change.

While I do have experience in fitness and wellness education, personal training, nutrition and Tai Chi/Qigong, and can answer specific questions you may have in those areas, I will not be acting in those roles during our sessions.

My goal is to:

  • Enable my clients to make long-term, self-directed changes consistent with their values to improve health, wellness, and general well-being.
  • Offer unconditional support and encouragement to my clients in their ability to implement lasting change.
  • Work together in a variety of environments, from clinical, online or individually.
  • Believe that the most qualified party to make decisions about a client’s health is the client.

Examples of areas we can cover:

  • Nutrition and weight loss
  • Exercise and fitness
  • Stress reduction
  • Health and lifestyle issues such as diabetes management and prevention
  • Achieving better work/life balance
  • Increased life satisfaction

One-on-one coaching is available via: Zoom, telephone or in person sessions

Janet C.

Wendy helped me to develop confidence in my capacity to take concrete steps to improve my health. Her positive encouragement, knowledge of many aspects of health, support in taking manageable steps and setting S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals has made a lasting difference. I can’t imagine doing this on my own.

Dustin W.

Wendy Smith's true name should be Wonderful Wendy, because that's exactly what she is! In five health coaching sessions with her, I've gotten new ideas, encouragement, and reinforcement from her for all the ways I'm trying to improve my health and fitness. Wendy is flexible, positive, and a true delight to work with. I'd recommend her services to anyone who needs health and wellness coaching. Thanks again for everything, Wonderful Wendy!

Kelly S

Wendy Smith has been a game-changer for my health and wellness journey. As a person with some physical limitations, I feel Wendy's role as a guide and an ally in my wellness journey and help with behavior change has made a significant difference in my life. Wendy's support and expertise have empowered me to achieve my fitness goals, and I highly recommend her to anyone looking to improve their health.

Nicole R.

Wendy helped me move forward with my goal of decluttering. Her insights, encouragement and support were very valuable in guiding me to my success.

What is MI (Motivational Interviewing)? – A collaborative method for eliciting and strengthening someone’s own motivation to change. This method was originally used for addiction treatment, but has now spread to any area where there is ambivalence about change. It’s not specific to behavior change, it can also be used to deal with depression, among other things. The key is that the person is reluctant or ambivalent about change. This is one of the key components of health coaching.

Who started MI?– William Miller and Stephen Rollnick

Video Examples:
1-This is an example of a session with the techniques detailed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQzrx7JmUkM&t=4s

2- The focus of this video is on engaging someone who is annoyed or what we call a session on “discord“ by one of the founders, Stephen Rollnick. This is a great example of someone resistant to change and how Rollnick turns it around in 6 min! This looks like a conversation but it is not.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTRRNWrwRCo

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