A Health Coach For Men
Health Coaching is the use of conversation, clinical interventions and strategies to actively engage clients in behavior change. The process is focused on long-term habit change, rather than short term goals, to produce lasting results. It is a field that has gained much exposure recently, as health care providers are beginning to see the cost benefit of preventive medicine for their customers. It is also a field that has been predominantly populated by women, both on the coach and client side of things. It’s for this reason, that I personally think men don’t typically think of health coaching as a solution for them. They know that they would benefit from some guidance when it comes to diet and exercise, but they are unsure of how health coaching for men would fit in their paradigm. When it comes to health and wellness concerns, the needs of men and women are different. It’s understanding these differences that makes my coaching practice the right choice for men in their 40s and 50s to get advice and guidance on diet, exercise, stress, and more.
5 Problem Areas
If you were to ask a man in his 40s or 50s how maintaining his health “got away from him”, he may point out any or all of the following reasons. Now, these problems may not be entirely unique to only men…but they are areas of major concern for them.
- Men work long hours – The desire/need to succeed and provide for the family unit is a major influence to the state of many men’s health. We tend to work to the detriment of our own health, skipping meals, exercise, breaks, and allowing stress to pile up. This of course makes no sense, as we tend to work ourselves toward illness…then we can’t work.
- Men tend to “Suck it Up” – If you ignore it, it’ll go away…right? Wrong! Guys have the tendency to ignore the early warning signs of declining health like digestion problems, weight gain, and high blood pressure. We put it off until it’s too late, or we can’t deal with it on our own anymore.
- Lack of a game plan for their health – Having a general idea of where you currently are, and where you want to be is essential to making habit changes that last the long term. Without a road map, you’ll never get where you want to go.
- Having the right support structure – We all make better progress when we have someone who can hold us accountable when we fall off track.
- Stress responses and diet – As our bodies change when we start to get older, the way we eat and deal with stress need to change to reflect them. Eating a whole pizza by yourself on Friday night might be a good way to unwind in your early 20s, but we really pay a high price for that type of behavior in our 40s.
The Coaching Process
So, what happens in a men’s health coaching session? Probably not what you would expect. We’re not going to sit around sniffing incense and talk about our feelings. We are however, going to talk about what’s currently working in your health, what’s not, and then we’ll move on to some action steps to make some changes to your diet, exercise regimen, and how you deal with stress. It will be a professional meeting. There will be no nagging, no blaming, and no shaming during the session. We won’t be aligning your chakras or deep meditation. And, while we may try to dig deeper at times to see why certain things are happening, we’ll primarily be focused on fast results.
Health Coaching is a Good Fit For You When:
- You want to learn which foods will give you the most energy, and which ones rob you of energy
- You want to discover how to incorporate exercise and physical activity into your busy schedule
- You want to figure out the right meal schedule for optimal energy without sacrificing pleasurable eating
- You want to learn how to respond to stress effectively, keeping it from dominating your day
- You want to heal the symptoms of getting older like digestion issues, headaches, joint pain, low sex drive, and more!
Take the Next Step!
Why don’t you set up a time for you and I to talk about your current health with a 15 Minute Men’s Health Coach Strategy Session. This FREE call can be done over the phone or Skype, and we’ll discuss:
- What your current state of health and wellness is like.
- Where you would like to be in 90 days or less
- How we’ll get there with simple action steps and game plan for inevitable success
If you don’t know where to start, I’m here for you. In order to coach men’s health as effectively as possible, each and every week I set aside times for what I call Success Strategy Sessions. These short (and FREE!) coaching calls are designed to get you moving toward your goals and reaching them at lightening speed. During the call we’ll talk about where you currently are, where you’d like to be, and come up with some quick actionable steps you can take right away.
These calls are FREE, but I only have a limited amount of time to do them each and every week. They are “first-come-first-serve”. If you’d like to schedule a free Success Strategy Session CLICK HERE!
Keith Miller is a certified health and wellness coach and personal trainer in Louisville, KY. He offers in person and online 1-on-1 coaching services.
