In the introduction to coaching for fitness, we emphasize the importance of eliciting autonomous motivation from clients to foster long-term success. The role of a coach is to facilitate this process by asking insightful, open-ended questions, listening more than talking, and guiding clients to discover their own solutions. We also highlight the need for patience, empathy, and neutrality in the coaching relationship. The stages of coaching include creating a coaching contract, gathering information, establishing wellness vision and goals, and reviewing progress in each session. The ultimate goal is to help clients develop a sense of purpose, improve self-image and confidence, and become the best version of themselves.

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

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Welcome to an introduction to coaching for fitness. Professionals.

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Aria Button

Aria Button

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by addressing the psychological as well as behavioral aspects behind their choices. And this leads to long-term success beyond just physical changes.

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And what does that mean to you?

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That means clients who stay with you, clients who talk about you to their friends, their family, their doctors, and potentially, this leads to not only client retention, but more referrals for you.

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So how does coaching work? Well, we help our clients by eliciting autonomous motivation.

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What does that mean? Well, when we take the Latin root auto that means comes from within comes from yourself. So in this case, within your client.

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and this stems from a theory that was developed in the 19 seventies called the self determination theory, and it is based on the idea that humans are best motivated to do tasks by intrinsic factors instead of extrinsic. So intrinsic comes from within. Where extrinsic is you cracking a whip, telling people if they don't do 20 pushups that you're going to beat them

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with 10 lashes.

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So, according to Ryan and Deezy, autonomy is the most critical in driving intrinsic motivation. So the feeling of independence drives individuals to do their best work.

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and is at the absolute heart of autonomous motivation. So the more autonomy a person feels, the more motivated they will become.

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So. Ask yourself, how can we bring this out within our clients and even within ourselves.

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So the goal of coaching is to promote personal growth

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by eliciting

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this autonomous motivation.

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So rather than us extrinsically motivating our clients, we are bringing out from within them their own motivation, and that increases the capacity for change. It facilitates the process through visualization, goal setting and accountability.

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But we're partnering with our clients. We are not dictating the terms. We help them by provoking thought. We inspire them to reach their full potential in all areas of their life, not just fitness. So

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even though we are exercise professionals, we have to look at all of the things that go into a healthy lifestyle, and this is everything, from sleep to diet to stress management. You know, work-life balance, and then, of course, fitness.

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So we treat our clients

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as the expert in their life, and shouldn't they be? We have to believe in their ability to be creative and resourceful in their own self-discovery, and if we express any doubt, or roll our eyes, or hmm and ha! Then they are going to lose that inner power and that inner motivation.

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So what is the responsibility of a coach?

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Well, I think this is really important, because we talk about staying within scope of practice. And this is this is a little less official. This this is, you know, more lay person. We want to make sure that we're discovering that we're clarifying and aligning with our clients goals. So we may not necessarily share the same goals or understanding. Or maybe we think that their goals should be different. But that's not what this is about.

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We want to encourage their own self discovery.

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So we elicit. We bring out client generated that is, if I could highlight that and put it in, you know, bold, flashing lights that

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is so important, that is, at the heart of coaching client generated solutions through collaborative. We work together.

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strategizing. So we are coming up with the strategies, but we are doing more listening and less talking.

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and think. You know, we have

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2 ears and only one mouth. So we should be doing twice as much listening, and we must make sure that we hold them responsible and accountable. So in in that case, you know, we we are

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overseeing

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what they're doing and what they're choosing, and and perhaps even having rewards. I wouldn't go as far as to say punishments. I don't like that word. But you know, discussing with them how they could have done things differently, what they would have done differently, because, you know, none of us want to feel like a failure. We don't need someone else to tell us that we we failed at our goal. We know we beat ourselves up. So that's the last thing as the coach that we want to do.

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So we need to apply our knowledge and skills to simply assist our clients to awaken their own internal strengths and and use what they already have in their toolbox as a resource.

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So reiterate, we're gonna listen more. We're gonna speak less.

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We're going to ask more. And we're gonna tell less.

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And we are going to reflect

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more and comment less. And I know personally, I have a hard time with that, because quiet makes me very uneasy. So sometimes I I talk a lot or or gibberish, just because the silence is awkward to me. But you just have to live with that and wait for your client to speak, which can be very, very challenging.

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So what are the expectations that we have for our client, and I think this is a really good kind of synopsis

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all around. Granted, we can get more specific, and some people may have, you know, more of of one than another, but increase self-awareness and self-knowledge.

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increase personal responsibility for life choices. How many times do you hear? Somebody blame everything that's going wrong in their life on someone or something else.

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We don't want to tell them that that's what they're doing. We want them to look inside and to figure that out, and then when they do, that's when we can say, you know, I I am glad that you came to that conclusion on your own. I think you're onto something.

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We want to help them acquire new skills as well as the knowledge necessary for change. So maybe that is through reading. Maybe that is through a support group. Maybe that is through taking a college course

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depends on the individual. It depends what they have access to.

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and we're going to help them to reach their personal and health goals, but not by telling them what to do. We are going to inspire them, to pull it out of themselves and figure out the solutions, and that is what is going to allow them to sustain behavioral changes, because anybody can go on a diet for a short period of time. Anybody can do a 30 day challenge.

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But can you keep

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those those lap? Can you make those changes lasting, or is it going to be short lived. And ultimately.

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when we take control of our minds, of our bodies, of our lives, we have better satisfaction with life. So that is what we want for our clients. We want them to have that improved self-image and confidence, to develop a sense of purpose that provides meaning to their life.

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and ultimately we want them to become the best version of themself

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emotions and shared positive emotions in caring relationships improve mental and physical health.

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Just sit with that for a moment

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and and think about how this affects you in your life.

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When you are around

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positivity, when you're around positive people versus negative people when you're around people who boost you up versus people who tear you down.

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And I think as a fitness professional.

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we we know these things. I'm gonna use the word intrinsically. But

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sometimes we and I'm speaking as

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as a whole, you know, as the fitness industry. Take it a little bit too far, you know, with with spandex and with hardcore, you know, high intensity, training, and these expectations that so many people are overwhelmed with. It's it's like we have to start with, bite, size pieces, and and gradually and incrementally encourage people to make change

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and healthcare providers.

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So not talking fitness

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are not equipped with the tools.

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They don't have the time

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to actually help their patients learn sustainable habits.

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leaving behind the ones that are, you know, currently or previously harmful.

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and they are unable to get insurance reimbursement. So what do they do? They tell their patients? Oh, yeah, exercise, you know. Oh, quit smoking. Here's the number, for, you know, smoking cessation. Give them a call, but there's no follow through, there's no accountability. And so what happens? The patient continues to smoke. The patient continues to drink, the patient continues to gain weight, to become unhealthy and have dis

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ease. So this is where we can come in as that next step in the healthcare continuum.

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So we must gain an understanding of where our client is. That is the point where we meet them.

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We encourage them to take charge of their life and their personal choices.

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and we are simply a guide to help them build that much needed self-confidence.

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We help them to create their own blueprint for health and well-being.

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We address both mental and physical health and well-being, while encouraging them to create their own health and wellness plan. And yes, we can have them map it out. We can have them draw it. We can have them do it on their computer. They can use crayons. They can use colored pencils. It doesn't matter whatever works for that individual.

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We want to inspire them to set and achieve realistic goals.

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So is it realistic when somebody says they want to lose 20 pounds in a month.

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sure, if they're on ozempic. But for the rest of the world, one to 2 pounds a week.

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and so if your client comes in and says I'm going to lose 20 pounds this month, how do we tell them, or how do we encourage them to to, you know, pull it out of themselves that that is not realistic.

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because if they set unrealistic goals they will not reach the goals, and they certainly will not maintain them.

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so we want to employ them to draw on their own personal strengths.

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to overcome challenges.

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and view each and every one of them as an opportunity for personal growth.

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So ultimately we inspire them to reach beyond what they feel that they're able to do on their own.

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Encourage your clients to uncover their own solutions.

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allowing them to create new possibilities without giving them the actual answers. And yes, this means we sit back

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and listen, and sometimes we are listening to absolute silence, but do everything you can to keep your mouth shut.

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and just let them figure out the answers, and that is so hard to do. It is so hard because we're in a helping profession, and we may know the answers.

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but we can't give them to them. And this is very different than what most of us have learned as fitness professionals.

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so

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are we an expert.

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or are we merely a facilitator?

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Coaches should guide rather than direct the client to establish goals and strategies.

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Coaches should ask insightful, open-ended questions, such as, Do you.

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will you?

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Or did you

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and coaches listen more than talk, expressing both empathy and curiosity. So

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you really need to work on empathy. If this does not come natural to you

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and look up the definition, what is empathy

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and curiosity? We need to be curious about their lives, and you know once again learning more about them. But empathy is the actual ability to understand and share another person's feelings and experiences. Now, that doesn't mean it's you know. Oh, I know what you're going through. I know how you feel.

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No, you've really got to use your words carefully unless you have walked in same exact shoes that they have.

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And we need to ask nonjudgmental

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think about that one, because sometimes we can be judgmental with a facial expression or you know a body language. So really watch the way you

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present yourself.

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We want to ask, not thought, provoking questions. Non-judgmental

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thought, provoking questions while delivering compelling reflection. So this is where we take the information that they have given us.

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and we we kind of

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sift it if you will, to come out with a reflection, and we'll talk more about that later.

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Coaches must be patient, so if that is not your virtue, you will probably not do well with this. We must allow the client the time needed to gain their personal momentum

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as well as their desire for change.

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Now, Thomas Gordon, back in 1970, outlined 12 ways of being that do not demonstrate the approach taken by a coach. So let's go through these and really understand this. We do not order, direct or command.

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That sounds a lot like personal trainer, doesn't it? We?

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avoid warning, cautioning, or threatening.

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we avoid giving advice.

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making suggestions.

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and providing solutions. We want them to come up with their own solution.

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We don't persuade.

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even if it's with logic, we don't argue, we don't lecture.

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We don't tell people what they should do.

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We don't disagree. You might disagree, but you're not going to verbalize it

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or show it physically. We're not going to judge, criticize, or blame.

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And I can think of so many different ways

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that I've perhaps done that.

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you know, inadvertently, throughout my fitness. Career.

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But we also don't want them to to blame. We want them to take responsibility.

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We're also on the flip side, not going to agree or approve or praise, we maintain neutrality, we don't shame, we don't ridicule, we don't label.

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we don't even interpret or analyze.

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It's not for us that is their job.

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We don't reassure, we don't sympathize, we don't console. And at this point you might be going. Wow! So are we just a bump on a log, or are we just, you know, a cyborg, a computer? And it almost feels that way.

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like, like we're AI. But there's a process, and this is a process that has worked for a very long time with great success.

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We don't ask questions, we do not probe, and when I say we don't ask questions, we we ask open-ended questions.

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We don't lead by saying, Oh, so did your husband do, Xyz, or you know, was it your child that made you do that? That's a that's a lot different than open, ended question, where? Where? They kind of fill in the blanks.

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And, lastly, we don't withdraw distract humor, or change the subject.

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Health and wellness. Coaches address the whole person

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what it means to thrive mentally and physically.

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and how to leverage the biology of change.

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The coaching relationship is designed to facilitate sustainable change and optimize health and well-being.

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All right, we're going to talk about the stages of coaching. So, beginning with stage one, we're going to create a coaching contract so that your clients actually understand the process and the expectations for each

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of you.

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During the 1st session the coach gathers information

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on the client's priorities, concerns and medical history. So we are writing, we are listening, they are talking.

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And throughout the 1st couple sessions the client works on their wellness vision. So think about kind of like a vision board, and maybe they even do that we want them to create a 3 month plan that will help them to move in that direction.

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And together you and your client review the plan in detail.

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and ultimately we want them to commit to 3 to 5 goals, just baby steps each week

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that will lead up to their goal and their vision

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in each of the following sessions.

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you're both going to review the progress.

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So brainstorm new strategies, if and when they're needed.

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review, whether their challenges were met

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and establish new solutions when necessary.

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Then we're going to agree on new goals for the following week.

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Each session should include exploration of a key topic

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that can be resolved

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in a pivotal moment. So this is something that really is kind of like that Aha! Moment enabling the client to navigate around unexpected challenges without straying from their goals. So a perfect example coming up, let's say, you know, to the holiday season, and somebody's trying to lose weight, and they know that there's going to be an office party. We want them to figure out the solution. We know we can tell them.

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Well, do A, BCDE. And you know you'll maintain your weight loss, but we need them to figure it out. They need to come up with their own solution.

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Now, each of your coaching sessions should be about 30 to 45 min once or twice a week.

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Or they can do 60 min once or twice a month. I mean, really, that's

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up to you and them. And you know somebody's financial resources.

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We guide our clients to anticipate and overcome unexpected challenges. And and this is also in that time, you know, between our sessions and turn them into learning experiences. So it might be something negative. But did did they? Did we learn from it.