Functional Medicine is a systems biology-based approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the root cause of disease, with a goal of optimal wellness. Each symptom or differential diagnosis may be one of many contributing to an individual’s illness, and Functional Medicine looks beyond the symptoms to identify why illness occurs in the first place. This approach empowers patient/clients, doctors, and health coaches to work together to resolve the complex underlying causes of disease to restore health through diet and lifestyle change.
Health and wellness coaches are part wellness authority, part supportive mentor, and part behavior change specialist. They partner with clients who are seeking to enhance their well-being through self-directed, lasting changes in alignment with their values. Health coaches often work with clients to implement individualized food and lifestyle changes that meet the client’s unique needs and health goals. In the course of their work, health and wellness coaches display unconditional positive regard for their clients and a belief in clients’ capacity for change. They honor that each client is an expert on their own life, ensuring that all interactions are respectful and non-judgmental.
Health Coaches provide their services in a few ways. They may provide one-on-one or group sessions offered through their own private coaching business or in collaboration with doctors and other wellness providers. Their role includes but is not limited to:
Providing a positive relationship that empowers the client to make lasting changes for better health and well-being
Offering clients support, accountability, collaboration, education, and resources
Translating a practitioner’s plan of care into a plan of action
Assisting with dietary changes, food plans, and physical activity protocols
Health and wellness coaches empower their clients to take charge of their health, meet and exceed their wellness goals, and create lasting change. Coaches provide accountability and a personalized approach, and they help the client tap into their motivation and overcome roadblocks in order to continue moving forward. Many health coaching clients report improved quality of life, physical health improvements, improved emotional well-being, and feeling less stressed.
The scope of practice refers to the process of coaching and the rules and guardrails that coaches follow when providing any services related to coaching. Health Coaches do not diagnose, treat, prescribe, interpret medical results, write food plans, or recommend supplements. They are behavior change specialists who work with clients to provide personalized guidance and accountability in areas like nutrition, exercise, mindfulness. The scope of practice exists to protect both coaches and their clients.
A therapist is a licensed mental health professional who helps clients improve their lives, develop better cognitive and emotional skills, reduce symptoms of mental illness, and cope with various challenges.
A therapist may choose to add a health coaching certification to their credentialing to strengthen their behavior change skills, build competency in new approaches to health, and add value to their practice. Additionally, health coaches may work alongside therapists to assist clients in implementing protocols or recommendations that impact emotions, thoughts, and beliefs using positive psychology techniques. Health coaches also use mind-body techniques and tools like abdominal breathing, guided imagery, and meditation to help clients manage stress and generate healing.
Nutritionists and dietitians receive different training than health coaches do, and thus they are qualified to provide different services. Unlike health coaches, they evaluate the health of their clients and create food plans based on their findings. Nutritionists and dietitians first earn a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university, followed by an internship or practice program, after which they may sit for a national examination and practice as an R.D., or Registered Dietitian. They are experts in food and diet and are considered healthcare practitioners.
A nutritionist or dietitian may choose to add a health coaching certification to their credentialing to strengthen their behavior change skills, build competency in new approaches to health, and add value to their practice. Additionally, health coaches may work alongside nutritionists or dietitians to help motivate clients and guide them through dietary changes using positive psychology and coaching tools and techniques.
A health coach certification through FMCA signifies that I have the skills and knowledge required to partner with clients and collaborate with practitioners as a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach (FMCHC). It means I have successfully completed a 1 year academically rigorous program in the principles of Functional Medicine and nutrition, positive psychology, mind-body medicine, and the art of coaching. FMCA graduates may also choose to sit for the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching (NBHWC) examination in order to become a National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach. The FMCA certification is a globally-recognized coaching credential.
In order to become a board-certified health coach, I must successfully complete an NBHWC-approved Health and Wellness Coach Training & Education Program, complete a specified number of coaching hours, and show documentation of an Associate’s degree or higher in any field. Once these standards are met, graduates may choose to pursue board certification through NBHWC’s Health & Wellness Coach (HWC) Certifying Exam. This credential, “National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach,” or NBC-HWC, is quickly becoming the indicator for coaches who meet the highest level of training standards.
I am currently pursuing my NBC-HWC.
NBHWC’s national certification is accelerating the professionalization of this emerging field and enabling the growth of an evidence base, and reputable coach training and education programs have joined this endeavor. This national certification allows proficient coaches to stand apart from coaches who have not received adequate coach training or assessment of their coaching skills and knowledge. A health coaching program must meet and adhere to NBHWC’s Program Approval Standards in order to be approved, and NBHWC engages in a rigorous review process. Each approved program meets set standards, including how course content is delivered to students, how students’ practical coaching skills are developed and evaluated, and the qualifications of the program’s faculty members.