I have an hour commute to and from work, so I tend to listen to podcasts for entertainment. One that I listen to a lot is “Unf*ck Your Brain.” The host, Kara Loewentheil, does not believe in nutrition coaching, and believes you need to change your thoughts, not your body. As a proud feminist, this made me think about how I reconcile my feelings about promoting keto and society’s interference with women’s bodies. Am I a diet coach – and is there anything wrong with that?
What is a Diet Coach?
A diet coach is someone who guides you through your weight loss journey. They are not the same as a dietician, as they don’t have that nutritional training. They simply encourage you to make healthier choices, based on what you want.
My Body Tutor outlines some of the benefits of a diet (or nutrition) coach. They suggest it is more of a personal relationship than you would have with a typical health professional. They get to know you and help you set your nutritional goals.
A diet coach helps motivate you and holds you accountable to the goals you set together. It’s someone who will ask why you turned to food while stressed, and they help you find better ways to handle it next time.
What A Diet Coach Isn’t
A diet coach is not a health professional, like a doctor or a nutritionist / dietician. They are often fitness enthusiasts who may or may not understand your struggles. Sometimes, our nutritional health and our mental health intertwine, and diet coaches are not therapists. Just like in every profession, some will be really great and some…not so much.
When I looked online, there were certification courses for six weeks available online. They promise up to (or even over) $100 an hour earned as a diet coach. The cost of that certification was around $1000. So, keep that in mind if you hire a diet coach. Their training is in goal setting and helping to keep people accountable. If you want more than that, you need to go to a health professional.
Your Relationship with Food
It’s important to evaluate your relationship with food and with your own self image before, during, and after any weight loss journey. It’s true that until you change the way you think, you still won’t be happy with your body. There will always be a bulge, a wrinkle, or a roll you don’t like – unless you train your mind to love it all.
Eating is a part of life. We have to do it or we die. So, you might as well enjoy it and be happy with your choices. Usually, that means having some control over it. Whether you learn that through a diet coach, reading blogs like ours, or all on your own is up to you.
Am I A Diet Coach?
After a lot of self-reflection, I don’t think I am in any way a diet coach. I give information on keto and share what worked for me. Certainly, I’m not earning up to $100 an hour! I recognize that keto is not for everyone, and that’s okay. The information I share is for those who are choosing keto as a way of life.
Am I promoting dieting and society’s judgments on women’s bodies? I don’t think so, but maybe that’s a cop out. I do post some before and after pictures to help motivate those on keto (as well as myself). We share what we’ve learned because we want to help. Keto is not easy. We try to make it a little easier and hope that people take the information and do keto the right way – the healthy way.
Wendy
