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Finding the Right Health Coach

Debbie Zimmerman • September 26, 2023

Finding the Right Health Coach

What is a Health Coach? How do I find a good one?

An increasing number of people are understanding the important role a healthy lifestyle plays in the quality and quantity of life. Whether you have tried numerous times to reach your desired health improvement goals (without sustainable success) or are looking for a fresh, new perspective on achieving a healthier and more vibrant YOU, a Health Coach can help you reach and maintain your goals.

Health coaching is a critical component of lifestyle medicine. Like a sports trainer who helps you get active, builds your stamina and enhances your skills, health coaches help you become engaged in your health and wellness. The focus is on helping you make long-term lifestyle changes.

WHAT is a Health Coach?

Health coaches help clients with a variety of different health/wellness issues but have a different scope of practice than other nutrition and wellness experts, such as dietitians or nutritionists. Health Coaches do not diagnose, treat, prescribe, interpret medical results, write food plans, nor recommend supplements. Health Coaches typically address key areas of wellness including, but not limited to, Nutrition, Stress, Activity, Time Management, Sleep, etc. Often, one key area may overlap with others.

Health coaches have the tools, skills, knowledge, expertise, and experience to help clients build new habits and make lasting changes. Using a client centered approach, Health Coaches act as partners and facilitators by supporting clients in taking action, assisting with the creation and implementation of an action plan, and providing the support necessary for success. The clients' ideas, interests, and experiences are the key to successful implementation resulting in goal attainment.

HOW do I find a good Health Coach?

Health Coaches come from diverse backgrounds, have various levels of training, expertise, experience and may specialize in areas such as weight loss, stress management, etc. The following is list of the important qualities to consider when choosing the Health Coach that is right for you.

1. Experienced & Credentialed

Before selecting a coach, check out their training, expertise, and experience. A certified health coach will hold credentials from reputable, accredited, professional organizations and/or associations. Here is a helpful link: Wellness/Health Coach Certification

Debbie Zimmerman is a nationally certified Wellness/Health Coach with 35+ years of Corporate Wellness Leadership and Health Coaching experience. In the corporate arena, her Wellness Teams were recognized on both state and national levels for their successful and innovative approaches to prevention and disease management. She also holds national certifications in fitness/personal training. She is quite familiar with all disease states, has successfully coached individuals and groups on a wide array of health issues and remains active in her professional/continuing education through Harvard Medical School, eCornell University, Stanford University, American College of Lifestyle Medicine and more.

2. Good role model

Look for a coach who is a good role model, “walks the talk,” and possesses a long and successful track record with emphasis on “self-care.” A good health coach understands the power of “lifestyle as medicine" and the significance of each of its components, ranging from behavioral psychology to actually planning/ preparing healthy meals. A good role model has experienced the day-to-day challenges that are present as you begin your health improvement journey.

Debbie has “walked the talk” over the course of her lifetime and makes healthy lifestyle choices on a daily basis. From a fitness instructor and personal trainer; lifestyle medicine coach; nutrition and culinary medicine instructor to a Food for Life instructor, Debbie epitomizes the lifestyle she promotes.

3. Inspires & Motivates Others

A good health coach uses their passion, speaks truth from the heart, and motivates others to live their best lives. This is especially helpful if a client begins to doubt the process. Coaches play an essential role in helping clients move through challenges and barriers that often prevent them from making and maintaining the changes they desire. It is crucial to have a coach who walks along beside you (literally and figuratively) on your way to success. Your health coach can be an incredible source of support for positive change.

Debbie inspires her clients and others by providing the most current research findings and helps them reach their own conclusions regarding the overwhelming amount of information on health, wellness, and nutrition topics. Her passion for inspiring and motivating others spills over into the community as she serves in various health/wellness roles as a leader, a volunteer, and someone who “gives back” to promote a healthy community.

4. Goal Oriented

Does the health coach you are considering help you plan, create, and implement your health improvement goals? S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Action-Oriented, Realistic and Time-bound) goals are critical for success. Through careful planning, practical weekly targeted objectives with regularly scheduled accountability, clients can achieve and sustain their health improvement goals.

Working with hundreds (even thousands) of clients over the years, Debbie has seen great success. Reducing blood pressure, controlling and reversing diabetes, managing heart disease are a few of the success stories. In addition, she has coached clients through weight losses of over 150 pounds and has helped “couch potatoes” transition to gym rats.

5. Leadership

Choose a health coach who doesn’t force you to live their lifestyle. Think of your coach as someone who empowers you to prioritize your unique personal health goals and who can facilitate the change process on your journey to goal attainment. Each step of your journey requires leadership as you navigate the stages of change. A good health coach supports you when you struggle, has a tool box of useful strategies that have helped others just like you, helps you focus on your goals/objectives, provides accountability and continuously opens the door for possibilities.

Debbie provides corporate wellness leadership to small and large businesses striving to improve employee health/wellness. She leads a local volunteer wellness organization to provide wellness education to the community, local churches, and partners with colleges and universities to provide internships and practical wellness experiences to students and staff.

If you’re looking for a Lifestyle and Health Coach, contact PhytoFit, LLC. Founder, Debbie Zimmerman, continues her dedication to teaching people how the power of a healthy lifestyle and whole-food, plant-based nutrition can lead to optimal health and wellbeing. There are compelling evidence-based, peer-reviewed scientific studies backing a whole food, plant-strong diet for halting and even reversing many chronic diseases. PhytoFit, LLC, can help you become the “best version of yourself!”

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Recipe Blog Posts

Smokey Tomato "Cheez" Ball

By Debbie Zimmerman • November 28, 2023

This Smokey Tomato “Cheez” Ball is quite versatile when added to a holiday board. It can be coated in parsley or chives for the green festive look or a mixture of nuts. Add an assortment of whole-grain crackers of toast points and you have a delicious appetizer. I have used these leftovers on a baked potato with luscious, yummy results. Bring this to your next pot-luck and see how fast it disappears. (By the way, you don’t have to tell them that it isn’t cheese!)

Black Bean “Meatballs”

By Debbie Zimmerman • November 28, 2023

The holidays are upon us and so are the social obligations. If you are worried about the holiday buffet table, why not offer to bring an appetizer? These Black Bean “Meatballs” make a perfect addition without the guilt! Add your favorite dipping sauce, i.e., spicey mustard, barbeque sauce or ketchup. These also freeze well, so make a double batch and freeze half. These will compliment those Sunday football games…just defrost and reheat.

The Lentils, Oats & Veggies (LOV) Loaf

By Debbie Zimmerman • November 16, 2023

Growing up, meatloaf was a weekly staple for our family of 9. Surrounded by mashed potatoes, fresh greens, biscuits and gravy. If we were lucky to have leftovers, a meatloaf sandwich was always appreciated the next day. Well, lots has changed since that time, but the ease and simplicity of such a loaf is always attractive. The L.O.V. Loaf brings back many memories, but none of the saturated fat or cholesterol. Certainly, there is no harm to the animals and I LOV the leftover sandwiches!

Pumpkin Bisque

By Debbie ZImmerman • November 16, 2023

This Pumpkin Bisque recipe is very versatile. I have used it as an appetizer at a ladies’ luncheon and I’ve had it for a main course with hot sour-dough bread. It is slightly sweet yet has savory undertones. I like to top it with a dallop of Cashew Cream or Tofu Sour Cream, both add a delightful taste and enhance the creaminess of this dish.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

By Jada McWilliams • October 25, 2023

I have learned a great deal through my plant-based journey. First, I try hard not to rely on processed foods and when I do, I make sure the added ingredients are limited. This way I know I’m not getting the chemicals and dyes that are added to many processed and ultra-processed foods. In this recipe as well as the one before, I use a can of pumpkin puree; its only ingredient is “pumpkin” or “organic pumpkin.” I have a sweet tooth and sometimes I have to give into the craving. These Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are nice way to satisfy the desire for something sweet without the guilt. Of course, they are packed with beta carotene, which we need on a daily basis to fight off those free radicals, but it also has great fiber and natural sweetness. (See how easy it is to justify a cookie!) Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie Breakfast Smoothie

By Debbie Zimmerman • October 25, 2023

I truly love fall when the large variety of pumpkins start popping up in grocery stores and vegetable stands. I usually buy a couple of dozen pumpkins of various sizes, use them for a fall centerpiece and then enjoy preparing an assortment of meals including sweet and savory. This Pumpkin Pie Breakfast Smoothie provides the right amount of energy to keep you focused throughout the morning. Did you know that pumpkin is packed with beta carotene, which is great for our eyes and skin? One cup contains 245% of your Reference Daily Intake (RDI) of Vitamin A and only 49 calories. Although most believe pumpkins are a vegetable, they are actually in the fruit family because they contain seeds. Stay tuned for additional pumpkin recipes (and more trivia) over the next few weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.

Eggplant Meatballs

By Debbie Zimmerman • September 26, 2023

My cousin recently shared a recipe found in Dr. Joel Fuhrman’s book, Eat to Live. After preparing the recipe as directed, I made a few changes, added a few ingredients and removed a few as well. In the end, these Eggplant Meatballs are delicious. I doubled the batch and froze half for another day. My husband enjoys them plain and I dip in tomato sauce. I would recommend not soaking them in the sauce, just having it on the side. Topped with nutty parm, you have an excellent meal!

Sweet & Sour Veggies with Tempeh

By Debbie ZImmerman • September 19, 2023

A recent visit to a Thai restaurant inspired this recipe with tender yet crispy vegetables. In place or a rich peanut sauce, I lightened up this recipe using pineapple juice combined with an all-natural almond butter. Of course, this could also be swopped-out with peanut butter. I served this with purple barley and enjoyed an excellent meal!

Quinoa Salad

By Debbie Zimmerman • August 2, 2023

Summer in Florida can be quite hot and the thought of cooking something in the oven seems almost unbearable. I enjoy simple summer salads that can be prepare over the weekend and enjoyed several days throughout the week either for lunch or dinner. This Quinoa Salad is quick and packed with flavor. Wanting another salad idea, toss in some baby spinach before tossing and add a lime vinaigrette. Or, switch out the quinoa for cauliflower rice. Cool, simple and easy…the right ingredients for summer!

Survival Skills for a Plant-Based Holiday

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 17, 2022

It’s hard for me to even say it, but the week of Thanksgiving is upon us. Through my lifestyle and health coaching, I’ve heard many concerns about “staying on track” during the holidays as family and friends may coerce you to “Enjoy yourself,” “Throw caution to the wind,” or more challenging, “Why eat this way?” We hear this almost every day, so the holidays should be no exception. However, it may be on these traditionally festive days, when even more elaborate foods beckon that we feel temptation even greater. Let’s review several Survival Skills (SS) that will leave us feeling victorious! It is easy to “stay on track” when we have a strategy in mind. Start now and plan your holiday meals; the more specific you are, the more successful you will be. My newly released, FREE eBook, “Phyto-Phabulous” Holiday Magic—Favorite Plant-Based Recipes, provides great ideas to guarantee your success. First, think about your family and friends. They know that their traditional foods are good, but we know that they aren

What Doesn't Kill Us, Makes Us Stronger...Well, Maybe!

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

What Doesn’t Kill Us, Makes Us Stronger…Well, Maybe! When it comes to being stressed, we all have stories to share. One story that we can all weigh in on began in March, 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic reared its ugly head. This novel, highly contagious virus impacted everyone in some way with lock downs, mask mandates, social isolation, financial/economical concerns, food supply issues, health care (physical and mental), school closings, and the list goes on. Mixed into this global unrest was/is a heavy load of emotional fear— fear of catching this raging virus; fear of the unknown; fear of what we can’t control; and, the ultimate fear of death. Stress was and still is, quite pervasive! In the next few issues of the PhytoFit newsletter, we are going to take a deeper-dive into stress and how we can manage it. You may recall from previous newsletter discussion, Lifestyle medicine is the use of evidenced-based, lifestyle therapeutic approaches, such as a predominantly whole food, plant-based diet...

Nourish Your Body with Restorative Sleep

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

Have you ever had a sleepless night? You may vividly recall an agonizing evening of tossing, turning and checking the clock every five minutes. I admit when I was in my teens and twenties, sleep was not my top priority. These days are much different; sleep, like oxygen, is a necessity. This past year with COVID-19 looming, many of my friends and coaching buddies (clients) have found sleep elusive. Between the pandemic, social unrest and feelings of uncertainty, many have counted sheep more than sawing ZZZZs. In their book, “The Alzheimer’s Solution,” Drs. Dean & Ayesha Sherzai discuss the power of sleep to restore the body and the mind. As neurologists, they examine brain-derived neurotrophic factors (BDNF) that can repair the brain at night. At the same time, cells and neurons are able to regenerate during sleep. But that is not all. In the Sherzais’ studies, they reveal how the brain can “…clear-out toxins during deep sleep, including those toxins that lead to amyloid buildup.” They also explain that les

Socialization: The Foundation for Health & Happiness

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

In the 1968 film, Funny Girl, Barbara Streisand made popular the song, “People.” The opening lyrics are timeless and as appropriate now as when originally recorded. “People, people who need people, are the luckiest people in the world.” As we take a deeper dive into the importance of lifestyle medicine, we learn that strong socialization is the foundation for happiness, health and longevity. Lifestyle Medicine is the use of evidence-based lifestyle therapeutic intervention—including a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, regular physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances, and positive social connection—as a primary modality, to prevent, treat, and often reverse chronic disease.

Lifestyle Medicine VS Diet-de-jour

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

Have you read the US News “Best Diets 2021” report? If you haven’t heard of this annual publication, let me fill you in. Each year, US News pulls together a panel of nutrition experts from prestigious universities and research centers to analyze the composition of “diets” and validate their dietary attributes and claims. This year, experts were from Harvard, Emory, Tuft, Johns Hopkins, Joslin Diabetes Clinic and more. The panel consisted of physicians, nurses, dietitians and nutritionists. Renown plant-based authorities such as Dr. Michael Greger and Dr. David Katz were included in the annual review for this publication. As a society, most people look at diets as a temporary deprivation or restriction of key nutrients/ingredients to reach weight-loss and/or health goals. These short-term dietary changes are usually time-bound, for example, a two-month diet before a special occasion or vacation. However, most people grow tired of the restrictions, fall prey to peer pressures, and recognize that the “diet” wa

The Golden Rule of Plant Diversity

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

January is traditionally a time for reflection and a time to think about a fresh, new year. The process typically involves looking back over the prior year at things we did well (or not), thinking about new possibilities/opportunities for the coming year, and committing to some behavioral changes to make those possibilities a reality. Many of us take the time to complete a list of New Year’s resolutions and “improving health” is usually high on the list with ideas of weight loss, exercise and healthier eating. Everyone has their own perspective of what that means, what it might look like for them, and have some ideas about how to improve their health. Even scientific researchers approach it in various ways.

A Healthy Heart So You May Thrive

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

February can be a very expensive month! For celebrating football fans, Super Bowl represents spending of $17.2 billion (2020). Saint Valentine’s Day tallies $27.4 billion in cards, chocolates, dining, balloons and bouquets. Then there is the American Heart Month, where the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Heart Association and other public health officials recognize the nation’s most deadly and devastating disease—heart disease. Not only does heart disease cost $363 billion, it also claims the lives of 659,000 Americans each year. By the way, that is 1,805 people dying every day or the equivalent of having six (6) jumbo jets falling from the sky—one every four hours! Not only is that a tremendous burden on the health care system, think of the physical and emotional costs. The CDC estimates that 48% of Americans have some form of heart disease, which includes high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes and congestive heart failure. The good news is that there are lifestyle chang

Avoiding the Ultra Processed Food Trap, (Part 2) “FREE—Free At Last”

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

As you may recall from last month’s blog, Avoiding the Ultra-Processed Food Trap, Part 1 we discussed the concept of processed food. We shared both the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics explanations of processed foods. We reviewed findings from recent research studies on the health effects of consuming ultra-processed foods. We even provided a fascinating video on BBC that showed a UK doctor’s journey on eating 80% ultra-processed food for 30 days. We talked about processed, fast food, also referred to as “Frankenfood.” Today, we will take a deeper-dive into the subject matter to further understand the difference between minimally processed and heavily/ultra-processed foods. Recommendations on how to gradually wean yourself away from processed ingredients (including “Frankenfood”) will be discussed.

Avoiding the Ultra-Processed Food Trap (Part 1)

By Debbie Zimmerman • December 13, 2022

Have you heard about processed foods? Everywhere we look, there is some talk show, video, podcast, book, etc. demonizing processed food as a way to regain your health. We are left to wonder, “What is considered ‘processed food’ and what should we be eating?” When one thinks of processed food, you may think of French fries, hamburgers, pizza, chips and fast food, but we don’t realize that most of our daily grocery list is filled with processed foods. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), processed food is defined as “…any raw agricultural commodity that has been subject to washing, cleaning, milling, cutting, chopping, heating, pasteurizing, blanching, cooking, canning, freezing, drying, dehydrating, mixing, packaging, or other procedures that alter the food from its natural state. This may include the addition of other ingredients to the food, such as preservatives, flavors, nutrients and other food additives or substances approved for use in food products, such as salt, sugars a

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Finding the Right Health Coach

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