Carrie Myers

As a health and exercise professional, it can be tempting to conclude that certain clients are being resistant and simply aren’t ready—or willing—to change or do what it takes to achieve their goals. However, there may be an underlying issue brewing beneath the surface: cognitive dissonance. 

With so much of normal life currently in flux, some days seem to leave little to be thankful for. However, studies reveal that practicing gratitude is vital to our health and well-being—and even produces changes in the brain. Learn how you can apply this research to your own life and your work with clients.

The events of 2020 have impacted each of us in some way, and our levels of resilience have determined, in part, how we have responded to the challenges and fears that have arisen as a result. As a health and exercise professional, you can positively impact your clients by coaching them to be more resilient and ultimately guiding them toward growth.

There is a good chance you’ll have clients who struggle with body image and you probably wonder how you can help. Learn about some of the origins of poor body image, how to avoid body-shaming language and why steering your clients toward intrinsic motivators instead of extrinsic ones can make a significant difference in their long-term health and well-being.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychosocial intervention that focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful attitudes, thoughts and beliefs. Although CBT is outside of the scope of health coaching, learn how you can use cognitive behavioral coaching (CBC) to help your clients change the way they think and spur them on to success.

Have you ever wondered about the difference between a consultant and a coach? The distinctions may seem subtle, but it is important to make sure that, as a health coach, you are providing the type of guidance your clients need to achieve their health and wellness goals. This article examines what separates a coach from a consultant, and how you can hone your coaching skills to benefit your clients.

At a time of unprecedented change and uncertainty, stress levels are undoubtedly running high. As such, there’s never been a better time to arm yourself and your clients with tools that can help identify healthy coping mechanisms that can make it easier to manage stress and take positive steps toward meaningful change for the future. 

Alcohol use disorder is an increasingly common concern, with research suggesting that more than 25% of adults age 18 and over participating in binge drinking within the past month. Learn how to spot the physical signs of abuse, how to tactfully broach the topic with a client and what role health coaches can play in helping clients seek treatment to manage their addiction.

There is a good chance you’ll have clients who struggle with body image and you probably wonder how you can help. Learn about some of the origins of poor body image, how to avoid body-shaming language and why steering your clients toward intrinsic motivators instead of extrinsic ones can make a significant difference in their long-term health and well-being.

Could a perfectionistic mindset be wreaking havoc in your life or the lives of your clients? Have you considered that perfectionistic tendencies might be one of the roadblocks to your clients achieving success? This article examines the origins of perfectionism, how it may result in a wide range of negative emotions and often leads to an all-or-nothing mindset that can derail even the most committed clients. 

As a health and exercise professional, you probably don’t scream in our clients’ faces, but you may be inadvertently and subtly shaming your clients without realizing it. Learn what the research says about shame and discover techniques you can use to set your clients up for success.

Negative self-talk may seem harmless, but it can actually have some pretty significant negative effects on well-being—and success. Learn how you can coach your clients in ways that help them change the neural pathways in their brains—and consequently overwrite their limiting beliefs with more accurate, positive beliefs.

You may have clients who just can’t seem to stick with their goals, despite the best of intentions. It can be tempting to think of them as being resistant or self-sabotaging, but those labels aren’t helpful. Learn how fear can keep clients stuck in a pattern of failure and what you can do, as a health coach, to help them feel supported and successful.

How you interact with your active-aging clients, your attitudes and the language you use will, in part, determine how they view themselves and the aging process. This article takes a critical look at ageism as it relates to issues of health and fitness, and discusses how you can ensure you are viewing your clients—and helping them to view themselves—according to their unique abilities and challenges rather than their chronological age.

Have you ever wondered about the difference between a consultant and a coach? The distinctions may seem subtle, but it is important to make sure that, as a health coach, you are providing the type of guidance your clients need to achieve their health and wellness goals. This article examines what separates a coach from a consultant, and how you can hone your coaching skills to benefit your clients.

You may have clients who just can’t seem to stick with their goals, despite the best of intentions. It can be tempting to think of them as being resistant or self-sabotaging, but those labels aren’t helpful. Learn how fear can keep clients stuck in a pattern of failure and what you can do, as a health coach, to help them feel supported and successful.

Whether you’re new to the fitness industry or have been here for a while, you may find yourself in the same conundrum: working mornings and evenings with large chunks of down time in between. Instead of using this time swiping right or swiping left, learn how you can start using it to build your business and clientele—and make more money in the process.

Maybe you're a newly certified personal trainer, group fitness instructor or health coach and want to know the secrets to success in this business. Or perhaps you’re an experienced and seasoned pro who’s ready to go to the next level. No matter where you are on this journey to success, we’re about to fill you in on what really makes a health and exercise professional successful.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychosocial intervention that focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful attitudes, thoughts and beliefs. Although CBT is outside of the scope of health coaching, learn how you can use cognitive behavioral coaching (CBC) to help your clients change the way they think and spur them on to success.

Negative self-talk may seem harmless, but it can actually have some pretty significant negative effects on well-being—and success. Learn how you can coach your clients in ways that help them change the neural pathways in their brains—and consequently overwrite their limiting beliefs with more accurate, positive beliefs.

As a health and exercise professional, you probably don’t scream in our clients’ faces, but you may be inadvertently and subtly shaming your clients without realizing it. Learn what the research says about shame and discover techniques you can use to set your clients up for success.

As a health and exercise professional, if you want to pick up new clients, there is a certain amount of marketing—of yourself and your business—that you must do. But it doesn’t have to be painful. Read on to learn how to use education-based marketing, also referred to as trust or content marketing, to build trust and community through educating your target audience.

You may have heard that women are more likely to experience knee problems, but is this increased risk really all attributable to a larger Q-angle? As with most things in life, it is important to realize that there is nuance to every story and the evidence seems to be inconsistent. Learn more about what the research says and what steps you can take to help your clients avoid injury, both acute and chronic.

Perhaps you’ve been offering small-group training, also known as semiprivate training, for a while. Or maybe you’ve been tossing the idea around but haven’t yet ventured out of your one-on-one training realm. Either way, this article is sure to spark some new ideas for you that could lead to more clients and more revenue.

Few things can more quickly derail a client’s ability and desire to achieve his or her fitness goals than an injury. And as a health and exercise professional, those same injuries can be a significant obstacle to your ability to maintain a consistent income. Before you—and your clients—assume they can’t train while injured or keep progressing toward their goals, here are a few things worth taking into consideration.

Whether you’re new to the fitness industry or have been here for a while, you may find yourself in the same conundrum: working mornings and evenings with large chunks of down time in between. Instead of using this time swiping right or swiping left, learn how you can start using it to build your business and clientele—and make more money in the process.

Poor posture, which many blame on our addiction to technology and how we use it, is now so common that it almost seems normal. But that doesn’t mean it’s good for you or your clients. Learn how to identify correct posture, stretch and strengthen the appropriate muscles to make it easier to maintain proper posture, and avoid common daily habits that contribute to poor posture.

Many women experience a range of issues and complications after giving birth via cesarean section. Once your clients are ready to come back to training with you post-cesarean, having a great understanding about this procedure and how it affects the body can enable you to play an important role in their post-natal fitness plan.

Maybe you're a newly certified personal trainer, group fitness instructor or health coach and want to know the secrets to success in this business. Or perhaps you’re an experienced and seasoned pro who’s ready to go to the next level. No matter where you are on this journey to success, we’re about to fill you in on what really makes a health and exercise professional successful.

If you’ve been training for a while, you know how easy it can be to fall into a rut with your clients’ workouts—especially your long-term clients. Learn how to identify if you’re stuck in a rut, along with tips and ideas for getting unstuck and adding variety to your clients’ workouts that will keep them progressing forward and engaged in their health and fitness efforts.

Starting your career as a brand new health and fitness professional can feel daunting, but there’s no need to go it alone. We’ve asked some veteran fitness professionals for their advice on a few key topics when it comes to getting started in the fitness industry. Reading their answers is sure to make you feel more welcome and ease some of the fear that comes with this new transition.

Whether you're a newly certified personal trainer, group fitness instructor or health coach or a seasoned pro, you undoubtedly want to take your career to the next level. No matter where you are on this journey to success, we’re about to fill you in on what really makes a health and exercise professional successful.

It is increasingly more common for healthcare providers to prescribe exercise. Learn how you can play a crucial role as a member of healthcare teams by becoming educated on various conditions and taking people to the next level in their treatment.

Your knees are acting up, or you've worked out more strenuously than usual and feel sore, so you pop a couple of ibuprofen to minimize the pain. But is this really as safe as it seems? A growing body of research suggests that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs—better known as NSAIDs—could cause harm to the heart, kidneys and gastrointestinal system. Learn how to inform your clients about these dangers and offer some safer alternatives to ease the pain of inflammation.

Americans take more prescription medications now than at any other time in history, and many of those medications, whether prescription or over-the-counter, can have a profound effect on how a person responds to exercise. This article features an overview of some of the prescription and OTC medications (presented in alphabetical order) your clients are most likely to take, along with information on the potential side-effects each may have on the exercise response.

Pelvic floor issues can cause a wide range of problems, including urinary incontinence, and affect one out of three women in their lifetimes. Other than recommending Kegels, is there anything you can do to help your clients who may struggle with these issues? As it turns out, you are in a position to change the lives of many of the women who come to you for health and exercise guidance. Here’s how…

Poor posture, which many blame on our addiction to technology and how we use it, is now so common that it almost seems normal. But that doesn’t mean it’s good for you or your clients. Learn how to identify correct posture, stretch and strengthen the appropriate muscles to make it easier to maintain proper posture, and avoid common daily habits that contribute to poor posture.

As a health and fitness professional, you know the importance of core strength, but are you completely clear on what muscles make up the core and are you following a safe progression of strengthening exercises? Do you know how to train to avoid imbalances between the core musculature? Like many of your clients, you may have a few questions about this all-important area of the body. Here are your much-needed answers.

Starting your career as a brand new health and fitness professional can feel daunting, but there’s no need to go it alone. We’ve asked some veteran fitness professionals for their advice on a few key topics when it comes to getting started in the fitness industry. Reading their answers is sure to make you feel more welcome and ease some of the fear that comes with this new transition.

If you’ve been training for a while, you know how easy it can be to fall into a rut with your clients’ workouts—especially your long-term clients. Learn how to identify if you’re stuck in a rut, along with tips and ideas for getting unstuck and adding variety to your clients’ workouts that will keep them progressing forward and engaged in their health and fitness efforts.