This fat chick is a health coach?

In October 2012, I started a certification program at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN). I started watching and listening to weekly modules about all things nutrition and business: social media, vegetarianism, Ayurveda...you name it. I was preparing to be a health coach. I didn't know why yet.

Fast forward to now: July 29, 2013. I graduate in about 5 weeks' time. I have sat and followed forums on Facebook talking about a myriad of ways to get healthy, and it hasn't motivated me at all. I don't need complicated. I'm not at a place where I need to figure out how to squeeze in X number of vitamins and minerals daily and balance it with Y number of grams of protein. Complicated isn't a place for me to start.

Let me back up a minute. Did I mention that I weighed 411 lbs. when I enrolled at IIN? Yep. Size 32W, 5'6", super obvious that I wasn't the healthiest chick in my class. And until now that has stopped me. The voice in my head has been telling me, "Dudette, who is gonna walk into an office and see YOU sitting there at 411 lbs. and take your advice on anything health-related?"

Well, maybe you shouldn't. If you are already fit and need to optimize your diet for body building, I am not sure that I am the best person to help you. I would be more than happy to talk to you (of course!), but let's talk for a minute about someone that I have helped.

About 18 months ago, my then-best-friend, now-fiancé Ben was having digestive problems. He decided to treat it with dietary changes and took dairy out of his diet. He continued to get sick, and we finally discovered that he had gall stones and needed to have his gallbladder removed. Post-surgery, he attempted to go back to eating dairy, but that made him sick. "No dairy? Ever? No eggs? Ever? What can I eat?" were just a few of the thoughts running through his mind, and we kept working on it together to figure it out.

At the time, he was a typical bachelor, working long hours, getting off work at 10PM, and going home to have less-than-zero energy to use for cooking. His diet? Hot Pockets, lunch meats, dark chocolate peanut butter cups, Taco Bell.

Please don't think for a minute that I'm judging that kind of diet. I just drove to Dunkin' Donuts on my lunch break and got a seriously huge iced caramel latte with whipped cream. It had caramel sauce on top, and it was delicious. I get it. I'm not a food saint.

Here's the thing, though. This weekend, Ben + I spent the weekend together. What is he eating now? Portobello mushroom burgers, guacamole, green beans. Huge change? Yes. Easy change? Hell no.

Ben has insisted that what he didn't need was someone who didn't understand where he was. I do not want to claim that other coaches out there don't know what it's like to be overweight. I can't make that claim for anyone, and I don't honestly want to compare myself. I have spent hours comparing myself to other people, and that type of mentality is for the birds! What I can share, however, is that I do understand. I know what it's like to not be able to fit in a booth at a restaurant. I know what it's like to realize that I'm going to have to 'eat weirdly' in social situations to get healthy. I know what it's like for people to assume that I am stupid, that I'm lazy, etc.

It is my sincere belief that we all have a place where we get stuck. I think there's some thought, some habit, some lack of realization, some something that is keeping us from moving forward. From moving at all. From even knowing that we should move. I think it's different for each person, and often more than one thing. I want to help you figure out what that something(s) is (are). I'm chipping away at finding my own motivation for getting healthy (more on that in another post). But if you're just looking for someone who understands and will absolutely not judge you for where you are now, let's talk!

Pax lux joyeux (peace light joy),
~ Jaimee