Fifty percent of heart attack victims who know they must exercise in order to avoid another heart attack to stay alive have great difficulty following through on their exercise and diet plans.

Poor follow-through is the greatest reason for failure of many treatment or wellness programs even when people sincerely want to regain their health. The stressful conditions in which most people live make it difficult to stay focused and committed to what they want for themselves. We may want to exercise consistently, stay with a personalized nutrition program, obtain the best treatment possible when we need it and attend to other vital aspects of our health, but often find ourselves consistently falling short of the goal.

The function of health coaching is to help you achieve success in what you plan to do to get well or enhance your current good health. A health coach is with you every step of the way to encourage you, problem-solve and clarify with you, and help you stay focused, keep you accountable and on track with your program.

Meetings with your coach are usually done by phone because it is the most time efficient way to have frequent contact. In the first assessment session you spend and hour or so with your coach. During that time you get to know your coach, see how you connect, lay out your health goals, identify areas of danger that may prevent you from following-through, set your schedule together and discuss specific ways in which your coach can most effectively help you. Thereafter, you have a health coaching session every week at the same time for fifteen to thirty minutes to help you stay with the program you create.

Your personal health program might include a daily exercise regimen, a treatment program, therapeutic exercises, a nutritional program, or other components that you may have trouble sticking to.

If you are a person who sets goals easily and consistently follows through on what you plan, then you don't need a coach. But many of us experience difficulty with the planning and follow through aspects of our lives, especially if it involves overcoming pain or establishing a program to enhance our health. For these individuals having a health coach often means the difference between success and failure in creating and maintaining a health program that suits their needs and contributes to more balance in their lives.

© 2013 WorkLife Coaching