how to make the most of your time with an online nutrition coach
how to trust the process: a note from your coach
The process. At some point, your coach has probably told you to “trust the process,” but what does that mean? And why trust “the process” when you’re frustrated that you’ve had a tough week or aren’t seeing the progress you’re looking for?
A frequent pattern that we see with clients is that they are staying consistent and seeing changes and then a roadblock comes up: you get a little stuck, progress moves a little slower, or you have an extra tough week that didn’t go the way you wanted. Frustration kicks in and you give up - maybe for a few days, or maybe indefinitely. This is the point where we, as coaches, have to remind you to trust the process.
Frustrations will happen; plateaus are inevitable. But frustrations and plateaus are also temporary, if we tackle them appropriately. And even though you may feel defeated, surrendering to your frustrations will only deter progress even more. Trusting the process and getting in touch with your coach can help you overcome your frustration and push past a plateau with just a simple conversation.
So what does it actually mean to “trust the process”? It can be easy to try to think of it as simply having patience and staying the course, even when you’re frustrated. If you’re working on your own, that may be 90% of the battle. If you’re working with a coach, that means checking in and letting us help you.
THE PROCESS (in as few words as possible):
Consistency and communication from you.
Coach receives your feedback and makes adjustments as needed.
Repeat.
We, as coaches, are committed to helping you achieve your goals. And I don’t mean that in an abstract way. The moment you sign up for coaching services, you have someone who is 100% on your team and wants you to be successful. Really let that sink in for a moment: your coach wants you to succeed. But you also have to remember that we are a team working together!
As with any team, we each have our own role that will help us achieve success. Your job, as a client is to be consistent (this means tracking honestly, even if your compliance is imperfect), and checking in to let us know how things are going. Our job, as your coach, is to make adjustments, answer questions, help you problem-solve, encourage, cheerlead, and provide honest feedback.
It is so, so important to be open and communicative with your coach. It is most important to do so when you are frustrated, stuck, or feeling unmotivated. If you are doing everything right on your end but not seeing progress, we need to know because we can fix that. Just one adjustment on your coach’s end can help you overcome a plateau and continue working towards your goals. But if you get frustrated with lack of progress and just throw in the towel, you are only doing yourself a disservice. If you are struggling with any particular aspect of your nutrition, we want to know so we can help. Truly. The more communication we get from you, the more success we will have as a team.
My most successful clients are always the ones who don’t hold back when they check in. I have never received a check-in and thought “this is too much information;” we want to hear about your frustrations, your successes, your good days, your bad days, and everything in between.
The process is not linear. There will be ups and downs, there will be some frustration, there will be instances where you feel like you are not progressing as you should. But trusting the process means working through these struggles with your coach, as a team. You don’t have to bear the struggle on your own, your coach is there to help.
Trust the process. Stay consistent and communicate with your coach, and you will absolutely reach your goals.
Feeling frustrated working on your nutrition on your own and looking for more guidance? We want to help! Check out our free downloadable resources and read more on the blog. Or learn more about working with a coach.