A Coaching Approach to Metabolic Health, GLP1s and Beyond - course report

by Dr Ollie Hart

 On June 3^rd we were excited to launch our first live online ‘Health Coaching for Metabolic Health, GLP-1s and beyond’ training day. The morning focused on understanding how our metabolism works, and what goes wrong. The afternoon focused in on GLP1 use, and how health coaching can enhance outcomes and reduce problems.

It was so well received we have opened bookings for our next course on Novemeber 11^th

https://www.peakhealthcoaching.com/metabolic-health-and-glp1

In the morning we dove down into the science of insulin resistance, and the role of carbohydrate in the diet. This led into an overview of non-medication support that health coaches can deliver to restore metabolic health.

In the afternoon we focused on the place of GLP1 medications, like Ozempic, and how health coaches can support people to get the best results. With an estimated 2 million UK citizens taking GLP1s, mostly prescribed privately and with variable support, health coaches that understand how to support people well, are such a huge asset. The session was led by highly experience GLP1-specialist health coach, Nikki Couglan, who has spent 4 years leading a team of health coaches exclusively supporting people taking GLP1s.

We got into the real nitty gritty of how people respond to GLP1s, how they cope with the emotional and physiological challenges, how to manage side effects and avoid muscle loss Crucially, we explored how to ensure gains are maintained on stopping or reducing to a maintenance dose.

Nikki talked of patients that described ‘losing a friend’ with their enjoyment of food blocked, and others who were so grateful for silencing the ‘food noise’. We learnt about ‘urge surfing’ and ‘non-scalable wins’ (the weighing type!)

This first group where pretty knowledgable to start with, but there was a spread. By the end everyone was clustering around high skills, knowledge and confidence.

This course is suitable for health coaches, GPs, nurses and other clinicians and support staff working with people with obesity, pre-diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, Fatty liver disease, and other metabolic disorders. It would also suit expert patients taking a lead in peer support.