Lesson Structure: Food Coaching VRE110

1  Scope and Nature of Food Coaching 

• Introduction
• What is Food Coaching?
• Why is Food Coaching Necessary?
• Meeting With Clients: The Initial Interview
• Building Rapport
• The Consulting Room
• Information Gathering
• Goal Setting
• Assessing Current Diet & Lifestyle
• Healthy Diet
• Food Pyramids
• Food Plates
• Benefits of a Healthy Diet
• Frequency of Eating
• Serving Sizes
• Use of Supplements

2  Professional Standards for Food Coaching 

• Introduction
• A Code of Ethics
• Ethics in Food Coaching
• Confidentiality
• Informed Consent
• Making Ethical Decisions
• A Guideline for Making Ethical Decisions
• What You Can and Cannot Do
• Keeping Records
• Ethics When Working as a Food Coach in a Larger Business
• Health and Safety
• Occupational Health and Safety Responsibilities

3  Diets for Chronic Conditions

• Introduction
• Benefits of Special Diets
• Dietary Considerations for Some Chronic Conditions
• HIV-AIDS
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Celiac/Coeliac Disease
• Autism
• Understanding Different Types Of Special Diet
• Dairy Free Diet
• Vegetarian Diets
• Pesco-vegetarians
• Vegans
• Raw Vegan Diet
• Macrobiotic Diet
• Fruitarian
• Flexitarian

4  Overeating

• Introduction
• What do we mean by being overweight?
• Measuring Body Fat
• Body Fat Percentage
• Measurement Techniques
• Skin-fold Method
• Ultrasound
• Waist to Height Ratio
• Health Risks Of Overeating
• Obesity
• Secondary Complications
• Psychological Complications
• Treatment For Obesity
• Psychological Theories Of Overeating
• Psychological Reasons Why People Overeat
• Binge Eating
• Weight Loss Plans

5  Poor Nutrition Diets 

• Introduction
• NotEating Enough
• Typical Case Study
• Poor Quality Diet
• Eating Disorders Associated With Weight Loss
• Causes Of Eating Disorders
• Anorexia Nervosa
• Bulimia Nervosa

6  Food Coaching Adults and Seniors 

• Introduction
• General Dietary Requirements for Adults
• Case Study
• Pregnant women
• Seniors
• Age-related Illnesses and Nutrition
• General Nutrition Plans for Adults

7  Food Coaching for Children 

• Introduction
• Law & Ethics and Children’s Food Coaching
• Confidentiality
• Consent
• Protection for Coaches
• Involvement of the Parents or Caregivers
• Strategies for encouraging healthy eating in children
• Family and Friends
• General Nutritional Requirements of Children
• Food Groups – What Children Need?
• Developing a nutrition plan for children
• Nutritional Disorders In Children
• Obesity in children
• Underweight Children

8  Lifestyle Changes 

• Introduction
• Ways To Encourage Lifestyle Change
• Motivational Interviewing
• Strategies to Elicit Change
• Stages of MI Interview Session
• Lifestyle Diary

9  Moving On

• Introduction
• Assessing Client Progress
• Regular meetings/reviews (how often)
• Changing plans as the person changes
• Evaluation of the plan
• Ongoing Support

10 Managing Your Food Coaching Service 

• Meeting Clients
• Where to Meet Clients
• Own safety
• Importance Of Marketing
• Websites
• Slideshow for Conferences, Meetings
• Video Demonstrations
• E-zine/Blog
• Glossy Brochures
• Advertising
• Cold Calling Businesses
• Social Media
• Setting Fees

Learning Goals: Food Coaching VRE110

1. To explain the scope and nature of food coaching and what is meant by a healthy diet.
2. To explain why food coaches should abide by a professional code, and what the legal and ethical standards are.
3. To understand different types of special diet for chronic conditions and their benefits to clients, as well as a range of other special diets and their impact on health.
4. To discuss what is meant by overeating, its health implications, and how to develop plans to control or reduce weight.
5. To describe what diets are considered unhealthy for a range of different body types.
6. To understand general nutrition requirements of adults and seniors, and to discuss possible coaching strategies for working with adults, seniors and carers
7. To understand general nutrition requirements of children, and to discuss possible coaching strategies for working with children and their parents or other caregivers
8. To explain the importance of changes in lifestyle to improve the benefit of food coaching.
9. To explain how the client will move on after food coaching has ended
10. Explain how to organise, market and manage a food coaching service

Overeating:

Many of us overeat from time to time, e.g. at a dinner party or social function, and it is not necessarily a problem. However, overeating can be a problem for some people particularly when it is used to derive comfort form food to overcome depression or feelings of sadness. Overeating can also be symptom of an eating disorder such as bulimia, where it is followed by episodes of purging to rid the body of the food.

Overeating can be defined as consuming more energy than we need. If we overeat over a long period, then we have excess calories which are not burnt and it results in weight gain.

What do we mean by being overweight?

What is considered overweight can vary across cultures. Therefore, it is difficult to have universal agreement on what is overweight. Mostly we think of being overweight as having excess body fat. However, we all need some fat for our bodies to function normally. Fat is used as an energy store and to insulate us against cold. It also plays a role in the functioning of different bodily systems such as the endocrine system (hormones), reproductive system, and immune system.

A general definition of being overweight could be having more body fat than is considered healthy. Although being overweight is not the same as being obese, it does expose people to similar health risks albeit to a lesser degree.

Measuring Body Fat

One of the most widely used ways of measuring body fat is through a person’s body mass index, commonly referred to as BMI. The BMI is an attempt to measure body bass i.e. muscle, bone and fat.

BMI is determined using a formula based on an individual’s weight and height.

Body Mass Index = Body Weight(kg) divided by Height (m²)

BMI is related to body composition. It is really a measure of how thick or thin a person is and is based on average people with average body composition. For these people a BMI of 18.5 to 25 would be considered normal. Below 18.5 is underweight and above 25 is overweight, with various categories of overweight and underweight specified as you can see in the following table.

Table: Standard BMI Categories & Values

Using the formula above, let’s say a man weighs 104 kg and is 183 cm tall. His BMI is calculated as 104 kg divided by 1.83²  (= 3.349). He would have a BMI of 104/3.35 = 31 kg per m². He would therefore be considered moderately obese.

The BMI, whilst widely used, does have its drawbacks. For instance, it is more accurate when applied to uncovering obesity levels in large populations rather than individuals. At the individual level, the BMI does not scale up well. Taller people are not simply scaled up versions of smaller people, so some taller people can end up with a BMI which is considerably higher than their actual body fat percentage. As such, if taken literally BMI scores can result in some shorter people thinking they are thinner than they are, and some taller people may thinking they are fatter than they actually are.

BMI also fails to recognise physical variables such as whether a person of a given height has a large, medium or small body frame. Therefore, the BMI of a person with a small frame could indicate that they are normal weight for their height whereas the reality is that they could be overweight. Similarly, a tall person with a large frame could have a BMI score which suggests they are overweight, but the reality is they are quite normal.

Furthermore, the BMI does not distinguish between muscle and fat mass. Therefore, athletes and others who have a muscular body build could end up with a high BMI and fall into a category which is clearly untrue.

Overall, BMI provides a better estimate of obesity than body weight and it can provide a good starting point for helping to determine whether someone has a weight problem. Generally, it is more helpful when combined with other measures, like waist to height ratio or waist to hip ratio, and some common sense is used in interpreting the findings.

Body Fat Percentage

Body fat percentage (BFP) gives a much better idea of how overweight (or underweight) an individual might be compared to BMI. The body fat percentage can be regarded as a measure of a person’s fitness. It is the only body measurement which calculates a person’s relative body composition without using their height or weight.

The BFP is calculated as the total mass of fat divided by the total body mass. Body fat includes both essential body fat and stored body fat.

• Essential body fat – this is necessary to maintain life and reproductive functions.
• Storage body fat – this is fat which is deposited in adipose tissue. Some of it serves to protect internal organs.

The percentage of fat in the body needed for healthy functioning is more than simply the essential body fat since some storage fat is needed. However, there is some disagreement about how much fat is needed. Generally speaking, essential fat is thought to be the level below which there are likely to be adverse effects on physical and physiological wellbeing. But, it is difficult to give general guidelines. Because although a particular value might be good for a person’s health it can also affect their athletic performance.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Here is a list of the most often asked FAQ’s.

General

Q. Why should I enrol with the Academy for Distance Learning?
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A. No, as each module has been written by highly qualified industry professionals. The content of the material is presented in such a way that text books are not required. However, if you require additional reading your tutor will be able to supply a list.

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Q. Completing a 100 hour module – how long will it take?
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Assessment

Q. Assessment – how does it work?
A. For each 100 hour module you are assessed by assignments (at the end of each lesson) and a final one and a half hour exam (or you may elect to complete a Project, instead of sitting the exam) – the choice is yours – you sit for the exam in your own location.

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A. Yes –

Q. How many assignments do I need to complete for each module?
A. At the end of each lesson, there is an assignment – so if a course has say, 10 lessons, there would be 10 assignments.

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A. Not all educational institution’s certificates /diplomas meet everyone’s needs. The opportunity to Design Your Own Diploma at the Academy (subject to our approval) is an added bonus, not found at other colleges. You choose modules that you think will help you in achieving your goal.

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A. At the completion of all courses and providing all assignments and exam requirements have been met, you will receive your Award and a Transcript.

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A. We appoint Tutors and require that they must be currently active in their industry, with at least 5 years’ experience in their chosen profession.

Q. Can I contact my tutor at any time?
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Q. Practical work – How is this done?
A. To find out more about this part of the course please visit the section on How Our Courses Work here.