Serena Jain, from Princeton, NJ, was first introduced to yoga and meditation as a young child. But it wasn't until 2020 that Serena embarked on a transformational path to bring integrative health and well-being coaching to corporate leaders, women's groups, and individuals seeking to become more present in their lives. Serena shared her experience completing the Duke Health & Well-Being ...
As the world continues to evolve and health becomes an increasingly important aspect of our lives, there has never been a better time to become a health coach. With the rise of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, people are seeking guidance on how to lead healthier lifestyles. As a result, health coaches have emerged as an ...
By Duke Health & Well-Being Programs Team How many of us have had the experience of eating an entire bag of chips or a pint of ice cream without even realizing it? When this happens, most (if not all) of us notice and appreciate the full taste of our first few bites but can hardly remember the rest. Mindless eating can ...
By Carol Krucoff, C-IAYT, E-RYT
Teaching yoga to seniors is often erroneously considered an entry-level job for a yoga instructor, since older adults aren’t likely to attempt complicated, “advanced” postures. Unfortunately, this ill-informed attitude puts the most vulnerable students with the least-trained instructors who may unknowingly put their students at risk.
Older adults ...
By Aili Kuutan It’s the time of year where a lot of people start to question their goals. (I may be a little early here. I feel like it’s usually 3 weeks into January that most people give up on their new year’s resolutions.) There’s definitely merit in questioning whether we need to try harder. If we’re distracted or we ...
By Aili Kuutan A friend asked me what I was up to the other day. My response: “I think I might do some editing on my online meditation course.” It seemed like a productive use of my time. I felt like I had good intentions, at least until she pointed out that I always use the words, “I think I might…” ...
By Elizabeth Bechard, BA, RYT What does cultural competency have to do with health coaching? Cultural competence describes the ability to communicate effectively and respectfully with individuals from different backgrounds. While we often think of “culture” as referring to a person’s ethnic or geographic origin, it also encompasses a wide spectrum of other characteristics, such as gender and/or ...
By Aili Kuutan Do you ever get in your own way? I suspect many of us do. In fact, I have yet to meet a person who, if they’re being honest, doesn’t do this in some way at some point in their lives. As a human being, I find it fascinating to notice this kind of behaviour. As a coach, I ...
By Aili Kuutan Have you ever heard of the concept of underlying commitments? The concept’s come up for me a couple times lately, so last week I decided to explore it for myself. In a nutshell, underlying commitments are the things we’re truly committed to, which we may not be aware of and may not be in alignment with our stated goals. For ...
By Sonja Likness Some of us are lucky to have jobs where we get paid to be on the Internet, tweeting, or watching YouTube videos the whole day. I am one such person, but I recognize the vast majority of people are not. If you’re looking for ways to optimize and reduce your time spent on social media, ...
