One of the most interesting challenges I’ve taken on in recent weeks is making coaching assignments for the food portion of individual Meltdown programs and boot camps. There are many competing interests to weigh - personalities, goals, relatability - is the coach someone the client thinks has “been there and done that” and can be a role model for their plan? A shared perspective is the goal, and the coach needs empathy, while still being able to give nudges, gentle guidance, and even a little tough love.
A favorite reading topic in recent years has been how the medical mind thinks, and how to get the best out of your health care by understanding that. Knowing anyone’s thought processes is a benefit no matter the venue where you interact. Knowing the coach’s perspective can go a long way toward maximizing the benefit you get from your program.
It’s important to know that each coach is first and foremost a client who does this because they have received much from the program, and believe strongly in helping the next person along. This pretty much means we’re the same as all clients - not a class goes by that I don’t see _someone_ who has been around for a while helping a newer participant. 
One potential pitfall is that much of our communication is in writing. While we do our best to meet all clients face-to-face, the email medium can be a challenge to get all the nuance we hope for, ESPECIALLY in a sensitive area like food and weight. We lose the non-verbal cues that are so critical when we’re trying to impart AND receive information.
And sometimes clients may not want to disappoint their coach if a log is off-target, especially if there’s an unplanned cheat. It has been my experience that (not always but) oftentimes logs we have to chase after contain things that clients may prefer not to recall. This is the stuff we REALLY need to know :). We’ve ALL been there and you’re not likely to say or do something we haven’t done or seen before. After 15 bootcamps’ worth of clients, I still have a full head of (mostly) not-gray hair ;).
How can we work through the most common obstacles?
Above all, communication is a two-way street - if we don’t hear from you, we’re not sure if you’re insanely busy or in a ditch somewhere. You might be following the plan perfectly or drowning in a Slushee sea - no way to know (ok - we may know in a couple of weeks at the scale, but that’s lost time when we could be helping :). Reporting daily is correlated with better results, period. The logs you submit will be more accurate and feedback more timely and helpful. An unspoken cheat doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, and we are ready to help you through all kinds of challenges.
Second, check our imaginations at the door. As a woman, I’m the first to admit we may read more than what’s on the page and insert inflections and emphases unintended by the writer. I’ve spent a lot of time over the years searching for synonyms making sure the nuance I intend is there. And sometimes what I think makes perfect sense when I’m emailing it may be missing information (I have been known to accidentally transmit some information psychically that I thought I said or wrote ;). And sometimes autocorrect does some seriously wild stuff!
Also, all your coaches have an extremely overdeveloped work ethic/hoarding disorder and feel like a kid missing a critical Pokemon card when they don’t have a complete set of food logs :).
It usually all comes down to keeping the lines of communication open - help us help YOU. The Meltdown program is built on three pieces - diet, exercise and accountability - don’t miss that critical third leg!
All the best,
Marcey
Coach Marcey Tidwell started as a client with NGPT in January 2011. Joining the team as an accountability coach, she wears many hats in assisting the Meltdown Nation! Nurse Marcey by day, she brings a wealth of knowledge the program! She believes that only when we hear the good, bad AND the ugly can we really understand the whole picture.
