Nutrition Guidance & Goal-Based Coaching
What this domain covers
Nutrition Guidance & Goal-Based Coaching tests whether you can convert assessment data into practical calorie, macro, and behavior targets, set collaborative goals, and adjust the plan without stepping outside your scope.
Core rules
- Start with the client's goal, timeline, and constraints, then set calories before macros. For fat loss, a 10-20% deficit or 300-500 kcal below TDEE is typical; for lean gain, a 200-300 kcal surplus.
- Protein: about 1.6-2.2 g/kg for hypertrophy, higher in a deficit to preserve lean mass. Fat: at least 0.5 g/kg, generally 20-35% of calories. Carbohydrate fills the remainder and fuels training.
- Use SMART goals and anchor them to behaviors the client controls, such as meals cooked at home or protein at breakfast.
- Teach a simple framework: palm of protein, fist of vegetables, cupped hand of carbohydrate, thumb of fat. Adjust portions before overhauling the diet.
- Review every one to two weeks using weight trend, measurements, hunger, energy, and adherence. Change one or two variables at a time.
- Stay in scope: provide nutrition education and coaching, not medical nutrition therapy or diagnosis.
Worked example
An 80 kg client with a TDEE of 2,600 kcal wants fat loss. Set calories at 2,100 (a 500 kcal deficit). Protein at 1.8 g/kg = 144 g = 576 kcal. Fat at 25% = 525 kcal ÷ 9 ≈ 58 g. Carbohydrate = 2,100 − 576 − 525 = 999 kcal ÷ 4 ≈ 250 g. The plan is 144 g protein, 58 g fat, and 250 g carbohydrate.
Traps
Giving percentages when grams would be clearer, cutting calories too aggressively, failing to adjust when the trend stalls, and designing a "perfect" plan the client will not follow. Do not promise a specific amount of fat loss or prescribe diets for disease.