Wellness Assessment and Program Design
Assessment in wellness coaching is strengths-based and behavior-focused, not diagnostic. Begin with informed consent, then gather health history, current activity, readiness, and the client's own vision of well-being. Screen with a validated tool such as the PAR-Q+ to identify who needs medical clearance before becoming more active, and follow your scope: you collect and use data, you do not interpret medical tests or label disease.
What to measure
Typical baseline data include body mass index, waist circumference, resting heart rate and blood pressure (when within your training and protocol), self-reported activity, sleep, stress, and dietary patterns. Know the limits: BMI does not distinguish fat from lean mass and misclassifies muscular clients; waist circumference is a more practical marker of abdominal (visceral) fat and cardiometabolic risk. Record baseline data so progress can be evaluated rather than guessed at.
Designing the plan
Translate priorities into SMART goals - specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound - and favor process goals ("walk 20 minutes three days this week") over distant outcome goals. Apply FITT-VP (Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type, Volume, Progression) and build progression gradually with planned reassessment, typically every 4–12 weeks depending on the program. Design one or two goals at a time; a plan the client helped write is a plan the client will follow.
Traps
- Confusing an assessment finding with a diagnosis.
- Setting a goal the coach wants rather than one the client owns.
- Skipping baseline measurement, then having no way to show progress.
- Overloading a new client with a full program on day one.
Rule of thumb: one behavior, one number, one timeframe per goal.