Before working with Isabel I was not attracting my ideal client. I was getting lots of interest in my coaching services…but from people who were confused about what I did (i.e. they didn’t understand the value of diet recovery work) or who were simply not ready to give up dieting and the goal of weight loss. I was having a tough time communicating my message and reaching the people I really wanted to help.
I also lacked confidence in working with clients around body image concerns. I had a lot of training in “Intuitive Eating” and the non-diet approach, but could only get my clients so far without the body image component—which seemed to be lacking in my other trainings. I felt stuck when my clients’ fear of weight gain would come up and I knew I needed tools to help them through these fears if I was going to be truly effective in my work long-term.
Thankfully, I started noticing positive changes in my coaching practice almost immediately after diving into Isabel’s methods. Her concepts are so well articulated (not to mention make so much sense!), making them easy to communicate and pass on to my clients. Listening to Isabel’s case studies were also a game-changer. I can’t think of a better way to improve my coaching skills than to *actually listen* to someone like Isabel coaching clients through *real life* food and body situations. The more case studies I listened to, the more confident I felt in my own coaching practice—and I’m still continuing to learn from them as time goes on. Our live teacher training calls have also been invaluable—allowing me to go over my own challenging client situations (and business situations!) with her directly whenever I need extra support.
On the business front, Isabel helped me make strategic tweaks to my website and messaging—and within hours of relaunching my website I had bookings for introduction calls with the EXACT client I was targeting. Within a few days, not only did I have more calls and emails than I had had in a very long time, but they were ALL people looking for the exact services I was offering. I know I should not be surprised, but I still can not believe all of Isabel’s advice and coaching worked so well with such fast results! I honestly feel this is the best money I have spent professionally so far.
Tara Miller, taramillernutrition.com
Before working with Isabel, I felt under-educated (and definitely not fully healed) around my own fatphobia and diet mentality, despite having worked with several “food and body” coaches before her. I felt like I could only take my clients 60% of the way to recovery (which was about as far as I had gone myself) but I couldn’t get them over the hill to true solid recovery, because I myself hadn’t gotten there either. I was living in “light recovery,” no longer engaging in active dieting, but a lot of subconscious dieting and constantly fighting my negative body image thoughts.
I’d worked with other coaches specializing in emotional eating and food & body relationship, but it wasn’t until my work with Isabel that I felt fully healed at the true ROOT of my issues—the link between my food behaviors and my body-image. Today, I no longer feel confused when certain food or body image challenges arise—in myself or in my clients. I’m able to relax around food rather than being in my head all the damn time, and I can accept my body rather than living in fear, shame, and diet-starts-tomorrow mentality.
I feel confident and excited to do my work now because I’m armed with all the tools I need to make real change in my clients’ food issues. Within just a few weeks of working with Isabel, my clients went from struggling with “half-way” recovery to experiencing massive breakthroughs and “a-ha” moments in our work together.
Working with Isabel should honestly be a non-negotiable for any coach working in the nutrition, health, or body image realm. My entire approach has changed after working with her, and I feel so much better informed and equipped to coach women through anything food-and-body related.
Natalie Zises, www.nataliezises.com
After taking Isabel’s Master Class in 2015 — and getting to a place where I felt truly free from all the “crazy” around food in my own life — I finally had the space to think about what really mattered to me: I wanted nothing more than to help other women find the peace that I did through this work.
I wasn’t sure how I could stand out with so many other women doing this work. I didn’t have my own “voice” in this arena — I had no brand, no website, no subscribers, and nobody to teach me or hold me accountable for making those things happen. That old feeling of self-doubt, like “can I really do this?” kept creeping in. I just felt like a fish out of water.
Step by step, Isabel helped me understand how to create online content that excites, inspires and attracts the clients I want to work with most — in a way that’s true to my authentic voice. Now I have a fully launched online presence that reflects who I am and how I’m trying to help women. I’m confident that my website, blog posts, and other materials, resonate with my audience, and serve the critical function of creating a healthy client-base. My business looks great online—but more importantly, it’s effective. I know how to convert visitors to subscribers, coaching consultations, etc.
Melissa Coloton, MelissaColoton.com
Before working with Isabel, I was a recent graduate who was struggling with how to build my professional coaching business. The health and wellness world seemed SO vast, and while I was highly motivated to have my voice heard, I felt completely overwhelmed, especially with ‘online marketing’ and getting my name out on the internet.
Ultimately, once I started working with Isabel, it also became obvious that I was dealing with some deeply-buried and lingering body image issues myself. I truly believed in the anti-diet approach; but, if I was honest, I still had some restrictive thoughts that needed to be addressed. My initial focus was on my business, but ultimately the work we did on my own life was truly invaluable.
After completing my mentorship I was crystal clear in how to move forward. I knew exactly what I would offer clients (and what I would avoid), how to approach and coach them effectively, and I had the vocabulary to communicate complex ideas about size-inclusive health. I was introduced to resources, people, and information that continue to serve me and my business to this day, and while I was initially focused on growing my business, I learned more than I could have imagined about how to work with clients around food and body issues, and ultimately, how to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.
Linda Tucker, LindaTuckerCoaching.com
Before working with Isabel, I was working with clients in person but wanted to take my practice online. I felt unclear about marketing and sales (e.g. what I should be doing and not-doing on sales calls), as well as understanding my scope of practice as a coach. I’d never seen or heard anyone else coach before and wondered if I was on the right track. I was also teaching yoga and unsure about how these classes fit into my anti-diet brand.
Early on in the Mentorship program, I restructured my coaching program to make the best use of my time with clients and make sure they get the education needed throughout our work together. Isabel guidance was invaluable here, and after studying Isabel’s methods and coaching calls, I now understand the common themes that run through almost every client struggle and how to effectively hold space, ask powerful questions and offer guidance with empathy and compassion.
Today, my business is fully online with clear messaging and an effective sales funnel to attract and nurture new clients. I’ve also started giving talks to groups of women and I’ve launched and sold out two online workshops (!)
My yoga teachings are also a much more integrated part of my business now, having integrated body positivity and size inclusivity into my yoga teaching business as well. I couldn’t have imagined such a profound shift in my mindset and actions over the past 12 months, thank you, Isabel!
Although I was already working with clients when I started with Isabel, I knew in my heart I couldn’t fully support them in breaking free from diet culture—because I, myself, was not totally free.
I felt deceptive, unprepared and totally overwhelmed with my role as a coach and business owner, and confusion in my own recovery kept my vision for my business cloudy at best.
I was also scared to fully commit to the body positive business I really wanted, because I was scared to lose clients who were still dieting or wanting to lose weight.
Early in our work together, Isabel pointed out what was missing in my own recovery—which quickly inspired a completely new direction in my coaching business.
She helped me see where I could use my personal faith and spirituality to assist in the diet recovery process, and helped me develop those practices into a unique coaching method of my own.
This was a major turning point for me—giving me real clarity around my “niche” in the world of body positive coaching.
Today I can confidently say that I’m running a business in alignment with my unique strengths and values, and I’m so grateful for Isabel’s guidance and support along the way.
Courtney Kopec, CourtneyKopec.com
Before Isabel’s Mentorship, I had done A LOT of work around Intuitive Eating, however, I still believed there was a ‘right’ way to eat. You know, sitting down, relishing every bite, “eating mindfully,” etc.
80% of me felt “liberated” and 20% of me was holding onto “that right way of eating” and even occasionally weighing myself and judging my body accordingly when I felt like I was failing at this “right way.” I struggled with long-held perfectionism in other areas of my life as well—including my parenting and in my work life as a coach.
Of course, when I started, I thought I knew all of the “non-diet” theory on an intellectual level and just wasn’t embodying it. I thought I knew everything and just “wasn’t doing it” or just “not believing” non-diet messages when it came to my own body.
Since completing the mentorship, my understanding of the “goal” of diet-recovery has completely changed. I no longer judge myself based on “correct” eating and my self-worth is no longer defined by my eating habits at all.
I don’t think about what I’ve eaten in the past, I’m not on any wagons, and if I ever notice an old diet-mentality thought pop up (they’re very rare these days), I see it for what it is and it lasts no longer than a few seconds.
I can now pass this freedom onto my clients with confidence—since it isn’t just “intellectual” for me anymore.
I’ve faced my perfectionism head-on, I’m more accepting of myself and others, and I have a newfound felt sense of my worthiness at my core. Support for my clients comes naturally and easily through this deeply internalized experience of body love.
Liz Kirby, lifeunfiltered.com