Q&A with Jennifer McCay - Healthy Weight Loss and Lifestyle Coach

How did you become a healthy weight loss and lifestyle coach?

It’s difficult to answer this question without sharing my own weight loss story. I’m not someone who just naturally loved working out or eating healthy from the beginning. Quite the contrary!

During high school and college, I spent most of my spare time making spending money by creating fancy desserts and custom decorated cakes for a local restaurant and private customers, and I sampled too much of what I made. But I was willing to try crazy diets to lose a few pounds when I needed to, so I stayed fairly thin, but I was getting more and more unhealthy all that time.

When I took my first office job after graduating, my metabolism slowed down, and my diet got even worse. I also stopped being able to get by with my unhealthy habits of emotional eating and feeding my food cravings – my weight kept increasing little by little till I didn’t know who I was in the mirror anymore.

I spent the first decade after college pursuing a successful career in advertising. But while I was good at helping my clients boost their bottom lines, my own bottom line suffered (as in the physical one). By that time I had a complete wardrobe to fit 3 different weights – skinny, “normal” and fat. I remember one business trip where I had to scramble to find suitable work clothes to wear because nothing fit right, and I felt self-conscious the whole day hoping no one would notice.

Though I considered myself health-conscious, I all but ignored my own needs while excelling in my work, and by my late 20s, I found myself 50+ pounds overweight and suffered from severe asthma and allergies that required 4-5 medications daily to function at a very basic level. I used food to cope when I was stressed out, I tried to start new diets sometimes every day for a month running and I got so out of breath trying to work out that I finally had stopped even trying to get fit. I was overweight at my wedding, and I always agonized to find clothes that wouldn't make me look too heavy.

At that time, I was always exhausted and got every virus imaginable, and I was so unhappy with how I looked and felt that I had no self-esteem and was in a deep depression, without any knowledge of how to break the cycle and lead a happy, balanced life.

I had struggled with my weight for so long, and while I had occasional times of being a reasonable weight via really unhealthy dieting, I'd never managed to get my weight under control in any consistent way.

I was a mess, and I felt hopeless! And I had no idea what to do to break the unhealthy cycle I was living in, but I felt so desperate that I even dropped everything and moved with my husband from my adopted home abroad in Germany back to the U.S. in hopes the climate change would improve my health. It did -- a little, but not enough -- and my depression worsened to the point I hit an all-time low.

And then something changed. I realized I'd broken my promise to myself to get my weight under control by the time I hit 30, and I got mad. I realized that either that ice cream or cupcake (or whatever food I was craving at the time) was going to win the battle, or I was. And I was sick and tired of "losing" to food and feeling trapped living in a body I was uncomfortable with. But it was time to stop beating myself up for failing and figure out how to solve my problems.

Not sure how to move forward, and without a role model, I decided it was finally time to change my weight, my health and my well-being once and for all. It was my rock bottom and also the beginning of the best time in my life to that point.

As I began to tackle this huge "construction project," I immersed myself in books and courses on everything that appeared to be able to help me get healthy and happy. I was committed to finding a way to live that was really health-promoting, and I knew there had to be a better way to live and feel authentic, fulfilled and (yes, I'll say it) fabulous. I was tired of feeling "less than" all the time. I wanted it all!

Prior attempts to change my lifestyle had always failed miserably, so I tried a new approach: Instead of trying to change everything in my life overnight, I started making small, but significant changes that added up to tremendous improvements over time. And I figured out some simple, yet uncommon strategies that made it much easier to lose weight, stay focused and get past weight loss plateaus easily and stress-free.

After being overweight, ill and unhappy for well over a decade, in less than a year I:

• discovered the power of truly healthy eating, which allowed me to lose 53+ lbs. and reach my ideal weight (as a size 2/4) easily while eating plenty of delicious, healthy whole foods without ever going hungry
• ended that awful food cravings cycle once and for all
• stopped taking medications for asthma because I no longer needed them and haven't since
• got fit and strong after years of being unable to be physically active
• broke out of that dark depression once and for all
• gained tremendous energy and stamina
• became happy with my physical appearance

Furthermore, for the first time ever, I felt balanced, happy and ready for anything life threw my way thanks to tackling the mental stumbling blocks, beliefs and behaviors that had held me back from happiness all that time. I felt fantastic, and my life has gotten better and better ever since! In the process I discovered that I had created a strategy -- an overall system -- for tackling weight loss and other crucial lifestyle issues. This ultimately became the basis for my LeanGreen Balance Blueprint™ for life-changing weight loss, which I now share with my clients because, quite simply, it works.

During this time of incredible personal growth, I began giving back, sharing what I had learned along the way with others in hopes that they could benefit from my experiences and knowledge, and others kept sharing how much they appreciated my help and the results they got from implementing my ideas. I realized my true passion in life was in coaching and inspiring other women who needed the kind of help I once did to lose weight healthfully and regain their spark, and I opened my coaching practice shortly thereafter to let other moms into this exclusive "club" of strong, fit, happy and empowered women that I unlocked the doors to.

Just a few months later, I had my first child, started spending the majority of my time with fellow moms and discovered how few resources there are out there for moms who need help fitting healthy weight loss into their hectic lifestyles. Ever since I have worked with moms to help them find peace with food, their bodies and their lives and become the LeanGreenMamas they've always wanted to be. Get more information on your weight loss support options here.

Why might I need personal coaching from you?

Working with the right coach gives you a serious leg up when it comes to weight loss. Not only do you benefit from the guidance and help of a mentor who has personally experienced similat struggles; you also get the accountability aspect of “reporting in” regularly on what you’ve accomplished as well as support and encouragement as you go, so it's significantly easier to reach your ideal weight and look and feel your best.

Some specific issues I regularly help my clients conquer include:

• emotional eating, such as overeating out of boredom or frustration
• creating healthy new habits in place of the old, unhealthy ones, which is one of the main reasons it can be hard to lose weight on your own
• food cravings that have made it challenging to stick to a new way of eating in the past
• mindset and motivation-related challenges that make it difficult to stay focused on healthful eating long enough to get all the weight off
• time management problems, which make it seem impossible to fit healthy eating into your lifestyle
• nutritional advice for busy moms who don’t have the time or inclination to stay up on the latest nutritional advice and want me to help them
• establishing a fitness routine that doesn't keep them at the gym for hours on end

And of course there are plenty of other topics that come up in coaching, such as entertaining healthfully, recipe recommendations, advice on phasing into healthful eating, how to overcome common and not-so-common obstacles to healthy eating such as travel, an unsupportive spouse, how to feed your kids more healthfully or integrate your meals into your family's menus and really any issue impacting your ability to change your eating and other lifestyle habits and lose weight.

As your personal coach, I am open to all challenges you present to me, and we work together to discover the best, workable solutions that fit into your lifestyle in as painless a way as possible. I also challenge you as well so that you can branch out of your comfort zone and begin creating the life you really want for yourself.

What is the LeanGreenMama approach to healthy weight loss?

Though there is much hype out there that suggests there's a magic pill for losing body fat, to lose weight successfully and healthfully, you must take better care of your body, plain and simple. My programs recommend that you eat healthfully, move your body and tackle any underlying mindset issues that have held you back in the past so that you can lose the weight once and for all so you can get on with life in a thin, fit body you're proud of.

I developed my proprietary LeanGreen Balance Blueprint™, which I teach my private coaching clients as well as in my LeanGreenYOU Lifestyle Bootcamp, to make achieving permanent weight loss a simple, step-by-step process of gaining simple new skills and putting them into practice in your daily life.

How does coaching work?

Currently we are in the process of revamping our coaching options to offer you more flexibility. The information below is solely for Elite Access™ Transformation Coaching. Clients are personally hand-selected by Jennifer on a first-come, first-served basis.

When we get started working together, first we have a one-hour Elite Jumpstart Session via telephone so that I can get to know your needs far better. Though most clients come to me with one of the challenges listed above, you are unique and always come with your own lifestyle, work, family and household needs. During this initial session, after assessing your current situation, we decide how best to move forward together.

As part of our coaching together, I provide you with knowledge that helps you lose weight easily, get healthier, stop the cravings cycle and anything else nutrition-related that you might need assistance with. This might mean I will share nutritional information, fitness advice, healthy recipes, tips on how to make healthful eating easier in your busy life and so forth so that you can succeed! The basis of all my coaching is my proprietary LeanGreen Balance Blueprint™ -- a simple yet strategic step-by-step plan that gets you from where you are now to your ideal weight in the shortest amount of time -- always putting your health and happiness first.

Secondly, I collaborate with you to help you recraft your lifestyle so that you can achieve your health, weight, fitness and life goals. We might work together to help you have less fear, frustration, overwhelm or indecision in your life, or perhaps you simply want to enjoy far more confidence, freedom, clarity and abundance on a daily basis. We start where you currently are and work to move you forward into a life in which your body and soul are in balance.

Personal coaching requires a minimum commitment of 4 months to ensure that you are well-equipped wth a full set of healthy living tools and strategies when our coaching is over that help you continue to lose weight and keep it off permanently. I offer 4, 6 and 12 month coaching options, as well as maintenance coaching to help you bridge the gap after Elite coaching is over.

Who do you work with?

I work exclusively with moms who need help losing weight easily, effectively and healthfully. As a mom of 2 myself, I know that we are the least likely to take care of ourselves until all the rest of the household is cared for, and I help clients like you find ways to take care of themselves that are manageable even within the time constraints that being a mom entails.

What kind of clients do you work best with?

I prefer to work with women who are intelligent, ask questions and come to each session with honesty and a commitment to taking action. I see the best results from clients who respect their bodies' innate intelligence and understand that A sense of humor also helps! It helps immensely if you come to coaching with an open mind and a willingness to try new things. We will get much more accomplished if you have a vision of a happier, healthier life that you are committed to achieving, even if it currently seems out of reach.

For what type of person is your program NOT going to work?

Please note that I personally screen all one-on-one coaching clients for my Elite Access™ Transformation Coaching program to make sure that we’re well-suited to work with one another. If I don’t feel we’re an ideal match, I will let you know that I don’t feel we can achieve the results you want.

Secondly, my basic recommended nutritional approach entails a mostly (though not necessarily entirely) vegetarian, plant-based whole foods diet because this is the most health-promoting way of eating, which also happens to be the best way of losing weight. I am strongly influenced by The China Study and the work of Dr. Joel Fuhrman, whose groundbreaking book Eat to Live gives the best overview of nutrition, weight loss and disease prevention that I have ever come across in all my reading and research. You don’t have to become vegetarian in order to lose weight, and I often work with clients who are not vegetarian, but it is necessary to moderate how much meat, fish, poultry and dairy you eat according to my recommendations because I am committed to helping you get not only thinner, but also healthier. If this is a problem for you, I am not the best coach for your needs. But if you wish to discover the incredible health benefits of a mostly vegetarian, nutrient-dense eating style, you're in the right place.

Last but not least, I tend to work with motivated women willing to take action, not those who regularly make excuses about why they haven’t followed through. Life definitely gets in the way sometimes despite our best intentions, particularly for us moms, and some dietary changes in particular are more challenging than others; however, excuses won't get you where you need to go. To get results, you really need to do the work or at least try your very best.

What sets you apart from other weight loss coaches?

First of all, I work exclusively with other moms, enabling me to help you with your very specific needs both as a busy mom and as a weight loss-resistant woman.

Second, my proprietary approach to weight loss treats your weight as a symptom of your life as a whole. An integral part of the LeanGreen Balance Blueprint™ is a 360 degree look at your life to see how nurtured you are in the 10 most important aspects of your life. Anything less treats weight loss as a tacked-on set of habits, and that won't help you shed the pounds and keep them off permanently.

Third, I am not focused on a "medical" perspective on weight loss, and despite my focus on healthy weight loss and a holistic approach to achieving great health, I don't recommend that you take countless supplements to boost your metabolism, improve your body's fat-burning capability or even just maintain a basic level of health. There is a small handful of important nutrients you should supplement daily, and otherwise you should get the vast majority of your nutrition from a healthy diet of whole foods.

Lastly, I am an experienced coach who understands human psychology, behavior and how to get the best results from the least amount of effort -- ideal for a busy mom who needs as many shortcuts to success as possible to lose the weight. I have been mentoring and coaching others professionally since 2001, and as your coach, I am committed to helping you take the actions that optimally get you to your goals for your body, your soul, your life. It is my greatest joy and passion to help you achieve your passions. And I will refer you to the physicians I trust most if I discover that you need medical attention at any time.

What results can I expect?

I make no promises about results because it completely depends on the individual and her needs, lifestyle and how her body loses weight. I also can’t make my clients do anything they don’t want to do, so your actions will dictate how quickly you lose the weight. But I will say this: It is much, much easier to lose weight when you have a trusted mentor who can guide you past the potential pitfalls, help you push past plateaus and tackle the lifestyle, dietary and mindset challenges that have held you back in the past.

Once we begin working together, you can expect the following benefits:

• You’ll no longer feel trapped in a body you don’t like! As your body loses inches, you feel freer and happier.
• Every day will be calmer and more peaceful because you won’t be feeding food cravings that lead to emotional ups and downs. Instead you’ll be nourishing your body with healthful, healing foods
• You’ll feel much more self-confidence
• Not only will you love how you look in the mirror — you’ll finally have the kind of relationship with food that you can be proud of and you can be thrilled for your kids to emulate
• The gradual mindset shifts that lead to a healthier body also lead to a healthier, happier you
• You’ll finally see yourself as the capable, disciplined, accomplished self-starter that you truly are
• Every day will help you experience more and more joy as you embrace new activities and possibilities for your future

Together we will help you create the life you’ve always wanted for yourself as a thinner, healthier, happier, more balanced you!

What if I’ve tried other diets in the past and not succeeded?

If by not succeeding, you mean you didn’t lose the weight or lost the weight but couldn’t keep it off, that doesn’t have to be your destiny once we work together. I always educate you on the habits you need to cultivate in order to successfully lose weight and become healthier, and we work together to implement these healthy new habits into your lifestyle so that they "take" for good. That typically is not how other weight loss programs work, and it’s a key reason why you may not have done as well as you wished in the past.

With my help, if you put in the effort and are willing to make some changes in your way of eating and your lifestyle, we will work together to help you become a LeanGreenMama!

What if I decide I don’t want to continue working with you?

Regarding my Elite Access™ Transformation Coaching program, I offer you a simple, straightforward promise: If during our first month of coaching you decide that you are unsatisfied with my assistance, you may request a full refund at any time. No questions asked. Just contact my office before the first 30 days are up and we’ll take care of it.

Jennifer, based on everything I’ve learned about you and heard from others, I know you’re the right coach for me. What are my options for getting started?

Though there are several new coaching plans in the works, I currently offer one-on-one Elite Access™ Transformation Coaching for 4, 6 or 12 months as my premier plan for clients who want personal, individualized consultation with me several times a month. I recommend that you learn more about this coaching option, and if it looks like a good fit for you, simply follow the instructions on that page to apply.

If you’re not ready for one-on-one coaching, I strongly recommend that you participate in the LeanGreenYOU™ Lifestyle Bootcamp, which teaches you my step-by-step process to healthy, long-term weight loss.

I’m ready to move forward, but I have a few questions. What should I do?

You’re welcome to send your questions to my office or call 1.877.203.7787 (toll-free), and we’ll be happy to help you.

If you know you’re ready for Elite Access, please fill out the application for this coaching program to reserve your spot. You’ll find it at the bottom of the page. As part of the application process, we schedule a brief phone consultation with applicants before moving forward with coaching; this gives both of us a chance to determine whether we’re going to work well together or not, and you can get clarification on many questions during this call. Please also keep in mind that the first 30 days of Elite Access coaching are guaranteed or you can request a complete refund (later cancellations would be refunded at a prorated rate), so there is no risk whatsoever to get started.