Experience Review: Colleen Cleary, Holistic Health Coach (extraordinaire)

Disclaimer: Working with Colleen Cleary as my Holistic Health Coach was part of a barter agreement. I received her coaching in exchange for rebuilding her website and editing her content.

Note: This post was originally published on my business website – spiritedwolfmedia.com.

Hello. My name is Kelly and I almost died on the operating table during emergency surgery in 2018.

I stopped breathing and they almost couldn’t get my heart to beat again.

I would have left behind a husband and two beautiful daughters.

When I finally woke up in the recovery room, my surgeon told me the good news: I didn’t die. What a way to sugarcoat it, huh?

I mean, at least he didn’t mock my weight or make me feel less inferior because of my weight like most medical professionals tend to do.

He just pointed out that I could have died because of my weight alone (that’s how I was diagnosed with sleep apnea).

After he left the room, and after I recovered from the shock of nearly dying,  I knew something had to change. Something had to give. But I didn’t know what. I just knew that I couldn’t die. I wanted to live. I needed to live.

Because I didn’t almost nearly die from a raging infection from a gallbladder that was just moments from exploding. Nope. I almost died because I was fat, overweight, and extremely unhealthy.

Over the course of this experience review, I am going to tell you how I came to meet Colleen Cleary, Holistic Health Coach (extraordinaire), how she unequivocally changed my life, and why you need her as part of your health journey cheerleading team.

Diets Are Bullshit

I had tried everything before that emergency surgery. From hypnosis to fad diets to giving up. I was in this position because I either failed at every single diet or weight loss plan, or it just didn’t work.

And if it did work, I just gained double the weight back. I lost a lot on the HCG diet but ended up stopping because the restrictions made life dull, aggravating, and impossible to maintain.

The moment I stopped, I gained weight that very same day.

At almost 315 pounds leading up to that emergency surgery that changed my life in 2018, I was almost at my highest weight. That 320-pound milestone came at the beginning of 2020, pre-pandemic.

I have been heavy, overweight, chubby, and unable to fit in a movie theater chair comfortably since Middle School.

I was a chubby kid before that too, but it wasn’t until Middle School that I realized other people had opinions about my weight, and that those opinions hurt, sparking my 20-year battle with my weight

For the past 20 years, I have tried anything and everything under the sun to lose the stupid weight. I would have tried anything to stop feeling like a loser. Even Positive Changes Hypnosis. 

Paleo, Whole30, HCG diet, Nutrisystem, the apple cider vinegar diet, the subway diet, 2B Mindset, and Weight Watchers with my mom, aunt, and grandma.

I tried low-fat, no-fat, sugar-free food. All of which sucked the joy out of eating.

During my freshman year in college, I reached my lowest of 175ish pounds because I was working out, eating salads, walking, and doing all the things to keep my body moving.

It helped that I had all the time in the world to move my body. This was pre-kids, pre-chaotic life.

Then, I got the birth control shot. No matter how much I worked out or ate “right”, I ballooned and didn’t stop gaining weight for 15 years.

Fast forward 15 years and endless binge eating sessions later, I was popping Pepto chewable tablets left and right.

Much like my new inhaler accessory after getting Covid in July, I couldn’t go anywhere without those pink tablets.

In the back of my mind, I knew that if I stopped binge eating and started eating healthy, I wouldn’t need a lifetime supply of Pepto.

Easier said than done. That’s why people like Colleen Cleary exist, and why they are so desperately needed.

I had no clue what eating healthy looked like. It had never been modeled in my house. My grandma made sure everyone ate 3rds before they left. Every family event and celebration was an occasion to eat potluck style.

My life revolved around food and not much else.

No wonder none of the diets I tried, worked. But I didn’t understand why none of the diets worked until I started working with Colleen.

From Trauma Comes Growth

 

In April 2020, my best friend died and I metaphorically died with her.

At the time, I was at my darkest, lowest points. But, it was, unfortunately, also one of the best things to, happen to me.

Now, you may be wondering, when does Colleen Cleary and her Cleary Method show up in my journey? Give me a few more minutes. I am getting there. Without her, I wouldn’t be writing this right now.

I was not ready for her back in 2020. I wasn’t even ready for her in 2021. And I am still not sure if I am ready for her now. But dammit, I am so freaking grateful for her.

So, back to my health journey. Who I was before the death of my best friend, no longer exists.

I was lost for a really long time, drowning in pain. My weight and how I saw myself just added to the seemingly never-ending pain and depression.

My best friend and I both struggled with our weight, so logically, we were each other’s cheerleaders. Every time we spent even just 10 minutes moving, cleaning a doom pile, or getting up in the morning – we cheered each other on.

She died, and with her, my cheerleader I didn’t realize I desperately counted on.

I counted on her so much so, I realized I took my best friend for granted after her death.

I thought we would be best friends until we were old, crotchety, crazy women who pulled pranks on everyone as we lived our best lives.

Her death is why I let the people I care about know I love them as much as humanly possible. Even obsessively so.

At some point around a year after her death, I started to get my shit together.

With the realization that she wouldn’t want me to be a couch pancake forever, I started rising from the ashes to rebuild myself.

Healing Mentally

 

So, I started to live again.

I had basically given up and come to the conclusion that I would always be fat. I would be Fat Kelly, not Kelly who was fat.

I accepted the fact that, because they don’t carry my size, I would never be able to run to Fred Meyers last minute because I forgot pajamas on our camping trip.

I gave in to the fact that I would always be uncomfortable and bloated and just feel plain gross.

But, I started to live again, regardless.

And because I had given up on my physical body, I chose to focus on my mental health.

I worked on just finding the silver linings, the sparks of happiness, and I held on.

I became a stoic and wholly embraced the philosophy that  “your thoughts and beliefs create the world you inhabit, not external circumstances, so you ought to take responsibility for your mind.”

Then, Something Strange Happened

After giving up on caring about my weight, and my external image, I went all in on living life for myself and no one else and I finally stopped caring about other people’s opinions and what they thought of me.

At 33 years old, I was fat. That was my identity. Nothing I could do to change it. I know, I had tried. So instead of fighting that fact, I lived with it and worked around it.

I tuned everyone’s opinions out because they didn’t matter.

It was the single hardest thing I had done in my life thus far. And I gave birth. Twice.

Anyway, ignoring the need for external validation did get easier. And as it got easier, I mentally healed, becoming mentally healthy for the first time in my depressed and darkness-filled life.

The more I mentally healed, I began noticing my clothes were fitting a tiny bit looser. And I wasn’t completely out of breath at the top of the stairs.

At first, I didn’t understand why. I didn’t change my eating habits and I definitely didn’t add any exercise. I just started focusing on myself, putting myself first for once.

I was still drinking 4 or 5 Dr. Peppers a day. A DAY!

I was still doing late-night plaid pantry runs with my husband.

The only change was that I was working hard on my mental health and apologizing to my body, vowing to take better care of it as soon as I could figure out how.

After realizing my clothes were looser, I realized I was no longer binge eating on the couch. The next thing I know, I began buying fewer snacks on those nightly runs.

I still hadn’t added exercise or extra movement, but that didn’t seem to matter. At least not yet. I had a lot of fluff to lose.

At 90 pounds lost, I am just now getting to a point where I need to add physical exercise, and for the first time in my life, I am not afraid to get my curvaceous bod out there and move it.

Following Your Dreams Will Change Your Life

 

Ok, so, full disclosure, at this point I was not on a single diet. I wasn’t cutting out any food or restricting my intake. I ate what I wanted when I wanted. Even if that meant a slice of chocolate cake at breakfast. 

In June 2021, a year into putting myself first and healing mentally, I quit my stable paycheck job to follow my dreams of becoming a published author.

It was the best decision I could have made. Mentally and physically.

I was no longer sitting at a desk 9 hours a day, waking up at 4 am, or spending 2 hours in a car.

I was still eating fast food but I was no longer stressed out beyond belief, filling my mouth with snack after snack because eating was the only thing I could control.

While I could have focused wholeheartedly on my physical health because I could make my own hours, I didn’t. We were still in the middle of an out-of-control pandemic. I didn’t leave my house much.

At first, I wasn’t losing a TON of weight. But every ounce still counted and wasn’t worth any less because I wasn’t going to a gym or walking more than 3,000 steps in a day.

All those ounces eliminated may have meant I needed to go on a shopping trip, but they also added to a much-needed increase in my self-confidence and a boost to my self-love.

Gradually, the silver linings turned into sunshine-filled days, and the sparks of happiness became flames

Then, I hit a wall. Well, more like slammed into it.

I couldn’t get the scale to budge. I could feel my willpower slipping. The feeling of the looser fit of my clothing that I was quickly becoming attached to, got tighter.

I didn’t know what else to do.

No, that’s not true. But at this point in my weight journey, I did NOT want to do another diet.

I had failed at every single one. They made me feel worse about myself while making me lose all independence because I couldn’t figure out how to adapt those diets to everyday life forever.

I knew that at this point in my weight loss journey, another weight loss failure would only end in misery. I absolutely needed to do something different.

I would have done just about anything to avoid another failure, but I didn’t know what or how or where to start.

Collen Cleary, Holistic Health Coach, Founder Of The Cleary Method

 

Put out into the universe what you seek, and the universe shall provide. Hopefully.  In this case, the universe definitely did Because Collen is that type of energy.

Earlier this year, just by happenstance, I met Colleen Cleary of The Cleary Method through a business networking business.

I helped her redo her website and then we bartered to exchange services. My strategies and editing abilities for her Holistic Health Coaching.

From redoing her website, I knew what her services revolved around and what she believed in.

Her services, and her beliefs, stood for everything diets are not: individualized.

After working with her for 8 months, I can honestly say that the only time I think about diets these days – after being ruled by diet culture for 20 years – is in the context of “diets are BULLSHIT.”

Meeting Colleen came at the perfect time.

I had slammed into that wall where my weight decided to hang on even tighter.

On top of that, the mental health that I had fought to heal, started to suffer. I could feel the self-hatred cycle get ready to be put into play.

I was at a point where, once again, something needed to change.

Colleen Works Her Magic

 

When I first met Colleen, she had to explain to me what a “Holistic Health Coach” is and does.

As I was listening to her speak fiercely and passionately about what her purpose in this life is, I hung on to every single word, trying to imagine my life if I somehow got the honor to work with her.

As of this posting, I am at my lowest of 228.8 and have never loved myself harder. I couldn’t have done that without Colleen and her magic.

I refer to it as magic because there is not a single word or phrase that could accurately boil down who Colleen is and how she changes the lives of every woman she meets and works with.

Because she spoke so clearly about why she does what she does, her take on diet culture, and her approach to life, when she offered to barter, I jumped at the chance to work with her.

When Weight Holds You Back

While I was mentally healing, I learned about the person I wanted to become.

I wanted to be confident, brave, courageous. I wanted to be a fighter, and fun, and curious. I wanted to be someone that my kids could be proud of.

My weight was holding me back from being the person I wanted to become.

My fat body stood in the way of me making my dreams of becoming a writer.

I know. I know. That isn’t even logical. Yet that was my mindset around my weight.

I may have started living again after my best friend died, but I also stopped dreaming of a future where I wasn’t Fat Kelly. I wasn’t living my full potential.

When you are fat, no matter how much your support system tells you otherwise, your toddler brain will make you feel less than and unworthy of accomplishing dreams because of the weight.

But even if you have given up on losing weight, you will still feel like a failure as a parent because you still worry day and night that your kids will be fighting to lose the weight one day too.

Is Holistic Health Coaching Just Another Fad?

 

I had zero clue what to expect during my and Colleen’s first session back in April.

And if you would have told me that I would be writing this 8 months later, at not only my lowest weight but also at my happiest moment, I would never have believed you and I definitely wouldn’t have gotten my hopes up dreaming about an unattainable future where my dreams stay dreams.

I had never worked with a holistic health coach, let alone met one.

Also, while I may not have known what to expect during our first session, I also came prepared to say “no, thank you” and chalk it up to another diet fad or viral trend.

As it turns out, the last thing I needed to be prepared for was a pyramid scheme.

In fact, I left that session with a new take on life. Not just towards my horrible eating patterns or my non-existent exercise.

But I ended that first session feeling, for the first time, that this would be the last time I needed to think about dieting.

Not only because diets are bullshit and harmful, but because Colleen’s perspective towards Holistic living is inspiring.

I didn’t know it back in April, but over the past 8 months of what has become a beautiful friendship, this has definitely been the last time.

The last time I cried about my weight. The last time I would purposefully avoid all mirrors. The last time I felt ashamed I was besties with the snooze button.

Because I wholeheartedly believe that Holistic Living is not another New Age, Woo-Woo fad diet. It can’t be. It’s a lifestyle.

Meeting Colleen changed my life.  Working with her finally helped me become the person I wanted to be. Or rather realize the person I wanted to be. Hint: I was always that person. And you are too.

Now that you know what has transpired up to the reason for this post, brought me to write this piece, I need you to know just how important Colleen is to my health journey because Coach Colleen could be the perfect person to add to your health journey cheerleading team.

The Cleary Method

 

According to Colleen, The Cleary Method is not just about food. It is about consistency in all things – eating, sleeping, exercising, self-care, and even bedtime routines

Her Cleary Method method IS “holistic health” in a nutshell.

Outside the nutshell, Holistic Health is about seeing the person as a WHOLE and merging health with their entire wellbeing, rather than JUST physical health OR mental health.

Holistic Health is about not cherry-picking what to focus on as many diets do.

Because you are not just your physical health and you are not just your mental health. You are a WHOLE person and deserve to be seen as a WHOLE person.

So it makes sense that, when trying to lose weight sustainably and for the last time, you acknowledge every aspect that makes you a WHOLE person.

From your morning routines to your bedtime routines. From your thoughts about food to those ugly beliefs you have been hanging on to for dear life, unable to let go – you are a whole person.

And that is why The Cleary Method is such a successful method. It is not about just about food. In fact, food is only a small portion of Colleen’s methods revolve around what to eat, when to eat, and how to eat.

Hint: eat whatever, whenever, and however.

The Cleary Method is about healing the roots of those negative thoughts.

In a world where we are inundated with 24/7 advertising, viral diets, and an unhealthy focus on women’s bodies, The Cleary Method is a fresh perspective on how to live your best life AND enjoy food too.

Because when we are living our best life, when we are committing to our wake-up or bedtime routine, when we are having fun and enjoying each bite we take, that is when the pounds begin to disappear.

It may sound counterintuitive, but that’s because that message has been crammed down our throats.

The more you enjoy eating, the more you will eat. the more weight you will gain, so it’s best to restrict and label food as good and bad.

– A Diet Manufacturer Somewhere

The Cleary Method smashes that message to smithereens. Diet manufacturers should prepare. Holistic Living is the way of the future.

Because those pounds are not going to just disappear. Nope. Those pounds will be eliminated, never to be seen again.

When you work with Colleen, this IS the last time you will be losing those pounds.

What Does A Holistic Coach Do?

 

Before meeting Colleen, the only knowledge I had of wellness or holistic health coaches was of those coaches that were selling whatever pyramid scheme diet they had bought into.

They were pushy and made you feel guilty. Especially if you could only afford their bare basics plan. 

The last time I tried to work with a health coach of any kind, it ended horribly.

The coach had a Facebook group and wanted all her clients to get to know each other and be each other’s cheerleaders. She said it was a safe space to share personal life stuff because life is hard and we shouldn’t go it alone.

That was around the time our youngest child was beginning to socially transition from male to female. It was a super stressful time.

I reached out to that supposedly safe and welcome Facebook group, needing some wise words of encouragement. Instead, I was met with a bigoted response, my post was deleted and I was told to keep that drama to myself.

So, while I may not have known what to expect during our first session, I did have a preconceived and biased idea of what that first session might reveal.

What was revealed was the fact that Colleen Cleary, Holistic Health Coach (extraordinaire), is not a pyramid schemer. She IS the epitome of safe, welcoming, and supportive.

After talking with Colleen, I have full respect for those pyramid scheme coaches. They found health in such a powerful way, that if they want to help other people on their weight loss journey in a healthy and harmless way, then they should. 

I have lost 90 pounds since 2018, 60 of those pounds between December 2021 and December 2022.

8 of the past 12 months were spent eliminating pounds with Colleen by my side, cheering me on, and rooting me to be the best version of myself holistically.

The Importance of A Holistic Coach

 

I may sound like an MLM pusher too, but that is the farthest thing from what Colleen’s Holistic Health Coaching and Cleary Method stands for.

She is your cheerleader. She wants to see you succeed. She celebrates your wins with you and problem-solves the losses.

Full transparency. I do not recommend services or products if I do not, cannot, believe in them wholeheartedly.

I wholeheartedly believe in Colleen because I am her result. I am just ONE of the over 600 lives she has changed since she started coaching in 2016.

She understands that you are a WHOLE human. A WHOLE human who may not have a predictable schedule, or who might have physical abilities that must be taken into account.

She knows what it is like to be a busy mom or an overworked employee who can only focus on the bare minimum at a time WHILE working on your very own health journey.

And that’s OK. 

Because Colleen does not believe in huge steps, overnight changes, or shaming yourself for not doing the thing because we are human and you MUST give yourself the space to fail.

Failing is when learning happens.

Failing does not mean you are a failure. It means you learned a new lesson or tool to add to your arsenal in your new lifestyle.

As long as you are ready to revolutionize how you interact with your mental and physical world, Colleen makes sure everything she recommends and teaches is individualized to YOU and YOUR life.

She also doesn’t believe in restricting food because eating should be fun and enjoyable.

When you are counting calories or staring longingly at that bread basket because your diet said absolutely not, where’s the fun? 

I am glad I didn’t say no to that first 15-minute free call. I have learned more about myself during these past 8 months of living holistically than I have in the past 20 years of dieting.

I have become the person I have always wanted to be. And so can you. With Coach Colleen cheering you on, no matter what, you too can forget where all the Pepto is.

Shout Out To Colleen

This is my honest, raw, vulnerable shout-out to Coach Colleen that I sent her through Facebook messenger:

With your help, I have reached a level of happiness that I never thought I would ever attain but chased for anyway. You are NOT just a wellness coach, you are a future brought to life. You are NOT just a health coach. You are a lifestyle.

Sometimes, lately, I have felt like my happiness is on steroids. Because finally, everything is clicking. My dreams are coming true, and I owe that to all of our conversations. I trust you with so much personal information that I look to you as – now don’t get mad at me – I look to you as my personal therapist and best friend whom I know is 1000% on my side. I know you will ALWAYS be cheering me on, and that you GET it. You GET the struggle. So you UNDERSTAND the rewards.

With that being said, I love you. And my kid just walked in, wondering when dinner was, and I forgot I have to still feed kids while fasting so I completely forgot what I was saying to say after with that being said…oh yeah! With that being said, I feel like my hulk levels of happiness are making me seem crazy…..

Like I am laying it on super thick to the point that it might seem fake. But, like, I am vibing at a higher frequency and it’s definitely not fake. OMG. I am worried about other people’s opinions. Again. But for being excessively happy this time. I am going to go rub my fingers.

– Kelly Steele in a Facebook message to Coach Colleen

I would never have reached this “hulk” level of happiness without Colleen. She is truly not just a health coach but a friend, a confidant, a cheerleader, and a lifestyle.

Before I met Colleen, I slammed into a wall. Losing weight on your own sucks, and it is not recommended for a reason. Yet all of us humans that are fat, have been stigmatized to go it alone.

Colleen is here to show the world that you are not, in fact, alone. Colleen is here to change your entire lifestyle and upgrade your mindset, one toddler-brained step at a time.

In the beginning, that toddler brain of yours is going to fight every single step of the way.

But week after week, call after call, your toddler brain will slowly stop fighting and learn how to root for you.

You will wake up one morning, writing a Dear Santa letter, wishing for a brand new wardrobe because you can no longer push your tummy out far enough, causing those stretched-out stretchy pants to fall down at the most inopportune moment.

Benefits Of Working With A Holistic Health Coach

Me at 228.8 lbs and one of the happiest moments of my life where I realize that I feel madly in love with myself for the first time in 35 years

 

I wish everyone that was ready to lose the weight for the last time had a Holistic Health coach in their corner.

And I wish everyone that wasn’t ready, that they give themselves the space to learn how to love themselves so they will be ready when a Holistic Health coach like Colleen crosses their path.

Colleen taught me how to love myself unapologetically.

She helped me flip the script on my toddler brain, getting it to work with me not against me, turning negatives into positives, and always explaines techniques to quit the toxic self-judgment talk.

She gave me the confidence to stop letting food rule me, and she taught me how to turn food into only fuel.

She taught me how to stop and think when that judgy toddler brain kicks in and tries to make me believe the bullshit negativity.

She taught me how to rub my fingers when that determined, judgy toddler brain kicks in so I can soothe it back to sleep.

It’s a work in progress, and for each new obstacle I have had to conquer, I have had to re-learn how to put that toddler brain in time-out. It gets easier with practice. I promise. 

But I continue to conquer each new obstacle that pops up in my way because I know, if I fail, Colleen will be there to make sure I keep trying.

Back in April, I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror for more than 3 seconds.

8 months later and I just took my first bathroom selfie because I am in LOVE with my new haircut and I feel like a badass because I am a badass.

In 3 seconds, I used to see all of my faults. Now, I can see how big my smile is because I am alive and actually living.

Looking at myself in the mirror wasn’t a goal until about month 5 in this journey with Colleen. But the fact that it became a goal at all? Priceless.

When I first met Colleen, I was stuck. I was stuck in my weight loss journey. I was stuck in my book-writing journey. And I was stuck in a fog, drifting from wave to wave.

It’s Not All About The Physical Benefits

Have you noticed how I have barely mentioned the weight coming off and all the physical transformations that come with that?

Like being able to take up half a chair instead of 1 and a half chairs? Or how I can now walk up our hill in a rainstorm to find a dog that escape, without being out of breath?

Nope. I haven’t mentioned much about needing to sit closer to the steering wheel because, without the tummy, I am TOO far away from the steering wheel.

And I definitely haven’t brought up the fact that I love feeling my body now and feeling all the new, smaller body parts.

There is a reason I have barely mentioned the physical benefits of losing the weight.

And that reason is because the lifestyle changes, the mental health changes, the new habits, and the new ways of thinking are what is going to stay behind when the weight is finally eliminated for the last time.

Self-Love + Self-Confidence + Dreams = Your Future Has Arrived

 

For the first time in 20+ years, I can finally see a future where I can fit in every single Universal Studios rides, and be comfortable in all the rides at Disneyland.

For the first time, in a very long time, I am excited about losing the weight because I KNOW that this way of Holistically Living is maintainable. 

Fast forward 8 months and I now rub my fingers together to GROUND myself when I start panicking that my dreams are finally coming to life.

Yep. My dreams are coming to life. Finally. You read that right.

I am a published author.

With Colleen’s help and unwavering support, I found the courage to finally hit submit. Without her, I honestly don’t know if it would ever get finished.

I have marked 7 things off my Living List just by not only learning how to live again after metaphorically dying when my best friend died, but I also marked 7 Living List items off because I am having fun and living life on my terms, no longer letting food rule me.

Ohplusalso, after being a hobbyist photographer for 22 years and sharing my pictures with just my family and friends, I applied to a Call For Art to possibly showcase my photos for the public for the first time ever!

I don’t even care if I get chosen. I hit submit! Ok, so I do care a little bit. BUT, I won’t be upset if I don’t get chosen. I will just hit submit again somewhere else!

And, I think this is the most important benefit that has been actualized because I am working with Colleen, but I am in love with myself.

Not just in love with my body, but also my confidence, my values, my beliefs, the way I interact with my world, my outlook on life, and my perspective of the universe. P.S. the glass is full – half water, half air.

I no longer feel like I am a loser because of my weight. I still have 75 pounds to lose, but I am no longer focused on the scale.

The pounds will go bye-bye. As long as I continue to love myself and just have fun, not caring what other people think.

My dreams are coming true and the future that I have only dreamt of for 20 years because of my weight keeping me hostage and keeping me afraid to put myself out there, that future is finally here.

My future has arrived.

All because Colleen is there to remind me every step of the way to put my demanding, nasty, aggravating, frustrating toddler brain in timeout.

With her unwavering support, fresh perspectives, and understanding, she gave me the ultimate gift.

She helped my confidence grow leaps and bounds and I know I will always have one person in my corner because she will always be there for me and my individual needs.

Just like she will be there for your individual needs too.

She doesn’t make me feel like just another client, just another meal ticket. If she did, this process wouldn’t be as fun, and I definitely wouldn’t be 8 months in, begging for more.

Revoluntizing Your Relationship With Food

 

Have you noticed that I haven’t really talked about my relationship with food? That’s because Coach Colleen doesn’t place emphasis on that either.

Well, she does. Healthy eating habits are part of her methods. That is part of the whole Holistic Living thing. And if one of your goals or needs is meal prepping, recipes, or even grocery lists, then she is your coach.

Maybe you want to learn about intermittent fasting because you feel like it MIGHT be the next step in your journey, not because the “experts” say it’s good. Colleen lives it, she knows it, and she will teach you it from the ground up.

Because baby steps are KEY. Small wins are HUGE.

If you want to cut out sugar, carbs, or any type of food, she will support you.

But only AS LONG AS you are doing so because your body works better without those things NOT because you want to restrict them.

Food should never be restricted. Never. That is a form of psychological abuse, even if it comes from your own brain. And Colleen will tell you all about it.

Just like how food should never be labeled as good or bad. Food is food. Food is Switzerland. Food is Fuel.

Some types of bodies just don’t operate well with some types of foods. That doesn’t mean you can’t have a piece of chocolate in moderation.

For me, personally, I don’t do restrictions. I don’t believe in them. And even my kids know that the kitchen is open 24/7. But I also don’t have a “can’t eat” list just because.

If I want to drink a Dr. Pepper with a slice of chocolate cake at 9 pm on a Monday night after Christmas because our youngest had a full-on sensory hangover from the previous 4 days of excitement and my 91.5yr old Papa just got put on hospice care for an unknown amount of time before he passes and after one of our dogs went on a 2-hour adventure without us, then dammit, I am going to.

That doesn’t mean I forget the consequences of eating and drinking sugar right before bed. And that also doesn’t mean I am using sugar as an escape.

Is it the best fuel choices? Nope. Hell no. But I am not shaming myself anymore. I am not feeling guilty, like I did something bad. I am enjoying every bite because this doesn’t happen often anymore.

And I am definitely not assigning any value to these fuel choices anymore because that’s what starts the toxic self-loathing cycle.

6 months ago, I would have eaten the entire chocolate cake, not being able to stop at a single slice.

I am making a conscious choice to drink a Dr. Pepper and eat a slice of chocolate cake for dinner, and I am 100% OK with the choice and any consequences my body will feel because I need this type of fuel at the moment.

Chances are, at this point in my journey, I won’t finish either. But I won’t feel any regret if I do because I love food. I just don’t love the food that my body revolts, like eggs, corn, and milk.

So Much More Than A “Holistic Health” Coach

Colleen makes me think deeply about why I answered her question the way I did.

After I slyly tells her “I don’t know,” she kindly calls me out and reminds me that I, in fact, do know the answer. Even if it’s uncomfortable.

After listening to me rant and rave, she gets me thinking about new ways of doing things or trying things.

For instance, I have learned that I need to write down what I need to do for the day and for the upcoming week on Sunday night.

And I need to write it down in a way that I will remember it or at least remember to look at it. Like in my google calendar, for instance.

My friend introduced me to Habitica, an online program that basically gamifies your chores, tasks, and to-do lists.

You earn health, experience, and coins and can fight battles alongside your friends if they have the app (I highly recommend it btw).

But, it was Colleen who helped me be open to the idea of bringing my outdated method of writing my list on the back of my hand that clearly wasn’t working, and supported me with finding a way that worked.

Without our sessions, I am not sure I would have been ready for the life-changing Habitica program.

What To Expect During A Session

 

At the beginning of every session, she opens the floor by asking you about your week.

At first, you will feel uncomfortable talking about your small, teeny, tiny wins that you may not even think are wins.

But she will tease all those miniature wins out and help change your perspective to see just how massive of a win that was.

Eventually, at some point that you won’t realize until way later, you will be spilling ALL of your wins with ease.

Even that win where the only thing you did, was wake up every single day.

Colleen will be there to remind you just how big that win was. Even if it was the only thing you accomplished.

Because to lose weight, you need to make a commitment. A commitment not just to Colleen, but a commitment to yourself. To show up, even if that means just waking up.

A commitment to trying something new, thinking in a new way, and hearing about a new way of living.

After learning that my life got a little easier when I planned out my week every Sunday with details down to the chunks of time per task, she cheered me on. This specific goal took months to finally figure out, but she was with me every step of the way.

At some point, after you tell her about your week and feel like you just had the BEST therapy session, she brings up a concept that is relevant to your past week, your next week, or where you are at on your current journey. 

For instance, she won’t talk about time management if your goal that week is to eat more fruits.

She might tell you to put it on your calendar to go buy the fruits, but she will talk to you about how to make it more likely to actually eat the fruits.

Like, do you need a sticky note? An alarm? Do you need to put them on the counter where you can see them?

The best part? Colleen helps you make sure your solution to eating more fruits will be easy for YOU. Not for another client.

She will make sure you will eat more fruits because you will have figured out what will help you eat more fruits.

At the end of every call, after she asks if there is anything else she can help me with, we finish the conversation with what I plan to do between now and our next session.

Sometimes, next week’s to-dos include the same to-dos as the previous week.

That might be because I need more time with it. Or maybe I didn’t do it because of XYZ.

Whatever the reason, and no matter what, confessing to Colleen that you didn’t do whatever task last week because of said XYZ, doesn’t actually feel like confessing your sins, begging for forgiveness.

Nope. Confessing to Colleen is easy once you get the hang of it, and it is safe, welcoming, and therapeutic.

It feels like talking to a best friend who doesn’t shame you or judge you because Colleen gives you the safe space to mess up, fail, flounder, drown, and in the same breath, she will help you learn from it.

Some of our conversations are uncomfortable because it is a hard subject. While the uncomfortable doesn’t go away, it does get easier.

It gets easier because you are in the process of becoming the best version of yourself.

You Have To Walk Through The Suck First

 

In order to get to the best version of yourself, you have to walk through the suck and the uncomfortable to heal, to learn, to thrive, to lose the weight you have been carrying around for years, dragging you down into the pits of darkness.

The more you walk through the suck, the smoother the walk comes.

The smoother the walk comes, the more chances you get to fall in love with yourself.

The more chances you get to fall in love with yourself, the closer to your best self you will be.

Colleen will be there, by your side at every step to help you shift your mindset, update your habits, revitalize your way of eating, and revolutionize your wellness.

And, if you are ready to put in the hard work,  you will gain confidence, energy, and the life you thought you could only dream about.

8 months ago, I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror. Last week, I loved whom I saw looking back so much that I had to take a bathroom selfie.

Before Colleen, I was mentally healed enough to no longer feel the immense shame, guilt, and embarrassment that I had been carrying around for 20 years.

But I was still frustrated with the life I missed out on because of my health, my weight, and my relationship with food.

Working with Coach Colleen and adding her to my arsenal of tools that have helped me lose the weight for the last time, I now eat only until I am full because I WANT to.

My mindset has gone from the fear of missing out on yummy food and binge eating to the bottom of the plate to eating the yummy food in moderation, until I am full, and not a bite more.

I now wake up within the first 2 snoozes of my alarm, no longer needing 4 backup alarms just in case.

And, most importantly, I am confident, living life to its fullest daily, and living the life I had only dreamt about before meeting Colleen.

Holistic health is not just about food, and not just another bullshit diet or trendy fad.

Holistic health is a lifestyle. And Coach Colleen gets it.

It doesn’t even matter if you have 5 pounds to lose or 500, Colleen wants to help you transform your bad habits and unhealthy thoughts into powerful inspiration that will stay with you till the end of time.

If you are ready for a change, if you are ready to put the hard work in, and if you are ready to revolutionize your life, you need to book your free 15-minute call with Colleen.

You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

In the meantime, Adventure on with Curiosity,

~Kelly Steele