I am SO lucky! My coach is a Physician's Assistant AND has been my good friend for over 20 years. She sees me at the very end of their workday so I don't miss work going to my appointment. So far, I weigh, get measured, have my blood pressure taken, and then we discuss my week and she looks at my food journal. I have my food picked out already and someone else puts it together.
She is so encouraging and I wish every one of you could have this same experience. Just remember YOU are the customer and it's not unreasonable to ask for the service you desire. Hopefully you have other options if your IP coach doesn't measure up. Vote with your feet and your dollars!
So jealous! I have been on the program since the beginning of June and have yet to meet the official coach. She only works 9-11 Tues and Thurs. The rest of the time she has a high school girl there. Last time I had to remind her to weigh me! Told her to forget measurements as she never does it in the same place.
Take advantage of your available coaches! And then pass on the helpful hints here for the rest of us
DW and I go together. Our clinic has one of the fancy scales you weigh barefoot on that spits out all kind of numbers, so we do that first. Then she does measurements and we talk about whats happened the past week. Our caoches name is Amy and she is very personable. She has been on IP so she understands what is going on and what we are going thru so her and DW's conversations get pretty intresting with all the women issues and stuff. We talk about recipes and what we like and don't like then pick our food for the next week. She lets us trade out packs we don't like and sometimes gives us some to try for a review.
Its actually pretty enjoyable especially when the scale is moving. We started back in January of this year and together we are down over 150lbs. (that means we have lost more tham my 15yr old weighs)
Everyone at the clinic I go to is very friendly and supportive - event the front desk staff. There are a total of 3 coaches - 2 are the owner-chiropracters of the office and 1 is just a coach. All three have been on the plan and communicate with each other so I don't get mixed messaging.
My WIs start with the usual -measurements, checking weight & BMI. While doing all of this, they will ask how the week went, ask if I had any difficulty/concerns, or ask if there's any way they can help me.
Then i just go "shopping" for packets displayed on their shelves. That's about it
yep, that's the drill. I do try to think up good questions about exercise or other stuff.
When I really need something, I email the owner of the clinic, who is a chiropracture. sp.
I am actually thinking of switching clinics, as there is 1 MUCH closer- that I did not know about when I joined. Hope they will let me. Also, my clinic upped the cost of food by $1.00 per packet. $21 more per week. yikes!
It's usually ~15 minutes, I go to the exam room, get weighed, measured at my waist/hips/bust/arm/thigh, measure my BF% and hydration, then she goes through my food journal and questions me while I browse the food closet and swap basket. I must confess that most of my questions have already been answered on this forum! I redline my own journal with personal improvement notes that she comments on/contributes to.
I guess I'm lucky here, too. I go in and we sit down and talk for 10 minutes about the week, the challenges, questions I have. Then she looks over my journal and asks a question about that sometimes. THEN we go and weigh in. Then she opens the cabinets and I choose my food for the next week. (or two if I'm traveling). She lets me mix and match packets and also exchange packets if I have something at home that I don't want to eat.
She's very supportive and has given me her cell phone to call if I have a question or problem.
We measured at the beginning and will measure next week. I think she said we measure once a month.
However, I still come to the forum for daily support and answers to questions.
I'm sure as I progress in the program the consultation time will get shorter.
I also get a daily 3 minute video about some aspect of IP, then read the follow comments written by others. Its a fantastic part of the journey, and frankly helps me keep my head on straight. Every single day! I love this part of IP!!!
It answers some questions that I might ask a coach.
Darnit, I want those videos. Saw one last night and I wish my clinic subscribed.
I weigh in and they check with me about the week. They measure once a month or so. They're always available for questions by email too, but once I found 3FC, well, everything I need is here.
My clinic is great! There are 2 coaches, but I usually see Darla, an RN. I believe she is also OP, though in maintenance now. The secretary & her husband are also OP. Everyone in the office is very nice. When I go in, I give her my food journal and she takes a couple minutes to look at it and ask questions if she has any. Then I get weighed, measured, BMI & fat mass checked on this hand-held thing, and she takes my blood pressure. All these are done every visit. In the beginning I said I wanted a copy of all the numbers each WI, so she gave me a chart like she uses to record all the numbers, and I just fill it in as we go each visit. (I have caught a couple of math mistakes as a result.) I ask any questions I may have. The food is all on shelving units in the waiting room, and I can pick out my own individual packets, then pay for them at the desk. They will also exchange if I have extras of any I don't like. Cost is $28 box, or for any 7 pgks.
It sounds like most of us have similar experiences. WI includes stepping on the scale, getting measured, getting food and handing over money.
My coach is very personable and asks about my week, but has never looked at my food journal or even asked what I'm eating that's not IP. Blood pressure is checked once a month. Since I WI every other week, that's every other visit. (Think I'm going to ask that it be done at every visit.)
I've shared with him some of the recipes I've found on this forum. Usually he'd not heard of them before. Kind of makes me wonder.......
