How to Start Your Career as a Nutrition Coach

You’re obsessed with wellness. You’ve helped every friend with their meal prep. You’ve read every food label and get excited when you have a quiet hour to scour every new nutrition article. And lately… you’ve been wondering: Can I actually make a career out of this? Short answer? YES. Longer answer? It takes the right training, some soul-searching, and the kind of support that empowers you to go all in. Let’s break it down step by step. 1. Start with Your Why Before diving into courses or comparing credentials, ask yourself: Whether your dream is to create content, work 1:1 with clients, or start your own wellness biz, anchoring into your “why” helps guide the decisions you’ll make next. Nutritious Life Tip: Your “why” doesn’t need to be fully formed right now. Just start getting curious. Most of our grads refine it along the way—and that’s part of the magic. 2. Find the Right Certification for You You don’t need a four-year degree or an RD credential to start helping people live healthier lives. But you do need a credible program that gives you: There are a lot of options out there (we get it), but not all certs go beyond the basics. Look for one that teaches both the what and the how. That’s where real transformation (and real career growth) happens. 3. Practice Coaching Skills Before You’re “Ready” Perfection is a myth. The best way to get better? Start before you feel 100% ready. Role play with friends. Offer practice sessions. Create mock client plans. Confidence comes from doing—not just reading. Our coaches say they gained the most confidence once they got into our private coaching group and actually started sharing their ideas and getting feedback. Support + repetition = growth. 4. Build a Personal Brand (Even a Tiny One!) You don’t need a huge following to make an impact. What you do need is clarity on your message. Ask yourself: What kind of client do I want to attract? What am I known for? How do I make people feel? Then start sharing your knowledge—on your terms. That could be posting a tip on social media, chatting with someone at your local gym, offering a free workshop in your community, or writing a helpful blog post. You don’t need a fancy logo or big platform—just real value, shared authentically. 5. Get Support (You Don’t Have to DIY This) One of the biggest mistakes aspiring coaches make? Trying to piece everything together on their own. You deserve a roadmap. You deserve mentorship. You deserve a community that celebrates you and challenges you. That’s exactly what Keri Glassman built at Nutritious Life Studio. A real community. Ready to Take the First Step? If you’re even thinking about becoming a coach, book a call with our Program Advisor and to talk through some burning questions and get clarity! Come see if this path feels right for you. Your future clients are out there. Let’s get you ready to meet them.

How Becoming Nutritious Life Certified Changed My Career

Before studying nutrition, I wanted to be healthy. I came across the same obstacles that you probably face—conflicting messages from the media, trouble socializing with my friends while maintaining my lifestyle, inconsistent workouts, and trying to find that healthy balance between loving healthy food without letting it become an obsession. It’s taken about a decade of studying, but I’ve mastered the skills of healthy living and wellness and have a thriving company called The Well Necessities. A key part of my journey was The Nutritious Life Studio. My career began when I received my acceptance into Columbia University for my Master’s in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology. For the first time in my life, I had worked hard for something I could have previously only dreamed of attaining. My passion came alive and I realized I had found my true purpose. I went on to complete my dietetic internship at North Shore LIJ (now NorthWell Health), where I honed my clinical and medical nutrition skills and learned to work with a diverse population. Once passing the Registered Dietitian exam, I opened my private nutrition counseling practice. Still, I was missing some key skills that I thought The Nutritious Life Studio could provide, and it absolutely did. Here’s how: The Business Flow When I started my practice, I felt very unsure and unorganized. The Become a Nutrition Coach (BNC) program helped me to figure out how to create structure in my practice. Having Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN, as a Go-To Source of Information With 15+ years of education under her belt, Keri has heard it all.  She has become a mentor, friend and someone I can always email for help with a client. RELATED: Sign up for the next class of The Nutritious Life Studio Certification Program, now! The TNS Facebook Group The Nutritious Life Studio Facebook Group is a very smart group of men and women who are eager to support each other. From trainers to nutritionists to yoga instructors, the group is filled with people who have had a variety of experiences and are willing to share their information. Ongoing Education Access to the class remains open and is constantly being updated with new information and guest speakers, so you really get what you pay for. Having TNS as a resource to refer to is very helpful for me to go and review information I am unsure of or to just pop in to hear from a new speaker. Even the handouts are great and so useful! So, you want to follow Lisa’s lead?

The Superfood Soup Entrepreneur Who Calls Her Diet “Compassionate”

“TNS Success” is a new column highlighting the incredible accomplishments of The Nutritious Life Studio alumni. We’re showcasing the healthy products our grads have created, the better eating habits they now consider second nature, and other ways TNS helped them find healthy, happy success—in life and business. Yoga instructor and wellness enthusiast Amanda Leigh Bowen met her fiancé, Fabio Fossati, at a gym in Brooklyn. Clearly, the pair had a passion for healthy living in common, and they went on to create Fawen Ready-To-Drink Soup, a line of organic, plant-based superfood soups, together. The brand utilizes only whole, organic vegetables and eco-friendly recyclable packaging (that’s super pretty!), which reflects Bowen’s desire to focus her diet on “compassion and sustainability.” RELATED: The One Simple Diet Change That’s Best for the Planet Still, Bowen wanted to deepen her understanding of nutrition, which is why she enrolled in and completed The Nutritious Life Studiol in May 2017. “Becoming Nutritious Life Certified substantiated my knowledge of nutrition, which I will use not only for my own health and well being, but to share with others,” she says. “I have a deeper understanding of how foods work within the body and how food directly impacts mood and behavior, which plays an important role in which vegetables and superfoods I choose when developing flavors of Fawen Ready-To-Drink Soup.” Find out more about her healthy habits and business and how The Nutritious Life Studio Certification influenced both, below. Maybe while sipping on a Broccoli & Cauliflower with Turmeric? TNS Success: Fawen founder Amanda Leigh Bowen   What inspired you to sign up for The Nutritious Life Studio? My passion for healthy living! Did The Nutrition School change your personal eating (or overall wellness) habits? The Nutrition School was a great reminder of how to live a holistic life, and to keep that perspective when evaluating the role of diet in overall wellbeing. When it comes to diet specifically, I plan to follow Keri’s guidelines for more closely monitoring my HQ (hunger quotient), as I struggle with maintaining a consistent balanced level of slight hunger/satisfaction throughout the day and think this will greatly help! RELATED: The Best Portion Control Hack to Avoid Overeating If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? Compassionate and sustainable. The one food you always have in your fridge? Unsweetened almond milk + avocados + frozen green veggies (sorry that was three!). The one snack you always have when traveling? Fawen Ready-To-Drink Soup + Raw Rev Glo bars. Your favorite conscious food indulgence? Dairy-free pumpkin pie or flourless dark chocolate cake. What’s your workout of choice? Weight training + yoga. How do you stay active outside the gym? I walk my dogs! What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Listening to music while taking a hot shower. What does it mean to you to “live consciously”? To live consciously is to be aware of my environment: how it affects me and how I affect it, what I take in and what I give back. What’s your weirdest healthy habit? I always chase any beverage with water (and swoosh on my first sip to cleanse my mouth and prevent tooth stains). Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Sleeping and napping! Check out Fawen at drinkfawen.com and on Instagram at @fawensoup. Sign up for the next session of The Nutritious Life Studio’s Certification Program, here.