Importance of Goal-Setting for Nutritional Clients. The Importance of Goal-Setting for Nutritional Clients. The Various Types of Goals Nutrition Coaches Should Be Concerned with and The Seven Steps Involved in The Goal-Setting Process.

Goal setting can be defined as the process of identifying achievement that one would wish to accomplish at the end of an activity. For instance, in nutrition, the patient’s main objective would be weight loss, and hence, the goal will be a specific weight loss one intends to achieve. Goal setting is an essential factor in any field (Wakabayashi et al., 2021). For nutritional clients, goal setting enables the client to meet their expectations and even follow their progress. Besides, goal setting helps in preventing procrastination since one has goals to achieve in a specific duration. In addition, goal setting also promotes client-centred service as the clients are held accountable for their objectives.

There are various types of goals in nutrition that the nutritional coaches should be careful with. These goals include physical, behavioural, and health goals (Wakabayashi et al., 2021). The physical goals refer to the level of physical activity a client may want to achieve. Nutritional coaches encourage the clients to participate in physical activities for fitness. Besides, physical activity also plays a significant role in preventing or controlling obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. An example of a physical goal may be weight loss and calorie reduction through physical exercise. Health goals may involve the achievement of normal health indicators, for instance, in diabetic Mellitus patients. The nutritional coaches can advise the clients on the appropriate diet. Lastly is the behavioural goals. A person’s behaviour determines their nutritional outcome. An example of a behavioural goal is compliance with the nutritional coach’s advice.

Essentially, there are seven steps of goal setting. The goals include: First, determination of the desired goal and the ability to work towards the goal. Secondly is the creation of a SMART goal, which abbreviates the objectives to be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely (Wakabayashi et al., 2021). The third step is noting down the created goals followed by action plans. The fifth step is the establishment of a timeline for the achievement of the goals. The sixth step is implementing the goals, and lastly, the seventh is reevaluation and assessment of the progress.