Health at Every Size (HAES) is a non-diet holistic approach to health and wellness that challenges the conventional focus on weight and works to promote balanced eating, physical activity, and respect for the diversity of body shapes and sizes.

HAES Core Principles

Accept and respect the diversity of body shapes and sizes
Recognize that health and well-being are multi-dimensional and that they include physical, social, spiritual, occupational, emotional, and intellectual aspects
Promote all aspects of health and well-being for people of all sizes
Promote eating in a manner which balances individual nutritional needs, hunger, satiety, appetite, and pleasure
Promote individually appropriate, enjoyable, life-enhancing physical activity, rather than exercise that is focused on a goal of weight loss

HAES acknowledges that the common focus on weight loss as a health promotion tool does not work. In fact, focusing on weight loss as a primary goal is more likely to produce weight cycling and then weight gain over the long-term (Korkeila, et al., 1999). Focusing on exercise, dietary restriction, and behavior modification rarely succeeds. Instead, dieting often leads to cycles of weight loss and gain along with physical and psychological health risks including body hatred, eating disorders, and exercise addiction. An individual’s healthy weight or set-point weight is the weight that their body naturally settles at as they move towards a healthy lifestyle. This weight cannot be predetermined by a height/weight chart or by calculating body mass index. It depends on a number of factors and is unique to each individual (Robison, 2005).

How I Incorporate HAES Into My Coaching

I understand that many people may initially seek out health coaching with weight loss goals in mind. When working with clients, I help them dive deeper and think of the goals behind their weight loss goals. Instead of exclusively setting weight loss goals, we also set goals based on things we want to do and how we want to feel, for example to sleep better or have more energy or be able to complete a 5K. A HAES approach acknowledges that are bodies are different and a “healthy weight” is unique to each individual. When we incorporate health-supportive behaviors, some of us will lose weight, some will gain, and some will stay the same. I support clients in allowing their bodies to find their healthiest and happiest weight for this moment in their lives. We also work towards body appreciation and acceptance and acknowledgment that our bodies are in constant flux.

References:

Bacon, L. (2010). Health at every size: The surprising truth about your weight. BenBella Books, Inc.

Korkeila, M., Rissanen, A., Kaprio, J., Sørensen, T. I., & Koskenvuo, M. (1999). Weight-loss attempts and risk of major weight gain: a prospective study in Finnish adults. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 70(6), 965-975.

Robison, J. (2005). Health at every size: toward a new paradigm of weight and health. Medscape General Medicine, 7(3), 13.