What is your "coaching role" in your wellness/health coaching business?
I am NOT Jullian Michaels yelling at you to, "get off the couch" or stopping by to knock a Twinkie out of your hands... I am simply an accountability partner who has been there and will walk with you on this journey. I am a supporter, a friend, a cheerleader, and a guide to reach out to and to walk beside you as the scale and inflammation starts going down and your energy and confidence start going up. My clients know they are not alone on this journey.

Why do you do what you do?
Shortly before COVID, I was in the worst health of my life. I had been diagnosed with Lupus and Fibromyalgia nine years earlier and years of medications and steroids had left me 40 pounds too heavy and dealing with so much inflammation and pain in my body and joints. I had tried everything and I simply couldn't lose the weight. I had no energy and felt terrible. On a teary whim I reached out to a friend of mine who had lost 85 pounds and I begged her to chat with me about the program she used. I jumped in with both feet and decided enough was enough! It blew my mind! It was simple and structured and brainless and made my life super simple. I followed it. I lost 15 pounds my first month and all 40 pounds within 2.5 months! I felt and looked like a different person! I LOVE that I can now help others find this kind of health freedom too! It is such a joy to be a small part of their transformation and include micro-habits of health into their lifestyle! I began wellness/health coaching just over one year ago and it has been nothing short of amazing! I started by helping a few friends and family members and it snowballed into a passion to help as many people as possible.

Is what you offer fad diet and do clients gain it back?
No. This is a program written by a doctor, it has been going strong for over 20 years. He wanted to create a simple, structured, clear path to help his patients balance their body so that they could live their best life. It involves micro habits of health that are incorporated daily to change small life patterns simply and easily so that weight loss becomes permanent. The goal is NOT to stay on the program forever but to use the tools to quickly and safely get to your goal weight and get inflammation under control. Once this goal is reached, we work together so that we can sidestep and create a maintenance plan for the future. We also focus on mindset and emotional patterns that might keep you "stuck".

How have your perceptions of life changed as you got older?
This year I will be turning 47 years old. Closing in on 50 is crazy to me! Both of my parents were diagnosed with cancer in their 50's and I lost my mom when she was only 55. Health is extremely important to me. As I get older, my health and wellness is finally becoming a priority in my life!

In the past, what have been your biggest obstacles in business? What helped you overcome those obstacles?
I currently run two businesses. I own a preschool and I run a health/wellness coaching practice. I think in business and in life, obstacles are always going to be there and continue to come but keeping a positive mindset and looking for the good has always served me well. I truly believe that obstacles create the way to success. Obstacles are the way!

What is one piece of advice you'd give your pre-career 20 something self?
I wish I would have made the choice, early on, to have two or more forms of income. One of which should be online. I feel that income should be based on the simple question: "How can I serve others today?"

What advice would you give to yourself when you were a young working mother?
I wish I would have made my own health a priority when I was a young working mother... I was always the caretaker and took care of everyone else and my health slipped into a dangerous place. It took me years to truly understand that if I don't take care of myself and prioritize my own health, I cannot give to anyone else either.

What gets you up in the morning?
My family is my inspiration. I am married to my high school sweetheart and we have been married 22 years. I was told I could never have children and endured 11 surgeries from the time I was 14-25 for severe endometriosis. I was told I would, most likely, never be able to have children. Despite the odds, we were blessed with 3 amazing kiddos. Our oldest daughter is 21 and a senior in college. Our middle son is 18 and a freshman in college and the baby of the family is our youngest daughter who is 11. These are the people that push me to be my best self and the ones that I do it all for. My parents always taught me that my goal in life should be to "make the world a better place" and I strive to do that in my work with children as well as my work as a wellness/health coach! Watching others grow, and walking the path with them as they do, brings true joy to my spirit.

What is your favorite trait about yourself?
Unwavering optimism! I always choose to see the possibilities and the positives in life.

Do you have any exciting ambitions for the future?
I plan to eventually sell my preschool and jump into health/wellness coaching full-time. I am working to replace my full-time income and I am almost there. I would like to be able to work my business from anywhere in the world. I plan to travel and have a beach house, in the future, that will allow me to work while looking over the ocean. I want to create a life of joy, abundance, health and flexibility while taking as many people as possible with me. I am always looking for partners to join me in this mission!

What's been the best career advice you've ever received?
Listen to your heart... Surround yourself with greatness!

And finally, what's your favorite business quote?
"There will come a time when you must choose whether to stay in your old, comfortable, unhealthy patterns or love yourself enough to do the work to change them." --J. Mike Fields

Amber English is a health and wellness coach. She can be reached through her Facebook page. If you are curious if Amber's program might be a fit for you please complete her Free Health Assessment.