Teaching Cooking Competencies with CHEF Coaching
By Shari Steinbach, MS RDN, RDBA Contributing Editor
Retail Dietitians spend a great deal of time encouraging consumers to shop their stores and consume wholesome meals at home. And while many consumers do have a desire to eat healthier home-cooked meals they often struggle with the broad range of proficiencies required to prepare food at home. Clinicians Culinary Health Education Fundamentals (CHEF) Coaching is an innovative program designed to train Registered Dietitian Nutritionists and other healthcare providers to teach basic home cooking competencies to patients and consumers. The program emphasizes skills such as shopping, food storage and meal preparation to help individuals improve the quality of their diet, create nutritious, tasty meals and ultimately improve their health. In addition, CHEF Coaching provides the nutrition practitioner advanced skills in coaching and behavior change which are specific to adopting home cooking for consumers and clients who want to eat healthier.
The CHEF Coaching program was uniquely developed by founder and director, Dr. Rani Polak, physician, chef, health coach. The training is one-part skill building sessions and one-part remote small group practice limited to 8 participants. Educational information turns into action while honing coaching skills. There two are options for obtaining training. The Remote is a 10-week program that includes 5, 90-minute live weekly telemedicine classes and 5, 75-minute live small group practice sessions in a remote classroom. The Hybrid is a full day of onsite lectures and five remote small group practice sessions.
Jenny Pitcher, RDN, LD, CHWC, a former retail dietitian graduated from the program and provides the following comments on her training - “The CHEF Coaching program gave me an innovative tool to help individuals make change. I have found that most people know what to eat, its bridging the huge gap between the knowing and the doing that CHEF coaching fills. It’s so rewarding to work with consumers in this manner – individuals decide where they need skill development and I coach them through the modification process instead of telling them how to eat. At the end of our sessions together, they are cooking more at home and are better equipped to reach their goals.” “Having this skillset can provide an additional offering and value to your retail wellness program as well as drive sales and loyalty to your stores.”
The CHEF Coaching program is approved through the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics/CDR for 14 hours of continuing education credits and training graduates earn a “Certificate of Completion in Culinary Coaching” from the Institute of Lifestyle Medicine, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Harvard Medical School.
For more information and registration, visit: http://bit.ly/CHEFCoachInfo
