The Coaching Lab: Evidence-Based High Performance & Wellbeing

Brad Cooper, PhD (Catalyst Coaching)

Stop chasing fads and start mastering the science of change. The Coaching Lab is the premier destination for health coaches, wellness professionals, executive coaches, and high performers who demand more than "fluff." Hosted by Dr. Brad Cooper, this podcast bridges the gap between complex performance psychology and real-world application. Whether you are a certified coach (ICF, NBHWC) looking to enhance client outcomes or a driven professional seeking a competitive edge, we provide the evidence-based tools you need to optimize human potential. We filter out the noise of headline-chasing trends to bring you deep-dive conversations with world-class researchers, elite athletes, and master clinicians. What you’ll master in the Lab: Behavior Change Science: Beyond willpower—how to facilitate lasting transformation using evidence-based coaching protocols.Performance Psychology: Insights into flow state, mental toughness, and the "self beyond the self."Integrated Wellness: Practical strategies for metabolic health, stress resilience, and longevity.The Executive Edge: Leadership development and peak performance tactics for the modern workplace.Professional Growth: Best practices for clinicians and coaches to scale their impact and stay at the forefront of the industry.If you’re looking for an entertaining yet rigorous format to help you—and those you lead—achieve the "Better Path," you’ve found it. Join a community dedicated to the evidence-based journey toward better. Hit Follow to stay at the cutting edge of health, wellness, and high performance.

  1. 5d ago

    Ask Us Anything: Niches, Clients, Certifications, and Making a Living as a Coach

    In this first-ever Ask Us Anything episode of The Coaching Lab, host (and NBC-HWC Coach) Leigh Baker and Dr. Brad Cooper answer questions submitted by coaches about building a career in health and wellness coaching. They cover: Widening what’s possible. How to use your past experience as a differentiator, why “burn the ships” is bad advice, and how to look past the sales pitch when evaluating a company’s culture (including why it pays to follow the money).Programs within scope. What coaches can and can’t offer, how to test workshop ideas without a big investment, and why the topics that matter most are often “in the mirror.”The question that went sideways. Leigh shares what a favorite coaching question taught her when working with clients with chronic illness, and why coaches are stewards, not directors.Choosing a certification. What to weigh beyond price: track record, long-term stability, and whether you want a credential or a community.Making a living. An honest look at the roller coaster of building a coaching business, and why adapting like a sailboat beats making dramatic pivots.Finding clients. Why the better question is “How do clients find you?” and the case for free speaking engagements.Should you niche down? Why the answer is often “and, not or.”“Am I qualified enough?” Tom Peters’ “Ready, Fire, Aim,” and how to tell whether more training is building your practice or delaying it.Have a question for the next Ask Us Anything? Send it to results@catalystcoachinginstitute.com. Looking for support after certification? Check out Catalyst Launch, a four-session program for coaches navigating the industry. Learn more at catalystcoachinginstitute.com under Community. Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  2. Oct 19

    Listen in on a Real, Live, Unscripted Coaching Session

    It seems there's a person claiming to be a "coach" around every corner. But what is it like to experience a real coaching session from a credible, nationally board-certified coach with a real client? Today's episode allows you to be a fly on the wall as an experienced Catalyst Coaching 360 coach (Leigh) coaches Suzy. This is a real session. No script. No pre-planning. The real deal. If you'd like to tap into your own, personal, nationally board-certified coach with additional specialty training in functional mental toughness & resilience, details are available here. If you've considered becoming a coach and would like to explore options through Catalyst Coaching Institute, one of the first NBHWC-approved programs that has been training coaches since 2007, you can access details here. Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  3. Oct 5

    HotWired Author Bill Gifford: Sauna Science, Brain Health & Heat Adaptation

    What if heat, which as long been treated as something to fear—is actually one of the most accessible tools for a longer, healthier, sharper life? Bestselling Spring Chicken author Bill Gifford joins Brad Cooper to unpack his new book HotWired and the fast-growing science behind sauna use, heat exposure, and heat adaptation. We dig into the landmark Finnish studies linking regular sauna use to dramatic drops in heart attack risk and Alzheimer's, why "moderate" beats "maximum" for many benefits, and the ideal temperature, time, and frequency Gifford would choose himself. Bill also shares how he trained his heat tolerance to conquer the brutal Hotter Than Hell 100 mile ride, what every endurance athlete should know about heat training and hydration, and why saunas may act on the brain much like antidepressants. For coaches, athletes, and anyone chasing better long-term health, this conversation separates influencer hype from real evidence—and shows how "easily accessible discomfort" might be the upgrade your routine is missing. Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  4. Sep 21

    Dr. Bill Miller: Creator of Motivational Interviewing (All-time #1 Episode)

    To celebrate the end of Season 8, we went back to see what was the single most popular episode out of our library of 397 episodes to date. To nobody's surprise, it was the one-and-only Dr. Bill Miller, co-creator of Motivational Interviewing. The story about how it began is fascinating, and the impact it has in the world of coaching, counseling, leadership, addiction recovery and more is powerful. Enjoy! Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  5. Sep 8

    The Case for Quitting: Why Knowing When to Walk Away Makes You a Stronger Performer (Lindsay Crouse)

    We're told that winners never quit — but what if strategic quitting is the skill high performers are missing? In this episode, Brad sits down with Lindsay Crouse, author of The Case for Quitting and former New York Times editor and writer, to challenge the "never give up" mindset that quietly works against ambitious people. Lindsay shares her own journey from Harvard to career heights at the Times — including elevating women Olympians' voices to win maternity protections for pregnant athletes and commissioning the Times' first Academy Award–winning film — and how her superpower of relentless perseverance eventually started to undermine her performance and happiness. Together, Lindsay and Dr. Cooper unpack how perseverance and quitting are companion behaviors, not opposites. You'll learn why "Why am I continuing?" is a more useful question than "Should I quit?", how to tell the difference between healthy drive and fear-based grinding, and how to set "kill criteria" before you're too invested to think clearly. They dig into the spotlight effect and our overblown fear of judgment, why we regret inaction more than action, and the coach's wisdom to never quit on a bad day. Lindsay closes with a practical framework for anyone standing at a crossroads: picture the morning after you walk away, get clear on what you're moving toward (not just what you're escaping), and build a financial parachute so the choice is deliberate rather than impulsive. A must-listen for high achievers — and the coaches who guide them. Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  6. Aug 31

    The GLP-1 "Wild West": Why Weight-Loss Drugs are Optimized Through Coaching — with Erin Chain & Dr. Sheri Poznanovic

    GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, and Mounjaro have reshaped the weight-loss landscape almost overnight — but the way they're often prescribed leaves people under-fueled, losing muscle, and going it alone. In this episode of The Coaching Lab, host Leigh Baker sits down with National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach Erin Chain and triple-board-certified physician Dr. Sheri Poznanovic of Optin Health & Nutrition to unpack what's really happening in the GLP-1 era — and where health and wellness coaching fits into the care plan. Together they explore why so many people on GLP-1s aren't eating or hydrating enough, how rapid weight loss can mask dangerous muscle mass loss, and why a "prescribe-and-disappear" model falls short. Dr. Poznanovic explains the multidisciplinary approach the Obesity Medicine Association recommends — combining medication, nutrition, body composition testing, VO2 max assessment, and coaching — while Erin shares real-world stories of clients navigating low energy, food noise, protein gaps, medication interactions, and the stigma of being on a GLP-1. Whether you're a coach, a clinician, an employer weighing GLP-1 coverage, or someone considering these medications yourself, this conversation offers a grounded, human look at doing weight loss in a way that protects strength, health span, and quality of life — not just the number on the scale. In this episode: • Why coaching alongside a GLP-1 changes outcomes • The under-eating and muscle-loss risks no one warns you about • Protein targets, carbs, and why "anti-carb" advice backfires • Body composition and VO2 max testing in weight management • Medication interactions as you lose weight • Navigating stigma and the joy of food • What employers and coaches should know before adding GLP-1s Coaches: Explore CE credits at catalystcoachinginstitute.com Employers: Learn about Catalyst Coaching's GLP-Whole offering — results@catalystcoaching360.com Join us this fall at the Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium: catalystcoachinginstitute.com/retreat Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  7. Aug 17

    Leaving Everything to Find More — Navigating Life's Next Chapter (Kathy Robinson)

    What happens when the toolkit that built your success stops working for the life you actually want to live? In this episode, Brad Cooper sits down with Kathy Robinson — former Wall Street veteran and chief audit executive turned author and coach — for a wide-ranging, rabbit-trail conversation about reinventing the next phase of life. After 33 years in corporate (18 on Wall Street, 15 at a Fortune 250 company), Kathy walked away at 55 — a full decade before she'd planned. Here she unpacks the messy, unmapped "liminal space" between chapters and why high achievers can't think their way through it: they have to feel their way forward. Along the way, Brad and Kathy dig into doing "the wrong work the right way" versus "the right work the wrong way," why success can be the very thing that traps us, how longevity has quietly rewritten the entire retirement playbook, and why the smartest move isn't burning the ships — it's running parallel until you're certain. Whether you're 37 or 72, dreaming of "someday" or standing at the edge of a leap, this conversation offers a grounded, honest map for finding purpose in the years you didn't used to count on. Kathy's advice for anyone feeling the pull but held back by responsibility: stay until you're certain, don't do anything reckless, and remember — it's not binary. Website:  https://athenawellness.com Free PDF: The Sage Discovery Kit: A Field Guide to Your Future Self Book:  Walking with the Sage, A Story of Leaving Everything to Find More Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

  8. Aug 3

    The Human Side of Coaching: Emotions, Scope, and What Actually Drives Change (Dr. Michael Arloski)

    Many coaches will back away the moment a client's voice cracks. Dr. Michael Arloski thinks that instinct — however well-intentioned — is quietly undermining the behavior change we're hired to create. Michael has been in the wellness field since 1979. He's a licensed psychologist, a National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach, an ICF Professional Certified Coach, CEO of Real Balance Global Wellness Services, author of one of the foundational texts in our field (Wellness Coaching for Lasting Lifestyle Change), and the creator of the Wellness Mapping 360 model. Few people alive have watched this profession grow up the way he has. In this conversation we get specific about the line between coaching and therapy — where it actually sits, versus where anxious coaches imagine it sits. Michael unpacks what happens to lasting change when a coach sidesteps emotional content entirely, what it looks like to tap into a client's emotion without drifting into therapy, and the go-to move he uses when a client is clearly sitting on something they haven't named. We also get into the part nobody talks about: how much of this depends on the coach's own emotional regulation and self-awareness rather than technique. If you've ever felt under-qualified to sit with a client's emotion, this one's for you. Info re earning your health & wellness coaching certification, annual Rocky Mountain Coaching Retreat & Symposium & more via https://www.catalystcoachinginstitute.com/  Best-in-class coaching for Employers, EAPs & wellness providers https://catalystcoaching360.com/ Tap into the home of the (freely available) Not Done Yet! articles on unlocking life's 2nd half here. YouTube Coaching Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/CoachingChannel Contact us: Results@CatalystCoaching360.com Twitter: @Catalyst2Thrive Website: CatalystCoaching360.com If you are a current or future health & wellness coach, please check out our Health & Wellness Coaching Community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/278207545599218.  This is a wonderful group if you are looking for encouragement, ideas, resources and more.

See All (400)

Trailer

4.9
out of 5
108 Ratings

About

Stop chasing fads and start mastering the science of change. The Coaching Lab is the premier destination for health coaches, wellness professionals, executive coaches, and high performers who demand more than "fluff." Hosted by Dr. Brad Cooper, this podcast bridges the gap between complex performance psychology and real-world application. Whether you are a certified coach (ICF, NBHWC) looking to enhance client outcomes or a driven professional seeking a competitive edge, we provide the evidence-based tools you need to optimize human potential. We filter out the noise of headline-chasing trends to bring you deep-dive conversations with world-class researchers, elite athletes, and master clinicians. What you’ll master in the Lab: Behavior Change Science: Beyond willpower—how to facilitate lasting transformation using evidence-based coaching protocols.Performance Psychology: Insights into flow state, mental toughness, and the "self beyond the self."Integrated Wellness: Practical strategies for metabolic health, stress resilience, and longevity.The Executive Edge: Leadership development and peak performance tactics for the modern workplace.Professional Growth: Best practices for clinicians and coaches to scale their impact and stay at the forefront of the industry.If you’re looking for an entertaining yet rigorous format to help you—and those you lead—achieve the "Better Path," you’ve found it. Join a community dedicated to the evidence-based journey toward better. Hit Follow to stay at the cutting edge of health, wellness, and high performance.

Information

You Might Also Like