We recently connected with Vera Ross and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Vera, thanks for joining us today. Can you share a story with us from back when you were an intern or apprentice? Maybe it’s a story that illustrates an important lesson you learned or maybe it’s a just a story that makes you laugh (or cry)?
When I began my career as a fitness instructor in 2011, my focus was designing safe and effective workouts to help clients get the fitness results they were looking for. Motivated by my desire to help people achieve their health and fitness goals, I saw personal training as a means to serve others. I had several jobs in different gyms as a group fitness instructor, and teaching those high-energy classes was- and still is- a creative outlet for me to have fun with my job. Pretty quickly, and with the help of a wonderful mentor, I transitioned from teaching group fitness classes to training one-on-one and small group clients out of a private gym.
Working closely with individuals gave me a new perspective on my role. Rather than facilitating fitness as a sole endeavor, I recognized that I now had the opportunity to help affect real change with my clients through coaching behavior modifications. That is, I began using my time with clients in the gym to focus on the behaviors they would need to practice outside of the gym in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle long-term.
After researching the field of health coaching I made the decision to go back to graduate school in my late 20s and in 2018 I earned a Master of Public Health Promotion with an emphasis in Education. In addition to maintaining my own personal coaching practice, I am now a health coach working with patients for whom weight loss is medically necessary.
Starting my career in the fitness industry illustrated for me the need to bridge the gap between what individuals know they need to do to support their overall health (i.e., engage in regular physical activity, manage stress, eat fruits and vegetables) and how to create sustainable routines to ensure that those behaviors become permanent habits.

Vera, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Hi! I’m Coach Vera, and I began my career as a personal trainer in 2012. Prior to working as a fitness instructor, I was an NCAA Division II collegiate cross country and track and field athlete proudly representing San Francisco State- go Gators! My love of athletics began in high school when a group of friends and I decided on a whim to try out for the cross country team. Contrary to popular opinion I loved the feeling that running hard gave me, and after my first run workout I was hooked- there was no looking back.
Fast forward to earning a full scholarship to run for my degree in Psychology. As my college career came to a close, I began to wonder how I could keep working out at the level I had come to enjoy on a daily basis and still somehow have enough time left to earn a living.
After working a few years as a waitress and bartender (which provided the flexible hours I craved, if not the healthiest of work environments overall), I began taking fitness classes at a local gym and became friends with the instructor. Learning of my athletic background and love of fitness, she wisely suggested that I study and sit for an upcoming national certification that she was also preparing for.
The day I got my personal training certificate in the mail started me on the path that lead to my current career. After working with individuals in a gym setting I realized I wanted to expand my qualifications to become a health coach. In 2018 I went back to school to earn my Masters of Public Health and have been working as a health coach ever since.
As a health coach I work with clients towards creating sustainable behavior change in the areas of health that are most meaningful to them, with a special focus on weight loss/weight maintenance. Using a mix of cognitive-behavioral techniques and accountability coaching I teach clients how to build habits that they can rely on for a lifetime of health.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
Client care. The overriding motivation for my work on a daily basis is the care that I have for others- not just for my clients and patients, but for every individual who struggles with their weight in our aggressively food-obsessed culture. In all honesty, it is rare to become exceedingly wealthy doing what I do. Don’t misunderstand me- I make a very comfortable living, I lead a balanced lifestyle that leaves plenty of time to pursue interests outside of work, and I love what I do.
If, however, you are attracted to the fitness and health industry solely to make money I would encourage you to sell something else. Care and genuine compassion for others must be at the core of our practice as coaches, or long-term success will be elusive.
One major factor in this equation is practitioner burn-out. On days when you are bone-tired and waking up at 4am to meet with an East Coast client sounds like the last thing on earth you’d like to do, financial benefit alone will be a paltry carrot on the end of your motivational stick.
The knowledge that you are effectively teaching people how to take back control of their own lives through behavior change, and the understanding that your job bears the responsibility of intervening in someone’s health, are integral concepts. Far from being profit-driven, the effective coach must bring compassionate care to every single client interaction- that, in my opinion, is the nature of the job.

If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?
This is a double-edged sword for me, because as thrilled as am to do the work that I do I honestly wish my field did not exist. That may sound shocking, but allow me to explain. As a clinical health coach specializing in weight management I work with clients from all over the country towards developing sustainable habits that will lead to long-term weight loss success. That is a relatively new job, as the overweight and obesity epidemic is a relatively new health crisis.
In the US today the obesity rate among adults is around 43%- and projected to keep rising. Childhood obesity rates are following a similar trend, with around 1 in every 5 US children suffering from obesity. And those numbers are only expected to continue to grow.
While I do not revel in the fact that so many Americans struggle with their health, I am proud to be able to work with individuals towards creating change in this area. Health and weight loss strategies are not one-size-fits all, and putting my skills to work creating personalized plans of action for folks in order to get them feeling better is nothing short of a dream job for me.
Educating patients on the “how” of creating and maintaining healthy habits is a unique profession, and a field that I am honored to be working in.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.coachveraross.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coach_vera/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vera-ross/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6WEO5f8-ZbPncomILgh0Uw
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/coach-vera-ross-san-diego