Martha Richards

The ideal Wellness Coaching client:
My focus is working 1-on-1 with people to alter their lifestyles to a more primal/paleo focus in order to improve health and support the potential decreased chance of chronic disease. While in traditional medicine, I saw so many diseases that could have been staved off earlier, had certain lifestyle changes been cultivated. Traditional medicine works best for those that already HAVE a disease (it should really be called "Sickcare", not "Healthcare"). Medicine is great at providing medications and advice while ill. It does not work well for preventing illness. My goal is to work with those in the 20-50 year-old range that have recently received their first chronic disease diagnosis, or are motived to try to keep from getting that first diagnosis (PREVENTION is best!). After being diagnosed with 3+ diseases, it is best to use traditional medicine to manage disease. While I still believe that lifestyle choices can be used to complement medication (in the hopes of leaning towards less need for multiple medications or higher doses) - this is not my focus. If you would prefer lifestyle changes first, prior to initiating medications, this is where we can be the most successful. In particular, I work with those that are ready to change their lifestyle to support the decreased chances of:
- Hypertension
- Gut inflammation (including IBS, Crohn's, and ulcerative colitis)
- Thyroid issues
- Diabetes
- Heart health
- Reflux (heartburn)
- Autoimmune diseases
- Depression/anxiety

Personalized choices and the n=1 experiment:
Figuring out who to believe and what is "healthy" is a full-time job! There is so much information and misinformation, it's difficult to sift through it all while still working, taking care of your family, socializing with friends, and generally going about your daily life. That's where a wellness coach that has experience in traditional medicine and the primal/paleo lifestyle can educate, guide, support, and help you succeed. There is no "perfect diet" or "perfect exercise" or "perfect amount of sleep" that can be applied to all people collectively - we will work together in what is called an "n=1" experiment. This means we will try different lifestyle changes to figure out what works best for you. Coaching is personalized, and my goal is to support you in implementing lifestyle changes that will aid you personally in avoiding debilitating, expensive, chronic disease.

One-, three-, and six-month package offerings.

One-, three-, and six-month package offerings.

Various group health challenges throughout the year

Blog and local talks about health-related topics

I graduated from medical school in December of 2015 and initially started working as a Family Medicine resident in Michigan. However, I realized that my passion regarding food, exercise, stress management and sleep were unable to be realized in that environment. Medicine in the United States is primarily focused on medications and money rather than attempting to get to the root cause of the disease. While medications have aided us tremendously, they tend to be the first line of defense against chronic disease - where I feel this is the same as suggesting you take Advil when there's a rock in your shoe, rather than taking the rock out! That's why I've started Wellness Coaching, LLC. I want to help middle-aged adults cultivate lifestyle changes with a focus on primal, paleo, and functional nutrition to stay healthy and stay away from chronic disease. While there is no guarantee that living more true to your ancestry will stave off disease, it is definitely more likely.

Health challenges run $29 for a three week challenge. My coaching packages range from $400-$2250 depending on length of time.