I want to share the 10 of the most common mistakes coaches make and how to avoid them. Because, when I first started coaching almost 15 years ago, I thought I had it all figured out. I was enthusiastic, freshly certified, and ready to change lives. But it wasn’t long before I realised there’s a big difference between knowing health and fitness and being able to coach it effectively.
I learned the hard way by making plenty of mistakes (many of the same ones I see newer coaches making today). And you know what? That’s OK. You aren’t going to be a world class coach straight out of the gate, and it takes time to build your expertise.
But I can help you to fast forward your progress as a coach by showing you the most common mistakes and how to avoid them. So, let’s get stuck in.
1. Trying to Be Everything to Everyone
When you’re new, it’s tempting to take on any client who’ll pay you. I get it, you want to build your business. But trying to be a jack-of-all-trades will burn you out and dilute your expertise.
I made this mistake in my first year of coaching. I would coach anyone who came to me: students, athletes, postpartum moms, weight loss clients, and basically anyone who walked through the door. I was exhausted, scattered, and struggling to deliver meaningful results. I quickly realised that while I could help anyone, I couldn’t serve everyone well.
Just because I had the skills to get some results with each of these people didn’t mean I was the best person to help these people get the best results they could get. I was good enough, but not great.
This is unfortunately one of the most common mistakes coaches make, and it generally either leads them to burn out or it leads them to get stuck in a cycle of just getting meh results with all of their clients.
The Fix: Find your niche. Who do you want to help, and what problems are you uniquely good at solving? Whether it’s busy moms, athletes, or people recovering from injuries, focus on a specific group and tailor your services to them. When people niche down, they find that they can deliver better results and grow their business faster.
Not only does their work become more fulfilling, but word-of-mouth referrals skyrocket because you become the go-to coach for that specific audience.
When you specialise, you’re not excluding people, you’re simply becoming a better, more effective coach for the right clients. A specialist will always stand out in a crowded marketplace.
2. Overloading Clients With Information
I remember early on, I had a client who wanted to lose weight. Instead of focusing on one meaningful habit that would get her closer to her goal, I sent her a 10-page document on nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle. I thought I was giving her everything she needed to succeed.
Guess what happened? She ghosted me. I overwhelmed her.
Clients are often coming to you with years of bad habits, confusion, and frustration. Dumping a mountain of information on them doesn’t empower them, it paralyses them. It’s like asking someone who’s never run before to finish a marathon tomorrow.
The Fix: Keep it simple. Your clients don’t need a crash course in biochemistry, they need clear, actionable steps. Focus on one or two habits at a time and build from there. Coaching is about meeting people where they are, not drowning them in information. For instance, instead of saying, “You need to eat 30 grams of protein at every meal, reduce sugar, meal prep, and hit 10,000 steps a day,” start with: “Let’s focus on adding protein to your breakfast every day this week.” That’s manageable. We teach you how to do this in our Nutrition Coach Certification Course.
Over time, the small wins stack up, and your clients will thank you for making their journey feel achievable. One small step at a time is how true behaviour change happens.
3. Neglecting Communication Skills
You might know your stuff, but if you can’t communicate it effectively, you’ll struggle. I’ve seen coaches lecture clients or talk over them during sessions, missing critical cues about their needs and struggles. I’ve been there too, early on, I mistook talking for coaching.
Communication isn’t just about delivering instructions; it’s about listening deeply, understanding where the client is coming from, and helping them feel heard. If a client says, “I’m really struggling to stick to the plan,” and you immediately launch into a pep talk, you might miss the why behind their struggle. Maybe it’s stress, time management, or something deeper.
The Fix: Listen more than you talk. Ask open-ended questions like, “What’s been your biggest challenge lately?” or “How do you feel about your progress?” Reflect back what your clients share to show you understand, and adjust your approach based on what you hear.
When clients feel heard and understood, they’re far more likely to trust you and follow through. Building trust through good communication will set you apart as a coach.
4. Focusing Only on Exercise or Nutrition
A lot of coaches zero in on workouts or meal plans but ignore the bigger picture, the client’s lifestyle. If someone is stressed, sleeping poorly, or dealing with emotional eating, you can’t out-train or out-diet those struggles.
I had a client, who was doing everything “right”, eating healthily and training four days a week. Yet her weight wasn’t budging. After a deeper conversation, I discovered she was averaging only four hours of sleep per night due to work stress. She was just tired all the time, and thus not able to put effort into her training and her daily energy expenditure outside of exercise (NEAT) was pretty much non-existent.
The Fix: Take a holistic approach. Ask about sleep, stress, work-life balance, and emotional health. Small lifestyle changes, like improving sleep quality, often have a massive impact on results. In my client’s case, we prioritised sleep first, we cut her training back to three sessions a week and added a nighttime wind-down routine and a few other things that we teach on our Sleep Coaching Certification Course. Within a month, she was sleeping seven hours a night and finally seeing results.
As a coach, your job is to identify these hidden barriers and help clients address them. The more holistic your coaching approach, the more successful your clients will be.
5. Setting Unrealistic Expectations
We’ve all seen it: a client comes in wanting a six-pack in 30 days. Early in my career, I sometimes said, “Sure, let’s do it!” because I wanted to keep the client happy. But unrealistic promises only lead to frustration and disappointment, for both of you.
Clients often have unrealistic goals because of social media, fad diets, or lack of education. They don’t understand how much time, consistency, and effort real progress takes.
The Fix: Be honest about what’s achievable. Educate your clients about sustainable progress and the value of consistency. I generally set process-based goals instead of just outcome-based ones, like aiming for three workouts a week or adding veggies to every meal, so clients see success in their effort, not just the scale or whatever outcome they are looking to achieve.
It’s better to underpromise and overdeliver than to set your clients up for unrealistic expectations. Honesty builds trust, and trust builds long-term success.
6. Neglecting Your Own Education and Growth
I’ve seen coaches get their certification, start coaching, and then stop learning. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day work of coaching clients and forget that health and fitness is a constantly evolving field. When you stop learning, you not only hold yourself back but also limit the results you can deliver for your clients.
The Fix: Commit to ongoing education and growth. Take advanced courses, attend workshops, and follow respected experts in the field. Learn about new coaching techniques, nutrition science, recovery strategies, and behavioural psychology. It doesn’t all have to be about nutrition and exercise, for example, I once took a course on motivational interviewing, a skill that completely changed the way I connect with clients and help them implement change.
Studying human behaviour and coaching techniques will allow you to better understand how to help people adopt sustainable habits. The more you learn, the more confident and capable you’ll become as a coach.
There are so many options for learning these days, even outside of education courses. Books, podcasts, videos, research reviews, websites, seminars, webinars and so much more. You really are spoiled for choice these days. I can tell you from having spoken to a lot of the most successful coaches in the industry, that most coaches are always doing some sort of continued education. They actively seek to shore up any weaknesses they have, and they constantly try to improve their knowledge base.
7. Ignoring the Importance of Rapport and Trust
It doesn’t matter how much you know about exercise or nutrition if your clients don’t trust you. People work with coaches not just for knowledge, but for connection, accountability, and support. Without rapport, clients may struggle to open up about their challenges, making it difficult for you to help them.
The Fix: Build real, meaningful relationships with your clients. Show them you care about more than just their progress measurements. Remember small personal details, like their kids’ names, their favourite hobbies, or an important event in their lives. Ask questions like, “How was your weekend?” or “How are you feeling today?” These little touches really do go a long way in building trust.
It is pretty basic stuff, but you would be surprised at how many coaches forget this stuff. This is probably one of the common mistakes that coaches make that is most easily fixed, as you literally just have to engage in some conversations with your clients and remember things about their lives.
Additionally, be consistent in your communication and follow through on what you promise. Celebrate wins, no matter how small, and be compassionate during setbacks. Trust is built over time through consistency and genuine care.
8. Overlooking Individual Differences
Every client comes to you with a unique background, goals, and challenges, and as a coach, you need to take this into account. I made the mistake of not understanding this properly very early on, when I gave two clients the same training program. One client thrived, while the other felt defeated and frustrated because it didn’t fit their lifestyle.
The Fix: Personalise your coaching for each individual. Spend time learning about your client’s goals, schedule, limitations, preferences, and mindset. Use assessments, questionnaires, and conversations to gather the information you need to create a tailored plan. For example, a busy parent with limited time may need shorter, more flexible workouts, while someone training for a marathon will require a more structured plan.
The more you adapt your coaching to the individual, the more success they’ll experience and the more they’ll trust and value your expertise.
9. Focusing Only on Short-Term Results
Many coaches get caught up in a cycle of delivering quick wins to keep clients happy. Crash diets, intense training programs, and “30-day challenges” (which all can be done well, and I am not against them at all) might deliver fast results, but they often lead to burnout, frustration, and rebound behaviours.
The Fix: Shift the focus to long-term sustainability. Teach your clients the value of building habits that will last a lifetime. For instance, instead of putting someone on a restrictive 1,200-calorie diet, educate them about balanced meals, portion control, and mindful eating. Show them how small, consistent habits add up to big results over time.
Clients might not always get flashy transformations, but they’ll gain something far more valuable: lasting, sustainable health.
10. Failing to Lead by Example
Your clients look to you as a role model. If you’re preaching balance and self-care but burning yourself out, or talking about healthy habits while neglecting your own, it sends a conflicting message.
The Fix: Walk the talk. Prioritise your own health, set boundaries, and practice the habits you coach. This doesn’t mean you need to be perfect, but it does mean embodying the principles you teach. If you tell clients to manage stress, make sure you’re managing yours too. If you recommend prioritising sleep, then model that behaviour in your own life.
Leading by example not only inspires your clients, but also makes you a better, more energised coach. Remember, a healthy coach is an effective coach.
Final Thoughts On The 10 Common Mistakes Coaches Make and How to Avoid Them
No coach is perfect, not me, not you, and not the most seasoned pros in the industry. Mistakes are part of the journey, but the key is to learn from them and continually improve.
If you avoid these 10 common mistakes coaches make, you’ll be ahead of the game. Your clients will see better results, you’ll build stronger relationships, and your coaching career will thrive.
Remember, coaching isn’t about being perfect; it’s about helping people make progress. Show up authentically, learn from your missteps, and always strive to grow, just like you expect your clients to.
If you need more help or want to learn more, we have a lot of free content available in our content hub. If you want even more free information, you can follow us on Instagram, YouTube or listen to the podcast. You can always stay up to date with our latest content by subscribing to our newsletter.
Finally, if you want to learn how to coach nutrition, then consider our Nutrition Coach Certification course, and if you want to learn to get better at exercise program design, then consider our course on exercise program design. We do have other courses available too. If you don’t understand something, or you just need clarification, you can always reach out to us on Instagram or via email.
Paddy Farrell
Hey, I'm Paddy!
I am a coach who loves to help people master their health and fitness. I am a personal trainer, strength and conditioning coach, and I have a degree in Biochemistry and Biomolecular Science. I have been coaching people for over 10 years now.
When I grew up, you couldn't find great health and fitness information, and you still can't really. So my content aims to solve that!
I enjoy training in the gym, doing martial arts and hiking in the mountains (around Europe, mainly). I am also an avid reader of history, politics and science. When I am not in the mountains, exercising or reading, you will likely find me in a museum.