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Michelle Segar

Ph.D, M.P.H., M.S.

Sustainable-behavior-change researcher, University of Michigan

Michelle is an award-winning researcher at the University of Michigan, and health coach with almost thirty years studying how to help people adopt self-care behaviors, like exercise and healthy eating, in ways that bring meaning and joy, and can survive the complexity and unpredictability of the real world.

Expert Bio

Michelle’s translational research is widely recognized as relevant and practical. She advises the World Health Organization and was selected to be the inaugural chair of the United States National Physical Activity Plan’s Communication Committee.

For almost thirty years she has been designing and evaluating methods to help people cultivate the transformations in mindset necessary for creating tangible changes in behavior that can survive the complexity and unpredictability of the real world. Her combination of academic research with real-world health coaching permits her to create practical and engaging behavior change systems that are being scaled to boost patient and population health, employee well-being, and gym membership retention.

Michelle has worked with and advised a number of prominent organizations, including U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Kaiser Permanente, Walmart, Intermountain Healthcare, Anytime Fitness, Adidas, Google, and Business Group on Health.

A sought-after speaker and trainer, Michelle is frequently interviewed about motivation, habits, and sustainable change in major media outlets including The New York Times, NPR, The Atlantic, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Prevention, Real Simple, and TIME.

No Sweat!, her bestselling book on creating lasting exercise motivation, is used around the world as a core text in training professionals in health coaching and patient counseling. Her new book, The Joy Choice, introduces a practical, science-based system for breaking down all-or-nothing thinking and cultivating the flexible and tactical decision-making that supports sustaining exercise, healthy eating, and self-care within the complexities of daily life.

Michelle’s training and experience is uniquely comprehensive, including a doctorate in Psychology (PhD), a master’s degree in Health Behavior/Health Education (MPH), a master’s degree in Kinesiology (MS) and fellowships in translational research and health care policy from the University of Michigan. She ran with the Olympic Torch at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona.

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Education

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

University of Michigan

2006
Masters of Public Health (MPH), Health behavior/Health Education

University of Michigan

1997
Masters of Kinesiology (MS)

University of Michigan

1995

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Honors & Awards

No Sweat - Winner of the Health: Diet & Exercise Category

USA Best Book Awards

2015
No Sweat Book Launch - #1 Selling Book in the Exercise/Fitness Category

Amazon.com

2015
Policy Fellow

Center for Healthcare Research and Transformation

2008
Outstanding Dissertation Award

Society of Behavioral Medicine

2008
Rackham One-Term Fellowship

Rackham Graduate School, University of Michigan

2006
Barbara Perry Roberson Award

Department of Psychology, University of Michigan

2005
Dissertation Award

Department of Psychology, University of Michigan

2004, 2005
Pat Gurin Distinguished Lecture Award Recognition

Department of Psychology, University of Michigan

2003
Research Excellence in Women’s Health Recognition

The National Association for Women’s Health

2000

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Publications

Links

Michelle Segar

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