Beat Bad Habits with the Power of Choice

Our habits determine our health. Small, simple things done each day can either lead us toward disease, or toward optimal well-being and even longevity. Which direction we take depends on how we use our power of choice. Cultivating Optimal Health is simply a matter of creating healthy daily choices. Habits are things we do regularly without too much thinking. They form when behavior patterns are set up and reinforced in the brain through repetition, day after day.

Triggers
Habits are set in motion by triggers. We arrive at a familiar intersection, and we automatically turn left. We come home from work, and we instinctively reach into the mailbox. The dog and cat are waiting by their food bowls, and we unconsciously reach to get their food out of the cabinet.
We sit down at the TV for the big game on Sunday, and the fatty chips and dips appear almost as if by magic, whether we’re hungry or not. Unconsciously, our brains are still motivating us to seek that rewarding feeling we associate with the chips and dip.

Daily choices
When our lives become a series of automatic, unhealthy reactions to triggers, we’ve lost control. This is especially true for unhealthy eating. Triggers can drive us to consume far more calories than we need or even want, often without even being aware of what we’re doing.
Regaining mastery over our actions starts when we simply stop to think. When we review our daily habits—all the things we’ve become conditioned to do over time—and determine whether or not they are leading us toward what we want, we’re preparing a foundation for change.
Only then can we employ our conscious mind to override our unconscious mind and transform unhealthy habits into healthy choices.

STOP – CHALLENGE – CHOOSE
Overeating and other unhealthy actions that sabotage our long-term goals can stem from emotional triggers. We may overeat when stressed, nervous, angry, bored, or depressed, and these triggers can be very powerful. STOP – CHALLENGE – CHOOSE is a potent technique that can break the link between events, unpleasant emotions, and undesirable reactions.

Here’s an example of how it can work when you are triggered by negative feelings or an unhealthy environment:STOP: Take a deep breath and center yourself. Suspend action.CHALLENGE: Ask, “Why am I feeling like this? What outcome do I want?”CHOOSE: Make a healthy choice for optimal outcome and awareness of alternative behavior.