Every day we are faced with choices.

According to Co-Founder and independent OPTAVIA Coach, Dr. Wayne Scott Andersen, we face these three types of choices on a daily basis: primary, secondary, and fundamental.

• Primary choices decide the one thing we want most, such as optimal health.
• Secondary choices define the daily actions that support our primary choices, such as eating one Lean & Green meal each day.
• Fundamental choices define our state of being, or our choice to find lifelong transformation.

The best part is that you are empowered and fully responsible for your actions. You don’t have to let circumstances drive your decisions because you are in control.

This means there is really no such thing as "cheating," because you decide what will impact your long-term health and wellbeing. That said, it’s important to be forgiving of yourself as no one is perfect and occasionally you will have the urge to revert back to old habits.

The easiest way to stay vigilant in making healthy, positive choices is to practice Stop. Challenge. Choose:

• Stop. Take a slow, deep breath to help control your emotions. Recognize that you are triggering an unhealthy habit. Pausing and taking a breath helps to regain control.
• Challenge. Think about why you are responding to the situation the way you are. Remind yourself of your goals and the choices that can help you reach these goals.
• Choose. Make the healthy choice that gives you a similar reward but is much better for your long-term health.

Remember, it takes time to form new habits and turn unhealthy choices into healthy habits, so it will take equal time to practice and then implement new, healthy habits. By practicing Stop. Challenge. Choose, you will train your brain to make healthy decisions becomes an automated response.

For additional tips or guidance on how to go about developing healthy habits, please connect with me, your independent OPTAVIA Coach!

Welcome to the final segment of our series on ‘You in Charge of Yourself’! Over the past month, we have discussed different tips and practices to implement into your daily life as you work towards building and maintaining the Habits of Health.  

To close out the series, we will focus on your present self vs. your future self. In order to connect our present and future self, we must make decisions that are in our best interest by bringing immediate feedback to our actions that create those future benefits.

To connect present action to immediate and long-term rewards, try the following:

• Recognize the difference between your present-self and future-self. Your present-self is you in the moment which is highly influenced by impulses and urges. Your future-self is the person you plan on becoming tomorrow, next week, or five years from now.
• Understand how your brain is wired. Your brain is wired to favor your present-self and immediate rewards, which means you must train yourself to think differently about the choices you make in order to move towards optimal health.
• Connect your current action to both immediate and long-term rewards. How can you think about your healthy choices—like going for a walk—in a way that rewards both your present-self and your future-self? For example, going for a walk will give me more energy and make me feel better in the present as well as lead me closer to a healthy weight and optimal health in the future.

Remember, you have total control over your decisions, and I am here to help you as your independent OPTAVIA Coach.

As we close out this series, let's schedule a time to catch up on how you are feeling. I want to hear about your experience!

New Reality

I had been the 'big girl' all my life. I remember dieting before I was 10 years old and working out for hours at a time, but nothing seemed to help.

After noticing her brother-in-law’s success with OPTAVIA’s program, Christine decided to give it a try.

“I quickly realized this program was different than anything I had tried. I discovered it was no longer a question of if I could be healthy, but merely a matter of time until optimal health and wellbeing were my reality.”

After starting on plan, Christine gained the energy she was searching for and was finally able to keep up with her kids. To date, Christine has lost more than 100lbs^* and feels like a new person!

After her incredible transformation, Christine wanted to pay it forward and became an independent OPTAVIA Coach.

“My life is forever changed since coming full circle, starting as an OPTAVIA Client and deciding to become an OPTAVIA Coach. I now live the identity of a healthy person and love every moment of walking alongside others as they find their freedom, too.”