My Good Habit No. 3 is actually a really easy one “remove all temptations as this will help you to succeed”. And that is what we want ladies !
So at about this time of January all good intentions are starting to slip by the way side, am I right ? It is not easy to keep the good habits rolling, so here are a few pointers to help keep you on the straight and narrow in the healthy eating department.
- I am sure you have heard it said before but remove all the unhealthy food, snacks, packets and jars from your store cupboard and fridge, no hiding now… Then have a look anywhere else that they may be lurking – the car door pocket is another hiding place – it gets me every time ! Chuck them out, they will not do you any good and just serve as a reminder of what you feel you are missing out on. Always replace them with healthy alternatives so you don’t feel completely depressed there are no treats around if that is your thing.
- When you feel hungry try drinking a glass of water before heading for the fridge as quite often our bodies confuse dehydration for hunger.
- Ask yourself, are there certain times of the day when your blood sugar drops and you are very likely to head for an emergency snack of the naughty kind? If so then keep a piece of fruit with you or a bag of nuts on hand around that time to help keep that temptation at bay – it may seem boring but it works.
- If you, like me, just don’t feel the day is complete without a sweet treat before bedtime then go and brush your teeth after dinner. This was one of the most helpful tips I ever stumbled across as I am a demon for the late night sugary snack. The action of cleaning your teeth psychologically tells your mind that it is bedtime and that you won’t want to eat anything else and once you have the taste of toothpaste in your mouth you won’t want to eat another morsel.
Above all, don’t get despondent, seriously, if you are not quite meeting all your health and wellness aspirations, it is only January so don’t be hard on yourself. Any improvement however small is a huge win in my book and the more wins you string together the more your health will improve and you will build up momentum and start to see positive changes.
If you are starting to make progress choosing and sticking to your “one non-negotiable health habit” and your “one healthy thing to repeat daily” then do let me know I would love to hear how you are finding things. If, however, you have set your sights on something but after a few weeks of trying it is just not working for you then my advice would be to shift the goal posts to something that is more do-able. This process is not about giving yourself a hard time but about getting into good habits however big or small and remember you do have all year you don’t have to nail this by the end of January !!.
Good luck and get chucking out all those naughty packets as there are so many other healthy, delicious and nutritious foods out there and when they are sitting in your cupboard you will be thrilled to jump at them, thats a promise.
