The secret to Self Control

Start by identifying the habit you want to kick.

Evening snacks?

Going to bed too late?

Eating the kids leftovers when you’ve already eaten your dinner? (that last one is me!!)

Think about what leads to that behaviour and remove or change the prompt.

If sitting down on the sofa in the evening is associated with a big glass of wine or a tub of ice cream, grab a book instead before you sit down. Or go and sit somewhere else!

Years ago when I first started my own fitness journey, instead of crashing on the sofa in the evenings, I started doing pilates.

Just 10 mins. It was hard at first, but I knew I needed to.

And I’d feel so much better that I missed it when I didn’t do it.

Then it just became a habit. And when I didn’t do it, my kids or husband would say, ‘are you not doing your exercises?’ which (most of the time!) was helpful.

For me, instead of eating the kids’ scraps, I get them to take their plate away (or I do) before I sit there mindlessly and pick.

When I changed from working in the evenings in the kitchen on my laptop, where I found myself getting up and searching through the cupboards for snacks just because I wanted a break or I was bored, I moved to a different room and found I wasn’t tempted to do that anymore.

Don’t focus on the thing you want to stop doing, focus on the environment, on your ‘system’ and take it from there.

Also – try not to blame yourself which only leads to more negative behaviour! It actually takes a long time to change a habit; you’re rewiring your brain and that’s not easy!

What’s the habit you’d like to create? Or would like to change?