Change your unhealthy habits in order to achieve desired goals and create a healthy relationship with food.
When trying to change your bad eating habits, it can be daunting and feel very overwhelming. We tend to look at the changes as a whole and not as one thing at a time.
Many people fear the change, why, because we look at it as if we have to give up everything and only eat salads and plain chicken. And this is far from true. Our way of eating and eating healthy has truly evolved within the last couple of years.
When trying to change your unhealthy habits and create a healthy relationship with food, the best way is to start learning how to eat everything in moderation. I know it is easier said than done. I know because I had to learn this myself.
As humans, we are creature of habits.
Changing our habits is difficult, and many people struggle more than others. The reason being is that people are resistant to change. People want results but without having the make the necessary changes. People get very comfortable that it’s hard to give up those old habits.
So what happens when people begin to try and change their habits is, that they want to do everything cold turkey. They go to the gym every day, give up all their favorite food, are strict themselves on carbs, sweets, and are just miserable. After 2 weeks or a month people, give up and revert back to their old habits, why, because trying to change everything at once is setting yourself up for failure.
The first step to overcoming unhealthy eating habits is to identify the bad habits and understand why they exist. Rachel Macpherson, Freelance writer, Insider & Katie Walsh, health Editorial, Insider
You can read more on their thoughts on How to change diet habits
Identifying your bad, eating should be your first step, and the reason is that if you don’t know what you need to change, then how will you make the necessary changes.
Here are two great articles with more information on eating habits:
Here are 6, tips to changing your eating habits:
1. Identify your eating habit.
In order to make the necessary changes first, you need to identify what bad habits you have. So I would suggest starting by writing them down. For example: If you stop by a drive-thru after work, or snack a night while watching tv, or skip breakfast, and then you eat everything you see in sight by lunchtime. You want to document the bad habit you need to change.
2. Take one step at a time.
You want to start with small changes and take them one at a time. You don’t want to overwhelm yourself before even starting. This is the reason, many people fail when trying to change their unhealthy habits. They try to change make drastic changes instead of taking it slowly.
3. Make a plan.
Having a plan makes a big difference. When you make a plan, you can visualize what you need to do to achieve your desired goals. Without it, it can become overwhelming, and you don’t make them a priority.
4. Identify WHY.
I can not stress out how important it is to identify your WHY. When you attached a significant reason on why you want to make the change you desire, you are more likely to stick to your plan. Once you identify them write them down on a sticky note and put it where you can see them every day so that you are reminded of what you are working towards.
5. Become more mindful.
You want to become more mindful of what you are choosing to eat or drink. When you start paying more attention to the food you are choosing, you start making choices that serve your goals.
6. Set one small goal at a time.
When I say start slow, I mean slow. You want to pick one thing a week you want to change. For example, if you are someone that stops, by Starbucks every day for breakfast, maybe change that by making your coffee and breakfast. Set a goal of 3 days and increase as you go. Once you have mastered that goal, add another one. It will be so much easier to make these changes in small increments instead of trying to change them all at once.
If you are ready to make these changes and would like to schedule, a call with me to discuss how I can help you change your habits and create a healthy relationship with food. Click HERE to discuss how this could look for you.
