“New year, new me.”

That mantra was preached all over my Facebook at the beginning of January. A few weeks on and we’ve come to a point where many people start throwing in the towel and slipping back into bad habits.

Improving your lifestyle and achieving goals takes hard work and dedication. If you want to make any kind of changes to your life, having self-discipline is what gets you there.

For those of you who are working on improving your eating habits, you may find that you are constantly tempted to eat the wrong foods by the people around you, or the situation you are in. If you are trying to get outdoors more and go for that arvo walk, you may be struggling to maintain this new routine, ending up on the on the couch instead more often than you’d like to admit.

Resisting the temptation to do what is comfortable is challenging, so I have put together a three “stay-in-control” tactics that keep you prepared and focused for the tricky situations that can sabotage you objectives.

1. The big “WHY”Despite the self-discipline you possess, you can’t force yourself to do a task you hate. If you don’t have a true desire and empowering reason why you want to do something, you probably won’t excel. Come up with a powerful reason why you want to stay on top of your goals. Perhaps write it down and read it when you’re tempted to give up.If your goal is to lose weight, the aspiration alone may not be enough to stop you from raiding the fridge at for midnight snacks. Determine a specific plan of attack to achieving your goal such as meal prepping, organising exercises and have a target and time frame to keep you on track.

2. Get cosy with fearAs confronting as it can be, always hold yourself accountable. Be consistent, be prepared, be dependable, and focus on solutions. We often get stuck in a rut or find it hard to make changes in our lives because we are fearful. Embarking on something new can be frightening. Sometimes fear can simply be stepping outside your comfort zone and in the case of making healthier life choices, moving toward such fear and inviting it into your life will reap great results.Your goal may be to attend regular yoga classes, but you have never done it before. You may worry about going to class for the first time with new people. If you have been going regularly, you may feel that you’re not as good as the rest of the group and be tempted to skip a session. If you don’t take action despite your fear, opportunities for success will pass you by. In maintaining strength and attending the class, this action builds courage and helps achieve your goals.

3. Look at how far you have already comeThe best way to avoid temptation and maintain a strong focus on how far you wish to go in life is to reflect on how far you have already come. Look at every success you have made in your life or look at the progress you have accomplished to date on your current objective. Have gratitude for what you have achieved and let this drive, inspire and motivate you onward.

This article provides general information and is not intended to constitute advice. All care is taken to ensure information is accurate and relevant. Please see your Practitioner for health treatments and advice.