How To Shift Those Bad Habits

We’ve already covered some of the bad habits we need to be getting rid of to become our healthier selves. But it can difficult to give up those habits cold turkey. So, here is a collection of tips on how to help you displace, replace and get over those cravings. They’re not immediate fixes, so some willpower’s required on your end. However, they will make that journey to a better you all the easier. So, let’s get down to it and see how to beat those cravings.

Sugar

This is the biggie for a lot of us. Sugar’s one of those cravings that can hit you hard and not leave you for hours on end. Woe betide the woman with a sweet tooth who goes to the store without eating first. The key to beating that sugar addiction is simply finding better delicious treats! There are loads of sugar free recipes to learn that are still sweet and sumptuous. Getting into making and baking them yourself can also keep you busy. This keeps you distracted from the more immediate impulse of running to the shop to buy something you shouldn’t.

Alcohol

Whether you consider yourself to have a serious drinking problem or you’re looking to cut down on a more casual drink now and then. Getting rid of this habit is all kinds of good for your health. As well as keeping your liver in good condition, it’s also a way of cutting out a major source of weight gain. The more severe your cravings for alcohol are, the better it would be to get advice from someone medically qualified. However, one method of reducing alcohol craving that works wonders is exercise. Exercise keeps you busy and distracted. It also does wonders for your mood chemistry, giving a natural high that will make you less likely to turn to a little drink.

Smoking

There are all kinds of ways to deal with this one. Patches, chewing gum, nicotine tablets. A recommended first step to cutting this completely from your life is e-cigarettes. Still quite new, we recommend using the larger vendors and services for better products. All the same, e-cigarettes replicate the sensory relief of smoking a real cigarette, as well as hitting that nicotine craving. Thankfully, it lacks all the tar, tobacco and other nastiness from its analogue cousin. Plus, you can smoke it inside most places that cigarettes are banned so no more standing out in the bitter cold and rain for you fix.

Stress

Stress is a habit we don’t have much control over and not one we get anything out of. All the same, it can take a lot out of you and lead you into all sorts of other unhealthy coping behaviours. Depending on how severe our problems with stress are, a trip to the doctor can be necessary. One way to deal with it is to start meditation. It helps to:

calms your body
helps your breathing
slows your heart rate
relieves muscle tension

All this neutralises the physical side-effects of stress. It also lets you put your day and your difficulties in perspective. This gives you space to detach yourself and cope better with whatever troubles come your way.

These are not magical cures for our habits, but alongside one another they can give you a real shot at making a healthier you instead of just wishing for it.