"Every Moment of Resistance to Temptation is a Victory."

Temptation is everywhere.  On a cold morning I'm tempted to stay curled up in my bed under my warm blankets rather than getting up and hitting the gym.  If I get home from work late, I'm tempted to order pizza for dinner rather than taking time to make a healthy dinner at home.  If I'm feeling a bit down then I may be tempted to nosh on chocolate all night rather than eating healthy and working out.  Sound familiar?

Temptation is a normal part of our existence.  Everyone, regardless of how intelligent or how much self control you have, can be tempted to think of the short term rather than the long term.  It's called "instant gratification."  The warm bed is here NOW but the benefits of my workout won't come until later.  The chocolate will taste delicious NOW and the harmful side effects will be hard to detect.  It is easy to succumb to temptation when the "benefits" are immediate and obvious while the damage is subtle and long term.

Here are some ways that I have found that will make it a little easier to resist temptation:

1. Give In: I know you love the sound of that, don't you!?  :)  You can resist temptation by giving in occasionally.  If you tell yourself that you have to completely eliminate something from your diet you will fail.  Rather than tell yourself that you can't have any then tell yourself to eat a smaller amount.  Don't woof down an entire box of chocolates, get two pieces out and wrap the box back up, even put it in another room, slowly eat your two pieces and cherish every last bite.
2. Remove the Temptation: If you are a recovering alcoholic, do you keep beer in the fridge?  NO!  Same goes for someone that is trying to eat healthy and lose weight.  Don't keep 2 pounds of bacon and 3 pounds of candy laying around the house!  Keep in mind that temptation is harder to fall prey to if it's less convenient.  If I'm craving chocolate and all I have to do is open a drawer to get it then I probably will!  If I have to get in my car and schlep to the store to get it, I probably won't!  Make it so that you have to do work to succumb to your temptation and you will do it less frequently.
3. Chew Gum: Many of my temptations come from thinking of sweet foods that I am "craving" at that moment.  Instead of completely ruining my diet by scarfing down a bag of candy or fattening foods, I chew a piece of gum. This keeps my mouth busy and also helps to satiate my cravings. Make sure you get sugar free gum and don't swallow it.
4. Drink Water:  All too often your cravings for food or thoughts that you are hungry are actually a result of dehydration.  Keep yourself hydrated!  If you start craving foods or feeling hungry (especially if you have just recently eaten) then you are probably getting dehydrated.  Get yourself a  BIG glass of COLD water and drink that.  I drink water all day every day.  Keeping hydrated has countless health benefits above and beyond simply helping pull you through your cravings.
5. Give Yourself 20 Minutes: If you're tempted to do something stupid, wait 20 minutes and see what you think then.  In most cases, you'll see that the temptation was only momentary and you can now make a good decision.  Yes, this works even with staying in bed.  If you're tempted to stay in bed, tell yourself that you're only getting up for 20 minutes.  Shower, do laundry, whatever you need to get done and if you feel like going back to bed after 20 minutes go ahead and do so.  Most of the time you will find yourself wide awake and well into your day 20 minutes later and the bed won't look so tempting.