Tips to break an unhealthy or unhelpful habit

Change your environment

The things around us have a big impact on our behaviour. Make sure that the easiest, natural choice is the one you want. To give two examples:

• If you want to stop looking at your phone in that crucial hour before sleep, move your chargers downstairs.
• If you want to help your child have good portion control when they eat, have plates that are the right size for them.

Sensible and specific

It's best to make a specific commitment, such as "I will go for a swim every Tuesday evening with my friend after work."

You're more likely to be successful that way than if you just have a general hope, such as "I will do more exercise."

Be sensible though. It's better to build a comfortable habit - for example cycling once a week - that you can then build upon, rather than fail to stick to cycling to work every day.

Making a clear plan also helps involve others. If you've arranged that swim with your friend, it's harder to cancel.

Make connections

Piggyback the new behaviour you want onto a habit that's already part of your lifestyle. For example, a resolution might be:

• "After I pour my regular cuppa in the morning, I will spend a minute doing a mindfulness exercise"
• "After I change out of my work clothes, I will put my running gear on straight away"

This approach reduces the complexity of the change your brain has to make.

Get supported

Making even a small change in your lifestyle can have a big impact on your health. This can be a real positive for all those around you as well.

But it's important to consider working through your changes with someone. That could be a friend, family member or a professional of some kind.

People who feel supported increase their chances of successfully changing their behaviour. Reach out, search out and don't feel like you must do this alone.