Part 4: Create a Helpful Environment

Build Support at Home

Talk to the people you live with about what you are doing. Let them know why you are making these changes. Ask for their support and say “thank you” for things they do that help you.

•  Set food rules for everyone in the family to follow. This may include eating together at the table and keeping the TV off. Keep phones in another room.

•  Keep unhealthy snacks in dark containers, out of plain sight.

•  Encourage positive talk about new meals and snacks in the house. If a new food is disliked, talk about why. A food can be prepared in a different way.

•  Involve others in meal planning, especially if everyone will be eating the same meals.

•  Prepare meals together. Adults and children can learn valuable lessons in the kitchen, from math skills to building self-confidence.

•  Be active together. Make this time more about shared family joys than weight loss. Stretch together in the morning or go for a walk after dinner. Plan family picnics that involve a hike or bike ride.

When "Just a Little" Doesn't Work

Make Unhealthy Habits Less Convenient

It Takes a Village

Build Support at Home

Build Support at Work

Social Media for Support

Support Isn't Supportive

Be Assertive

Use the L.A.D.D.E.R. Technique

Practice Assertiveness

Unsupportive Situations

Say Nice Things to Yourself

Dispute Unhelpful Thoughts

Rational Thinking

Banish Black & White Thoughts

Control Catastrophic Thinking

Create Self-Enhancing Feelings

The Power of a Phrase

Review and Prepare

RELATED ARTICLES

This website is not meant to substitute for expert medical advice or treatment. Follow your doctor’s or health care provider’s advice if it differs from what is given in this guide.

 

The American Institute for Preventive Medicine (AIPM) is not responsible for the availability or content of external sites, nor does AIPM endorse them. Also, it is the responsibility of the user to examine the copyright and licensing restrictions of external pages and to secure all necessary permission.

 

The content on this website is proprietary. You may not modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, or distribute, in any manner, the material on the website without the written permission of AIPM.