It’s time to claim your health independence. No matter what your long-term health goals are, it all starts with you and your self-control. You can have the best intentions going into a health behavior change, but there are always going to be distractions and maybe some setbacks. Removing yourself from what “everyone else” is doing and focusing on you will help maintain your self-control.

Avoiding distractions is easier said than done. Daily health-related behaviors can be derailed by all sorts of things like office food days and snacks, an invite to happy hour, or simply a rough day that demotivates. The long-term goal is to create better health behavior that becomes second nature. At first, however, better choices are literally a day-to-day process. One way to avoid the small daily distractions is to make a daily plan. It may be as simple as taking a walk after dinner or sticking to the meal plan you have set for that one day. Whatever that day’s intention is, use self-control and don’t deviate from it. These daily plans can turn into weekly plans to slowly progress the use of self-control.

Self-control is also predictor of resilience. The ability to bounce back after a setback is dependent on self-control. Most setbacks are more than the minor distractions you might encounter (giving in to having one cookie, for example). A true setback is when your behavior slides back into the bad habits. This is when you have to realize the consequences and stop the slide. It is easy to do the things you’re used to. It’s natural, almost without knowing, to go back to what’s comfortable. Stopping the slide and then being resilient enough to bounce back is a big sign of self-control.

As you improve your self-control skills, there will be times there is a need for flexibility. Sticking to a daily plan is a way to start the process, but when circumstances require it, can you adapt? One example is creating a daily meal plan. If you find out you can’t be home for dinner, how do you adapt? Eating on the run or eating out doesn’t have to be unhealthy food. When a plan gets derailed by something over which you have no or little control, can you adapt? Learning how to use self-control when you have to deviate from your day’s intention is a big step.

Health independence is within reach for everyone. Self-control is the driving force that gets you there. Writing about it and talking about it is easy. Thinking about it and practicing it is the hard part. It’s all up to you, though. Claim your health independence and start practicing the art of self-control.