You will never score a goal in a basketball game by wandering aimlessly. Your opponents will easily grab the ball from you. To be a great basketball player, you have to go through a regimen of training. It is not an easy task. There are many obstacles and trials to overcome. But it is your resolve to be successful in basketball.

You cannot overcome compulsive behavior without a plan and being determined to reach that goal. Just like scoring any goal on the basketball court, you have to get pumped up, determined, and focused. Set realistic goals… pace yourself.

Here is a list that will help you overcome compulsion:

Resolve to be stubborn
It is not your opponents that will weaken your resolve to overcome compulsion. You must be determined in the face of temptation. Be resolved to stay focused. Do not allow thoughts to drift into your subconscious, gab your resolve and chase them out, they will weaken your decisions. In the face of temptation, be firm. Be on the alert that you are being tempted, accept it but refuse to give in. Be stubborn, even when friends are tempting you, refuse to eat junk food with that same power of conviction. Give yourself encouragement when you succeed..success is infectious, spread it around.

It’s a stronger conviction to refuse to do something than it is to – try to do something. Which statement is more positive, “I will try to eat better” or “I refuse to eat junk food.” Stubbornly refusing to do something has power. It is absolute refusal that makes decisions resolute.

Resolve to be intent
Being intent is to be fixed on something. Be like an athlete preparing for the challenge. Be fixed on what you intend to achieve. Do not be distracted. Just as an archer aims for his target, he is intent to hit the target. Once he has fired his arrow, he relaxes and gets ready to become intent again. The focus is exhausting. It requires 100% attention. You can be like that. Set the goal and become totally fixed on it everyday, especially just before you eat or face temptation. Once it is over, you can relax till the next target comes up. The mind can be very determind also, and you will often find that you have failed with out being aware until  it’s too late…don’t be put-off. This happens to us all. It can give you a boost of resolve to be more vigilant. Look at how it happened, and how you were hood-winked, and see if you can “catch” yourself next time.

Resolve to end mental war
Resolute decisions end mental wars. Weak decisions are useless. There will be times you will compromise and feel like a failure. Make your decisions resolute. If you have made the decision to eat one bowl full of food per meal, resolve to feel hungry before eating. You have made a decision! “I am not getting pushed around any more. I refuse to be controlled by food. Cravings do your worst. I will not budge. I am standing firm. My decision is unchangeable. I will not give in.” These ends the mental war.
Resolve to succeed
You have made a resolve to succeed. Every day you have to go over the reasons as to why you have made these decisions. As soon as you weaken in your decision, the battle starts. Fortify these decisions because you know you will succeed.

Compulsion is a vicious cycle. Pain comes in, emotions stir to a storm: fear, insecurity, anxiety, feeling empty and deprived. These feelings will not exist if your decision is resolute. They come because you are allowing yourself to consider breaking your decision. Even if you do not break, those feelings will have weakened your decision and you will need to rebuild it. If you do not, you will fail.

Overcome compulsion by facing failure head on with courage.
There are many disappointments while fighting to overcome compulsive behavior. You might even end up blaming God for your failure. Asking him questions like “Why is life so unfair?”, or “Why does He doesn’t seem to be listening to the prayers of those who are sincerely begging for help”?

In a world of competition, when you pray to God for your personal success, there are more people out there praying for your failure. It is the course of nature! So it is part of life and we all have to face it but how can we face it with courage and see failure as a learning rather than an label on our personality.

Failure is a viewpoint, a disparity between what one is capable of and what one has actually done. You see the lacking rather than the attempt. The glass is half empty.

In order not to suffer beatings from failure, set realistic goals. Small goals can give a boast to your dignity. Even a small success is a big one if you cherish it.

There are times you still fall off the track, do not quit, but be sympathetic to yourself. Allow yourself to fail; it is an acceptable part of learning. Don’t make a big deal out of it. Focus on the goal, not the failure. Examine what caused you to fail and come up with ideas to prevent it from happening again. Beating yourself up with guilt will just be inflict useless self-punishment. There is no way you can go back in time, so keep moving! Feel regret, then build the desire to change. Feel bad about the decision, then make a decision and move on to your goals. Thomas Edison, did not simply come to a point of thinking that tungsten would be the perfect filament for the incandescent bulb. Success came after nearly a thousand attempts, or 999 failures. Sylvester Stallone, was denied when he requested support from Warner Brothers on his first Rambo. He loaned some funds and produced it by himself. The result? Five movies and endless Rambo repeats on every channel. TV for Real Men. Sheer determination accompanies success.

If you fail, encourage yourself. Think of the things that you have accomplished.

Blowing is part of the process of learning how to do it correctly. You are not a failure. You have come so far and accomplished so much! Bear in mind that their is never a wrong decision. It is by failure that you come to know what is right. Life is like singing Frank Sinatra’s song “My Way”. The song is never wrong, just a bit out of tune. A planet slightly deviated from orbit. With extra effort, you will be back on track.

Fight those feelings of worthlessness. Consider God’s love for you. Feel the forgiveness of a Father’s love. Forgive yourself. Apologize to God for being so miserable and not asking for His help. Thank Him for your failures and the chance to learn.

Rebuild your desire to try again. Look at all the benefits. Come on, you can do it! When you are faced with a seemingly horrendous obstacle, consider them as a challenge. Challenges build paths to a sweet victory. The fulfillment brought about by winning a contest against a hundred participants is great but cannot be paralleled by winning ……

Great effort is needed to end the uncontrollable desire for food. For that reason, develop your fighting skills to conquer compulsive actions.

This battle is for freedom; refuse to fail. You can feel intense emotions and choose not to give in. Tell yourself, “I refuse to quit. I refuse to give in. I refuse to fail.” During the emotional windstorms caused by temptation, ask yourself, “what do I really want?” Eating to relieve stress is not what you want. What you really want is to be at peace. Eating out of anger is not what you want. What you want is to resolve the issue. Eating to relieve fear is not what you want. What you really want is the courage to face it. Eating in the place of boredom is not what you want. What you really want is a challenge that will stir some excitement within you.

Do not fight obsessive thoughts, but deflect them into positive thoughts and activities. Use mini-breaks to change your mood and break cycles of obsessive thinking. Do something you enjoy for a few minutes until the emotions diminish. Play an instrument, exercise, go for a short walk, or do some stretching. Not only will you be fighting obsessive thoughts, but improving your life one mini-break at a time. Do not give in to an urge; each time you do, the pleasure will create a craving to repeat it. Remind yourself that junk food is artificial pleasure that steals from your body. If you do not feed a craving, it will die. If you become anxious take a slow, deep breath, holding for one second, and then release, think peace. Let go and let God.

Create the feeling of revulsion to the point of nausea: finger nails scratching a blackboard, a hair in your soup, dog vomit on your carpet, a wet fur ball on your bed, or a bug in your shoe. Find what image best works for you. Use negative labeling. Bacon is burned strips of cholesterol and fat. Make up your own negative labels for the foods you are trying to quit. Play the mental tape to the end; look at the big picture. Don’t look only at the pleasure, but focus on all of the negative consequences.

When we discipline ourselves, we feel as though we have lost something, and feel deprived. Fight that feeling with the fact that you have what you need to be happy. Challenge the feeling of loss.

Remind yourself of the bad qualities of the food you hate. Refuse to eat them. Avoid triggers like donut stores and bakeries. Avoid spending time in the kitchen or at the dinner table when you start to feel tempted. Plan your meals. Have fruit or vegetable snacks ready.

The first few days can be the toughest. If you feel weak and out of it, it will be difficult to discipline your thoughts. Discipline is work, and feeling toxic creates an ‘I don’t –care’ feeling. It will pass once the blood clears of toxins. Do the best you can during these times to remain resolute.

Compulsive people easily yield to temptations. It is a battle we need to face and win. The following are some of people’s confessions while battling overeating :

1. “God’s power is greater than my sin nature. When I resist sin, Christ moves into action. I have been given the authority to control sin and I am using it.”

2. “This temptation is a test of loyalty to God. I will pass it.”

3. “This trial I am going through is a gift.”

4. “I am willing to suffer physical discomfort. My suffering for Christ will turn to joy. You have suffered for me. In this, I suffer for Him.”

5. “This temptation is empty. The more I want, the more it causes me pain. I have decided to sacrifice all, wanting nothing, but to know Christ and let Him fulfill my needs.”

6. “There is no pleasure to expect from eating wrongly. My anticipation is stupid. I am increasing sin’s power by anticipation. I am becoming excited about anticipating something that is not real.”

7. “I do not accept this negative emotion, thought, feeling or anxiety. I will not believe a lie.”

8. “I repent. This desire is a sin. I have no excuse. Please, help me, Lord.”

9. “I am taking Your way out Lord. There is a way out of every temptation.”

10. “Overeating is gluttony. It is a sin. In stuffing my body for pleasure, I am abusing the body God has given me.”

11. “Food cannot fill the feeling of emptiness, only Christ can. The more I use food to run from inner pain, the worse it gets. I need to face it with courage. Insecurity, fear and doubt and worry of the future will not rule me. Christ has promised to supply all my needs according to His riches and glory. He is the Source of joy. He is the Source of peace. He is the Source of love. The more I draw close to the Source, joy, peace and love will come.

12. “I am a new creation in Christ. God has recreated me into an eternal being. The Creator of the universe lives in me and I am free. I am free of addiction. I need nothing from this world. I am content with what I have.”

With these, we see different approaches in countering overeating. Whatever way we choose, it all narrows to discipline.