The short version
In The End of Overeating (2009), David Kessler describes being tempted every time he passed a particular food. The urge passed if he kept walking, and he trained himself to take a different route.
Cue reactivity is ordinary learning, not a character flaw. Across 45 reports, reactions to food cues and craving predicted later eating (r = 0.33), with no difference by body size, age, or dietary restraint (Boswell & Kober, 2016).
Strong habits fire in their usual context even when the person doesn't much want the result. Change the context, and the habit loosens (Neal et al., 2011).
If-then plans have a medium-to-large effect on reaching goals (Gollwitzer & Sheeran, 2006). When replacing an old habit, plans built on the client's own reason for the habit worked better than plans built on where and when (Adriaanse et al., 2009).
Kessler's story, told accurately
Kessler's account is often retold as a man who gave in every time until his desire simply disappeared. That's not what he describes. He was tempted each time he passed. The urge passed if he kept walking. And over time he trained himself to take a different route, so he met the cue less often.
On the same page he names 3 moves:
Refuse what you can't control. Recognize the situations where the pull reliably wins, and decline to put yourself there.
Have an alternate plan. Decide in advance what you'll do instead.
Limit your exposure. Reduce how often you meet the cue at all.
The useful lesson for coaching is not that the urge vanished. It's that the urge was predictable, temporary, and could be routed around.
What the research says about cues and routines
Cues really do pull. Boswell and Kober (2016) meta-analyzed 45 published reports covering 3,292 participants. Reactions to food cues, and the craving that followed, predicted later eating and related outcomes with a medium effect (r = 0.33, about 11% of the variance). Pictures and videos of food had about the same effect as real food and a stronger effect than smells. The effect did not differ by body mass index, age, or dietary restraint, which supports telling clients that this is how human learning works, not a sign that something is wrong with them.
Habits are tied to their context. Neal, Wood, Wu, and Kurlander (2011) gave moviegoers fresh or stale popcorn. People with a strong habit of eating popcorn at the movies ate about as much stale popcorn as fresh, largely regardless of hunger or how much they liked it. But that held only in a cinema, and only when they ate with their dominant hand. Outside the usual context, or with the usual motion disrupted, the habit lost its grip. Kessler's new route did the same thing: it took him out of the context that ran the old routine.
Different pulls call for different strategies. In diary studies, Quinn, Pascoe, Wood, and Neal (2010) found that strong habits were best controlled by vigilant monitoring (thinking "don't do it" and watching for slip-ups). Changing or avoiding the situation worked well for temptations but did little for strong habits in the moment. Kessler, in effect, used both: he kept walking while the urge passed, and he rerouted so the cue came up less.
Alternate plans are if-then plans
Kessler's alternate plan is what researchers call an implementation intention: "If situation Y occurs, then I will do X." Gollwitzer and Sheeran's (2006) meta-analysis of 94 tests found a medium-to-large effect on goal attainment (d = .65).
There's a refinement that matters for habit change. Adriaanse, de Ridder, and de Wit (2009) asked people to replace snacks they wanted to cut back on with other snacks. If-then plans keyed to the person's reason for snacking (for example, "if I'm bored") reduced that snacking. Plans keyed only to where and when did not. The "if" works best when it names the client's real trigger.
Using it with clients
Map the cue and the routine first. Ask about a recent, specific moment rather than the habit in general.
"Walk me through the last time this happened. What was going on right before?"
Normalize the pull, with permission. Sharing the cue research can lower shame and open the conversation.
"Would it be useful to hear what research shows about why some cues pull so hard?"
Explore the urge as something that passes. Offer it as an experiment the client can choose, not a test of strength.
"What do you notice happens to the urge if you give it a few minutes?"
Build the alternate plan in the client's words. Use their trigger for the "if" and their choice for the "then."
"When you're tired at the end of the day and walk past the kitchen, what would you like to do instead?"
Let the client decide where to limit exposure. A different route, a different spot on the counter, notifications turned off. Kessler's first move works best as the client's own choice of situations to step out of, not as a list of forbidden foods. If a plan starts to feel rigid or carries guilt when it slips, revisit it together.
The same logic applies well beyond food: late-night phone scrolling, a smoke break that follows coffee, an afternoon errand that always ends at the same drive-through.
Where coaching stops
Coaches help clients notice cues and build their own plans. They don't set food rules or decide which foods a client should eat; nutrition questions go to a registered dietitian. If a client describes loss of control while eating, eating that causes significant distress, or cue-driven substance use, refer to a mental health professional and, where relevant, the client's physician.
Go deeper
The One James package Weight-Inclusive Coaching for Clients Who Want Weight Loss is in development and works with cue and routine change inside a weight-inclusive frame.
References
Adriaanse, M. A., de Ridder, D. T. D., & de Wit, J. B. F. (2009). Finding the critical cue: Implementation intentions to change one's diet work best when tailored to personally relevant reasons for unhealthy eating. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 35(1), 60–71. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167208325612
Boswell, R. G., & Kober, H. (2016). Food cue reactivity and craving predict eating and weight gain: A meta-analytic review. Obesity Reviews, 17(2), 159–177. https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.12354
Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 38, 69–119. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(06)38002-1
Kessler, D. A. (2009). The end of overeating: Taking control of the insatiable American appetite. Rodale.
Neal, D. T., Wood, W., Wu, M., & Kurlander, D. (2011). The pull of the past: When do habits persist despite conflict with motives? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 37(11), 1428–1437. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167211419863
Quinn, J. M., Pascoe, A., Wood, W., & Neal, D. T. (2010). Can't control yourself? Monitor those bad habits. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 36(4), 499–511. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167209360665
