Credit cards are so easy to use, it is difficult to remember that every time you pay for something on a card, you are adding to your debt. Before you realize it your credit card balance has risen, and you are suddenly struggling to afford the monthly repayments.
One approach to keeping your credit card debt under control is to set up one of the debt diets plan. Credit card debt diet will help you to approach your spending in a realistic and logical way, and enable you to combat your current debt, and guard against debt in the future.
Weigh Your Debt
Firstly you need to make a comprehensive list of all your credit and store cards, how much you owe on each, and what the monthly repayments are. You could also include any other repayments you need to make each month, such as car payment plans and personal loans. Add all the repayments together and compare the total against your monthly income. Realistically you can only afford to pay a maximum of 20%, (one fifth), of what you take home each month on debt repayments, so if you are on £1,000 a month, then you should be looking to repay no more than £200 on your debts.
If you are spending more than a fifth of your wages on repayments, you will need to look at a diet plan that can reduce these monthly outgoings, but still allow you to begin paying off your debts.
The Consolidation Diet.
Sometimes you can reduce your monthly repayments by consolidating your debts into one personal loan. If you are considering this, then you should make every effort to cancel the credit cards you have consolidated, else you might be tempted to use them again. You do not want to end up in an even worse position, where you have a consolidated loan repayment and even more credit card debts to pay off each month as well.
The 0% Transfer Diet
Look to switching expensive credit cards to those offering 0% balance transfers. Make sure you check the fees involved in transferring balances, as these can sometimes make the whole process more expensive than retaining the previous, higher APR card. Generally the fee should be no more than 3% of the balance you are transferring.
The Budget Diet
If you can afford your existing credit card repayments, look to paying over the minimum amount, even it is only £5 or so. Also concentrate on paying the cards with the highest APR off first, as these will be the most persistent debts to get rid of. Try and ignore tempting deals from your credit card company, such as credit card cheques or higher limits, as these will invariable encourage you to spend more in the long run.
Whilst you are on a credit card debt plan you should try and avoid using your credit cards at all, and it might even be best to just cut them up so that you cannot be tempted. 
