Every past attempt at losing weight and every future attempt at losing weight hold one factor in common: you. Weight loss surgery can be a life changing experience. Working with a weight loss surgeon can give you the opportunity to make fundamental changes to your lifestyle, from the way you spend your free time to the way you think about food. But your surgeon isn’t the one to make these changes in your life, you are.

Personal responsibility plays a huge role in any successful weight loss program. Your bariatric procedure will make it easier to reduce your diet by restricting hunger, but that doesn’t change everything. Temptation will still be present, emotions can still run wild and social engagements will still pop up, putting a million excuses in front of you to make diet choices that you know aren’t in your best interest.

Living Up to your Own Expectations

Even after having weight loss surgery, the choices you make on a daily basis will determine how successful you are in reaching your ultimate weight loss goal. To be successful, you have to have a high level of personal responsibility so you can keep yourself accountable day after day.

Here are a few simple ways to help keep yourself accountable as you work towards your weight loss goal after bariatric surgery:

• Acknowledge what you have control over and what you don’t. Focus on being in control of your own actions and choices, and stop focusing on things that you don’t have influence over.
• When you make a choice, own it. Don’t externalize or find fault in another person for something that you do. If you overeat when out with friends, own it. Don’t blame the people you were with—they don’t control your diet, you do.
• Make a plan and stick with it. Be honest with yourself and create a plan that makes sense for you, and then work hard to stick to it.
• Be honest with yourself and prioritize what is most important. If you have plans to go to the gym and exercise is important to you, then don’t forego your workout for a few extra minutes at the office. Set boundaries and prioritize what is most important for you and your current goals.

To have personal responsibility means to take conscious control of your responses to the different events and circumstances of your life. The decision to get weight loss surgery isn’t one to take lightly. Even before your bariatric procedure, look at how you can improve your own personal level of responsibility concerning your diet and exercise habits.  Remember, the more accountable you hold yourself, the greater the potential for your weight loss experience.