Accountability to Self

Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

I have many clients that come to me and say that they know what they need to do, they just need someone to be accountable to. Most often these clients do really really well until we get to the end of our time together.

What happens then is usually quite predictable, they end up doing what they have always done and bad habits start to take over – again.  The reason? Well, without anyone to be accountable to they return to doing the things that they know are bad for them because they no longer have anyone to tell them not to.

This is my most frustrating scenario to deal with and ultimately I am blamed for not doing more for them, not doing my job. When in reality, I have done all I can but the one thing I cannot teach another is how to be accountable to

themselves. Without feeling any personal responsibility to themselves, without feeling any accountability to yourself, you can never do what is best for you, you can never change a lifestyle from self-indulgence to

health-conscious.

Unless you have the ability or the desire to do for you, you cannot expect anyone else to do it for you. Weight loss ultimately comes down to what you eat, what you don’t eat and what you both do and don’t do.

No one can be with you 24/7 telling you to put down the ice cream or potato chips and pick up the salad. No one can be with you daily kicking your ass out the door to go for a walk or head to the gym. No one can do those things for you, no one can be with you – EXCEPT YOU.

Ultimately the success or failure of any program comes down to one thing, one person and that is you.

If you want to be more accountable to yourself and set yourself up for success, the first thing you have to do is decide why you want to change. If your goal is weight loss, why do you want to lose it? How important is it? Are you doing it for your health? Your family? Your self esteem? Your husband? Who are you working for? If you aren’t working for yourself, you already have one strike against you because you are the only person that is with you all the time you are the only one who knows the truth of what you do

Once you decide that you want change for yourself, you have to decide how important it is to you? Is it something you just want to sit back and talk about, something you prefer to wish for than to work for?

A lifestyle change takes dedication and hard work, it means doing the unfamiliar instead of relying on old habits. It means getting uncomfortable and learning new behaviors

instead of relying on old comforts. Are you willing to do that? Are you willing to clean out your cupboards throwing away junk food? Are you willing to give up your weekly Big Mac and go to Subway instead? Are you willing to sweat instead of sit?

What it really comes down to, at the end of the day are you willing to look yourself in the eye and hold yourself accountable to the truth. Are you willing to admit that the hot fudge sundae was a mistake or will you shrug it off because no one else saw you eat it?

Accountability to self is hard, but if you can do it – it will be the secret to your success! You owe it to yourself.

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