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Social media has some great ideas out there, but it can also make healthy choices and lifestyle routines seem like all-or-nothing. Lasting success after bariatric surgery doesn’t require a 4 a.m. wake-up call or a rigid daily schedule, but it does require diligence and consistency.
You’ve probably seen social media influencers sharing elaborate morning routines. Ice baths, strenuous behavioral modifications, supplements, and workouts before sunrise, and the message too often seems to be that the more disciplined and complicated your routine is, the healthier you’ll become. Take Ashton Hall, for example, with 4am wake times and stringent, sometimes unusual, routines that have sparked plenty of conversation online.
You don’t have to go to extremes to be healthy. And the best routine isn’t the one getting millions of views online – it’s the one that fits who and how you are. It fits your schedule, your family, your work, and your personality well enough that you can stick with it.
Before and after bariatric surgery, establishing a routine is one of the most important predictors of long-term success. But healthy habits should support your life, not take it over.
Routine as a Guide, Not a Rulebook
Bariatric surgery changes your anatomy, not your habits. It’s up to you to establish a routine that allows you to get the most out of the procedure and your effort. Having a routine makes that achievable – a consistent plan for meals, hydration, vitamins, physical activity, and sleep helps take the guesswork out of healthy decisions. Those choices simply become part of your normal routine.
We’ve seen marked improvement in success rates in patients who start making lifestyle changes prior to surgery. It lays the foundation for future success. Practicing those habits before surgery makes them feel more natural afterward, when your body is also adapting to significant physical changes.
One of the most important things for patients to wrap their minds around is that these changes aren’t temporary, they are for life. But that doesn’t mean your routine won’t evolve. A routine that works while you’re single may need to be adjusted after you get married or have children. A new job, shift work, retirement, or going back to school can all change when and how you’re able to eat, exercise, or prepare meals. A successful routine doesn’t stay exactly the same forever, and it’s unreasonable to expect it to! A good routine will adapt as your life unfolds while keeping your healthiest habits intact. Your routine is a guidepost that provides enough structure to keep you moving toward your goals and enough flexibility for when life inevitably changes; one that’s easy to return to, not impossible to break.
A Routine That Works
Mistake number one: people try to change everything at once. It might feel motivating in the moment to overhaul your diet, start exercising every day, drink more water, meal prep, and completely reorganize your schedule all in the same week, but that’s a lot to ask of yourself. Focus on building one or two habits at a time until they become second nature instead. Ambitious plans could end up short-lived, and it’s more valuable to make smaller changes over a longer period of time so they’re more likely to stick.
Attaching new behaviors to routines you already have is also a useful habit-forming strategy. If you take medication every morning, keep your bariatric vitamins nearby. Leave your keys next to your water bottle so you remember to fill it up before you leave the house. Pack tomorrow’s lunch while you’re cleaning up after dinner. Connecting a new habit to something you already do makes it easier to remember and easier to maintain.
It’s also important to think it through and see if you can formulate a routine that works even on your busiest days, not just your best days. Some mornings, you’ll run late. There will be evenings when you’re too tired to cook. And there will be weeks when work or family responsibilities take priority over meal prepping or a trip to the gym. Having a few guilt-free backup plans can help you stay on track without adding unnecessary stress: keep a protein shake in your bag, make sure go-to snacks are healthy and bariatric-friendly, add an extra 5 or 10 minutes to your exercise the rest of the week, or know which nearby restaurants offer protein-forward options.
Whatever you do, don’t skip meals on purpose or indulge in overly restrictive diets. Both can make it more difficult to meet your nutritional needs and potentially lead to binge eating.
Perhaps most importantly, don’t feel like you have to figure everything out in a rush or on your own. Your appointments before surgery prepare you for an operation, and at the same time, they’re an opportunity to ask questions, learn new habits, and talk about developing a routine that fits your lifestyle. The team at Strive is here to help you navigate those changes, troubleshoot challenges, and provide the support you need every step of the way. Our goal is to see you succeed!
