045: Why People Cannot Maintain Health Habits

The podcast discusses the importance of sustainability in personal development practices, particularly in health and meditation. The hosts observe a pattern where people dive into intense training or meditation practices but struggle to maintain consistency over time. They emphasize the need for sustainable approaches that can be maintained for the long term, highlighting the role of consistency in achieving lasting results. The conversation explores the reasons behind the tendency to oscillate between extremes of intense practice and complete cessation, suggesting that it often stems from a results-driven mindset and a lack of prioritization.

Connect with Mike Chang:
- Instagram: @mikechangofficial
-Youtube: Mike Chang
- Website: www.flow60.com

Connect with Stephen Yeh:
-Instagram: @iamstephenyeh
-Twitter: @iamstephenyeh

Transcript

Mike: [00:00:00] You know, oftentimes I, I meet people who are, they have seasons where they get really into their health, they get really interested in personal development, and then they take a long break. and Oftentimes when people are coming to me for support or they want to learn something, they want to train with me.

They seem to go all out, they're totally gung ho about it. And soon after, you know, after two, three months, they're gone. I don't hear anything from them. , it's as if they came to go ahead and just learn something really quick. And as if once they learned it, they're set. And some of these people end up I hear from them, six [00:01:00] months to eight months later, and they're back in the same place.

And so this pattern, where we totally dive in, into training, into health, into developing ourselves. We have to make sure that the way that we are approaching our practice, the way that we're approaching our personal growth, It has to be sustainable. For me, if I do something and it's not sustainable, I don't even do it.

If I don't think I can keep this up for a long period of time, I don't even do it. Because I know that whatever results I gain, I'm going to lose it if I don't continue. I know that no matter how great I feel from this special diet, the moment the diet's gone, so will the results. So, always look at how we approach practice, always look at and see, And ask ourselves this question, [00:02:00] can I do this for a very, very long time for the next five years, 10 years, can I train in this way?

Can I eat in this way? Can I maintain this type of schedule? If I can't then find a way that works, change up what's needed. Because consistency is what all results are built upon. And it's not about just jumping in something. It's about making the way that we approach this thing, make it consistent, make it something that could last.

This especially goes with like meditation as well. Sometimes when people start meditating, I hear them. I meditate for, two hours every day. I go, wow, that's a good amount of time. How long have you been doing it? Oh, I just [00:03:00] started just this week. Okay. All right. Uh, what'd you do before then?

Oh, I, I, uh, I stopped meditating. So, but I, I gotta get back into it. So I just been, just going all out. I'm like, Oh, you know, so this is a common thing I hear, and. A person like that, it's just a matter of time before they're going to stop again because they can't sustain it, right?

And they go from, not doing it to like two hours a day. I mean, it's different if somebody was been meditating for, 30 minutes a day, twice a day or something, or, or they're doing an hour a day and they're just now increasing it to two hours a day. And they've been doing an hour a day for the last couple of years.

And they now decided I'm going to double it. That could be sustainable because they've been doing an hour a day for a few years. But if a person just started, they don't need to do something too extreme because they're going to drop it as fast as they started. And instead they should start [00:04:00] off with something that feels a little less effort.

It feels a little bit easier. So as we look into that first, Stephen, , have you experienced, kind of going all out, right? Jumping in the extreme and then totally pulling out and stopping. Cause I remember I used to do that when I was younger and that's why I don't do that anymore.

Cause I saw what happened, you have experienced in that as well. Has that ever happened to you? 

Stephen: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I, I used to be essentially a sprinter, I mean, for, for everything. And , whether it was work or whether it was sports, you know, I just totally focus on a period of time and then get burnt out or something else comes up and kind of lose my attention, lose my focus and essentially it kind of goes away.

So, for sure it's, it's one of those things where. It's funny because it is one of those things like you were saying [00:05:00] consistency is so important and as you're talking about meditation, right? I I had memories of consistently doing it, let's say eight months for like four hours a day, but then that was a completely different type of life back then, you know, especially with kids and things like that can't really do that anymore.

And so just reflecting on that, it's, it's interesting because meditation is one of those things where I do feel it's so powerful. Yeah. And yet, I could, as I look back the last couple years, I can see I haven't consistently been keeping that in my day. And I had periods of having it, or, kinda like what you're talking about, sometimes, , I get into quite a funk.

And I end up saying, okay, there's something going on inside. I'm just going to sit down until it starts clearing up. [00:06:00] That clearing up process might take two, three hours a day for a few days. But if I was, and I can feel it, if, if I was to just do it consistently for 10, 15, 20 minutes per day. You can just stay in that more clear space.

So I think part of it is just adding it into the routine of life, just like brushing teeth and just like taking a shower and finding that time for it. 

Mike: Well, what do you think stops a person? You think stops a person? I'm not sure if it stops me. I think. Well, what do you think stops a person from, well, I mean, like what gets a person to, to go to the extreme and then they stop, like, why don't everybody just.

Do a little bit at a time. I mean, it seems so logical that a little bit at a time would eventually, you know, make it easier. What do you think? 

Stephen: For sure. I mean, if I just take a look at my own life and see the times I for sure do that, it's [00:07:00] usually, I think it's something about like being results driven where it's like, okay, I've done the practice.

I get to a certain state that I'm like, okay, I feel good. And the thing is, you can feel good for a period of time. It could be days or weeks, but because of that loss of habit, it's slowly starts to go down, but then you don't really realize it. You're not as conscious anymore because you're not doing the practice consistently.

It's similar to anything, similar to diet. 

Mike: Wait, so you're saying that let's say if a person was to meditate every day, right? And then their mind becomes very still and they become very present and then they don't meditate for two days. They can tell why would I mean, it's obvious.

[00:08:00] Like, I don't think I don't think people are confused that. Wow. I don't have to meditate anymore. And I'm just going to stay this way. That's as ridiculous as a person who diets and gets very lean and in shape. Right. And then they go on this Sunday, they go, Oh, I don't have to diet anymore.

And I'm going to stay that way. Of course they know. But why would they do that? I 

Stephen: don't think it's a conscious thing, right? , it's more so, you get lost in the weeds of the different aspects of life. 

Mike: You think they're unconscious that if they stop. Right. So I think they're conscious of it. I think they know that , if they skip working out, their conditioning is going to decrease.

If they stop eating the way they've been eating to lose the weight, they're going to gain the weight back. I think they are conscious of it. Just like meditation, just like anything else. I think they are conscious of it because to not be conscious of it is to not be right. [00:09:00] It's to not be aware, it's to not be aware, it's to not know this is happening.

Or maybe like they're not focused on it, right? Maybe they're not focused on it, but they know for sure. Yeah. 

Stephen: But why do we think that 

Mike: happens? Because 

Stephen: I think it comes down to priority, right? Because. I think what ends up happening is like, I take a look at my calendar and I say, Oh, I got these calls happening and then I got this thing happening.

I got to take care of that. And then afterwards, I got to go pick up the kids, or I can maybe squeeze it in here. And then all of a sudden, if this happens enough 

Mike: days, But that's always been happening. Sure. Like, imagine this happening. This, that's the way this person's schedule is. Yeah. But then somehow, suddenly they go hardcore into meditation every day.

And they do that for, for four weeks and they become much more calm and much more peaceful [00:10:00] and then nothing's changed on their schedule. And suddenly they just skipped, started to skip it and eventually they just stopped. I mean, this is, not a weird scenario. This is a very, very common scenario.

It's like a person starts to exercise, you know, they're out of shape. They start to exercise and they get into good shape. When they started to exercise, , did their schedule totally change? 

Stephen: They found a way, they prioritized it. 

Mike: Or did they just decided, I need to get in shape? Yeah.

So then, if we're talking about the causation of, Why they stopped. It's not from a schedule change because it wasn't even a schedule change that allowed them to start. Imagine a person that feels very desperate. They're desperate to get in shape. They feel really out of shape. They feel, really bad when they look into the mirror, they feel really bad about themselves.

They feel so bad about themselves to the point that it's stopping them from doing the things they want to [00:11:00] do from showing up the way they want to show up. They can't live their normal life the way that they have been because they feel that bad about themselves. So then now this person changes their schedule around, makes it a priority, sacrifice certain things, and they start to exercise and we start to eat better.

They say no to this, no to that, no to that. And now fast forward 60 days later. They're feeling amazing. They feel strong, they feel good. They're able to do everything that they wanted to do before and more. Now, they don't have that lack anymore. They don't have the lack of I can't do these things. So that lack was driving them.

Now they don't have that drive because they don't have that lack and they know that when they [00:12:00] stop, they're going to lose the results they know, but they also knew their entire life that they don't exercise and eat right. That they're going to be unhealthy. Right. Who, who does not know that? I mean, let's just be honest, right?

Everybody knows that, but that alone is not enough to get a person to, to take action. So then now this person knows that when they stop, they're going to be unhealthy again, but the only way that drove them to take action was because of that lack, the lack of not being able to live the way they want to live and do those things that they're wanting to do.

And now at this moment, they're able to do those things that they want to do because They've been training for 60 days. So even though they know the results won't last unless they continue, they don't care because they can't use [00:13:00] that idea as a drive. They're only driven by not being able to do that thing right now.

The future I'll worry about when I get there. So what happens? Well they stop, they stop and the results start to go backwards. They're starting to gain a little weight back, but they're still able to do the things they want to do until eventually, fast forward, six months later, they're back to where they were.

Now, they may not purposely just let everything go. They'll tell themselves that, yeah, I'm going to maintain it. I'm just going to maintain it, right? I'm not going to work so hard. I'm just going to maintain it. I'm going to do less, 

Stephen: but you 

Mike: can't, maintain. If you train for an hour a day, you can't maintain your hour a day training with 30 minutes a day.

If you ate. 2000 calories a day. You can't maintain your 2000 calorie diet with a 3000 calorie diet. If you meditate it for one hour a day, you can't [00:14:00] maintain your same meditative state with just 10 minutes a day. 

Stephen: I, I got a question for you on that one. 

Mike: It doesn't work that way. You see, 

Stephen: so. I mean, I think there's a difference between maintenance and improving or growth, right?

So let's say for example, it might take someone half an hour to an hour of training to become more flexible or training to be stronger compared to someone who, let's say, has a splits already, they can probably just do 10, 15 minutes , of stretching to just maintain that. Like I, at least right now, I feel that that makes sense.

Mike: If they were stretching one hour a day, they can't maintain the same level of flexibility with 10 minutes a day. They can't do that. Just like, same thing like if they were to weight train for an hour a day, then the amount of muscle that they have, they [00:15:00] can't maintain that muscle for 10 minutes. So, what they could do is, let's say, they can increase the intensity, change up the exercises, push twice as hard, decrease the rest times.

Right, stack the sets together and do a crazy drop set, super set, tri set, multiple exercises back to back, intensify the exercise so much that they can get in a similar amount of stimuli, a similar amount of resistance. Just like a person who's working four hours and then they can get the same amount of work done in two hours.

Well, technically you could if you can streamline your processes, leverage the way you're doing things, and etc. So same deal with exercise. Then, possibly, yeah, they could, but if they were to not do any of that and simply just Go from one hour to 10 minutes with the same approach, same style. They can't maintain it.

And oftentimes people are not intensifying and [00:16:00] upgrading what they're doing when they are cutting down their thing to want to maintain, oftentimes they're just doing the same thing, but less. And that's why they lose the results. But the key takeaway here though, is that the drive that what, what drove them to, to do these short term, the short term changes is lack a big fear of lack, because I can't do this thing.

I can't go out and feel okay about myself. I feel so self conscious. Everywhere I go, I have to go and work out and get in shape because I can't even feel okay with going out anymore. Before, I felt okay when I go out. It's not that I was in really great shape, but I still felt okay. But now my conditioning has changed and I don't feel okay anymore.

And that becomes the, they cross the line, they cross the line [00:17:00] to, they went below their standard, let's say. So then now they need to exercise. They need to go and do what it takes to bring it back up. But once they're back up, they don't have the drive anymore because they're back to where their standard is.

So you see, it was never about. Like health wasn't about, the longevity of, of their body and mind or something like that. It's usually just about something very, very specific that drove them to take action. If a person feels self conscious all the time, , every time they leave the house, they don't feel good.

It's like, they don't feel good in any of their clothes. And they just feel so out of shape, so sluggish, so sloppy that they feel just a low sense of value everywhere they go, whoever they meet this person, that's going to drive this person to work really hard, but once they don't have that drive, there may not be another drive that could get them to take action.

Right? It's the simple health drive may not be enough [00:18:00] that your BMI is too high, that's not enough, right? Your mind is not very clear. That's not enough. You see? So that's the thing is. When people are, doing these short term changes, there's usually a very specific reason that drives them to go and take that change.

And that specific reason, most time, , is not , the general ones that everybody know of. There are things that are very close to them. Something that's very, very specific. And that's why people stop because once that reason isn't there anymore, they don't have a reason to continue.

Stephen: The 

Mike: normal reasons are not good enough for them. So I think if they want to be consistent and they want to get out of this loop, They need to increase their standard if they don't change their standard and they're just okay with mediocre, then they have to fall way under that line. You see what I mean?

Imagine a person's [00:19:00] is okay with,, low energy. They're okay with being 30 pounds overweight. They're okay with running out of breath. Okay. With feeling weak. Okay. With not being able to hike up a mountain. They're okay with not being able to. Okay. Go up two flights of stairs without being out of breath.

They're okay with that. But suddenly they got such knee pain that they can't barely walk. So then now they have to exercise and they go see a doctor and doctor goes, well, you're too heavy. Your joints are taking too much of a toll. You need to lose some weight. You need to increase the strength. in your joints increase the strength in your leg muscles, so your leg muscles are able to support more of the weight and not just have it all in your joints.

If you don't, your knee's gonna get worse and worse and eventually when you need surgery and you're not gonna be able to walk in the future. So this person goes, oh wow, I, I'm not okay with that. So now this person starts to exercise. You see, and then once they're starting to exercise, they're now able to walk again, and then now they're okay again.

They don't care. Just as long as [00:20:00] they're able to walk, they're okay with all the other things. Right. So then what I'm saying is they need to go ahead and not be okay with all those other things. They need to change their standard. Everybody's got a standard in every part of their life, from the way they look to the way they feel to their performance, their mental performance, their energy, there's a standard that a person has unconsciously set a lot of times, and that standard needs to change.

And when that standard changes. Now, they are driven to meet that standard, and then once they meet the standard, they're driven to maintain that standard. One other thing on standards before we dive off, which is, okay, so then how do we set new standards? Right? How do we set new standards? Okay, so we got to change standards.

Well, in [00:21:00] order to set new standards, what drives a person to change their standards? If we look at that question, we can say, well, standards dictate, they influence what a person can do. So therefore, a person needs to go and go after what they really want in their life, and then their standards will change.

If right now, I'm not able to go after what I really want, the reason I don't want Can't is because my standards in my life don't allow me to I'm okay with waking up super late I'm okay with having this level of energy. I'm okay with having this fear in my life I'm okay with not fully showing up. So because I'm okay with all those things.

I can't go after what I really want I mean, I don't have the capacity. So then now I have to really go after what I really want I need to go and fully pursue it and then when I fully pursue it now I recognize that all my standards are too low And now my standards have to change by [00:22:00] default. So this way I can take the actions towards getting what I really want.

So we've got to have a goal to drive for everybody's got dreams. Everybody's wants something, but when they really pursue what they want, they will recognize that their low standards becomes the hurdle that stops them. And now they're going to change those standards because they really want to go after it.

And now when they change those standards, now they're going to have to change those habits. Now they're going to maintain certain healthy habits in their life so they can maintain those standards. So they're able to now go after what they want. So then it goes back to being clear, how does a person want to go after what they want?

Well, simple, right? They got to be clear on what they want. So, so often people don't know what they want. So they got to get clear on what they want. And once they're clear on what they want, the next thing is to go after it. And then when they go after it, they see what part of them is lacking because of their [00:23:00] low standard.

Now, they have the drive to Increase that standard and to raise the standards. Now they implement those new habits that they have a clear reason to maintain. And that's how they do it. 

Stephen: If you find yourself starting and stopping your goals, this here is a message that you have to hear. All right, ladies and gentlemen, thank you once again for listening to another episode of body over mind.

And, that was another one where it's like, if you can really just take this in and start to really apply it to your own life and really just ask yourself, what is your standard and what are your goals? What do you really want to accomplish in your life? It may be a huge game changer for you.

So these are all things that, , if you want to dive in deeper, again, go take a look at Mike's [00:24:00] website, flow60. com. Take a look at what he's talking about in there. See if you want to dive in more and, see really what you want to create in your life. All right, guys, we will see you on the next episode.