Passion Struck with John R. Miles - The Science of Healthy Habits - How to Make Habits Stick EP 108

Episode Date: February 18, 2022

In this episode, I tell the story of Kieran Behan and, through his account, review the science of creating healthy habits, unhealthy habit elimination, and how the process of neuroplasticity (brain rewiring) facilitates habit formation. I describe the role of the prefrontal cortex, which is grounded in the neuroscience of brain states and our ability to insert conscious effort, intention, and thought into the process. I also discuss neuroplasticity, also known as neural plasticity, or brain plasticity, and the neural networks' ability to change through growth and reorganization. I then dive into how you create healthy habits and what makes habits stick using gymnastics and Kieran's story to help illustrate the points. I offer seven suggestions based on science that should help anyone create better habits and eliminate bad habits for fitness, relationships, school, career, and more--indeed, becoming empowered in the task of creating meaningful, prosperous, and productive habits. Once the habit formation cycle is formed, you can confidently creep closer and closer to your goals. Our Patreon Page: https://www.patreon.com/passionstruck Thank you to our sponsors: MAGIC MIND. Get 20% off https://magicmind.co/passionstruck; use code passionstruck. ATHLETIC GREENS. Get a one-year supply of vitamin D and five travel packs https://athleticgreens.com/passionstruck. SURF SHARK. Get 83% off Surf Shark VPN and three extra months free https://surfshark.deals/passionstruck; use the promo code passionstruck. Thank you for watching this video. I hope you keep up with the weekly videos I post on the channel, subscribe to, and share your learnings with those who need to hear them. Your comments are my oxygen, so please take a second and say 'Hey' ;). -- ► Subscribe to My Channel Here: https://www.youtube.com/c/JohnRMiles  Links: * Atomic Habits by James Clear: https://amzn.to/3gQJpN9 * Momentum Dash: https://momentumdash.com/ * Lifetick: https://lifetick.com/ * Goalify: https://goalifyapp.com/en/reach-your-goals/ * Habitbull: http://www.habitbull.com/ Socials: * Twitter: https://twitter.com/Milesjohnr * Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnrmiles.c0m * Medium: https://medium.com/@JohnRMiles ​* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/john_r_miles * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/milesjohn/ * Blog: https://passionstruck.com/blog/ * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/passion_struck_podcast/ * Gear: https://www.zazzle.com/store/passion_struck/ Timestamps: 0:00 Introducing habits and new programs 3:36 Athletic Greens,SurfShark 6:54 The story of gymnast Kieran Behan 11:32 Magic Mind 13:07 Neuroscience process of habit formation 14:15 Neuroplasticity and how neural pathways work 15:40 How to choose and develop healthy habits 16:39 Tool 1: practice mindfulness and meditation 17:15 Tool 2: understand the habit loop 17:50 Tool 3: find an accountability partner 18:28 Tool 4: reflect and improve 18:51 Tool 5: practice habit stacking 19:39 Tool 6: make habits realistic and achievable 20:26 Tool 7: be consistent 20:48 Conclusion & Synthesis -- John R Miles is a serial entrepreneur and the CEO and founder of Passion Struck. This full-service media company helps people live intentionally by creating best-in-class educational and entertainment content. John is also a prolific public speaker, venture capitalist, and author named to the ComputerWorld Top 100 IT Leaders. John is the host of the Passion Struck Podcast, a show focused on exploring the mindset and philosophy of the world's highest achievers to learn their lessons to living intentionally. Passion Struck aspires to speak to the humanity of people in a way that makes them want to live better, be better and impact. Stay tuned for John's latest project, his upcoming book, which will be published in summer 2022. Learn more about me: https://johnrmiles.com. New to this channel and the passion-struck podcast? Check out our starter packs which are our favorite episodes grouped by topic, to allow you to get a sense of all the podcast has to offer. Go to Spotify or https://passionstruck.com/starter-packs/. Like this? Please join me on my new platform for peak performance, life coaching, self-improvement, intentional living, and personal growth: https://passionstruck.com/ and sign up for our email list.

Welcome visionaries, creators, innovators, entrepreneurs, leaders and growth seekers of all types to the Passion Struck podcast. Hi, I'm John Miles, a peak performance coach, multi industry CEO, maybe veteran and entrepreneur on a mission to make Passion Go viral for millions worldwide. do so by sharing with you an inspirational message and interviewing eye achievers from all walks of life who unlock their secrets and lessons to become an action-struck. The purpose of our show is to serve you the listener by giving you tips, tasks and activities you can use to achieve peak performance and for too much action-driven life you have always wanted to have. Now let's become PassionStruck. Welcome back to Episode 108 of the PassionStruck Podcast. And thank you to all of you who come back weekly to listen and learn,

to live better, be better, and impact the world. If you're new to the show or you would like to introduce it to a friend or family member, we now have episodes starter packs. These are collections of your favorite episodes that are organized by topic that gives a brand new listener a great way to get acquainted to everything that we do here on the show. Just go to passionstruck.com slash starter packs

to get started. And on there, you'll also see that we've curated playlists on Spotify, which is another great way that you can get acquainted with the show. And if you haven't been to our YouTube channel, you can check it out at John Aramiles where we have over 230 different videos ranging from long form content like today's episode to short, two to five minute mindset moments to give you daily doses of inspiration.

Now those of you who are listening to this can't see the t-shirt I'm wearing, but I'm advertising for my friends at the Wearer Angels Foundation, and as most of you already know, I'm getting ready to participate in the four by four by 48 challenge, March 4th through six.

That's four miles every four hours for 48 hours, and I'm doing it with 50 other veterans and everything that we're doing is to support nonprofits around the cutting edge of treating veterans who have traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder and this foundation is very close to my heart because I am one of those veterans that they helped out and it has changed my life completely. So I'll put information in the show notes how you can check out and support this important cause. But please check out where angels foundation. And if you get a their site,

the four by four by four to eight challenge is right there. And you can sign up to be part of this amazing effort. Whether they're beneficial or harmful, habits are those things that you've done countless times and become automatic. Of course, it's those pesky bad habits that we often all fall into instead of the helpful ones. That's because habits are typically formed in reaction to some kind of reward mechanism. That is a snack or maybe a few extra minutes watching TV or a few extra minutes of sleep that we give ourselves as a reward. Today I'm going to discuss why a significant part of developing Good Habits is backed by neuroscience.

I'll go into specific things that you can do to aid in the process of habit formation so the intention to do them doesn't feel like one big up. Once the habit formation cycle is formed, you can confidently creep closer and closer to your goals. Thank you for choosing PassionStruct and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to living a no-orgots life. Before we begin, I would like to emphasize that this podcast is part of my desire and effort to bring zero constant information to the general public regarding how to unlock an intentional no regrets life. And keeping with that theme, I would like to thank the sponsors of today's episode. Our next sponsor is a product I literally

use every day. I started taking athletic creams six months ago because I wanted to achieve optimum performance and better gut health. And I can tell you it does that and so much more. I've noticed an overall improvement in sleep quality, recovery for my workouts, and better mental clarity. I take it first thing in the morning with an 8-ounce glass of water and several other supplements that I throw in. With one delicious scoop of athletic creams. You're absorbing 75 high quality vitamins, minerals, whole food source superfoods, probiotics, and aptogens to help you start your day outright. With all the stressors that are around us,

I know I have them in my life. This is such an easy way to get your nutrition done right daily. In a costume, just $3 a day, you're investing in your health and it's cheaper than your cold brew habit. In order to make it easy, athletic greens is going to give you a free one-year supply of vitamin D and five travel packs with your first purchase. All you have to do is visit AthleticGreens.com slash passion scrap to take ownership of your health and pick up the ultimate daily nutrition insurance. Today's podcast is also brought to you by Surfshark. As a

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and forget about the restrictions and censorship. Can't find what you want to watch a Netflix, Hulu, or Disney Plus, or other streaming platforms, unlock new libraries with a VPN. Can't watch a YouTube video, access a website, connect to a different location with a VPN. You can try out Surfshark completely risk-free because they have a 30-day money-back guarantee. Get Surfshark VPN at Surfshark.deals slash passion struck. Use the promo code passionstruck for 83% off and three extra months free.

That's Surfshark.deals slash passion struck. Thank you so much for listening to and supporting the show. All those codes and URLs can be difficult to remember, so we've put them in one convenience spot for you. Just go to passionstruck.com slash deals. Please consider supporting those who support the show and make it possible and free tour listeners. Now back to Passion Struck. Kieran, Pihon, was born in Hetfordshire, London to parents who were of Irish descent. Ever since he could remember, Kin loved everything about gymnastics.

From the tumbling floor routines, the mental fortitude, it required to compete on the high bar. He lived for the Olympics and was determined to become an Olympic champion. Purin poured himself into the sport and was practicing for hours to hone his craft by the age of 12.

One day, while practicing his floor routine, his coach noticed that he was not pushing off with the force that made Karen's routines so formidable. Karen told his coach that his leg had been bothering him for a few weeks, but he didn't want to lose practice time so he kept the pain in. Upon examining Karen, his coach immediately noticed a mass in his upper leg.

Karen was taken to the doctors where it was discovered that he had a benign tumor, and surgery was performed to remove it. Unfortunately, the unthinkable happened. The surgery did not go as planned and various complications arose, which resulted in massive nerve damage to his legs and being confined to a wheelchair for almost a year. After 15 months of painful physical therapy and daily exercises to restore the strength in his leg, Kuren was ready to go back to gymnastics.

He quickly re-found his passion and his talent grew and before he knew it, he was flourishing again. His favorite event was the hybars and he was practicing a new routine when was flourishing again. His favorite event was the high bars, and he was practicing a new routine when fate intervened again. His hand lost grip as he was attempting a rhombutus dismount when he lost hold of the bar and was hurled uncontrollably into the air. This resulted in a traumatic brain injury and damaged his inner ear, affecting not only his balance, but his coordination skills,

which are so vital to gymnastics. Due to ongoing complications caused by post-concussion syndrome, he missed a whole year of school, but still maintained his goal of becoming a world-class gymnast. Once again, Karen was forced to go through months of daily physical and cognitive therapy to retrain his brain, to regain his coordination, and relearn even the most simple things like sitting and moving his head. It ended up taking him almost 18 months to recover. Even then, his doctors told him that they didn't expect him to ever be the same again, much less be competitive in gymnastics. However, the doctors didn't know Kirin's resolve, ability to develop and sustain habits and his endless passion.

With time and daily practice, he recovered his strength and returned to gymnastics, where soon he was winning competitions and getting closer to his dream of competing in the Olympics. Then another blow happened when his knee snapped just after being selected for the European Championships. Behan at this point was frustrated as we could all imagine and considered giving up.

But he managed to keep hope alive and continued to take steps intentionally towards his goals. He got into physical rehabilitation yet again and was able to get back onto his gymnastics program mainly because of his mental strength and the habits he constantly developed over countless years of training. Despite his setbacks, Kieran returned to gymnastics. He went on to gain several awards as a junior gymnast, including a fourth place finish at the junior European Championships in Bolo's Greece in 2006 competing for Great Britain. He was named the overall floor champion throughout the 2011 World Cup Floor Championship Series after winning bronze silver and gold, respectively, on the floor in

Slovenia, Croatia, and the Czech Republic. He became the first-ever Irish gymnast to qualify for the Olympic Games, competing in London 2012 in front of his own crowd, and Rio 2016. How could Karen overcome the obstacles that came his way and eventually become the world-class gymnast he had hoped to be? He had intentionally developed the habit of showing up training consistently

and doing what was ever necessary to remain fit, mentally strong and capable. This habit also helped him through the most difficult times when he was recovering from his injuries. How can we also learn to build habits that will sustain and help us function at our best throughout our life. Let's delve briefly into the actual science of how the brain structure facilitates habit formation. We'll be right back to the Passion Start podcast. I'd love to introduce my audience to Magic Mind, the little magical Alexa that makes your body hum. They are also sponsoring this episode. Magic Mind is the world's first productivity drink, and it's like coffee, but the good kind of coffee. It consists of 12 functional ingredients, including machete, neutropics that help you focus, and aptogens that help you fight

off stress. It's basically made for an entrepreneur or creator like me. I have been using magic mine for over a month. And after a few days, I noticed that I am sharper, have more sustained energy and feel dialed in. I use magic mine once a day, typically in the mornings, or before a period where I need sustained energy and concentration. I also notice that I no longer have the afternoon law that I'm sure so many of you also experience. Magic Mine has given me a 20% discount code to share with my audience. It's magicmind.co slash passion struck

and use the code passion struck at checkout. Don't forget to go to magicmind.co slash passion struck at checkout. Don't forget to go to magicmind.co slash passion struck and use the code passion struck at checkout. And I know all these codes in URLs can be difficult to remember. So we put them all in one place on passionstruck.com slash deals. Please consider supporting those who support the show and make it possible and free for our listeners, now back to passion structure. Neural pathways, composed of neurons connected by dendrites, are created in the brain

based on our behaviors. The number of dendrites increases with the frequency of behavior is performed, with an increased and constant frequency that behavior then develops into habits. When first adopting a new behavior, the pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for thinking must be engaged. This allows for the insertion of conscious effort, intention, and thought in the process. By performing the new routine enough times for connections to be made and strengthened in the brain,

the behavior becomes less effort and it becomes more the default pattern. In creating new habits, our brain will always try to take the path of least resistance. In order to help with this, our brain develops pathways for habits that it can follow with ease. MIT researchers discovered that if the habit formation of the brain fires neurons at the start and end of a distinct behavior, then a new habit is formed. The neuron firing will create routines over time, both in the brain and in one's behavior. Now, let's talk a little bit about neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity, also known as neuroplasticity or brain plasticity, is the neural networks ability to change through

growth in reorganization. These changes range from individual neuron pathways, making new connections to systematic adjustments that include circuit and network changes that result from learning a new ability, environmental influences, practice, emotions, and thoughts. Neural pathways that form habits are built either intentionally or accidentally. Once a much repeated movement is initiated and begun, it naturally and automatically triggers the habit pattern down the neural pathway. Gymnastics are an excellent example of this because gymnastics is a series of habits that are developed involuntarily. The intrinsic routine simply takes over and the gymnast training is executed whether

it is a good or wrong movement. This is also a clear example of why habits are so hard to break once they are formed. Any movement initiation falls immediately into the neuralway habit and defies change. However, the more often we perform in action or behave a certain way, the more it gets physically wired into our brain. Hence, due to the brain's unique ability, we can all train ourselves to adapt. The new situations and build new habits just as Karen did. In the case of Karen, he reached his goal by first understanding that gymnastics skills and other complex physical movements are based on a series of physical habits. He then began to thoroughly learn each skill before proceeding to the next step and build one habit on top of another. I think we all know it's not a quick or straightforward process when we create a new habit or replace an old one.

In fact, it can be downright very difficult. There needs to be a compelling reason for making the change and recognizing how beneficial to our lives, building those great and healthy habits can be. Realize that any new habit formation will require time and energy. That is why we need to be compassionate with ourselves if we stumble along the way. However, by understanding how habits are created and putting the following suggestions into effective practice, we can make meaningful changes in our lives. So the first thing we can do is to practice mindfulness and meditation. Besides relieving stress and common your mind,

meditation will help you self-reflect on what is going on in your life. It will help expose those areas that you need to improve and form healthy habits and also help you conquer your bad habits. Being genuinely mindful of yourself, your feelings and your motivations gives you higher ground when battling bad habits. Through this activity, your feelings and your motivations gives you higher ground when battling bad habits.

Through this activity, your mind will be better prepared to imbibe the inspiration and motivation it needs to build new habits effectively. Second, understand the habit loop. MIT researchers uncovered a primary neurological loop at the center of every habit, which consists of three parts, a cue, a routine, and a reward. A cue prompts you to start the very thing that you want to do consistently. A routine is developed when you consciously and effortly keep responding to the

signal and doing what you set out to do. And the reward comes when the habit is fully formed. With this understanding, you will be able to navigate your way to developing great lasting habits effectively. Third, find an accountability partner, whether it's a friend, a mentor, or a family member, have someone who can keep you accountable for keeping up building those habits. Choose a partner who wants to achieve a similar goal and come up with a coordinated plan and sure that that person is disciplined and trustworthy so that they encourage you and make you committed enough to achieve your goals. According to Dr. Tim Church, she says, in my years of working

with thousands of people, there's one thing that drives accountability more than anything else. If you want to keep people doing a behavior, get a buddy. The fourth thing we can do is to reflect and improve. Measure your progress in Mark Milestones by taking out time to reflect on your journey towards developing those great habits frequently. A great way to do this is through daily journaling, which in itself is a habit. This will help you realize how far you've come and what you need to accomplish to reach your desired end state. Fifth, practice habit stacking. Habit stacking is one of the most effective ways to create new habits. When you habit

stack, you attach a new behavior to a behavior that you already do regularly. According to Dr. Soke Lee, by anchoring something, that's a goal, say, teeth flossing, to something that you already do routinely like brushing your teeth, you can use that existing trigger, which makes it easier to pull the new behavior into your routine and do it smoothly. In addition, several digital tools facilitate the building and tracking of habits. Examples of these tools include momentum, life tick, goalify, and habit forage.

Put them to practical use to boost your ability to achieve those habits. Sext, you can make your habits achievable and realistic. Sometimes we give up on building healthy habits because they seem unattainable. That is because we get overwhelmed when we want to do so without a bit of time. To eliminate significant old habits or form new ones, you need to start with accessible daily practices

or routines that just take a few minutes to complete. For instance, if you want to read a book a month, start by reading a page a day. And if you're looking to improve your sleep quality, start going to bed earlier and waking up at the same time every day. These mini habits can be built upon over time, making new habits step. Be sure to celebrate every little progress that you make. 7. Be consistent. The more regularly you practice your habit, the more natural it will become. Make it a habit to practice your routine daily. Don't try to do too much all at once and don't overwhelm yourself. Take them step by step and always keep in mind that the key to habit building is being patient and consistent. Here in Behan was obviously aware that building a new habit is difficult, but is possible to set your mind to it.

It began with his dream of becoming an Olympic gymnast and consciously making the daily efforts to improve until he reached his desired goals. There were certainly days that he wanted to give up his routine and times when he failed to practice the habits. But he kept in mind that it was all part of the journey. He kept persevering and eventually achieved the things he set out to do. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, that which we persist in doing becomes easier. Not that the nature of the task has changed, but our ability to do has increased. By taking all of the lessons learned from Karen's story

and the suggestions provided to make daily efforts to build and improve our habits, we become empowered in the task of creating meaningful, prosperous and productive lives for ourselves and for the world at large. And remember, no one knows precisely how long it takes habits to form fully. The 21-day approach suggested by many is actually a myth.

According to Dr. Benjamin Gardner, a senior lecturer at King's College London, and other experts, the simple fact is that some habits can take longer and some can form considerably sooner than that. So let Miss Tess for inserting new patterns and breaking old habits. Finally realize that missing a day or heck, maybe two, is not your habit formation deal breaker. Just don't abandon ship and keep with the process ongoing until you form a lasting good habit and then stack new ones over time. And I hope today's lesson made an impact

for you in your life. And if there's a topic like today's that you would like to hear me discuss or a guest that you would like to see me interview, you can reach out to us at momentum friday at passionstruck.com on Instagram at john our miles or on LinkedIn at john miles. In the next few weeks, we have some incredible episodes that are coming up, including Rick Actress, Katie Chinakis, IFBB, Olympian, Hannah Randfranes, astronaut Nicole Stott, and Rour Admiral Tim Gallaudet, who was the former Undersecretary of Commerce and NOAA Administrator. Thank you for all your support, for all those five star ratings and reviews that you keep giving us.

We truly appreciate the way that you're supporting this movement and helping us influence so many thousands of people around the world. Now go out there and live life, passion struck. Thank you so much for joining us. The purpose of our show is to make passion go viral. And we do that by sharing with you the knowledge and skills that you need to unlock your hidden potential. If you want to hear more, please subscribe to the Passion Start podcast on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher or wherever you listen to your podcast ad.

And if you absolutely love this episode, we'd appreciate a five star rating on iTunes, and you're sharing it with three of your most growth-minded friends so they can post it as well to their social accounts and help us grow our passion-struck community. If you'd like to learn more about the show and our mission, you can go to passionstruck.com where you can sign up for our newsletter, look at our tools, and also download the show notes for today's episode. Additionally, you can listen to us every Tuesday and Friday, with even more inspiring content.

And remember, make a choice, work hard, and step into your sharp edges. Thank you again for joining us. you