Habit Hacks for the Hardcore: Attack and Dominate 2025
by: Josh Bryant
Tom Haviland personifies building successful habits.
The New Year isn’t just a calendar flip — it’s your shot to grab the bull by the balls and make Rocky Mountain oysters, forging the strongest and most disciplined version of yourself.
Research shows only 9% of people see their New Year’s goals through. Guess what? This is for that 9%. The other 91% can keep zoning out on their phone, playing Gang Beasts, ranking up in Candy Crush, arguing about Star Wars canon on Reddit, or crocheting baby Yoda beanies in their mom’s basement!
Jack Nicklaus dominated golf not by chance but by consistent, disciplined habits. Popcorn Sutton didn’t become the moonshine GOAT by luck — he scoured the best hollers, perfected just the right erosion on copper pipes to produce something so potent it might make you go blind yet paradoxically tasted like the nectar of the gods. Ed Coan didn’t stumble into powerlifting supremacy — he built it, brick by brick, and zeroed in with Carlos Hathcock-like precision.
All these legends understood one simple truth: we are creatures of habit. Excellence isn’t a one-time act; it’s a repeated behavior. Ready to break bad habits, build rock-solid routines, and hit goals that launch you to greatness? Let’s get to work.
Habitual Greatness
Great free throw shooters make every shot look the same. The greatest powerlifter of all time, Ed Coan, made every squat look the same. Being a creature of habit is a huge responsibility — but when harnessed, it becomes a powerful force for excellence.
On the flip side, someone battling a drinking problem, emotional overeating, or choking under pressure is also a creature of habit — just non-productive ones. The good news? Habits can change. This should fire up “possibility thinkers” because there are no limits. But if you believe circumstances control your fate, this truth can feel terrifying.
Remember, if you can create bad habits, you can create good ones. Everyone has habits worth changing. Now, let’s dive into eliminating the bad and building the good.
Build successful habits with Josh and Tom’s 50 Shades of Strength Program HERE.
Identify Trigger
If you are dealing with a drinking problem, avoid the barroom — whether it’s the Ritz or that old mobile home turned redneck kick-n-stab bar with the Wednesday night amateur dance-off. If you’re showing up to win a few bucks, you’re playing with fire.
Let’s identify your triggers — the who, what, why, when, and where of your habits:
- Who are you around ? Who are you around when negative talk or bad habits flare up? Are certain people pulling you back? Maybe it’s the social media accounts you follow, the TV shows you binge, or gossiping with neighbors?
- What emotions fuel your worst habits? Celebration or drowning sorrows? Pinpoint what sets you off.
- When and where do these emotions hit? A specific time, person, or TV show? Identify the trigger.
- Examine your routine — your actions, words, and situations that bring those habits to life.
Write it all down. Identification sparks awareness, and awareness drives change.
Clean House
Want to quit drinking? Grab every drop of alcohol in your house and pour it down the drain. Toss the margarita glasses or anything tied to drinking. This isn’t just about limiting access — it’s cathartic. Subconsciously, it’s a massive “buy-in.”
Want to drop body fat? Don’t just stop buying junk food — throw away what you have. Live out in the country? Burn it. Extreme? Absolutely. But so are habits.
Eliminate and destroy your enablers!
Replace and Rise
As a teenager, I trained at a gym next to an AA chapter where people swapped hooch for cigarettes and coffee. The lesson? Replacement works.
If you’re pounding six sodas a day, swap them for water with lemon. Watching TV? Trade it for books that help you get better. Addicted to dipping snuff? Chew gum instead — it hits that oral fixation. Love the crunch of chips? Crunch on carrots, not bananas.
Understand why you cling to a bad habit, then swap it for a healthy alternative that fuels your progress.
Build successful training habits with one of Josh’s Programs HERE.
Easing in
Ease your way into kicking a bad habit if it’s not wreaking havoc on your life. Cutting coffee? Go from half-decaf to black tea, then to no tea—bye-bye brain fog and headaches. Not ready for a full meal overhaul? Ditch the sodas first.
Here’s the kicker—most fat folks think they’re more “moderate” than they are. Studies show many misreport what they eat. Sometimes it’s wishful thinking, sometimes it’s plain dishonesty. Doesn’t matter—results don’t lie. Easing in works if the habit isn’t putting you or others at serious risk.
The late, great G. Gordon Liddy is the only person who didn’t “rat” during the Watergate Scandal; even served prison time for sticking to his principles.
As a kid, Liddy was terrified of rats—the rodent kind. To overcome this fear, he caught a rat and ate it.
BOOM! Fear gone. Psychologists call this “flooding”.
Jumping in is a lot like flooding. Want to stop smoking? Stop now! No weaning, no excuses. Deal with the withdrawals head-on and cut the cord for good. Sure, it’ll hurt at first, but the suffering is shorter, and the result is permanent freedom.
Bad habits are deeply ingrained—like a condemned building you’ve lived in for years. Sometimes, instead of dismantling it brick by brick, you’ve gotta call in the demolition crew and blow the whole thing up.
Final Thoughts
Human beings are creatures of habit, plain and simple. In the words of Socrates, “Know thyself.” That self-awareness will either be the spark to live your best life now or a shortcut to mediocrity and misery. Your choice.
Transform your mind with Grounded in Gratitude HERE.