Kreatures Of Habit Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

There has been an absolute BOOM in non-alcoholic beverages. KOH Podcast host, Michael Chernow, sits down with the one who does NA the best, Co-Founder and CEO of Zero Proof, Sean Goldsmith. The two discuss what sparked Sean’s interest in the NA beverage space, and what continues to drive the non-alcoholic movement today.

5:20 - How Zero Proof started

16:36 - Why Zero Proof doesn't have non-alcoholic beer

21:49 - What's inspiring the non-alcoholic drink movement

27:19 - Sean's NA recommendations

28:48 - The story of Lapos

34:35 - NA brands including functional ingredients

Check out The Zero Proof: https://thezeroproof.com

Sean and Michael’s recommended drinks:

Oddbird Blanc de Blancs

Ish Rosé

Saint Viviana Cabernet

Saint Viviana Sauvignon Blanc

Lapos Negroni

Ben Smith is a performance and wellness coach. This week, he sits down with Michael Chernow to dive into the hardships he faced, his journey with therapy, and much more. 

On this episode:

6:19 - Ben’s backstory

19:04 - Ben’s morning routine

26:57 - Presence and regulating your nervous system

36:29 - Ben's evening routine and trouble with sleep

45:14 - Ben's 500 day exercise

48:32 - Human connection matters

Michael Chernow joins The Rich Roll Podcast to discuss his cinematic journey from addiction to inspiring others, the power of daily habits, small wins, healing your inner child, and more.

On this episode:

00:01:47 - Sharing recovery stories

00:09:10 - The power of extreme commitment

00:13:00 - Reaching the lowest point

00:19:13 - The challenge of addiction and the difficulty for non-addicts to understand its power

00:23:30 - Childhood trauma, abuse, and the impact on mental health and relationships

00:27:47 - Survival tactics, chameleon behavior, and seeking love and acceptance

00:30:51 - Drugs as a temporary solution and the feeling of control and escape

00:32:21 - Leaving home at 15, independence, and finding freedom on the streets

00:33:46 - Balancing school and life on the streets

00:37:27 - Restaurant Journey

00:42:18 - Overcoming Adversity

00:47:32 - Fitness and Sobriety

00:52:18 - The early days of recovery

00:57:04 - Establishing a daily routine

01:02:37 - The importance of discipline and structure

01:09:19 - Living in the present and prioritizing family

01:20:14 - Gratitude Practice

01:29:34 - Fear and Optimism

01:31:29 - Meatball Shop Success

01:35:03 - Building an institution

01:37:53 - Lessons from a meeting

01:39:57 - Success in the restaurant business

01:48:32 - The power of culture

01:52:39 - Kreatures of Habit concept

01:54:39 - Starting Kreatures of Habit

01:59:50 - Impact of food-based decisions

02:02:42 - Commitment and consistency breeding confidence

02:07:09 - The power of small wins

02:09:38 - Challenges in building a business

02:10:05 - Motivation beyond money

02:11:15 - Kreatures of Habit

02:11:44 - Digital Business and Transparency

02:13:13 - Connecting with Customers

02:14:11 - Breathwork Experience

02:21:57 - Virtual Breathwork Sessions

02:25:25 - Emotional Release and Healing

02:27:42 - Visceral Vision and Healing

02:28:35 - Rich's Breathwork Experience

02:30:29 - Group Holotropic Breathing

02:31:35 - The virtual experience

02:32:12 - Therapy through breathwork

02:34:10 - Inner child revelation

02:38:14 - Commitment to fatherhood

02:40:08 - Advice for those struggling

Richie has been in the fitness industry for over 15 years, owning and operating his own gym in Hoboken, NJ.

He is a former Professional MMA fighter who trains professional fighters, athletes and celebrities, including Justin Bieber, and recently cornering UFC Champ and #1 female fighter in the world Valentina Shevchenko for her last 5 title defenses.

Richie was a former Division 1 wrestler who also holds a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt under legendary Marcelo Garcia.

Richie also owns his own Real Estate Brokerage, Prestige Property Group in Montclair, NJ, helping over 40 agents grow their brand and business.

With everything that Richie does, he knows the importance of routine and healthy, daily habits. He believes that the only way to grow his brand and businesses is through daily consistent habits.

In this episode, Michael and Richie discuss what the discipline of martial arts will teach you, the importance of attacking your fears, and why you will never quit if you have this one thing.

Josh Bridges is a 6 time elite CrossFit games athlete, former navy seal, father of two boys and Founder of Good Dudes Coffee. In this episode, we discuss how to hold yourself accountable, the key to starting your day with something you don’t want to do, the importance of getting enough sleep, and the habits that have changed Josh’s life.

Head over to kreaturesofhabit.com and enter the promo code KOHPOD20 to receive 20% off your first order.

Evan Haines, MA, is a co-founder of Oro House Recovery Centers, voted by Newsweek and Statista, Inc. as one of the very best dual-diagnosis addiction treatment centers in America. 

Evan has a Master’s Degree in Community Development Planning from the University of British Columbia, and is currently a doctoral candidate at Pacifica Graduate Institute’s Clinical Psychology Program, specializing in depth psychology.

Along with his fellow Oro House co-founder and longtime friend, Bob Forrest, Evan is the author of the book, Can America Recover? Reimagining the Drug Problem.

In this episode, Michael and Evan discuss how to balance chaos with habits, why you should question the things that make you feel bad, and how to create a better world for yourself.

Sal Di Stefano is a personal trainer, co-founder of Mind Pump Media, and co-host of Mind Pump, an online radio show/podcast that is dedicated to providing truthful fitness and health information.

Sal picked up his first weight at the age of 14. A painfully skinny teenager, he felt insecure about his physique and his lack of muscle and strength. Fitness was a way for him to apply hard work and effort towards changing and re-inventing himself. A natural intellect, Sal devoured every fitness, physiology and nutrition publication he could get his hands on. His appetite for knowledge is voracious and he used his passion for learning to maximize his own body’s potential. Four years later, Sal walked into his local 24 Hour Fitness gym and applied to be a personal trainer. He quickly became a top performer and, at the age of 19 was promoted to the position of general manager with as many as 40 employees working under him.

During this period of time, Sal learned to master skills of sales, marketing and communication and his gyms broke records in sales and production. At the age of 22, Sal became an entrepreneur. He opened a wellness and personal trainer facility that offered one on one training, massage therapy, nutritional counseling, hormone testing and acupuncture. At the age of 28 Sals health took a bad turn. The years of training his own personal body with excessive amounts of intensity in the pursuit of more muscle combined with the abuse of supplements caused his body to rebel. He lost 15lbs of muscle and at one point believed he may have an autoimmune disorder. This forced Sal to change his personal approach to fitness. He made health a priority and he visited his insecurities that caused him to abuse his body. It took him a full year of study and learning to transform yet again.

Sal learned about gut health, hormone health and how to prioritize health over appearance. He healed his body and changed how he communicates fitness and health and was re-invigorated with a new sense of purpose. Although this was a challenging time for him, it is literally what formed his view on health and how he communicates it to this day. At 33 years old Sal met Doug Egge who became his client. They formed a close friendship and together they created the first Muscular Adaptation Programming System (MAPS) program. Sal was the designer of the workout plan and Doug created the marketing material behind it. Their goal was to shatter the failed muscle building workout ideas that Sal had personally witnessed as entirely ineffective. They knew that MAPS programming would be vastly superior. Their challenge was how to bring this to the masses. 2 years later Sal met Adam and Justin and together with Doug they started Mind Pump. The goal with Mind Pump was simple...bring quality fitness and health information to the masses with integrity and honesty. Sal wanted to shift the direction of the fitness industry from an aesthetic insecurity based industry to a self love and self care health industry. He knew this could be accomplished with education through entertainment.

In this episode, Michael and Sal discuss the percentage that nutrition matters in sculpting your ideal body, how to develop a faster metabolism, and why there’s no such thing as motivation (plus, the solution for that).

Head over to kreaturesofhabit.com and enter the promo code KOHPOD20 to receive 20% off your first order.

Shizu Okusa is the Founder & CEO of Apothékary, a plant-based farmacy that couples traditional medicine with modern day ailments, offering natural alternatives to over-the-counter drugs and beauty products.  The company was established in 2019 and has since expanded their business beyond the US and now in 22+ countries worldwide. 

Shizu started her entrepreneurial journey in the health & wellness industry eight years ago with her first company, JRINK. She launched and bootstrapped the cold-pressed juice brand in 2013 and since scaled and ultimately sold the company to a strategic buyer in 2019.  On “the side”, she also angel invests in (mostly) female led companies.

Pre entrepreneurship, she was a former investment banker at Goldman Sachs and The World Bank Group's private equity division, IFC Asset Management Company. Shizu graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2010 as a Leslie Wong Fellow with a Bachelors of Commerce in Finance. 

In this episode, Michael and Shizu discuss why guilt and shame are useless feelings, the benefits of removing conversational texting during the day, and why you should write down your fears.

Head over to kreaturesofhabit.com and enter the promo code KOHPOD20 to receive 20% off your first order.

Jason McCarthy is the Founder & CEO of GORUCK. He served in Special Forces after 9/11, and founded GORUCK in West Africa with a napkin sketch for a rucksack that could thrive in Baghdad and NYC. He has overseen its growth from living out of a truck driving to all 48 contiguous states with his dog to running 1,000 events a year and managing 350 GORUCK Clubs all over the world. He proudly serves on the Board of Directors of the Green Beret Foundation.

In this episode, Michael and Jason discuss the importance of having a real world community, how to develop more specific goals, and the steps to take to reverse engineer the life you want to live.

Head over to kreaturesofhabit.com and enter the promo code KOHPOD20 to receive 20% off your first order.

CEO & Founder Erik Huberman launched Hawke Media in 2014. Now valued at over $150 million, Hawke Media is the fastest growing marketing consultancy agency in the United States.

Prior to its launch, Erik successfully founded, grew, and sold two e-commerce companies by the age of 26. Erik has since continued to strategically expand his business portfolio inclusive of a handful of company acquisitions, the 2018 launch of Hawke Ventures which reached a closed single fund of $5.6 million, the 2020 launch of his own podcast, HawkeTalk, the 2021 launch of HawkeZ, an agency offering brands the tools needed to tap into GenZ and most recently authored his own book, The Hawke Method, becoming a national bestseller.

As a serial entrepreneur and marketing expert, Erik has been recognized by his industry peers through honors and awards including, Forbes Magazine’s 30Under30, CSQ’s 40Under40, and Inc. Magazine’s Top 25 Marketing Influencers just to name a few.

In this episode, Michael and Erik discuss how to overcome anxiety as an entrepreneur, the importance of separating yourself from your business, and why great CEOs are always on the offensive.

Head over to kreaturesofhabit.com and enter the promo code KOHPOD20 to receive 20% off your first order.