There is always some distance between where we are today and where we want to be. We call that space “the gap.”

In this episode of The Simple Healthy Life Podcast, we talk about what actually fills that gap: the barriers, habits, circumstances, fears, expectations, and everyday realities that make change more complicated than simply deciding what you want and going after it.

We break down practical ways to identify the barriers standing in your way, understand why they keep showing up, and build strategies that work with your actual life. Because barriers are inevitable. Motivation changes, schedules fall apart, unexpected problems arise, and even well-designed plans eventually meet resistance.

Whether you’re trying to improve your health, build better habits, change your career, strengthen a relationship, or become a different version of yourself, learning how to navigate the gap is part of the process. We discuss goal setting, behavior change, motivation, self-awareness, problem solving, and actionable strategies for meeting yourself where you are while continuing to move toward where you want to be.

What happens when one chapter of your life ends and you have to figure out who you are without it?

In this episode of The Simple Healthy Life Podcast, we sit down with Jay Soares to talk about his time in the military, the lessons he carried with him from service, and the transition back into civilian life. Jay shares how his experiences shaped his understanding of discipline, identity, purpose, and the person he wanted to become.

We also explore his transition into a career in media, the challenges that come with building a new identity after military service, and the role spirituality has played throughout his journey. Jay opens up about his relationship with faith, finding God, and how that process has influenced the way he understands his experiences and approaches life today.

This conversation touches on military life, veteran transition, career change, spirituality, faith, personal growth, and the search for meaning that can accompany major changes in our lives. It's a thoughtful look at what we carry forward from the chapters that shape us—and how those experiences continue to influence who we become.

How well do you actually understand what you want?

In this episode of The Simple Healthy Life Podcast, we explore the desires that operate beneath the surface of our everyday lives and how easily they can shape our behavior without us realizing it. We may tell ourselves we're pursuing success, being helpful, working hard, staying disciplined, or simply doing what makes sense. But when we look a little closer, we may find desires for approval, status, control, security, belonging, validation, or attention mixed into the things we do.

And that doesn't necessarily make those desires bad. It makes them worth understanding.

We talk about why people can become disconnected from what they actually want, how deeper motivations can disguise themselves in ways that feel completely rational, and why self-awareness requires being willing to question our own explanations for our behavior.

Because the desires we recognize are the ones we can actually examine and make choices about. The ones we never acknowledge can quietly shape our relationships, ambitions, decisions, and ultimately the direction of our lives.