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Japan has the highest percentage of people living to 100, even though we work ourselves to death, drink heavily, and barely sleep. So why does my heart rate variability spike every time I fly to Tokyo, without any supplements, cold baths, or $300 wellness gadgets? Believe me, it's not because we're doing everything right. There are actually seven key things we do differently in Japan that you can try implementing even while living in America without spending a ton of money. So let's begin. First: in Japan there is a saying " hara hati bu", which means: eat until you feel 80% full, not until you have to unbutton your pants. And it really starts with education. If you look at Japanese school lunches, you can see how
balanced the dishes and portions are. But in America, the portion size they give you makes it a little more difficult. You can order the same thing at McDonald's in Japan and in America, exactly the same, but by default you will get completely different portions. I was in the US a few weeks ago and was shocked when I first saw American portions. I thought: is this really for one person? Maybe I ordered something wrong? I even literally took a picture with a huge glass of cola. I had never seen such a big cola in my life, so I thought, "Oh my God, it's so huge." I need to take a photo. But for the US, this is a normal portion. This doesn't seem to surprise anyone. For example, if you look at the average Coke at McDonald's
in Japan, it only has 145 calories, even if it's not a diet Coke. In America-270. That's almost twice as much. Or take the Oreo McFlurry: in Japan it's about 235 calories, and in the American version it's 410. And I also noticed that wherever I went- Costco, other fast food chains, or even regular restaurants-for a small extra charge, you could get a larger portion. So you automatically think, "Oh, this is a good deal, I'll take a big one," which ends up making you eat more. But their average is already high. So, honestly, maybe you should reconsider your understanding of what "one serving" is, because I think portion sizes in the US are crazy. So, if you want to reduce your portion sizes while living in America
, it might be a good idea to make it a habit to take food home-whether it's 30% or 50 % of your meal-and always take leftovers with you, because there are usually a lot of them. Since we're talking about food and eating habits, let's discuss the second trick, because it's something that a lot of Americans don't eat regularly, but we in Japan eat all the time- fermented foods. For example, in Japan, for breakfast I usually eat fried salmon, miso soup almost every morning along with rice. I also eat natto, which is fermented soybeans, and I know it looks and smells pretty questionable, but once you get used to it- it's actually delicious. And even if you don't cook, you can find fermented foods almost everywhere. But
why should you be so concerned about fermented foods, right? Because numerous studies show that they are one of the few foods that deliver live bacteria to your gut, and these bacteria help digest food, produce vitamins that your body cannot synthesize on its own, and support your immune system so you get sick less often and feel better. And besides, if you don't want to eat natto, don't force yourself, okay? This is not for everyone. I completely agree. If you want to consume more fermented foods every day without spending a lot of money, just eat yogurt or add some kimchi. I've seen that kimchi is quite affordable in many Asian stores in the US, not too expensive, and there are often great deals there. So add kimchi or sauerkraut-a German
fermented food-to your diet every time you eat, and make it a habit. So, eat one fermented food every day during one of your meals. Especially with yogurt it's not difficult at all. This is quite affordable. And food isn't the only thing we do differently in Japan. In fact, what we drink every day is also different. When I first walked into an American supermarket, I saw a whole range of drinks that I physically couldn't drink: various cans, energy drinks, lots of juices.
I tried some of them. And, I don't want to offend anyone, but to me they taste like pure sugar, or sometimes even worse. This is a very strong artificial sweetness and I don't understand how it can be tasty. But then I realized: if I had grown up on this, I would probably have loved it too, because what you drink as a child is perceived by the brain as the norm. So you're craving sweets. The water seems fresh, and the tea seems bitter. And so you actually make eating sweets your default habit. But even if you compare sweetened beverages in the US and Japan, the
same drinks in the US usually contain significantly more sugar. In Japan, we drink green tea all day long: during meals, at work, and even in vending machines you can buy unsweetened green tea. It's free in most restaurants, and entire shelves are filled with it in convenience stores. It's quite cheap, and it's a completely normal thing for us. I know there's a trend going on at the match right now. Everyone is crazy about matcha, but you don't have to drink matcha green tea to get the health benefits. And not only that: a Japanese study of over 40,000 adults found that people who drank five or more cups a day had a lower risk of death, especially from heart disease and stroke, because
green tea is rich in antioxidants called catechins. And caffeine, along with L-theanine in its composition, provides a smooth, calm focus that coffee alone does not provide. You know, coffee gives you a sharp increase in energy, but it comes with a certain amount of nervousness. And with green tea, since L-theanine softens the effect, it's a state of a kind of "Dzienowitz" focus. Is this even slightly clear? To be honest, I really like the effect of caffeine in green tea. It's so nice and you can drink it all day long. Of course, you shouldn't drink it before bed, but yes. So, an option you can try is to replace one sweet drink a day with unsweetened tea
. You can buy a bottle or a pack of tea bags for a few dollars. It doesn't have to be a match. And, by the way, it can be brewed cold. This is one of my favorite ways to drink tea. So, you put the tea bags in a water bottle and put it in the fridge overnight. And in the morning you just take this thermos and go to work. In my opinion, it is much less bitter and much easier to drink if you are not used to green tea. So, you know, just try it. Just cold brew it and take it with you to work. This is useful for you. And give yourself two more weeks. When you stop drinking sugary drinks, there is a certain effect of sugar "withdrawal syndrome". Additionally, it may take some time for your taste buds to get used to unsweetened tea
. So, you can gradually reduce the amount of sweets and increase your consumption of healthy drinks so that a healthy diet becomes a habit for you. And drinks aren't the only thing we do differently in everyday life in Japan. There's something else we do at the end of the day, almost every day, that might surprise you too. In Japan, we not only take showers, but we also like to lie in the bathtub. If you look at most apartments in Japan, you will see that we have a bathtub next to the shower. Of course, if you live in a tiny apartment, it may not be there or it may be very small. But taking a bath here is much more common than in the West. We also have onsen-these are hot springs where people go to relax in the
water. But even at home, taking a bath is just a normal part of life. You don't have to be very rich to take a bath almost every day. Whenever I go to an onsen, I can be very tired because I try to visit many places while in Japan. I usually walk a lot and get terribly tired, also because of the time zone difference. But my heart rate variability is increasing, even if I've eaten a lot, walked all day, and not gotten enough sleep. And every time I visit an onsen, the next day, when I look at the Whoop data, I see that my rhythm just skyrockets. And I thought: okay, that's nice, but why is this happening? Then I found this study. Researchers followed the lives of about 30,000
Japanese people for almost 20 years. People who took a bath almost every day had a 28% lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 26% lower risk of stroke than those who bathed twice a week or less. And that's just from sitting in hot water and doing nothing, you know? It's so relaxing. To be honest, when I'm not in Japan, I do n't take a bath at all. I don't know, it just takes too much effort. I have to wait for the water to fill up. But many Japanese homes have electronic bathroom control systems: you can press a button in the living room or even in the kitchen to get hot water. Additionally, you can also set timers. So, if you want to take a bath at a certain time, you can automate that and also keep the water hot, which I
think greatly improves the bathing experience. And this is in almost most apartments, unless the house is very old. If you have a bathtub, use it. If not, you can try going to a sauna or steam room. Both options, in my opinion, are simply wonderful. But we really need to bring onsen culture to the West. Oh my God, I have a hot spring right next to my house right now. And it only costs 600 yen per person, so how much? 4 dollars. You can go to the hot spring, take a shower, right? Chat with friends, you know? You just get soaked all together. This is so good. This is how we truly recover. Now let's talk about why I always lose weight
when I go to Japan, even though they eat even more there than when I'm in the West. Because in Japan, you don't have to specifically go for a walk to get in a lot of steps, especially in cities like Tokyo. You just need to get somewhere. I'm not so sure about the smaller cities in Japan, because they use cars more often there. But at least in Tokyo and big cities you walk a lot. You walk to the station, change trains, go to the store, and suddenly you have 10,000 steps. Even elementary school students walk to school, even if it's a 20-30 minute walk, and this is a completely normal practice. You can also see children walking with their teacher in yellow hats, and it's so cute.
Honestly, when I'm in Japan, I haven't had a single day where I've walked less than 7,000 steps, it's just crazy. And I'm not even trying to specifically pack in steps. In fact, I walk so much that my feet hurt, so I had to buy new shoes. But I know that America is built for machines. And you can't just tell someone to go to the grocery store if there's no sidewalk. I really wanted to walk in America, but there were no sidewalks. So I thought: how am I even supposed to walk? The situation is the same in Dubai. It's very difficult to gain steps there unless you live in a gated community with nice walking paths. So you literally have to "steal" your steps. And my favorite way to do it is to walk while doing
the things you were going to do anyway. For example, if you're going to " dumcrawl" on YouTube or social media, just do it on a treadmill. This is one of my favorite ways to get in some steps when I'm in Dubai. Because if you're already " fertilizing" your brain, at least do something good for your heart. They seem to cancel each other out, and you end up with zero. And if you were lying on the bed and " dummying," it would be a full minus one hundred points or something like that. But if you walk and "think," at least it's neutral, and you're also taking steps. And I sometimes watch movies when I'm on the treadmill. If the movie is very exciting, I suddenly start running. This is
so fun. Of course, you have to get used to this. You might think, "I just want to sit and watch something quietly. " But when you get used to it, you think: "Okay, I want to flip through the tape." So I'll just go to the gym. If there's no gym nearby, you can get some treadmills, mats that you put under your desk to walk on while working - it really helps me concentrate. I really, really want a walking mat like this. This is one of the items on my New Year's wish list. And during all these walks around Japan, you'll probably pass by five places that sell it -- seafood. In Japan, seafood is not really a gourmet food at all. I think in many Western countries I've been to, seafood is extremely expensive and considered something special.
But in Japan, fish or seafood in general is not something that is eaten only in expensive sushi restaurants. Even sushi can be found for every taste: from cheap to very, very expensive. And you can eat them every day, it's part of everyday life. And I'm not just talking about sushi, we have a lot of options for preparing seafood and various dishes. The variety is simply insane, and they are quite affordable. Even if you live in a big city and are very busy, you can still run to your local store for seafood onigiri-these rice balls-and eat them on the go, or even grab a fish bento. And it's not necessarily about the protein, as fish like salmon, sardines, and mackerel contain omega-3s, which are good for your health
. And when you eat fish instead of meat that is high in saturated fat, it also helps lower cholesterol levels. According to one review of studies, people who ate fish two to four times a week had a 23% lower risk of dying from coronary heart disease than those who ate it rarely or never. Additionally, the way we often eat it in Japan-for example, grilled or raw, rather than battered and fried (which is also popular, but not for every day use)-makes the dish much lighter. Plus, it doesn't have to be sushi- quality fish, you know. You can try canned salmon or sardines, or buy frozen fish, keep it in the freezer, and cook it as needed. So making active efforts to eat more seafood is great.
Besides, when I'm trying to lose weight, for example, you know, in the West the standard is almost always chicken, and I'm so tired of chicken and turkey. I've eaten a lot of them, and there aren't many things you can come up with them. Of course, there are different recipes, different sauces, but in the end, it's chicken, and I'm not a big fan of chicken. Forgive me. Chicken is only tasty when you fry it. If it's not fried, it's not that tasty, you know. It feels like a compromise with yourself. I feel like I'm punishing myself because when it comes to meat, there aren't many choices. It's chicken, turkey, beef
, maybe lamb-after all, there aren't many options, but with fish you have hundreds, hundreds of varieties of seafood. So I'm trying to say that you can eat healthy and not be bored. It is usually lower in calories, contains a lot of protein, and is not that expensive in Japan. Therefore, healthy eating is not at all difficult. And the last life hack or secret of Japan is that health is not something that only biohackers do. In Japan, most companies actually provide you with an annual medical checkup. And depending on your age, some companies may even measure your waist. This system is really trying to prevent you from getting sick. The government wants you to stay healthy, so that you don't spend a lot of
money on the healthcare system, and work for many years. So health in Japan is not necessarily some luxurious hobby. I've never lived in the US in my life, not at all. So correct me if I'm wrong, but from the outside, American health looks like two extremes. People who can barely afford treatment, and biohackers who spend fortunes to live to 100 years old or longer. That is, there is not even a middle. And it's almost as if because medicine is so expensive in America, the system wants you to spend money. You know, it seems like it's to their advantage. Whereas in Japan it is beneficial for the government to have you work long hours because everyone pays high taxes. With these taxes, you actually take care of people's health. And if many people
get sick, then those taxes go there. So the government wants to cut these costs somehow, right? Therefore, it is beneficial to the government. People need to stay healthy and active to benefit society. But in the US, things are different: since hospitals and the healthcare system operate as a business, it is in their best interest to have you spend a lot of money. I don't know. That was my theory. But it makes me wonder where Americans' taxes go, because in the US they are also very high. Do they mostly go to the army? I'm not sure. And I'm not saying that Americans don't care about their health, although I used to think that was the
case. Like, maybe health isn't a priority in America, but in reality, it's not. It's really hard to take care of yourself when a visit to the doctor is so expensive, healthy food is almost impossible to find in the US, and fast food is extremely accessible and much cheaper. So we can't just tell people to make better choices when those better choices aren't available to everyone. And, to be honest, I like many aspects of the US. I like their friendliness. I like casual communication, entrepreneurial spirit, developing new things, innovation, ambition and hope for the future. And I love these things in the US. Don't get me wrong, but when it comes to medicine, what the hell is
going on? This is really one of the reasons I'm hesitant to move there, even though it would be profitable and possibly even allow me to double my business. Illness shouldn't be a financial disaster, and being healthy shouldn't be so difficult. I actually did some research, and if you've been putting off getting a checkup because of the cost, it turns out there are what are called community health centers, and many of them can adjust fees based on income, even if you don't have insurance. I don't know if they work in practice, but this is the best option I could find online. That's what all this proves, okay?
Okinawa was once a model of longevity, a kind of primordial "blue zone." They are known for living a very, very long time. But after the war, American bases appeared, and with them, fast food and cars. And Okinawans started driving a lot more and eating a lot more fast food. So fast food consumption increased, and by 2000, Okinawan men had dropped from 4th to 26th place among the 47 prefectures in life expectancy, and in Japan it's called the "26th place shock." The genes haven't changed, and the landscape hasn't changed, but it's the habits that have. With the introduction of the American lifestyle or something similar to it, even those same people began to live significantly less, which is proof that even with
good or bad genes, your habits can dramatically change the length and quality of your life. It's not necessarily just about living longer, but about being much healthier during those years while you experience the world So, your overall everyday experience becomes much better. It's about the quality of life, not just its duration. And this doesn't just apply to food. For example, in 2024, about 80,000 Americans died from overdoses. In Japan, the figure was less than a thousand; It's the same with guns and car accidents, and safety is one of the main concerns. It's not necessarily because Americans are worse at something or there's something wrong with them, it's just that what surrounds you and your environment decides a lot more than you think.
We often like to associate everything with discipline and personal responsibility, but the environment can shape your typical behavioral responses without changing your level of discipline. Japan is also not the most innocent. I'm not going to ignore the culture of overworking, drinking, or not getting enough sleep for work, although things are improving for the younger generation now. We are definitely not perfect. We do a lot of bad things, but we're just lucky with one of the few fundamental aspects that actually gives you an advantage in health matters. Of course, you can't move your whole life to Japan. I'm not saying
everyone should move to Japan to be healthy, but you can borrow a few of the habits I mentioned. Be more aware of standards in America; You have to make active choices and arrange your environment in certain ways to make it easier for you to live a healthy life. And, in my opinion, the things I've said are much easier to implement than some thousand-dollar biohacking program or something like that. So if you implement at least one of them, I'm sure it will improve your health and overall make your life better. So I really want to know what exactly you want to try. Let me know in the comments below. On my channel, I talk a lot about environmental design and how you shouldn't rely solely on
discipline, because it won't exhaust the source, but rather design your environment so that it works for your goals and life objectives. So, if you're interested and you feel stuck in life but don't understand why, I have a free test linked in the description that will help you identify what's holding you back and offer a personalized action strategy. If you're interested, the link is in the description below, and it's completely free. And see you soon.
