I think this is the idea: people can form habits, and habits have friction—you’ll keep doing them even if they’re painful (they oppose momentary preferences, as opposed to reflective preferences). But you probably won’t adopt a new habit if it’s painful. Therefore, to successfully build a habit that changes your actions from momentary to reflective, you should first adopt a habit, then make it painful—don’t combine the two steps.
I think this is the idea: people can form habits, and habits have friction—you’ll keep doing them even if they’re painful (they oppose momentary preferences, as opposed to reflective preferences). But you probably won’t adopt a new habit if it’s painful. Therefore, to successfully build a habit that changes your actions from momentary to reflective, you should first adopt a habit, then make it painful—don’t combine the two steps.