What I Learned from Doing 185 Days of 75 Hard

On April 17 of this year, I set out to complete Andy Frisella’s 75 Hard Challenge. After 185 days, I decided to hang my hat and move on. Here is what I learned from 75 Hard.

ALL THE RESTARTS

As I wrote in my previous post about 75 Hard, I had to restart the challenge after my first 58 days because I forgot to take my progress picture that day. Ouch. Then, on Day 60 of my second attempt, I started over because I had been careless with my diet while eating out and ate foods that went against the diet I had committed to. Ugh.

I started over for the third time (which is where that post left off). I was feeling very optimistic, determined to finish 75 days straight of the challenge without forgetting a task. On Day 45 of that attempt though, I forgot my progress picture, yet again. It was becoming laughable at that point in that I-don’t-know-whether-to-laugh-or-to-cry kind of way – 75 Hard had basically become my life as I had given it much more time than the original 75 days I had planned.

Starting over again, I felt determined to complete the 75 Days p e r f e c t l y. I wanted to do the program as prescribed, dammit. But as I rounded out the third week (again), I was becoming increasingly down about the whole thing. I resented my water bottle. I resented working out. I resented taking my picture ever day. Basically, I was over the whole thing and just wanted a rest day. But I also couldn’t let myself quit.

PERMISSION TO QUIT

One morning, I dropped the kids at school and planned to go to the gym for a workout with friends before heading to work. I couldn’t make myself do it though. There was a two year old inside me kicking and screaming, “Not another workout! I don’t want to!” 

I opted instead to drive to the walking trail at the lake and take a stroll instead. Sitting in my car, scrolling on my phone to what felt like the end of all social media, I delayed getting out of the car as long as I could. When finally I couldn’t put it off any longer, I popped in my headphones and called a friend as I set off on the trail.

“I don’t want to do 75 Hard anymore.”

She had been through the program herself, motivated to try it after I started over the first time, and she completed it on the first attempt. Show-off. But since she knew what I had been through, had been there for every start and restart, I knew she was the one to talk through my feelings with.

Over the course of an hour, she slowly and gently gave me permission to end the 75 day challenge I had begun 185 days prior. Okay, well she did say, “At this point, no one cares that you’re doing it,” and that maybe wasn’t so gentle, but I did need to hear it. 

My worry was that I’d be a failure, that people would judge me. She reminded me that they would not. We talked about how I had done what I had set out to do – learn mental toughness – but now continuing on with the challenge was just a terrible form of self-punishment and in no way helpful.

“You’re not a failure,” she said. “You’re just going to choose to spend your time doing other things now.”

Yeah. I am.

And so, on October 20, I ended my 185 Days of 75 Hard.

ABOUT MY 75 HARD

It was so hard to give up the challenge, and yet it was so freeing to do so. For so many months, I invested time and energy into the challenge. Here’s a description of 75 Hard, and what I did for each task:

Workout twice a day for a minimum of 45 minutes for each workout. One workout has to be outside, and the two workouts must be spaced at least 3 hours apart.

• For my workouts, I did Crossfit, played soccer, went hiking, cycled, did yoga, went stand-up paddle boarding, ran 5k obstacle course, and took walks. Lots of walks. Like, so many damn walks.

• Over these five months, some of my biggest workouts that I am so proud of were a Crossfit competition, cycling 100 miles in the Texas heat, and hiking my first 14er in Colorado.

• I worked out at 5 am, and I worked out at 11 pm, and every where between.

• I worked out in the sun, in the rain, in the heat, and in the cold.

• I exercised at the gym, in the neighborhood, and in my walk-in closet. I even walked laps around the driveway one morning for forty-five minutes at 5 am while the kids were still in bed sleeping and it was storming out so I was worried about being gone from the house if the rain woke them up.

Pick a diet, any diet, to follow for the entirety of the program. The idea is to improve your health.

• For my diet, I chose to eat vegan + eggs – processed carbs (bread, chips, pasta, etc.) – sweets. I had already been eating mostly plant based, but this helped me clean up my plate a little bit.

• The first week without sugar was hard. And there were times when all I wanted was some dang chips and salsa. But eating this way made my body feel so good, and I knew it was something I could sustain for the duration of the challenge.

No cheat meals and no alcohol.

• I don’t drink, so no alcohol was no issue. And not cheating, well, if you read my previous post – you’ll know I had an accidental cheat on my second attempt, which then made me not so accidentally cheat again.

• I love that this is a part of the program – once I open the door just a little, all bets are off on how long it takes for me to swing it wide open and stuff my face with all sorts of things that I never intended to eat. Abstinence from certain foods has been the best and only way for me to stay the course.

Drink a gallon of water. Hi, this is so much water. Need I say more?!

• I carried around a half gallon bottle with me just about every where I went. It was obnoxious but it was my constant reminder to drink water. Having a half gallon bottle was nice because I only had to refill it once a day, which saved me from remembering how much water I had actually consumed.

• In the beginning, I felt like I was constantly in the bathroom. But either my body got used to all the water and I didn’t have to go as much, or I just got used to the frequent trips – I don’t know which – and it just wasn’t that big of a deal.

• Some days were harder than others to drink that much, and some days, depending on my activity level, I wanted more.

Read 10 pages of a nonfiction book every day. This should be a personal development or self-help type book.

• I love reading, and so I was most excited about this part. I will say, however, that nonfiction books are not like fiction books in that they are easy to read at bedtime, which is the time I typically like to read. I can’t tell you how many pages I read with my eyes half closed, barely retaining what I was ingesting. Still, my life is so much richer because of this task.

• Favorite books I read were Untamed, The Latte Factor, and Tell It Slant. There were others that were good, but these were by far my top three.

Take a progress picture of yourself every day.

• While I think this is the most obnoxious part of the whole challenge, my understanding of this task is to remind us that even the small things matter. It’s easy to remember to do the big things, but especially when it comes to self improvement, the details matter. This is one of the details. And I forgot to do it twice during my attempts at the challenge.

If you miss even one of these tasks on any given day of the 75 days, you have to start over from the beginning. No exceptions.

I did all of these things for 185 days, minus 3. I did these tasks when I felt like it, and I did them when I didn’t. I woke up early, or I stayed up late to complete them. I did them when I was at home, and when I was on vacation. I did them with a sprained ankle that took eight weeks to heal. I did them with a pulled calf muscle. I did them when I was sick. I did them when I was tired.

I freaking did them. And I am so proud of myself for that. I know I can do hard things, but I often forget. These past five months have been a constant reminder of what I’m capable of.

WHAT I LEARNED

Doing the 75 Hard Challenge has changed my life in so many ways and I learned so much. It taught me:

• How to be intentional with my time

• That I can do so much more than I thought I was capable of

• That I value exercise and good, nutritious food, and I love the way both make me feel

• That drinking a gallon of water a day is sometimes so, so hard, but my body loves it, and feeling dehydrated and having a headache are worse than going to the bathroom all the time

• That I am tougher than I give myself credit for

• That there are so many books out there with so much good information, and that reading some of the ones I have has re-ignited my passion for learning – but that there are some really boring personal development books out there too

• That I can do hard things, even if the two year old in me like really freaking doesn’t want to

• That integrity is so important, and I don’t want to lie, even to myself

• That walking in the rain is not always my favorite, but it’s not so terrible either

• That I don’t need bread or chips or pasta to be happy

• That the scale doesn’t matter

• That I love it when my muscles are sore from a good workout

• That if I eat enough of the right foods and drink enough water, I don’t actually need as much caffeine as I normally consume

• That I have a wonderful community of friends and family who are so supportive of me

• That it’s okay to not do things perfectly

• That I can give myself permission to do other things

• That I am not a failure, even when I feel like I’ve failed

• That some days my 100% looks different than it does other days, and that’s okay

• That starting is the hardest part, but if I just take the first step, it gets easier from there

WHERE WE GO FROM HERE

Will I attempt 75 Hard again? Definitely. Will it be anytime soon? No thank you. Will I keep doing parts of 75 Hard on a daily basis? Absolutely.

And now, here’s to new adventures and whatever comes next.

Until next time,

Jeri Austin