Here we go! After a stressful winter, it’s time to cut bad habits and add some good ones. No sugar/booze, 2 workouts daily, water, reading & daily photo.

The Hard 75 Requirements

The 75 Hard Challenge is a 75-day program designed to develop mental toughness and discipline through a series of daily tasks. Each day, participants are required to complete the following:

• Follow a diet: Adhere to a nutrition plan of your choice without any cheat meals or alcohol consumption. We already eat very clean, so I’ll do my best to eat organic, healthy food with lots of veg & meat, not too much carbs, and zero sugar.
• Two 45-minute workouts: Perform two separate 45-minute exercise sessions daily, with at least one taking place outdoors, regardless of weather conditions. We’ll see if this is doable for me.  I think 30 min/day is more likely, but we’ll see.  I tend to workout periodically for longer sessions, requiring recovery, so I’ll play with this.
• Hydration: Consume one gallon (approximately 3.8 liters) of water each day. That works out to about 10-12 glasses a day. I have a gallon jug I’ll be working with daily.
• Reading: Read 10 pages of a non-fiction or self-improvement book daily; audiobooks do not count.  This should be the easiest.
• Progress photo: Take a daily photograph to document your physical transformation.

If any task is missed on a given day, the challenge must be restarted from day one. This program emphasizes strict adherence to build mental resilience and self-discipline. For me, I’m confident I won’t be able to complete it in 75 days straight. I’ll have to start over multiple times, partly due to trips I’m taking.  I have a long backpacking trip where doing workouts on the down days will be really hard (I’ll need to recover.) Also, we’re headed to Japan for a few weeks, and I’ll be eating/drinking everything in sight.

Starting weight: 184.6 (hoping to not lose weight but gain muscle.)

Optional Extras

I’ll also be adding a few extras when time allows.

• Breathwork Practice: Engage in controlled breathing exercises for at least 20 minutes (preferably 45+).
• Meditation or Mindfulness: Dedicate 10–20 minutes each day to meditation or mindfulness practices.
• Intermittent Fasting: Implement a fasting window where food is only consumed within a designated period.  I’ll attempt to eliminate meals or snacking between the hours of 10pm and 10am.

75 Hard Tips

As I move through this process, I’ll add 75 Hard Tips to help survive the challenge.  Check back in as I add more while learning what works for me.

1. Edit the challenge to your own capabilities.  There’s nothing to prove to anyone but yourself.  Personally, I’m doing 2 30-minute workouts a day.  And for any days I workout for longer (ex. 3 hour surf session, I’ll give my self very limited workouts for 2 days in order to recover.)
2. Take care with your diet. There are way too many “Diets” out there. I’m eating clean, organic whole foods and staying away from processed foods.  That means limiting eating out.  You’ll find a lot of diets out there that are harmful. Eating enough calories to sustain the workout regiment is important. Getting enough healthy protein, fats, and ruffage is crucial.  I’m never going to let myself be hungry.  I’m pretty comfortable already with the intermittent fasting, so that won’t be an issue.
3. Read before bed. Some people struggle with finding the time to read, but I never have a problem reading at bedtime.  It helps me fall to sleep, and 10 pages is pretty easy to do before I slap myself in the head with my book.
4. Ease into workouts. I’m starting light. No need to kill myself.  This is a process.  If a walk around the neighborhood will get me outside, then that’s enough.
5. Have at least one partner.  Accountability is EVERYTHING! I don’t think everyone needs to do the same regiment, but it helps being able to check in and see that others are keep up.
6. Drink water early. Don’t make the mistake of having to drink the majority of your gallon right before bed. And think about what you have to do in the day and proximity to bathrooms. Today, I had an airport pickup. Usually no more than an hour and half from my house and back. But I had to pee twice! Planning around restrooms is important.
7. Sleep is a treat. Take some tips from my sleep recipe, and use sleep as your after dinner drink or midnight snack.
8. What else?  Add a few in comments please!

I’ll keep this post updated as I attempt, fail, and attempt again.  Pretty sure this will last through 2025 (maybe longer… Haha!)