I completed 75 Hard for the first time in 2022 (https://differentbreed.io/75hard-this-is-what-discipline-looks-like/) and knew that come 1st Jan 2023 I would be doing it again.
I opened it up to everyone I knew to see who, if any, would set up to the plate. The first time 6 of us started it and only myself and my friend Chris finished it. This time 13 of us started it and only 4 of us; myself, Chris, Pete and Lindsay (and despite this success rating so many people tell me it doesn’t sound that hard!)
I’ll be honest, Lindsay was one of the last people in my team that I thought would do it but she grabbed the challenge by the horns and fucking ran with it.
I asked her if she would share her experience and her it is, in her own words:
Last year my friend and coach Liza asked if I wanted to try the 75HARD challenge designed by Andy Frisella. I dismissed her as when she explained it I thought no way I can’t do all of them.
The rules are ,
- Follow a diet to match your goals, no cheat meals and no alcohol – I could do that I thought
- Take a progress picture every day – I could do that as long as no one could see them
- Read 10 pages of a non fiction book – I could do that and a good excuse to have some me time I thought
- Drink 4 litres of water a day – wow that’s a lot of water, wasn’t sure if I could mange that
- Complete two 45 minute workouts every day, one must be outside – absolutely not I thought I haven’t got time for that and it was starting in January, not a good time to be outside.
Later on at the beginning of December she suggested it again and once again I said I couldn’t do it, ‘All I’m hearing is excuses’ I was told.
Those words must have resonated with me as later on that evening I thought yes she’s right all I’m doing is making excuses and after all this is a mindset challenge not a weight loss programme or an exercise challenge. So why not give it a go. So I toasted the New Year in with Nosecco and began.
I completed this challenge on 17th March and wow it was tough but I did it.
What did I get out of it?
To start with I am the lightest I’ve been for many many years, I lost over 13 inches from my body and my fat% is down by a whole 5%.
I have proved to myself that I have the mental toughness to take on a challenge like this even when it was tough. I had a 30th and an 80th birthday to go to and a funeral where I was told, ‘go on just have one drink, surely it won’t matter and no one will know’ Well I would have known and I wasn’t going to fail so stuck to it.
I cut out refined sugar which meant no cake, chocolate, biscuits, yummy deserts etc and surprisingly once the cravings went I was okay with this. Even when at work the usual ‘cake and cookie table’ looked very appealing I didn’t succumb. Once my manager found out what I was doing I was asked to talk about the challenge to everyone in my office on our monthly coffee and cake catch up. After this I was told that I was inspirational and what an amazing thing to do.
I went to London for the weekend and was doing a 45 minute yoga session on the hotel floor late in the evening and got back home late so had to cram 3 litres of water in when I got home, I didn’t sleep well that night!
I spent many hours walking in the rain when it was miserable and cold thinking why am I doing this to myself when I could be in the warm and dry having a coffee.
My Results
My body composition has changed as I lost 5% of my body fat and my muscle percentage is up. I feel stronger and healthier than I ever before and ran my first sub 30 minute 5K.
The 4 litres of water was a challenge to begin with as that’s a lot of water but my body adapted to it and my skin loved me drinking that amount as it now feels softer than before.
Weight – Day 1 75.3kg; Day 75 67.9kg Total loss 7.4kg
Body Fat% – Day 1 32.8; Day 75 27.7 Total Loss 5.1%
Bust – Day 1 38”; Day 75 36.5” Total Loss 1.5”
Waist – Day 1 34”; Day 75 30” Total Loss 4”
Belly – Day 1 40”; Day 75 35.5” Total Loss 4.5”
Hips – Day 1 42”; Day 75 38” Total Loss 4”
Total inches lost – 14”
It’s been two weeks now since I finished this challenge and I am still sticking to most of the rules. Not because I am deliberately trying to but they have become a habit. I still drink at least 4 litres of water, I still generally do two workouts every day(not always one being outside) I am still not eating refined sugar apart from the one cake I had which although tasted good wasn’t as amazing as I expected, I still read most days as this was a great bit of me time.
Was it tough? – yes but it’s called 75HARD for a reason.
Did I Surprise myself with what I achieved? – yes physically and mentally, my day 1 photo is very different to my Day 75 photo.
Would I do it again? – yes definitely and if you are thinking of trying this challenge I would say go for it as you may just surprise yourself.