In today’s episode of the Inspiration2grow podcast I am going to introduce you to a challenge called the “75-Hard Challenge” and it is one of the toughest challenges I have ever done but it changed my life completely. It was truly one of the most transformative, mentally challenging things I have ever done.
And, before you think, “Oh, this is just one of those internet challenges.” It is not.
And, if you’re looking for a new fitness program or challenge to start the year off, this is NOT it.
This challenge will change your life … starting from the inside.
Think of this as an IRONMAN for your brain. It is a way to take complete control of your life in 75 days.
75-Hard is a transformative mental toughness challenge.
Are there physical changes? Yes, absolutely. But trust me when I say the physical changes you notice on the outside are a FRACTION of the results you can gain by completing the 75 HARD.
There’s nothing worse than experiencing life in the passenger’s seat rather than the driver’s seat. You wake up each day, go to work or go about your day, and aimlessly drift through each day with no direction or driving force or purpose…
After that, you drive home, scroll social media and flip through the TV shows, binge some Netflix, go to bed and repeat the same cycle the next day.
Weekdays all run together and become a blur. You just put in the time and go through the motions until the weekend arrives, so you can finally relax, unwind and enjoy yourself.
You feel like you are a robot or zombie of your own life.
People around you are getting ahead … and you begin to wonder what they have that you don’t.
Self-doubt starts to creep in.
Your thoughts beat you up all day long to the point where you feel stuck, not being able to get out of this funk you find yourself so deep in.
The mental struggle turns into a physical struggle. You’re not exercising like you used to and this weighs heavily on your mind too.
You try different programs, or at least you make an attempt to follow them in hopes of getting your body and mind back to feeling great again.
But, you fail because you are lacking some crucial elements. And you find yourself right back at square 1 again.
The big problem is that each failed attempt drains your tank a little more of your hope to overcome the deep hole you find yourself in.
If you feel like this, I know exactly how you feel because I’ve been there myself.
I spent years simply going through the motions – literally floating through the days with no game plan and no results to show for it.
I let myself go mentally as well as physically.
That’s when I decided to take matters into my own hands.
Because the REAL PROBLEM I had was a lack of mental toughness and discipline.
I needed a challenge that would change me from the inside out. By completing this challenge, I believe the mental changes are 100x greater than the physical changes you will undergo.
If I think back about how I developed or changed during my first 75 HARD challenge, I can honestly say that my thinking changes and the level of discipline which I now leverage to tackle every single task in front of me.
Mental toughness is a skill that can be trained, but here’s what it takes to be mentally tough:
· It takes confidence.
· It takes grit.
· It takes belief in yourself.
· It takes fortitude.
· It takes endurance.
· It takes perseverance.
· It takes a certain willingness to win.
These are not traits you are naturally born with, but the good news is – they can be developed, refined and trained.
What is 75 HARD?
The very first challenge I completed looked like this:
1. Complete two 45-minute workouts per day – one of them has to be outside regardless of the weather condition.
2. Drink 4.5 litres of water each day.
3. Take a progress photo every day.
4. Read 10 pages of inspiration non-fiction each day.
These are the 5 core elements to the original challenge. Sounds pretty easy, right? Well, it’s not. Life has a way of getting in the way sometimes. The concept here is if you fail to complete all 5 of these activities, you have to start over again at Day 1.
You and only you are in complete control because none of these activities are reliant on anyone else. And, if you decide to follow this challenge, amazing things will happen within you.
For example:
-> You’ll feel more confident about yourself and your actions.
-> You’ll learn how to manage your day better, so you can get more done and quit wasting time on meaningless things.
-> You’ll gain independence and the ability to take ownership of tasks.
-> It will completely overhaul the way you think and act.
-> You’ll learn how to be honest with yourself and gain the necessary self-awareness to stay on track.
-> An added bonus to the mental transformation, you’ll improve your level of fitness.
-> You’ll learn how to be consistent with your actions.
-> You’ll have a sense of pride in yourself.
Granted, it is called the 75-Hard Challenge, but I like to think of it as a tool. A useful tool that can be revisited time and time again whenever you feel yourself off course in your life.
That’s not to say it isn’t challenging because it is – without a doubt.
The idea is for you to follow through with the 5 activities for 75 days straight with ZERO compromise. It requires a higher level of mental toughness not to deviate from the ‘plan’.
Like I said earlier, this is not meant to be a physical challenge per se. It is a mental challenge which is designed to develop all the characteristics you lack in life that have landed you where you are currently.
Believe me, I am speaking from experience here.
I needed to solidify my commitment to change, so I did.
I needed to strengthen my ‘follow through’ abilities, and I did.
And, what I really needed was to stop talking about all the stuff I wanted to do and start taking steps to create REAL changes. And I did.
Physical transformations do take place, of course. But there are merely a by-product of the mental transformations you will make.
To modify or not to modify?
People say you shouldn’t modify it. But after completing it the first time and following through on all the 5 core activities, I decided to tweak it the second time through.
In addition to the exercise twice a day, reading, drinking water and taking a progress photo (which no one saw but me), I added in three more elements:
-> One random act of kindness each day
-> No alcohol
-> No sugar
This made the challenge even harder, but it was so worth it. Doing one random act of kindness each day was definitely the highlight. I would call someone to chat and catch up, I would send a ‘thank you’ card, I would compliment people and stop to say hi.
This is also the time when I realized that my body and mind function so much better without alcohol. I have never been more than a very casual social drinker but I felt 100% better without consuming any alcohol. And no sugar, well that wasn’t the easiest for me but I somehow managed.
My entire point about introducing the 75 HARD challenge in today’s show was to give you inspiration for the coming year.
What is one activity that you might like to commit to, follow through on and complete for 75 straight days with ZERO compromise?
* Walking outdoors each day
* Journalling
* Exercising for just 5 minutes
* Drinking 4 litres of water a day
* Giving up something, like sugar or alcohol
* Broadening your mind with reading perhaps
* Strength training for 1 or 2 minutes a day
I think getting started with just ONE habit would be amazing. Then after the first 75-day challenge, you could add in another new habit you’d like to form and become part of your every day.
There are many ways of approaching this, but the main concept remains and the ‘see-it-through-to-the-end’ mentality will grow stronger.
If you’re interested in starting your own 75 Hard Challenge and you’d like an accountability partner in me, I would be happy to check in with you and help you complete it.
Send me a message via Instagram or Facebook or even by email to: lisaoberbichlercoaching@gmail.com.
I am going to do my own 75 HARD challenge too starting in January, so we can do it together.
And, that’s my message for the first episode in 2023. It’s going to be a great year, I can feel it!!
I would also like to invite you to become part of the Inspiration2grow community on Facebook. The group name is: Inspiration2grow for Female Goal-getters. It is meant to be a community of like-minded women who want to grow strong from the inside out. There will be daily journalling prompts, nutrition and fitness tips, exercises to try, encouraging conversations among the community and lots more. So, be sure to join this group for support, new ideas and the necessary rocket fuel to propel your health and wellness to new heights.
You owe it to yourself to take care of yourself, show up for yourself and become the best version of YOU.
In case you haven’t heard it yet today, let me be the first to tell you…
You are incredible, capable and your potential is limitless. Never forget that I believe in you 100%. Now, go out there and show the world what you are truly made of.
Thanks for listening and I hope to have inspired you to grow.
Til next time,
Lisa xoxo
