I know you would have definitely come across the transformation photos: the before and after over your Instagram feed. People looking stronger, more confident, totally changed. That’s 75 Hard Challenge, and it’s not what you think.
This is not another fitness program that makes quick abs or easy weight loss sound like a walk in the park. 75 Hard Challenge is a 75-day examination of your mental toughness, discipline, and the ability to make self-promises when no one is watching.
More than 500,000 people have done it since 2019. Tens of millions have attempted it. And yes, the majority fail. But those who complete it? They don’t simply change their physical appearance. They change their perception of themselves.
What is the 75 Hard Challenge?
The 75 Hard Challenge was created by entrepreneur Andy Frisella after he learned about James Lawrence the “Iron Cowboy,” who did 50 Ironman races in 50 days across 50 states, as stated by LA Times.
The lesson went right through his body: mental toughness that is made of one is the result of very uncomfortable situations. It became the core. The 75 Hard Challenge is not about shedding weight or growing muscles (though both will happen). It’s about making a self-verification that you are capable of doing difficult things. That when you lose your motivation, you can still carry it out. That one discipline is stronger than one feeling every single time. This idea connects closely with the concept of aligning your actions with your identity, something explored beautifully in our piece on self-consistency theory, a reminder that who you believe you are shapes what you’re able to achieve.
The Five Rules That Change Everything
For 75 days in a row, you do five tasks every day. No exceptions. No compromises. If you miss even one, you have to go back to the first day.
Rule 1: Two 45-Minute Workouts Daily
One of the workouts must be outside, no matter the weather. Rain? Snow? Heatwave? You still go.
With this rule, you leave your comfort zone. It shows you that you are not controlled by the conditions, but by yourself.
Rule 2: Follow a Structured Diet
Adopt any nutrition plan that fits you. Keto, Mediterranean, macros-based, or whatever. But no cheat meals and no alcohol for 75 days.
It helps one to become food disciplined and to break the “I deserve a treat” mentality cycle.
Rule 3: Drink One Gallon of Water Daily
It’s 3.8 litres or approximately 16 glasses. Every single day. When done properly, hydration can be a powerful tool for energy, focus, recovery, and skin quality.
Rule 4: Read 10 Pages of Non-Fiction
No e-books, or audiobooks. Personal growth or educational content. It is the best way to nourish your brain every day with knowledge that broadens your thinking.
Rule 5: Take a Daily Progress Photo
Turn your journey into an image. Experience your transformation day by day.
By doing this, you hold yourself accountable and you can still see progress when motivation is low.
Why the Reset Rule Is the Most Important
The 75 Hard Challenge is what makes the reset rule so powerful to basically change everything: if you fail to perform a single task on day 73, you have to start again from day 1. This seems like a pretty tough thing to do. Yes, it is. But that is the exact reason why it works.
The reset rule is what really pushes the person to be fully accountable. There are no partial credits. There is no “good enough.” Yes or no, there was no other option. This is very much like life. The goals that you have don’t take any of your excuses into consideration. Your dreams don’t give the option of “almost.” The 75 Hard Challenge is a command to you to carry out your plans no matter what.
The Visible Physical Changes
Though the main goal is to develop mental toughness, your physical body will definitely change.
Some real results that people have achieved:
- Fat loss of 10-15 pounds
- Muscle definition becoming visible
- Muscle gain of more than 5 kg
- Quality of sleep becoming better
- Skin getting better
- Cardiovascular fitness increasing
- Energy levels being higher throughout the day
One writer for Men’s Health was able to add 5kg of muscle and at the same time, he looked visibly leaner. Some people, on the other hand, say that they have never been stronger and more physically capable than now.
It is, however, the truth that the physical changes are only a part of it.
The Mental Transformation That Changes Your Life
This is the point where the 75 Hard Challenge shows its amazing power.
- Discipline becomes your superpower. You no longer need motivation. You understand that it is discipline, not your feelings, which brings the results. Are you tired? Do it anyway. Are you unmotivated? Carry out your plan regardless.
- Confidence, in its turn, grows enormously. The fact of keeping every promise to yourself for 75 days in a row makes you cease doubting your ability to finish what you have started. What else wouldn’t be possible, if you could do this?
- Focus becomes even better. The habit of daily reading and constant work on the tasks helps your concentration and your skills in planning and organizing. Your performance at work “jumps”. Your goals become clearer.
- Resilience, to a great extent, is developed as well. Going out for your workout, no matter what the weather is like, and being very strict with your diet will give you, in time, real mental toughness. Mounting 75 days of challenges, the obstacles of life, become smaller.
- Self-trust, again, comes back to you. Perhaps you have the habit of starting and quitting things very often. The 75 Hard Challenge breaks that circle. You show to yourself that you are able to finish the difficult things. This is my fav thing actually, because if you can’t keep the promises to yourself, it just means you don’t value yourself.
One completer summed it up nicely: “The physical changes were bright. The mental changes were of a different magnitude altogether. I am different in the way I deal with everything now”.
What Makes You Want to Quit (And How to Push Through)
We can’t deny it: 75 Hard Challenge is a really tough challenge. A great number of people don’t succeed. Some of them fail more than once before finally achieving it.
Common breaking points:
- Days 1-14: The excitement is gone. The truth hits you. Working out twice a day feels too much. You are sore, tired, and wondering why you even started.
- Days 30-45: You reach your mental wall. Slow progress. The end looks like it’s far away. This is the point where most people give up.
- Days 48-60: You can’t quit because you’ve come so far, but it’s increasingly difficult to keep up the intensity of the work. If you slip even once here, you’ll have to start all over again after more than seven weeks of work.
- Days 65-74: The pressure gets heavier because you’re so close to finishing. It feels terribly disappointing if you miss just one rule in the last stretch.
How to push through:
Focus solely on today. Don’t consider the 75 days as a whole. Tasks are incomplete if you don’t finish today’s ones. Participate with others. The #75Hard hashtag is a way of communication between thousands of people who are trying the challenge simultaneously.
Keep your why in mind. Record why you made up your mind to start. When motivation is missing, read it again. Make a fuss over small victories, I do this every day. If you have no one else celebrating you, be your own cheerleader. I’d say even if you do have someone else, never stop being your own cheerleader. Every day you have successfully completed demonstrates that you are capable of doing difficult things.
Conjure up the ending in your mind. See yourself on the 75th day, changed for the better, and feeling proud.
75 Medium: A Gentler Path to Discipline
Are you looking for the discipline-building benefits without an extreme intensity? 75 Medium is the answer to that:
- One 45-minute workout daily (not two)
- Diet with the possibility of 90% adherence
- Water intake based on half your body weight in ounces
- 10 minutes of personal development (audiobooks are)
- Progress pictures only on days 1 and 75
This alternative version reflects the core idea of the philosophy that is lessening the risk of injury and taking into account the constraints of the real world.
Your Challenge Starts Now
You’ve read up to this point. It shows me that something inside you is crying out for this change. Perhaps you are fed up with the cycle of starting and quitting. Maybe you want to show something to yourself. Perhaps you are ready to unlock your true potential. It’s time to lock in. One day at a time. I’m going to do the 75 day Medium Challenge, cause that’s where I’m at right now and then I’ll do the 75 day hard Challenge. Consistency is the key and can bring you a lot of personal satisfaction. Let’s do this, you’ve got it. Once you stop craving for external validation and just put in the efforts every single day no matter how feel that day, you’ll win.
