Last week, I took my dog, Hiro, for a walk on a local parkway trail that's popular with cyclists, runners, and fellow dog-walkers. It's a bustling place, and honestly, I chose it on a whim. I often get bored with the same old routes and wanted to shake things up a bit. Normally, I look for quieter spots where Hiro can roam freely without the hassle of crowds, and just be a dog. But that day, as we stepped onto the busy trail, I realized we were in for a challenge.
You see, Hiro isn’t too fond of fast-moving bikes, scooters, or skateboards. Our trainer has been encouraging more exposure to these types of things to desensitize him, so I thought, 'Alright, this will be a good practice run.' It was an opportunity for Hiro to learn acceptable behaviors around his triggers. And true enough, there were good moments and not-so-good ones.
As we walked along the parkway, it struck me—I’d been choosing our usual quiet paths because of my own preferences, not Hiro’s needs. This realization hit hard. By not regularly exposing him to busier environments, I was doing him a great disservice. He needed these experiences to learn and adapt, just like we all do. So I made a new goal to take him on this particular route at least once a week!
This reflection made me think about my role as a coach. A significant part of what I do involves providing my clients with numerous opportunities to practice—strategically and thoughtfully—the health, nutrition, and fitness behaviors they're working to improve. In this supportive environment, where expert guidance is always at hand, my clients learn not just to cope with setbacks, but to learn valuable lessons from each stumble.
It’s not just about learning to fall—because falling is inevitable—but more importantly, it's about mastering the art of getting back up. This cycle of falling and rising is where real, lasting progress is made. You don’t just repeat the same actions expecting different results; you evolve your strategies continuously to foster genuine, sustainable improvement.
This brings me to the 75 Hard program, a topic that several people have asked me about during the last couple of weeks, and which inevitably tends to come up in conversations every now and then. Since we've just discussed the importance of adaptable and enduring strategies in health and fitness, I'd like to examine how these principles contrast with those of the 75 Hard program.
For those who aren’t familiar, 75 Hard is a program created by entrepreneur Andy Frisella. It’s designed more as a mental toughness challenge rather than a fitness program and is pitched as a transformative tool to change your mindset and discipline through strict adherence to a set of daily rules for 75 days. Here's what the challenge entails:
Follow a Diet: No specifics are given on what type of diet—it's up to the individual—but it must be adhered to strictly with no cheat meals and no alcohol.
Workout Twice a Day: Each workout must be at least 45 minutes, and one of them must be outdoors, regardless of the weather conditions.
Drink a Gallon of Water: Every day, participants must drink approximately 3.8 liters of water.
Read 10 Pages: This must be non-fiction and related to self-improvement.
Take a Progress Picture: Participants are required to take a daily photo to visually document their progress.
The challenge is as much about physical endurance as it is about mental resilience, requiring you to stay committed and disciplined without any deviations. If any of the daily tasks are missed, you must start over from day 1.
Given these stringent requirements, it’s important to consider carefully: Is 75 Hard right for you? Let’s explore who might truly benefit from this program, and who might need to think twice.
Who Might Benefit from the 75 Hard Program:
Challenge Enthusiasts: If you're someone who thrives on overcoming tough challenges and feels motivated by high-stakes goals, you might find 75 Hard rewarding. This program can offer a sense of accomplishment and a test of what you're mentally and physically capable of.
Experienced Habit Builders: If you already have a strong foundation in habit formation and you’re not prone to all-or-nothing thinking, 75 Hard could be a great way to push your boundaries in a new direction. If you've developed solid habits in other areas and are seeking an additional, rigorous test, this challenge might be just what you’re looking for.
Adventurous Experimenters: If you're looking to shake up your routine and try something new just to test your capabilities, 75 Hard might be intriguing. It can serve as a personal experiment to explore your limits.
While the 75 Hard program markets itself as a universal solution for building mental toughness and discipline, it's important to approach such claims with caution. It's certainly not a one-size-fits-all solution. The program demands a high level of commitment and rigidity that may not be suitable for everyone, especially if you’re prone to burnout or have certain health conditions.
If you’re considering this challenge, you should ideally be someone who possesses a resilient mindset, solid habit-making skills, and the ability to handle setbacks positively. If you struggle with perfectionism, all-or-nothing thinking, or anxiety about making mistakes, this program might not be suitable. Jumping into such an intense program without the necessary mental preparation and habits could worsen these issues, potentially undermining long-term growth and your ability to adapt to real-life challenges.
It's crucial to recognize that true mental toughness and discipline are built through sustainable practices that adapt to life's realities—not just through completing a stringent, predefined challenge. This involves more than sheer discipline; it encompasses managing stress, anxiety, and emotions in healthy ways. True psychological health requires knowing when to push and when to back off, ensuring that your mental and emotional resources aren't depleted but replenished and strengthened. It also involves developing resilience, emotional intelligence, and the ability to navigate life's inevitable challenges with flexibility and grace.
In the grand scheme of things, many fitness programs teach you how to be fit in a bubble. You go all-in, pedal to the metal, and what happens? Eventually, you crash because it's not sustainable. What's missing? Learning how to keep up your healthy habits amidst the chaos, the job stress, the family demands—aka, real life.
Here’s the hard truth: Life doesn’t have a pause, or a 'stop and start over from day 1' button. Hitting pause if you don’t do things perfectly, and having to start all over again, only teaches you how to be good at pausing or stopping every time you 'mess up’ - NOT at living your best life.
I mean, could you imagine having to start over as a mom every time things get hectic? Or telling your spouse 'Let's restart our marriage from scratch because I made a mistake'? How about telling your boss the day before a big project is due, 'I need to start this project over from day one because I didn’t get it perfect the first time'? Not likely!
Just as we can't simply restart aspects of our lives that involve learning and growing through challenges, the idea that we should restart a fitness or nutrition plan from scratch every time we slip up doesn't align with real life. Life demands resilience and the ability to adapt and move forward, not constant restarts.
You might think you 'should' be managing like a rockstar, but the reality is most of the time you just do the best you can—and sometimes that might be just barely getting by. But the key? You keep going.
Life isn’t a 75-day challenge. It's a constant work in progress. And guess what? That's totally okay. The point is to do what you can, when you can, however imperfectly. Because 'always something' is way better than 'all or nothing.
Here’s to finding your strength, inside and out,
Coach Tiffany
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