75 Hard FAIL?!?!
Here we are, week 1 of 75 Hard complete. Before I get into why it's most likely considered a fail, let me explain in order of the 75 hard rules, what I have accomplished in just 7 short days because of the challenge:
- Two 45 min workouts a day (sometimes they were combined)
-All of them were outside. 32 miles walked/ran/hiked and a giant painful blister to prove it.
-I've stuck to a diet of counting calories at 1,780 a day, which has caused me to adjust and learn healthier food options to eat at a lower calorie "cost". One example: grated parm in scrambled eggs is a great low cal cheese switch 40 calories for 2 tablespoons instead of around 140 for a fourth cup of shredded cheese.
-I have not had any alcohol (notice I didn't say "cheat meal", I'll explain more later)
-I read 10 pages of a book every day, in fact finished reading Pray, Decide, Don't Worry.
-Drank a gallon of water each day and peed about 75 times a day
-Took a progress picture each night
=5 lbs down and mental toughness increased!
Um, I don't know about you, but I would say that is a pretty stinkin' successful week! I'm going to let you in on a little secret, sometimes I like to do things on a whim and if the stars align, then I will dive in to something new. In this case the challenge would end in Florida where I can finally run the virtual half-marathon. AAANNNDDD because of that whim, I only read the rules that they mention in the free email sign up he sends out. The same as listed in the picture above. They are pretty vague and open to lots of interpretation, right? Day 4, I am on a walk and feeling good about this challenge, and I decide I should finally listen to the 75 Hard podcast where the creator goes into more depth about the program. It is called the REAL AF with Andy Frisella Podcast, Episode #14: A Tactical Guide to Winning the War with Yourself. He starts the episode going over the rules and I'm still thinking I am doing good. Then he starts going into more depth. Now all of a sudden, you are not allowed to combine the two 45 minute workouts and no fast food, this is suppose to be a "hard challenge". So first offense, I combined a couple workout days for long hikes. Second offense, I had Jimmy John's. I don't think that it should count because it's a sandwich, pretty healthy. Secondly, you can get healthy options at some fast food places, like grilled chicken and a baked potato. His point is that it is suppose to be difficult and it is suppose to be inconvenient. I know he probably thinks that fast food is too convenient, but what is building more mental toughness- going home to cook something nutritious or going to a fast food restaurant with your favorite salty, crispy fries and juicy burger and getting the salad instead? Um hum, you know it, going to the restaurant with the junk food right at your fingertips. Later on in the episode he says that if you have “one chocolate chip", you have to start over at day one. I don't agree with this either. I know that this is suppose to be seeing if you can go without for 75 days, but I think that sets the person up to fail and it doesn't train them to build the good habit of moderation. Which is why I like what I am doing with counting calories, I am not depriving myself and I am organically picking healthier food options to save some calories. Plus, I feel bamboozled that the no chocolate thing was not mentioned in the rules before and then I found out after the fact and also never mentioned the fast food thing.
So, that is why "technically" I "listened to my bitch voice" as Andy calls it and failed the challenge. Well, I challenge you Andy Frisella to prove that anything I did goes against your list mentioned above. I followed it almost to the t, minus the fast food/cheat meal debacle. I also challenge you, Andy, if that really is your name, to tell me that my week didn't challenge me and didn‘t help me build mental toughness and confidence? I walked 32 more miles, lost 5 more pounds, and read 1 more than I would have originally this week. It was hard fitting in an hour and a half of exercise in and reading a book. It was challenging to walk all those miles with a super sore blister and bleeding through my socks. And It was damn hard restricting my calories and not having a margarita on MY BIRTHDAY.
So, I am going to count this week as a win. I am going to keep going and I will check in next week with how the next seven went. Pray for me...