75 Hard, Round Two... Tools and Tips for Success

This fall, I completed 75 hard again, and this time, I learned more about myself, and discovered new tips that helped along the way. If you haven't read it yet, I wrote a blog called 'Creating Habits that Stick' and I shared 14 tips to help you be successful when you are creating new habits.  It was an opportunity for huge growth, and when I had the opportunity to do it again this fall, I absolutely jumped in. I knew that it was just what I needed to help me build that consistency muscle again, and stay on top of my self care.  As a Mom and wife and business owner, time dedicated to taking care of ourselves, can sometimes be pushed to the bottom of the list. 75 hard ensures that you get those tasks done, and take good care of yourself.

If you've never heard about 75 hard, you complete a series of tasks, each day for 75 days. If you miss one, you must start over at the beginning. The guidelines are that you do 2- 45 minute workouts every day, one must be outside. Read 10 pages of nonfiction every day, drink a gallon of water, take a progress photo, follow a diet, with no cheat meals or alcohol for 75 days. You can read more about it at 75hard.com.

The second time around I was more prepared for the time commitment than I was the first time, and truthfully, I craved those walks outside each day.  I was more prepared with tools from the first time I did it and the tricks and tips I used and shared about in my first blog you can find here: 

This time, I leaned more heavily into learning new skills, and want to share some of the tools I used this second time around that made me successful.

1. I started tracking my food.  A decade ago, I kept track of my food, but never did I track macros or weigh my food, to truly see how many of the macronutrients (protein, carbohydrates and fats) I was getting each day. One thing that I quickly realized, was that I'm pretty sure I haven't been eating enough food for the past 20 years or so.  I found myself in the 1100 calorie range when I first started tracking, and I then had those bumped up to close to 1700 calories per day.  Learning the caloric values of some of my favourites, and seeing where my meals were unbalanced was a huge eye opener.  Will I do this forever? No. But for now, it's giving me an opportunity to make sure that my meals are balanced, and I am getting in the nutrients that my body needs.

My tool of choice for this was a food scale that I got for around $20 on Amazon, as well as the app MY FITNESS PAL. Super helpful. You can set your favourite foods, it's got a huge database, and you can even scan the barcodes of almost anything, and the nutritional information will pop right up.

2. I walked at night more. Sometimes, the day would slip by me, and I just would not get my walk in during the day.  Years ago, my husband bought me a Petzl RL, rechargeable, super bright headlamp for Christmas, and this round of 75 hard I used it a lot.  I was always safe... I walked with Archie, and Andy or one of my boys... but there is something so magical about walking in the dark in the rain.

3. I leaned on my oils and supplements more.  I use and LOVE the oils and supplements from Young Living, and can only speak to their purity and efficacy.  This round I leaned on them even more. Some of my favourites, are Deep Relief for sore muscles, Ningxia Red for energy (it's a powerful antioxidant drink), RC and Peppermint for before my workouts, Super B for energy, and Cool Azul Pain cream as well for sore muscles.  Another favourite thing to do, was have an hot epsom salt bath with some oils. After doing 2, 45 minute workouts each and every day for 75 days, those times to take care of your body, are necessary. I really love Northern Lights Black Spruce and Copaiba for the bath. You first put some Epsom salts in a dish, and then add your oils to the salts. It helps them disperse in the water.  Copaiba is great for muscles, and is super calming, as is Northern Lights Black Spruce.  The combo of the two, in a hot bath just before bed is magic.

4. New Shoes!  I realized that I had walked over 1000km, in the 12 months since buying my shoes last fall, that I knew it was time to invest in some new ones.  I noticed one day after a particularly stormy walk, and putting my shoes on the boot dryer, that the soles were worn down.  Goodness I felt proud when I saw that. I don't think I have ever worn out a pair of shoes like that. Get yourself the new shoes. I promise you'll be so grateful.

5. My Apple Watch.  The one thing I said I would never get, turned out to be one of the biggest blessings in this fitness journey. I was worried about the notifications, because I can be easily distracted, but once I turned them all off,  it showed me that I could track my steps, my sleep, my calories burned, and the times I was active each hour.  It became a challenge at the end of some days, if I had a slower day, to close the rings, and get in more steps before midnight, if I hadn't reached my goal yet. That accountability was huge, and I was so grateful for it.


Will I do 75 hard again? Probably! I really love the commitment to myself, and intentionally scheduling in that time for movement.

As always, I am here to answer any questions that you ever have about 75 hard, any of the tips and tools above, or about any of the Young Living Oils and supplements I used.  They all helped me so much, and I am just so happy to share about it.  If you want to learn more, you can find more info right here:


Thanks for being here! If you take on 75 hard.... reach out and let me know! I'd love to cheer for you!!

xo, Niki