I developed the mom 75 challenge after my husband started doing Andy Frisella’s Hard 75. I wanted to do it with him but the Hard 75 wasn’t realistic for me as a mom. I designed the mom 75 to address common struggles that moms have while also being achievable for moms in all stages of motherhood.
This post is all about a mom 75 challenge to help moms take better care of themselves and also spend more time with their family.
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My Mom 75 Results & What I Learned
I have finally finished the Mom 75 and I am excited to share my results with you all! If you are new to my site or if you forgot what the Mom 75 is, here is a quick refresher on what the challenge I created fully entails and how it compares to the Hard 75 Challenge.
Why did I create the Mom 75?
The Hard 75 by Andy Frisella took the internet by storm during 2020 and 2021, and I quickly found my husband doing the challenge alongside every body else. Andy Frisella has since added some requirements to his challenge, but the original hard 75 challenge required the following be done daily; complete two 45 min workouts a day (one of which must be outside), follow a diet of your choosing, drink a gallon of water a day, read 10 pages of a non-fiction book, drink no alcohol, eat no cheat meals, and take a physical progress picture.
Those are all good things but together they are insanely time consuming. My husband and I had very little time together because he would have to go off and workout in both the morning and the evening. I was cooking meals catered towards his diet and had to eat dessert by myself if I wanted it. (Ya know…every girls’ dream…)
So, while I had contemplated doing the challenge with him, we quickly realized how hard the challenge was going to be with a baby in the mix. It was not possible for me to join him. It was hard enough with just one of us doing the challenge. So I decided that I would do whatever I could with him, but I would otherwise cheer him on from the sideline.
I was proud of my husband but I became increasingly frustrated by the day, wanting to do the challenge with him and knowing that it just wasn’t going to work for our family. My breast fed baby would not have been thrilled if his “open bar” was out working out in both the morning and the evening.
That’s when I had the idea to create the Mom 75 challenge. While the Hard 75 goes solely after your mental toughness, I built the Mom 75 to help moms take a mental break. While the Hard 75 seeks to better you solely as an individual, the Mom 75 seeks to better you as both an individual and as a mom. This challenge is all about growing as a mom, by taking care of yourself and being more intentional with the time you spend as a family. Each requirement from the challenge made a significant effect on me and my family. I’m excited to share these results with you.
Here is a break down of each of the requirements of my mom 75 challenge and what I learned from each of the requirements.
Requirement #1: Do one 45 minute workout
My body was capable of achieving more
When I started this challenge, I felt okay about where I was at with my workouts and I didn’t think I was capable of much more. I just figured the “fitness ship” had sailed when I got pregnant. But, once I challenged myself to make it through a particularly difficult workout without stopping (and I was able to actually do it), I realized I had been selling myself way too short.
At the start of this challenge I could do about 12 push ups in a minute before my arms would get too tired and I’d have to drop to my knees. Considering I couldn’t do a single push up when I first started my postpartum workouts, I figured that was my cap and I had accepted it. However, at the end of this challenge, I am now able to do 27 push ups in a minute! Similarly, at the beginning of this challenge, I could do a low push up hold for five maybe ten seconds. Now I can do one for 30 seconds. I am making it through harder and harder workouts and getting stronger by the day. I truly cannot believe it. You simply have to shift your mindset and believe that you are capable of more.
I am the most flexible I have ever been
I have never been a flexible person. In fact, my husband has actually teased me for how incredibly inflexible I was. That’s because I have never made it a priority. During these 75 days, I did yoga two to three of the seven workouts I did each week. I did quick cool down stretches on the other days for 5-10 minutes. That’s it. Yet, I am able to touch my toes for the first time in forever (maybe ever). My next goal is to be able to do a split! That one may take some time.
I am capable of getting back to pre-pregnancy (and more!)
When I started this challenge, I assumed that I would never get back to the level of fitness or the body composition I had prior to having my son. But, now that I know my body is capable of much more than I have been going after, I really believe it is possible. I found another gear that I didn’t know existed. You have one too. Here are pictures of me before the Mom 75 vs. after the Mom 75.
Requirement #2: Eat a meal at the table as a family
We were missing out on a lot of really good conversations
Prior to this challenge, our family did eat together at the table on occasion. But we fell into the trap of turning our brains off and eating in front of the TV way too often. Doing this challenge forced us not to do that, which allowed us to have all kinds of amazing conversations and laughs that we would not have had otherwise. We are moving forward now, far more intentional about dinner at the table together.
Requirement #3: Eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables (Eat YOUR veggies)
I wasn't eating as many fruits and veggies as I thought
Five servings of daily fruits and veggies is the USDA recommendation for the average adult. While moms are often telling their kids over and over again to eat their veggies, we very seldom actually listen to our own advice. When I wrote this requirement, I thought that I would fly through this aspect of the challenge easily. There were days like that, but there were also days that I totally forgot about eating fruits and vegetables in the chaos of the day. You then would have found me sitting on our couch eating an entire bag of veggies from our freezer (with a spoon directly out of the bag of course). So, all that to say, I challenge you to count just how many servings of fruits and veggies you are eating for a while. You may just find yourself sticking a spoon into a bag of frozen veggies too.
Requirement #4: Drink a gallon of water
My skin cleared up quickly
I’ve seen so many videos online of people drinking a gallon of water a day for a week and getting insane results. I’ve always wanted to try it but it sounded like way too much water for any one human body. So…naturally I decided to do it for two and a half months. It was difficult at first, but it got a lot easier. I could not believe how quickly I saw and felt results. The biggest one being, that my skin had almost completely cleared up in about a week and a half. I am not even wearing make up for most photos I took throughout the Mom 75. I may have had to pee a lot, but it was worth it. (Plus, my hair loved the water too!)
I wasn't drinking nearly enough water before
Aside from my skin clearing up, drinking a gallon of a day did so much good for my body. It made me realize just how perpetually dehydrated I really was. Once I started drinking a gallon of water, I had far less headaches and started making significant progress in my workouts. I didn’t realize just how much water aided in absolutely everything my body was doing. Drinking enough began to optimize each of my efforts.
If you're craving something but don't know what, this might be your body asking for water
So this one doesn’t necessarily apply if you’re pregnant because we all know that means you may hungrily stare at everything in the fridge for hours and not find anything you want. But, if you think you want something to eat and you can’t figure out what, this may be your body signaling that it’s actually thirsty. Drink a glass of water first and then if you still feel like you need something, it might be time for a snack.
Requirement #5: Read at least one book with your kids
Reading consistently has done a lot for my son
My husband and I have always tried to read to our son, but life gets busy. With a baby especially, it’s easy to forget to read to them often. They aren’t asking to read a book yet and when you first start reading to them they don’t have much of an attention span. That being said, I have seen my one year old’s attention span grow tremendously through this 75 days and now he enjoys story time and even picks out his own books! On top of attention span, reading a book before every single nap and before bedtime has created a predictable routine that has made both nap time and bedtime easier.
We made sweet memories during story time
Watching my son light up and giggle at his favorite stories (the ones with sound buttons and textures he can play with of course) has brought me a tremendous amount of joy too! Watching my son come to a complete state of peace when I read him the book his daddy used to read to my pregnant belly…well that almost brought me to tears (of joy!). Our story time memories will always be sweet. While I’m sad we didn’t do it sooner, I’m glad it’s a part of our routine now and always will be 🙂
Requirement #6: Take a picture
Pictures are a powerful measure of progress
Pictures can measure both physical and mental progress. When you look back at an old picture, you remember how you felt in it. For example, of course I feel overwhelming joy when I look at pictures of my husband and I on our wedding day giggling together before the ceremony. On the other hand, there are pictures from bad days in my life that remind me how far I’ve come. So taking a picture a day, whatever that picture may be and whatever the day is like, can help you see the progress you have made in all areas of life.
There were certain points during this challenge that I felt like I was getting no where. I didn’t see the point of my workouts because it’s hard to see slow and steady progress. You don’t always see physical progress until you look back on pictures. I didn’t realize just how much I was getting from my “me time” until I looked through those photos and remembered how much each of those moments rejuvenated me. I didn’t realize just how precious our family meals had become until I saw photos again.
Don’t get so caught up in taking pictures that you don’t enjoy life. But do capture those extra special moments so you can cherish them later on down the road.
Requirement #7: Take 15 minutes of "me time"
I read more than I have in years
By the end of the 75 days, I read three books that have been sitting on my shelf waiting to be read for at least 2 years. I had forgotten how peaceful it is to sit down with a cup of coffee and a book. I learned so much from reading those books and those things have allowed me to better myself as an individual, a wife, and a mom. I took time to write out my notes and takeaways from each book after I finished. Below are my takeaways from just one of the books that I read!
I had more patience for my husband and my baby
Patience can be hard to come by when you are exhausted, handling kids all day, trying to take care of the house, trying to do little things to help your husband, etc. etc. You wear thin when you don’t do things to reenergize yourself. It’s the same concept as a bank. You will eventually run out of money if you continually withdrawal but never make a deposit. Start investing in yourself so that you can be the best version of yourself for your family. (I’m sure your husband will thank me too)
It's okay to have a social life
During these 75 days, I went out for the very first time by myself without my baby. I spent some much needed time with a sweet friend, shared a margarita pitcher, laughed a lot, and realized that I needed to be more intentional with my social life. Since then, coffee dates with friends and days out (even though my baby came along for many of them) have been a huge energizer for me. It’s hard to spend day in and day out with kids and not with adults that you can talk through your feelings, frustrations, and joys with. Getting out occasionally to spend time with friends is part of taking care of yourself. It’s okay to have a social life, mama.
My Biggest Take Away from the Mom 75...
I was forced to stop "looking for time" and instead "made time"
“Looking for the time” to do something usually just means that we never get to it. Looking for time to workout, looking for time to spend by yourself, looking for time to hang out with friends, looking for time to read more, looking for time to have a family dinner, etc. etc. Whatever it may be, if it is important to you, you have to stop looking for the time and make the time. This life is crazy busy and we have to make time for those things that are important to us. Don’t let those things pass by before you get to enjoy them. So, I encourage you to try this challenge and make time for things that will help you better yourself as an individual and as a mom. You won’t regret it.
If you want to see more photos from my Mom 75 journey, check them out in my Instagram story highlights!
This post was all about a mom 75 challenge that I truly think will change your life as a mom and an individual. I am so excited for you and I hope you will take this challenge on.
