75 HARD

Just another new beginning?

A gimmick?

Another New Years resolution to squander?

Or is the 75 HARD program a glorified reminder of a lifestyle shift to health, wealth and abundance?

That remains to be determined. What I DO know is that it worked for me. At least, it provided a good jumpstart for the rest of my life.

I have it made. Most of us have it made...out of the gate! From the day that I was born in the United States of America to a set of loving parents that are still alive and together...I’ve had it made. A Mom and Dad who raised me, fed me, loved me, nurtured me, helped me with food and rent through school until I could survive on my own...I have been blessed. Then life happened. Marriage, career, kids, business, kids in school, kids in sports, kids growing up, kids moving on. Thousands of good times. A few not so great. But mostly just day to day monotony. Day in day out.

We can either accept the monotony, get bored, seek entertainment, watch more Hulu and Netflix, eat, drink and die. Or we can take control of our lives and become who we dreamed about when we were kids and become the best version of ourselves.

Most people are zombies. Waking up and waiting for a better future. Sitting around dreaming of a better job. Wishing for a better house...a better car...a better spouse...a better life! One of my favorite Jack Johnson songs is “Sitting, waiting, wishing”. Great song, but seems like a lot of people have taken those lyrics to define their lives. Most people spend more time searching for the next Netflix series to engorge or scrolling through social media feeds than they do creating anything of value or excitement for themselves or their families to enjoy and expand. They’ve allowed their childhood dreams to die and are consumed with wasting time obsessed by trolling the fake lives of everybody else on Instagram or in the movies.

We are all guilty! Heck I do it all the time! Who doesn’t love to take in a good SUPERHERO movie or “Rom-com” with the wife or see how the “other half” are living on IG or Facebook??? But sometimes, it’s good to remember to Be the HERO in your own movie...the HERO of your LIFE!!!

It’s good to have a bit of a wake up call! Recently, my friend and collaborator Fuquan Bilal woke me up!!! Fuquan is a savvy real estate investor in New Jersey. During a recent conversation with him, he mentioned he was taking part in a mental toughness program called “75 HARD”. I had never heard of it. After a quick summary by Fuquan, I became quite intrigued. I mean, this is coming from a guy who literally starts his day at 3 a.m., meditates religiously, practices yoga routinely then smashes the NJ real estate market the rest of the day...not to mention having been shot and almost killed several years ago by some devil possessed HATER while raising a couple boys on his own! So, if Fuquan found the importance in this and can pull it off, so could I! Anyways, I am always up for a good challenge!

At first, it sounded just like any other gimmick to get you to buy some program or book or supplement to, once again, feed somebody else’s dream. But, for some reason, this seemed different...

75 HARD was created by a guy named Andy Frisella. Andy has a pretty neat story about coming from humble beginnings, surviving tough love, and developing an entrepreneurial mindset. He wanted certain things in life then went and did it. He owns several businesses including a supplement company called “1st phorm”. So, you could make the argument that he created this “program” as a means to attract more customers to his supplement company. True. Good for him if he did! He IS a true American capitalist at heart so more power to him. But, I believe he truly wants people to get off of their lazy, boring, comfortable bums and start LIVING better lives! So to me, his 75 HARD program was more than just another wake up call. It was a CALL TO ARMS! A battle cry for us as humans to take responsibility for our actions and start becoming the HERO’s of our own lives!!!

75 HARD is NOT a GIMMICK! It’s simply a lesson in life skills that isn’t taught in our schools. It’s not a diet or a workout program. It just consists of five tasks to complete each day to hold you accountable to yourself. You either do it or you don’t. The five tasks are simple to do but become a challenge when the “newness” wears off. The five tasks are only the tip of the iceberg. They are meant to be gentle daily reminders of good habits to implement to bring you to the next level of greatness. I think it’s a stepping stone to allow us to realize that we have more time in the day than we think. We DO have time to try new things or to go back to things we enjoyed long ago and bring them back as part of our daily lives. 75 HARD is just the beginning. I gave it a whirl...and can confidently say that I will be pursuing the next stages as they come along.

Before 75 HARD, I thought I had it figured out...this life thing. But the mental and physical changes that I’ve noticed after having only completed the first 75 days has me convinced that I need to continue in this mindset in all areas of my life. To be a better dad, a better husband, and better friend, a better health care provider and just an all around better person. So, NO I don’t think 75 HARD is a gimmick...it’s a way of life. Until you get out of your own way, take EXTREME OWNERSHIP of your life and instill some of these small daily habits in your own life...maybe you should try it too.

It’s simple: 5 tasks (Find the basics of the program on Andy Frisella’s “REAL AF” podcast episode #14...he may curse like a sailor, but it will wake you up!)

1–Stick to a decent diet...no cheat meals and NO ALCOHOL.

2–Two separate workouts a day of 45 minutes a piece...one MUST be outside. It doesn’t matter what workout you do. I would do a weightlifting workout for one then either walk, jog or bike for the other.

3–Drink one gallon of water every day.

4–Read at least 10 pages of a business or personal development book every day.

5–Take a picture of yourself every day.

These simple tasks are not to be skipped or compromised. If so, then you start over the next day. Mr. Frisella does have a book that explains his upbringing and reasoning behind all of the tasks. So I will not go into it here. Of course you have to buy the book to read it so yes that’s another money maker for Mr. Frisella...again...good for him! Maybe completing this program will finally encourage you to get off your butt and create your own book?!?! Have you even considered all of the “little things” that you know that thousands of other people might want to learn from you??? Just write it down! Make a book! Or a movie! Or whatever! Use your newly discovered zest for the proper use of time to create, learn, build and progress!!! I have personally done 3 or 4 things recently that I have never done before. I’ve been thinking about doing these things for a long time, but for some reason finally took the steps to make them happen. I bet you will too!

So, give it try. If not all five tasks, try to implement JUST ONE of the tasks and stick with it. It becomes a habit!!! It’s so good when you have developed a new habit that you KNOW is good for you! Especially if you can replace an old habit with the new one! Wake up people! Become your OWN HERO and start LIVING LIFE AGAIN!

(I’m also going to remind you of a sixth and most important task...FLOSS your teeth after you brush!!!)

Your friend,

Joey Spires