75 Hard Feels Like Too Much? Try 75 Soft, 30 Hard, or Your Own Rules
Why It's Okay If 75 Hard Feels... Too Hard
Around week two of 75 Hard, a lot of people start asking a quiet question: Is it supposed to feel this intense?
The short answer? Yes. The longer one? Maybe not for everyone, all the time.
You’re not the only one who’s struggled to keep pace. Two workouts a day, every day, with zero flexibility—it’s no small thing. But just because something’s hard doesn’t mean it’s automatically the right fit for your life right now.
Let’s talk about what to do if you want the structure and growth of a challenge, minus the all-or-nothing pressure.
What Is 75 Soft?
75 Soft started making the rounds as a gentler alternative to 75 Hard. There’s no single "official" version, but most people follow something like:
One workout per day (rest days allowed)
Eat well, with room for flexibility
Drink around 2 liters of water
Read 10 pages of a book
It’s still a commitment, but it’s one you’re more likely to keep when life throws curveballs. 75 Soft isn’t about lowering your standards—it’s about making consistency actually doable.
What About 30 Hard?
This one’s gained traction in Reddit threads and real-life communities.
It takes the original rules of 75 Hard and applies them over 30 days. The workouts, the diet, the reading—it’s all there, but in a shorter timeframe.
People often use it as a reset button, or as a warm-up for the full 75. If the idea of going all-in for 11 weeks feels overwhelming, this might be the bridge you need.
Why "All or Nothing" Can Make You Quit
There’s a term in behavior psychology: the what-the-hell effect. It kicks in when you slip up once, and then give up entirely.
With strict challenges like 75 Hard, one missed workout means restarting from Day One. That can be motivating—or it can wreck your momentum.
That’s where alternatives like 75 Soft or a personal version come in. They give you structure, but with enough give that one bad day doesn’t undo your whole effort.
What a Custom Version Could Look Like
Here’s a thought: what if you built a challenge around your life, instead of trying to bend your life around the challenge?
Pick 2 or 3 daily non-negotiables that matter to you
Choose a timeframe (maybe 30 or 60 days)
Allow for off days without punishing yourself
Track your progress in a way that feels satisfying
A great challenge should stretch you—not snap you.
How Routinery Helped Me Find My Rhythm
Before I ever committed to 75 Hard, I needed something smaller. I used Routinery to build one routine:
Wake up → drink water → stretch → read
That was it. But doing it for 10 days in a row showed me I could stick to something.
The app let me shape my mornings before I had the confidence for something bigger. And when I eventually tried 75 Hard, I had a structure to fall back on.
You don’t need an app. You just need a rhythm. But if you want help setting that rhythm, Routinery makes it surprisingly doable.
Your Challenge, Your Rules
Not everyone needs to follow someone else's checklist. Sometimes, the most powerful thing is deciding your own.
Whether it’s 75 Hard, 75 Soft, 30 Hard, or a version you made up in your Notes app—it counts. If it stretches you, it counts.
In the next piece, I’ll share what it actually feels like after a challenge ends—and how to keep going without the streak to hold you.
Read Next: What Comes After 75 Hard?
