The 75 Soft challenge is a 75-day habit challenge with four daily rules: eat well and drink alcohol only on social occasions, exercise for 45 minutes (with one active recovery day a week), drink 3 liters of water, and read 10 pages of any book. Unlike 75 Hard, a missed day does not send you back to day 1.
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That one difference is why 75 Soft exists. It keeps the structure that makes 75 Hard popular (a fixed list, a fixed number of days, a box to tick every night) and drops the parts that make most people quit: two workouts a day, a gallon of water, and a restart for any slip.
Below: the rules with what each one means in practice, a checklist you can copy, 75 Soft against 75 Hard and 75 Medium in one table, who it suits and who should skip it, and the part most guides leave out: how to keep going after week two, when most challenges quietly end.
75 Soft challenge rules
75 Soft has four daily rules, kept for 75 days in a row. There is no official rulebook, so versions vary slightly, but the common version described by Cleveland Clinic and WebMD is the same four habits below, with no penalty and no restart if you miss one.
- Eat well, and drink alcohol only on social occasions. There is no set diet. Pick one or two concrete rules you can check (for example "vegetables at lunch and dinner" or "no snacks after 8pm"), because "eat well" on its own is impossible to tick off honestly.
- Exercise for 45 minutes a day, with one active recovery day a week. Any movement counts: walking, yoga, a gym session, a bike ride. The recovery day should be easy (a stretch or a slow walk), not a second hard session.
- Drink 3 liters of water. That is about six standard 500 ml bottles. Front-load it: two before lunch makes the evening much easier.
- Read 10 pages. Any book, fiction included. WebMD's version adds one condition: not on your phone.
Some versions add a progress photo on day 1 and day 75. It is optional, and if photos make you anxious, leave it out. A weekly note of how you feel tracks progress just as well.
75 Soft vs 75 Hard (and 75 Medium)
75 Hard is the strict original, 75 Soft is the forgiving version, and 75 Medium sits between them. All three last 75 days and mix exercise, food, water and personal growth. The real difference is what happens on a bad day: 75 Hard restarts you at day 1, 75 Soft and 75 Medium let you carry on.
| Rule | 75 Hard | 75 Medium | 75 Soft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Two 45-minute workouts, one outdoors | One 45-60 minute workout | One 45-minute workout, one recovery day a week |
| Food | A diet of your choice, no cheat meals | A plan followed about 90% of the time | Eat well, no fixed plan |
| Alcohol | None | Limited | Only on social occasions |
| Water | 1 gallon (3.8 liters) | A personal daily goal | 3 liters |
| Mind | 10 pages of nonfiction self-development | 10-20 minutes of reading, journaling, meditation or prayer | 10 pages of any book |
| Photos | Every day | Optional | Optional, day 1 and day 75 |
| Missed day | Restart at day 1 | Carry on | Carry on |
Sources: Cleveland Clinic on 75 Soft and on 75 Medium. 75 Medium has no single official version either, so treat its column as the common pattern, not a rulebook.
Which one should you pick? If you exercise less than three times a week today, start with 75 Soft. If you already train most days and want a test of discipline, 75 Hard is the challenge built for that; our guide to doing 75 Hard with friends covers how to survive it.
Is the 75 Soft challenge worth it?
75 Soft is worth it if you want a routine, not a transformation. It builds four habits at once with room for real life, which is why it suits beginners. It is a poor fit if your main goal is fast weight loss, and anyone with a heart, joint or eating condition should check with a doctor first.
What the experts quoted by WebMD and Cleveland Clinic agree on:
- The no-restart rule is the strength. Sports psychologist Matthew Sacco, speaking to Cleveland Clinic, warns that restart rules make it "very difficult to find the motivation to keep going." 75 Soft lets a bad Tuesday stay a bad Tuesday.
- Four changes at once is a lot. WebMD's experts point out that changing diet, exercise, water and reading together can overload people. If that sounds like you, start with two rules for the first two weeks and add the others on day 15.
- Do not do it for weight loss. The WebMD article quotes an expert who would "not enter into this if your goal is significant weight loss." Expect more energy and a steadier routine, not a dramatic before and after.
- Perfectionists, be careful. If missed days will eat at you, agree on what a missed day means before you start (more on that below).
75 Soft challenge checklist
A 75 Soft day is four boxes: food, movement, water and reading. Copy the checklist below into your notes, print it, or add each line as a challenge in an app. Tick each box the moment it is done, not at bedtime, so a half-finished day is obvious by 8pm.
| Daily task | Your concrete version (example) | Best time |
|---|---|---|
| Eat well | Vegetables at two meals, no alcohol unless it is a social event | Plan at breakfast |
| 45 minutes of movement | 30-minute walk at lunch + 15 minutes of stretching, or one gym session | Morning or lunch |
| 3 liters of water | 1 liter by 10am, 1 liter by 3pm, 1 liter by 8pm | All day |
| Read 10 pages | Paper book or e-reader, before bed | Evening |
Once a week: take your recovery day, write two lines on how the week went, and decide one thing to change for the next week. That weekly look back is what turns 75 days of boxes into a habit you keep on day 76.
How to do 75 Soft with friends
Doing 75 Soft with one to three friends is the simplest way to reach day 75. Each person checks in daily, everyone sees who has done it, and a quiet day gets a nudge instead of turning into a quiet week. Agree the rules in writing before day 1, especially what counts as exercise and what happens after a missed day.
The first two weeks are where most challenges end. In our own app data, 87% of habits got their last check-in within two weeks, whether people did them alone or with others, and in week 2, 45% of habits done with others were still getting check-ins, three times the 15% for habits done alone (Daily Pact app data (Mar-Oct 2026, 3,723 habits)). Company does not make 75 days easy, but it gets far more people through the stretch where most give up.
Four rules that make a 75 Soft group work:
- Keep it small. Two to four people who will actually notice when you go quiet beats a chat of thirty.
- Write down your versions. "Eat well" means something different to each of you, so each person writes their concrete food rule on day 1. The group holds you to your own rule, not someone else's.
- Agree on the missed-day rule. 75 Soft does not restart, but "carry on" can slide into "stop." A good rule: miss one day, carry on; miss two in a row, message the group and say what you will change.
- Share one small win a week. A finished book, a first 10K-step day, a week with no 4pm slump. It keeps day 50 from feeling like day 5.
How to track 75 Soft
Track 75 Soft with something you see every day: a paper checklist on the fridge, a habit tracker, or a shared app. Paper works alone. If you do it with friends, use a shared tracker so everyone sees the same record without screenshots in a group chat. Whatever you use, track each rule separately so you see which one slips.
In Daily Pact, a simple setup looks like this:
- "Eat well (my rule: ...)": daily
- "45 minutes of movement": weekly, six times a week
- "3 liters of water": daily
- "Read 10 pages": daily
Each check-in is one tap (no photo), so keep your day 1 and day 75 photos in your camera roll. Your stats show days done, completion rate and your current and best streak for every rule. The leaderboard shows who in the group is most consistent, and if someone is ill or travelling for a few days they can ask the group for a PactPause, so the break doesn't count against their streak.
Running 75 Soft for a whole gym, run club, team or church group? One person can cover everyone with a Group plan, from $9.99 a month for up to 15 people to $49.99 a month for up to 200, and members join free with no paywall. Invite everyone with one link in the group chat, a pasted email list or a QR code on the wall. See how Daily Pact works for groups, or compare options in our guide to workout accountability apps.
Other challenges like 75 Hard
If 75 days feels too long, pick a shorter challenge with the same shape: a fixed list of daily tasks and a clear end date. Thirty days is the most popular length, 21 days suits a single new habit, and a one-month challenge with one friend is the gentlest start. All of them work better with someone checking in next to you.
| Challenge | Length | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| 75 Hard | 75 days | Experienced exercisers who want a strict test |
| 75 Medium | 75 days | Most of the 75 Hard structure with planned flexibility |
| 75 Soft | 75 days | Beginners who want four habits at once |
| 30-day challenge | 30 days | One habit, fitness or otherwise, with a group |
| 21-day challenge | 21 days | Testing a single new habit |
| January challenge | 31 days | One small daily habit with one friend |
| Gym challenge | 4-6 weeks | Gyms and training groups |
Starting 75 Soft before the new year
Start 75 Soft on Sunday, November 1, 2026 and day 75 lands on Thursday, January 14, 2027. That gets you through the holidays with a routine already in place, and you finish after Quitter's Day (January 8 in 2027), the point where many New Year resolutions fade. Starting on January 1 instead puts day 75 on Tuesday, March 16, 2027.
The holidays are the hard part of a November start. Decide now how your group handles them: a lighter exercise version for travel days, and "social occasions" for alcohol meaning the actual party, not the whole week. Our guide to Quitter's Day explains why the second week of January is where resolutions stall, and how to plan for it.
Frequently asked questions
What are the rules of the 75 Soft challenge?
For 75 days: eat well and drink alcohol only on social occasions, exercise 45 minutes a day with one active recovery day a week, drink 3 liters of water, and read 10 pages of any book. Missing a day does not restart the challenge.
What is the difference between 75 Hard and 75 Soft?
75 Hard asks for two 45-minute workouts (one outdoors), a gallon of water, a strict diet with no alcohol, 10 pages of nonfiction and a daily photo, and any miss restarts you at day 1. 75 Soft asks for one workout, 3 liters of water, eating well and 10 pages of any book, with a weekly rest day and no restart.
What is the difference between 75 Hard and 75 Medium?
75 Medium keeps one 45 to 60 minute workout, a nutrition plan followed about 90% of the time, a personal water goal and 10 to 20 minutes of personal growth a day. It allows planned flexibility, while 75 Hard has no exceptions.
Does walking count for 75 Soft?
Yes. Walking and yoga count as exercise in 75 Soft, as long as you move for 45 minutes. On your weekly active recovery day, a slow walk or stretching is the point.
Will you lose weight on 75 Soft?
Some people do, but experts quoted by WebMD say it should not be the reason to start. Expect a steadier routine and more energy. If weight loss is your goal, talk to a doctor or dietitian about a plan.
Is the 75 Soft challenge free?
Yes. The rules are free to follow and you need no special program. A paper checklist works, or a shared app like Daily Pact if you want friends to see your check-ins (14-day free trial).
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