Tony undertook '75 Hard Challenge' for HURT

A young Derry man has just completed a ‘75 Hard Challenge’ in memory of his late father and completely smashed his fundraising target in the process.

Tony Harkin (24) undertook the challenge in honour of his father, Jeffery, who sadly passed away on July 8, 2020.

Speaking to Derry Now, Tony said he had also decided to donate the proceeds raised to the local charity HURT (Have Your Tomorrows).

Tony with his family.

“It was coming up to my daddy’s two year anniversary,” said Tony, “and I wanted to do something to commemorate it.

“I also wanted to make a lifestyle change for myself. That’s not to say my lifestyle was bad but I wanted to be fit and healthy because I do martial arts. I would compete in Jiu-Jitsu tournaments.

“I wanted to undertake something that was going to work fast and get me into shape and into a good lifestyle, whilst also raising money for a charity. I thought it was good to do it in memory of my daddy.

“The charity I chose was HURT (Have Your Tomorrows) which is a local charity which helps people with drug and alcohol addictions,” said Tony.

Tony added that his father had a “bit of an alcohol problem”.

“I never had any personal experience with HURT,” he said, “but it is the only charity in Derry that does the type of work it does. So it was sentimental, dear to me in terms of that. That’s why I did the fundraiser.

“I started on June 16, 2022 and finished on August 30,2022.

“I did two 45 minute workouts each day. One had to be outside. I also committed to sticking to a healthy diet, so no cheats and no alcohol; drinking a gallon of water; reading 10 pages of a non-fiction book, something dealing with self-development; and taking progress pictures.

“That was the initial challenge. However, because I train often enough and would be active enough, I obviously thought it was going to be hard but at the same time, I wanted it to be a wee bit harder as I was doing it for a good cause.

“So, I added that I would not be on social media, or take warm showers, cold showers only.

“The reason I added in those last two challenges was because I was too comfortable. I was too comfortable on my phone and I think everyone is too comfortable with a warm shower,” smiled Tony.

Tony said he found that when he woke up in the morning and took a cold shower, he would automatically get in the right frame of mind for the day.

Laughing, he added: “That was even though, initially, I didn’t want to do it at all. I just pushed myself and I got there eventually and I am delighted to say, I raised £1,182 for HURT in the process.”

Speaking fondly about his father, Tony said: “My daddy was from Foyle Springs. He was a joiner and a very accomplished joiner at that.

“When he was in his early twenties, he was a foreman for Disneyland, so he helped to build Disneyland Paris. He worked all over Europe. He had his own wee business in Derry too.

“Unfortunately, he died during covid, which was another nightmare. It was a bad experience trying to see him and all.

“My daddy’s death was a big shock at the start because I had never lost anyone who was that close to me. I have an older brother and a younger brother and sister. My father’s death has motivated me even more to do well in my own life and make him proud. I even remember thinking that at that time,” said Tony.

Tony’s ‘75 Hard Challenge’ was documented on social media by his brother and close friends.

He was amazed by the number of people who engaged with each post.

“It was crazy. When I came back onto social media after the challenge, there were so many messages of support and donations I was properly pinching myself and saying, ‘God, this is crazy how many people are recognising what I’ve done’. I wasn’t expecting that support and acknowledgement. I was over the moon.

“The actual person that came up with the ‘75 Hard Challenge’ , Andy Frisella, liked my post and he has 2.2 million followers on Instagram. He was the main person. I follow him for motivation. I was blown away by that.

Tony with his dad, Jeffery.

“The main reason I wanted to do the challenge was to show people like my age or any age basically that if they see themselves going down a wee slippery slope, it is possible to change their situation.

“I think a lot of people do not realise that they need to be aware of their surroundings.

“Even doing a challenge like the ‘75 Hard Challenge’, maybe for a charity, or even doing something just to basically give them a lifestyle change, will do them good.”

Donations to Tony’s online fundraiser, ‘75 Hard’ can be made HERE.