Physical and mental effort does not come naturally to human beings. We are lazy by design, and our society likes it that way. Our genes tell us to sit still, while our media tells us to have a soda (or three) while we’re at it. Sit back, put your feet up, and catch up on a couple of episodes of our favorite TV show, which plays out our imagined capabilities, rather than developing them for ourselves. Inner and outer forces suggest that physical and mental exertion should be kept to an absolute minimum, if not altogether avoided, for fear of disrupting an artificial equilibrium that is our genetic pre-disposition.
In exchange, we become vessels for weakness. Our muscles are fed sub-par fuel that burns cheaply and crudely. Our minds atrophy from a diet of unimaginative storytelling that lacks depth and discourages introspection. Lacking the skill of self-reflection, we have little awareness of this deceptive state of erosion. We have a small hunch that we are below an acceptable level of fitness, but that is only because an infomercial told us that we are. We know we need to change, but this is a vague and fleeting notion for most.
For the few of us who do not accept this, we train because we are dissatisfied with the status quo. For us, lethargy is the epitome of vulgarity. We believe in training as an immersive experience for the physical body and the human psyche, because anything less is simply another form of lethargy. To train is to transform ourselves, and in order to do this the body must be involved in a physical challenge that requires the mind to command it, fully and unerringly. The challenge presents the physical stimulus; the required focus is the mental stimulus.
We rebel against homeostasis; we rebel against commercial gym culture. We challenge our genes to reveal their true potential, while we thumb our noses at gym equipment that only serve to assist us in further mechanizing our complacent urges, and mindlessly so at that. We find a space away from the distractive chatter, and there we experience ourselves. What others call “hard training” we call “self-excavation.” We commit ourselves to every set and rep, and we pay for it with our sweat and with every breath. To train is to be defiant.
Willfulness and courage are one and the same, and we gather our strength from these qualities. Courageousness is neither a genetic quality nor a product of social conditioning: it is a choice that an individual makes once they are rid of extraneous input, and have become self-possessed. Neither the servant of one’s genes nor the cipher of popular opinion, such an individual leads a personal revolution towards his or her own undiscovered potential. For such individuals, it is not enough to exist. They live to excel.
For those who curiously observe our work, they see the outward indicators of physical strain. They observe tensing muscles, the pouring sweat, the grimace, the moan of pain they do not dare experience for themselves. This lack of daring prevents them from seeing the inward workings of our experience. In the end, what they fail to see in us is what they fail to achieve for themselves. For underneath all the trappings of committed physical effort lies the true human experience: transformation, excellence, and authentic equilibrium.