Is this just a fad for a rare breed of fitness fanatic? Or is this a true transformation. The way we will exercise in the future?

Pain Cave Fitness

Morphing the Way People Train

By Real Solutions Editors

There's a revolution in exercise transforming what it means to be fit.

It's starting in garages. At parks. In driveways. At playgrounds. Even in the darkest corners of your gym.

The athlete warriors there are sweating. Grunting. Jumping. Muscling up. Climbing ropes. Throwing kettle bells. And dragging tires across football fields. Panting. Heaving. Collapsing and crawling to the next exercise.

The uniform is more likely to be a tattered t-shirt or ripped up fatigues. Loose fitting and comfortable.

What you won't see is a single dumbbell curl or triceps extension. Nor a leg press or Smith machine for that matter.

What is all this craziness?

Why are we seeing exercise programs Morph into a new challenge? Made up of exercises few people have ever witnessed before?

Is this just a fad for a rare breed of fitness fanatic? Or is this a true transformation. The way we will exercise in the future?

Where It Began

This revolution appears to have begun from a need. Created by people looking for more variety in their workouts. Or more intensity. And, more importantly, for people who needed to perform at peak levels in their jobs (i.e., terrorist hunters, military, cops, firefighters, and the like) and athletes who need to perform at peak levels in their sports.

It isn't enough for the muscle to just look good. It has to be powerful enough for them to respond to any obstacle. In any form. At any time.

"Make sure you have a base to build on. There is no reason for you to bench press if you can't do push-ups."

But it has become a phenomenon. Not only for the people listed above but for the average office worker, retailer, house mom. Anyone who wants to push his or her body and mind and overcome any physical or mental limitation.

And yes, even dedicated gym goers and bodybuilders are getting excited about these new workout opportunities due to the improved power and stamina, along with endless variety of exercises. Increasing the mental load along with the physical.

It's called Functional Fitness in some circles, which simply means you're fit enough to handle whatever life has to throw at you. Even in life and death situations. In other words, you have the speed, power, strength, endurance, stamina, and resilience to survive.

The Pain Cave

There are many places to learn about this new fitness phenomenon, but one of the most intense we've come across is Nick Lacaria's at http://paincavefitness.blogspot.com/.

Here's how Nick explains the Pain Cave Exercise Philosophy:

"...even dedicated gym goers and bodybuilders are getting excited about these new workout opportunities due to the improved power and stamina, along with endless variety of exercises."

The most important thing in the fitness game is to learn as much as you can and test things on yourself. What works for you may not work for someone else and vice versa, but listen to people who have been in the trenches themselves, not just every article in a magazine. Here are my top 10 rules to help you create fantabulous workouts:

1. Keep it simple. The best movements are the ones that use the entire body in unison.
   
   
2. Forget about isolation exercises. There is no such thing.
   
   
3. Train intensely. At least 30 minutes if you have time.
   
   
4. Don't judge a workout by the time it takes you to do it. Kind of a bump off #3, but 10 minutes of sled dragging will beat almost any other workout that takes twice as long to complete.
   
   
5. Understand what you are doing and why it works. Just don't look at a cool tool or exercise and do it without understanding the results it will give you.
   
   
6. Give your body adequate rest before training the same energy system or body parts consecutively.
   
   
7. Make sure you have a base to build on. There is no reason for you to bench press if you can't do push-ups.
   
   
8. Learn what variety means and how to implement it into your training regimen.
   
   
9. Train with a partner and listen to music. If you can't train with a partner, it is imperative to train to music. Bruce Lee was a huge proponent of this as beats and rhythm help with the learning curve and also can blend in with the "pain" you feel during the workout, lowering perceived exertion levels.
   
   
10. Log your training. This helps you decide what works and what doesn't.

Nick concludes, "I love an analogy Al Cosgrove once wrote: 'If I can give you a business plan that promised to make you a million dollars in two years, how would you view it if I wrote it on a bar napkin? Does it make the information any less valuable?'"

You'll find the workouts scribbled across white boards, chock boards, or spare scraps of paper. Does that make them any less valuable than those you can find in a fancy book from a major publisher?

The Workouts

It's impossible to share the intensity of the Pain Cave workout with mere words. Fortunately, you can find a seemingly endless variety of videos on the Internet which show how these new athlete warriors train. Visit http://paincavefitness.blogspot.com/ or crossfit.com to peek into their gym before entering yourself. (Or creating your own garage Pain Cave.)

Both sites also provide a workout of the day to help you get started.

These workouts are deceptively simple and short. You may even think, "Hey, that doesn't sound hard at all."

Pain Cave Fitness has become a phenomenon. Not only for athletes or military personnel, but for the average office worker, retailer, house mom. Anyone who wants to push his or her body and mind and overcome any physical or mental limitation.

But then you'll try it. And you're guaranteed to be sucking more wind than a tornado. Your muscles will tremble and quake. Your tongue will swell. You'll pant, sweat, groan, and grimace. You may even want to add a puck bucket to your training equipment.

Here's an example of a few of the workouts from the last week at the Pain Cave:

When: Sunday

What: 2-minute kb (kettle bell) swings each hand
Outside--3 sets of 25-yard kb swings to overhead behind toss. Keep good form and stay tight with good breathing. The goal is to power swing the kb back over your head as far as you can go.
Sprint 25 yards to a set of KB, double clean for 10 reps. Pick up medicine ball and chest push toss for 25 yards. Do this for time. Record time and try to beat x 3.
Enjoy!

When: Monday

What: 3-minute double kb swings each hand.
Compound 1 4 corner drill for 2 min
KB press x 10 Compound 2
Jump Rope 2 min
Turkish Get ups x 10
Compound 3 Pistol (single leg squats) 2 minutes (switching)
KB Bent over Rows x 10
Stretch
Enjoy!

When: Tuesday

What: 2 minute kb swings each hand.
Enjoy!

You may need a little bit more instruction, however. After all, you probably won't find most of these exercises in the pages of your latest muscle and fitness magazine. And you probably won't have seen them performed in your gym. A good source for demonstrations is www.crossfit.com.

And to get just a little bit of flavor on what you'll feel like, check out Nick's videos of his Pain Cave:

Where the Pain Cave started from from Nick Lacaria on Vimeo.

Controlled Chaos from Nick Lacaria on Vimeo.

Are You Ready?

"Nick has been training us. Morph is the only way I can make it through these work outs."

Let's be honest. This type of workout isn't for everyone. But if you're up for a Challenge, and you don't mind heaving between sets, wondering if you can survive through the next minute, you won't be disappointed.

As one new convert to the Pain Cave way of fitness explains, "You haven't lived until you've nearly died."

And lest you think this workout is only for the guys, check out this video. These women know the true definition of intensity and pushing right on past your limits!

A special thanks to Marc, a friend and pro-bodybuilder for his note: "Check out what we've been up to here. It's a totally different type of training. Nick has been training us. Morph is the only way I can make it through these work outs. Check out the clips at http://paincavefitness.blogspot.com/. The kettle bells are kicking my butt."

These workouts from the Pain Cave are kicking our butts now too. Thank goodness for Morph!

Editor's Note: Even with Morph, or perhaps we should say, especially with Morph, ease into these new workouts if you decide you're ready for the challenge! They're incredibly intense. And you can hurt yourself. So again, take it slow!

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