Get in the Pain Cave ⁉️

Anyone who knows me, knows I hate cardio. 

I’ve always trained hard both in and out of the Army: Rugby, Muay Thai, BJJ, X-Fit (excluding the running). I called it 'secret cardio'. But I also knew it was self-deception... Unfortunately, nothing beats going for a run. I love training, I love sports… I just hate endurance cardio.

• I used to do it.

• Did some stuff.

• Took up too much time.

• Decided I'd completed it.

• Didn’t enjoy it.

• Stopped.

A couple of surgeries (2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2019), the humidity, the cold, the wrong time of day, the wrong time of night, eaten too much, not eaten enough, not enough time, too much work, need to socialise, need to hang with the wife, need to walk the dog, need to play with the baby: the excuses went on!!

In jobs where physicality was important, whats even more concerning, was that this still worked. I was fit enough to pass everything thrown at me and to a high enough standard that it wasn't on anyones radar as being even close to an issue. BUT I knew how much I hated running... And I knew that hiding from it was holding me back.

2025: My pain cave was small. A handful of half marathons. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it, but it reminded me how much of a limit I’d been ignoring. Nothing impressive, that's for sure. Just pushing a self-imposed limit without overthinking it.

Most of the time, we already know what we need to do to improve. The challenge is to get out of our own way and actually do it. It isn’t punishment. It’s growth. Testing limits. Quietly proving to yourself that you can handle more than you thought possible. 

Competence in action: you take the step, survive it, learn from it, and confidence follows.

2026: Eyes set on an ultra. This time, the cave is different: longer, a bit more serious, and still uncomfortable.

How are you going to feed the rat this year? 🐀