The search for comfort can easily seem like one of the driving forces in today’s world. Comfort is the reason to continuously work towards earning more money. It’s the reason to be on the lookout for new products and services that will make things easier and more comfortable, even infinitesimally. And it’s also the reason for creating those products and services that provide too much comfort to people.
We have the comfort to thank for same-day delivery, ridiculously ergonomic chairs, and creepily personalized services. And while some comfort is undoubtedly reasonable and even necessary, too much of it can have the opposite effect.
“Everything has become too easy,” says Kamil B, founder of Rebels With a Cause. “With the TV, the laptop, video games, vaping – we’re further and further away from the time when our ancestors had to put in the work just to survive.”
Kamil B is one of the voices calling for stepping away from some of the comforts of modern life and using that venture out of the comfort zone to drive personal growth. While there are many ways people can do it, Kamil B and RWC think fitness is a good starting point.
Fitness has had a massive impact on Kamil B’s life. “Before going into fitness, I played soccer, and before that, I was into martial arts,” he recalls. “But life happened, and I met my demons early in life. So I responded by starting to lift weights, and it’s been with me ever since. And now I want to help others through fitness because it’s the thing that saved me.”
Fitness is also an appropriate metaphor for Kamil B’s overarching plan to help people change their mindsets through exposure to things outside their comfort zone. Fitness involves putting our bodies through stress, making us stronger, increasing bone density and muscle mass, and teaching us to use muscles more effectively.
Kamil B also wants to challenge people’s habits and preconceptions, putting their values under stress. His idea is that, through masterclasses and exposure to strong ambassadors for traditional masculinity and femininity, people might revert to what he sees as the healthier, more united form of both. Ultimately, that journey should bring them to a state of life that’s free from some of the modern ailments such as depression and obesity.
None of those benefits can be achieved sitting on a sofa or at a desk, the two places where comfort reigns supreme. So, venturing out of those zones is necessary for growth.
While stress is necessary for growth, too much of it can cause damage – much like with comfort. Prolonged exposure to physical stress can damage bones and muscles instead of making them stronger. Likewise, too much emotional or mental stress can contribute to various health issues, from cardiovascular problems to depression.
Some stress, however, might be helpful to prepare people to better deal with other hardships in life. So, once again, Kamil B counts on exercise to provide that controlled amount of stress through the self-discipline and willpower required to stick to a workout and nutritional regimen.
“I like to call it mindset training through fitness,” he explains. “It’s about building resilience through consistency. We must understand that we must go through things to become better.” Thanks to Kamil B and the exclusive community he’s building with RWC, the people with whom this message resonates don’t have to do it alone. They can have the company of like-minded individuals with the same goal to endure and grow.
