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Never participated in or even heard of it. But I live neither in Russia (not so far away though) nor in the country.

Come to think of it, the translation of "лепёшка" in this definition is not literal either. The thing is, "лепёшка" does not necessarily refer to food. Again, it is shape that matters.
One can...

That definition - "you hurt yourself into a cookie" - is not literal. Literal - "you crash/flatten yourself into a cookie". So, it's not about pain, it's about shape.

Imagine that you need to break through a brick wall and all you have is your body. What would happen to you if you "exerted yourself to the fullest"?