After a some Q swap negotiations, I stepped up to lead The Matrix. My solo pre-run helped me reorient myself to the AO and set some cones for later in the morning. The weather began humid and ended in rain.
From the schoolyard, we moseyed to the Korean Church parking lot.
COP Warm-Up
Side-straddle hops – 20
Mountain climber – 10
Imperial Walker – 15
Mountain climber, right arm up – 10
‘Mericans – 10
Mountain climber, left arm up – 10
Kick in the Fred Gutt Dr.
Run down Fred Gutt, do one burpee at the first intersection and add one burpee until you reach 11 burpees for a total of 66.
Wall Work
I found this back exercise routine. From the People’s Chair position we did 10 each letter – Y, T, W & L. In between each set we did ascending donkey kicks 7, 14, 21 and 28.
The Beast
Six cones, six exercises at each cone for six rounds
R1 – Carolina Dry Docks
R2 – American Hammer
R3 – Bomb squats
R4 – Diamond ‘Mericans
R5 – Toe tap crunch
R6 – Burpees
Finish with sprints of the parking lot – down and back
‘Merican & LBC ladder
10 ‘Merican & 10 LBC IC
9 wide ‘Merican & 9 LBC IC
8 stagger R ‘Merican & 8 LBC IC
7 stagger L ‘Merican & 7 LBC IC
6 diamond ‘Merican 6 LBC IC
Moleskine
Since I’ve only posted to The Matrix once before, I was worried I would get lost and heckled. Though I had to run the pre-run solo, it gave me time to scope the AO. I’ve learned the best way to reduce the mumblechatter is to start with something difficult. Hence the burpee progression. I always like to do atleast one new thing (atleast for me) and the YTLW back routine blended well with traditon F3 wall work. The Beast is a bit of a staple of mine, but it challenging and keeps everyone together. All in all we got 2+ miles, 100+ burpees and 100+ ‘Mericans. Not too shabby.
Thank you to Poptart for the Q switch. If you haven’t Q’d recently step up. F3 only works when we have a variety of Qs.
For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. —1 Timothy 6:7-8. Be grateful for all the gift you have.
Announcements
Speed For Need Races
We opened with a long jog across the strip maul from the cinema to the far side of Target.
Warm-Up
Side Straddle Hops x 10
Mountain Climbers x 10
Imperial Walkers x 10
Mountain Climbers, right hand up x 10
Low, slow squat x 10
Mountain Climbers, left hand up x 10
Route 66
Run the alley behind Target stopping at each speed bump for burpees. Starting with one and adding one until you finish at 66.
Fountains, HIIT 1 – Legs
45 seconds on, 15 seconds rest
Jump squats
Romanian deadlifts
Front lunges
Side lunges
Front of Pearlz, HIIT 2 – Arms
45 seconds on, 15 seconds rest
Carolina Dry Docks
‘Mericans
Thrusters
Curb dips
After a lengthy mosey back to the cinema we resumed the our high-intensity intervals
45 seconds on, 15 seconds rest
HIIT 3 – Core
LBCs
Toe-tap crunch
Chippy cross
Elbow plank
Hill Work
Partner up, run the hill behind the cinema. After each descent, perform 10 hand-slap ‘Mericans. Repeat five times.
Maulskine
When I first started F3, my only goal was to survive. Next, I decided to focus on form and completing full number of called exercises. (No one likes the guy who only does 8 of 10 called burpees just to run to the front of the pack.) My current focus is intensity. High intensity interval training is a the perfect way to jack up the heart rate and push yourself. I’d say from the relative lack of mumble-chatter this morning that others were pushing themselves to the limit, too.
Announcements
Speed for Need
Happy Hour tonight
Honestly, if it wasn’t so hot and so humid, today’s Bagpipe would have been scored, pretty easy. However, it WAS hot and with the ever-present misting of the Ballantyne Corporate Park it rain forest humidity levels.
COP
Side straddle hops x 10
Low, slow squats x 10
‘Mericans x 10
Imperial Walkers x 10
Wall Work
7 Muscle-ups
7 Donkey kicks
14 Muscle-ups
14 Donkey kicks
21 Muscle-ups
21 Donkey kicks
Next we barreled down Ballanatyne Commons through the hotel parking lot with stops for push-ups and Mary.
Soccer Field Square
Shuffles, sprint and backward run in the marshy field
Tiered Rock
7 Dips
7 Step-ups
14Dips
14 Step-ups
21Dips
21 Step-ups
Helipad
10 ‘Mericans
10 Squats
9 ‘Mericans
9…and the BCP Sercurity shamed us and scream, that’s a “highly restricted area”. In fairness, he probably wanted to make sure we didn’t get hit by a landing helicopter.
Loft Parking Lot
9 squats
Repeating down to 1 ‘Merican and 1 Squat.
It feels good to finish what you start. #neverquit
We ran back up Ballantyne Commons and back to start. (Let’s start calling it “VAK”.) Then finished the set with a round of Time Bomb Burpees.
Bagpipe Bulletin
Bratwurst instructed me to make sure I kept an eye open for those get the message about the Swift location change. I was the only on at 5 and took a trip up Ben Nevis. When I returned, Bucky pulled in the lot and Cheddar and Outback returned from their pre-run scratching thier heads. They didn’t the message. Flargh. They were good sports and stayed.
It was pretty annoying to be shooed from the Helipad, but rules are rules. I was planning to use the Premier Deck steps, too. So, I guess the chances we would get busted at some point was pretty high. Kudos the the PAX for being good sports and rolling with it.
All in all it was a typical workout, but every day with an F3 workout is special. Thanks for being there. #ISI
5 men and a 2.0 gathered in the ring that is Elon Park Elemantary School.
Big lap around the school.
COP, all in-cadence
Side straddle hops x 20
Imperial walkers x 15
Morracan night club x 10
Low, slow squat x 10
‘Mericans x 10
Drill 1 – Lateral movement
From the boxing stance travel around a center point in a circular motion. Complete full circle clockwise & counter-clockwise.
Drill 2 – Shoulder/Knee tag
Partners square off and try to tag thier opponents knees or shoulders.
Drill 3 – Shadow box w/ partner
Focus on body position, footwork and hand speed.
3 min round x 2
Drill 4 – Duck and slide
Face partner, step laterally to the right and duck to overhead punches. Repeat 5 times and switch.
Rinse and repeat.
Drill 5 – Focus pads
Partner 1 with gloves, partner two with focus pads. Focus on specific punches – jab, cross, hook & uppercut.
3 min round x 2
Drill 6 – Sparring
Light sparring, no head shots. It’s not about how hard you are hitting, but instead working to improve speed, angles and endurance.
Core/’Merican Ladder
10 ‘Mericans
20 Regular crunch
9 ‘Mericans
20 Little baby crunch
8 ‘Mericans
Side crunch, right
7 ‘Mericans
20 Side crunch, left
6 ‘Mericans
15 Pretzel crunch, right
5 ‘Mericans
15 Pretzel crunch, left
4 ‘Mericans
20 Chippy cross
2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
Faith keeps us going. Faith in the Sky Q, faith in each other and faith the all this toil be worth it. Wherever you are with your faith, don’t quit. Just like our muscles get stronger with use, so does our faith. Keep pushing!
18 men gathered for low miles and high reps at this morning’s edition of Rebel Yell.
We started with a quick job from the Regal Cinema to the Michael’s parking lot throwing in some high knees, butt-kickers, side shuffle and backwards run.
COP
Side straddle hops x 15
Imperial walkers x 15
‘Mericans x 15
Arm circles x 5
Mountain climbers x 15
The Thingy
Run across the street to the cul-de-sac of Piper Station Dr. The cul-de-sac is the face of the clock. An exercise was placed at each hour position.
1 Carolina Dry Docks
2 Single-leg deadlift
3 Jump squats
4 Super Man
5 Sky Humpers
6 Mahktar N’dyai
7 LBC
8 Push-ups
9 Lunges
10 Calf raises
11 Mountain climbers
12 American hammer
Pax spread out across the clock for 60 reps of each exercise. One could break up the exericse into managable chunks, but you couldn’t move on to the next hour without finishing.
The Larry Birds who finished all 720 reps just starting running back and forth. It was great seeing leaders keep moving. (No standing around!)
When (just about everyone) finished we ran back to Regal Cinema for a time-bomb burpees.
Moleskine
The goal was to provide a traditional full-body bootcamp high reps and low miles. I hope everyone used this exercise to think about how we spend our time. Our need to pace ourselves (it was not possible to rip through 60 reps of most exercises) and how it’s better to spend time with friends.
Stay safe out there!
Nine warriors came to party at F3’s only exclusive boxing training AO. With several new-to-boxing PAX, we focused on the basics.
Short warm-up lap around the parking lot
Footwork drills
Introduction to step, punch, drag & punch combo x 4
One-foot hops x 2
Pad/Gloves & Heavy bag
P1/P2 – Gloves and pads
P3/P4 – Gloves and pads
P5/P6 – Gloves and pads
P7/P8 – Gloves and pads
P9 – Heavy bag
2 min rounds
Shadow boxing
3 rounds
2 min each
Core/’Merican ladder
5 slow ‘mericans
20 LBC
4 slow ‘mericans
20 Toe-tap crunch
3 slow ‘mericans
20 side crunch R
2 slow ‘mericans
20 side crunch L
1 slow ‘mericans
20 Chippy Cross
Ring Review
There’s a lot learn when one starts boxing. Footwork, hand position, bob/weave, combinations, set-ups and blocking. To be good, you got to know where you body is, what you want to do and all the while anticipating your opponents moves. It’s not unlike life, to succeed you’ve got to know where you’re going, how to get there and in concert with others. Yes, work on yourself, but always remember you’ve got to work with and at times defeat others.
Thank you to Bullwinkle, Adobe, Arsenal and JWoWW for coming out to Fight Club for the first time. Keep coming back!!
It was an honor to lead the first SOB F3 Dad workout. In true SOB fashion, I broke the rules and brought “props’ to the Bullring.
At 8:50, it was just me and the 2.0s and I was starting to get concerned that no one was showing up. Turns out a few guys were driving around the Bull Ring (.5 mi) trying to find our spot. If you’ve never been before, we meet by the bronze bull statues/swing set. Erector and his son were first to arrive and not long others soon joined.
Quick warm-up lap
Side straddle hops x 10
Imperial walkers x 10
Squats x 5
Daddy elevators x 5 (‘Merican with kid on your back)
Game 1
Three legged race. (I used my winter infinity scarves to lash our legs together.)
Game 2
Capture the flag. 2 rounds
The kids won both rounds and dad’s really didn’t take it easy.
Game 3
Sharks vs. Minnows
A version of tag that starts with one “shark” who tags the “minnows” as they attempt to “swim/run” to safetey. If one is tagged, he/she becomes a shark for the next round. Repeat until one minnow is left. The winning minnow becomes the shark for the next game.
Game 4
Night at the Museum
The pax may only move toward base if the “looker” is turned away. If the lookers turns around and spots you, you are out. The first person to cross into base become the looker the next round.
Game 5
Volleyball
The M bough an oversived, inflatable volleyball and net and we put it use. We split into even teams of kids and dads. Kids have priority for hitting the ball. The net was too narrow for the amound of people, but everyone was a good sport.
Game 6
Water Gun Firing Squad
Kids with water pistols formed a two lines and dads had to run, bear crawl, crab walk and backwards run through the gauntlet. Then dads and kids switched. Some kids were not as enthusiastic about being sprayed.
Game 7
Water gun free-for-all
Everyone got wet!
Moleskine
I love F3 for so many reasons and F3 Dads is among my favorite activities. There is no better way to show leadership than to take time to be with you children. The games are just for fun, but we are teaching good sportsmanship, how to take turns, share and how take instruction and follow rules. We are also getting kids away from TV and tablets and showing them to have fun outside.
About halfway through the workout, a YMCA bootcamp mosey up to our area and proceeded to workout for about 15 minutes. It was pretty annoying because there are plenty of other spots in the vicinity to do what they were doing. If I ever Q and a group is in a spot I planned for, I would adjust and go somewhere else. It’s courtesy.
Tolkien ran Metro’s Goat CSUP earlier in the morning and showed up with no shirt and no kids. (His wife did drop them off soon after his arrival.) By the end of workout, he was lying in the grass and kid’s were lighting him up with water guns. It was funny and sad. (Get some rest!)
Please spread the word of F3 Dads at all your AOs. It was great seeing newbie’s Caboose, Escobar and Erector, plus regular’s Fire Hazard, Soft Pretzel and Voodoo.
It was another picture perfect day for F3’s only Boxing-exclusing AO – Fight Club.
Stations:
P1 – Run
P2 – Kettlebell
P3&4 Gloves/pads
P5/6 Gloves pads
P7/8 Gloves pads
P9 Heavy bag
1:45 rounds
Optional sparring in the Gaga Pit
Wild Turkey v Chipotle
Wild Turkey v Haggis
Haggis v Chipotle
Baggins v Loogie
Wild Turkey v Speedbag
Core Meltdown:
Crunch x 15
LBC x 15
Side crunch R/L x 15
Pistol crunch R/L x 1
Pretzel Crunch R/L x 15
Toe-tap crunch x 15
Chippy cross x 15
Moleskin:
Fight Club/SOB original Haggis was back and though claimed to be rusty, as someone who felt his punches, he’s in fine form
Newcomber Marky Mark was a quick learner and improved his punching power significantly thoughout the morning
Boxing vets Kirby and Speedbag are extremely helpful providing coaching and sharing equipment.
Loogie is not an engineer.
Baggins is not afraid to let loose a flurry of punches before the ring is over
There is no better prep for beach season than the Chipotle ab workout.
You may need a ladder if Icing is holding the pads
Patent Pending has a great sense of humor and a mean hook.
Boxing is an excellent addition to your fitness regimen. Runners can work on arm strength and maintain cardio fitness, lifters/KB guys can use all that power and new guys can build stamina and technique. Today we had a solid mix of rookie and veteran fighters. The station format allows for some to modify drills including shadow boxing and sparring.
5:15 The Clinic
This week we started 15 minutes early to focus on technique. This week the focus was on stance and footwork. A boxer’s punch and defense is defined by his ability to maintain proper form and rhythm. In essence a proper stance allows a boxers to move to minimize being hit and increase the ability to land a solid punch.
Stations:
P1 – Jump rope
P2 – Kettlebell
P3&4 Gloves/pads
P5/6 Gloves pads
P7/8 Gloves pads
P9 Heavy bag
1:45 rounds
3 Cycles
Core Meltdown:
Crunch x 15
LBC x 15
Side crunch R/L x 15
Pistol crunch R/L x 15
Pretzel Crunch R/L x 15
Toe-tap crunch x 15
Chippy cross x 15
Moleskine
Loogie, Chipotle, Speedbag and Tiny Dancer provided extra guidance to newer boxers including punching combinations, stance and defense. It’s great to see Icing, Baggins and Coal Ash all very new to F3 join us at Fight Club. Keep coming back!
Well, here’s something I never thought I’d do – Q Swift. To be honest, I didn’t come up with the plan. That said, I’m glad I had the opportunity. Here was the initial pre-blast http://f3nation.com/2017/05/22/preblast-brixham-green-800s/.
I hate running Brixham green. It’s dark, has a wonky slant, sloppy sprinklers and the turns are too sharp. Also I hate it. Given the opportunity to move the workout to the Bull Ring, with its 800m flat circlular track, I jumped at the chance. (Great minds think alike, because Thin Mint had the same idea.)
At 5 AM many of us exited our dry cars, shed the shirt that would only get soaked and weigh us down and ran the customary 1.3 milie pre-run. After gathering the full crew at 5:15, we departed for the Bull Ring (no complaints about moving the site) and began with the dynamic warm-up.
Tip-toes
Heel walk
High knees
Butt-kickers
B-skips
Progression run to sprint
Main Event
The goal was to maintain I-pace every lap until we ran back at 6:05 to watch the Bappipers do Mary in the puddles.
Moleskine
Can you maintain? After running for a while one learns, it’s mostly mental. If you are in decent shape, your body can run for an hour. However, our minds work hard to persuade us to slowdown and stop. Little aches become exaggerated, thirst is magnified, anxiety about fatigue invades your thoughts. How does one ward off this negative thinking? Running with a friend is my antidote. Running alongside someone else me keep my pace up and takes my mind off any self-defeating thoughts. Today, I ran with Voodoo for all but one lap. We pushed, talked and struggled together. (High fives were exchanged.) Last week, at Devil’s Turn, Cheddar coached me up a hill three more times than I would have done by myself. Countless times, I’ve run along Tuck and he always challeges me. Such is life. If you find yourself “running” alone, stressed, depressed, drinking to much, watching too much TV, staring at your phone, set your alarm, post, run and talk to a friend. Chances are the person next to you needs it as much as you.
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