Monthly Archive December 2018

2018 Base Camp Finale

5 pax arrived for the anticipation of YHC Q and the Base Camp finale of 2018. The plan was to launch at 6:00 after a pre run at 5:30 with communications being made well in advance on Slack and Twitter. When YHC arrived at 5:31 he was coerced into starting early with the expectation we’d check in around 6:00 to see if anyone would be launching then. After a brief yet heartfelt disclaimer we were off mosey on down Strawberry towards Gateway.

COP(All in cadence):
Imperial Walker 20

LSS 10

The Thang:

Instructions were given to run down Strawberry towards the intersection of Rosecliff and Strawberry. Stopping at each speed bump for 5 squats and 5 merkins. Upon reaching the intersection, instructions were given for a triple nickel. At the top of the hill(Strawberry and Rosecliff intersection) perform 10 monkey humpers. At the bottom of the hill(1st neighborhood culdesac at the bottom of Rosecliff) perform 10 Jump Squats. Instructions were to repeat this route 5 times, however due to time constraints everyone got in at least 3 rounds while leaders got in 4 rounds. Quick mosey back to launch to see if anyone was there, one pax was leaving campus as we arrived. YHC fault for listing to the pax to start early, should’ve had them all run a pre run prior to the main event.

Upon arriving at launch, a visit to Semi’s office where we did 2 rounds of peoples chair of 50 air presses and 75 air presses. With time to spare, instructions were given to run the suicide gauntlet of basketball hoops with no exercises in between.

Mary:

LBC: 20 IC
Rosaslitas: 10 IC

Dolly: 10 IC

American Hammer: 10

Protractor until time was called.

Moleskin:

YHC Promised just under 2 miles today, I clocked us in at 2.41 miles leaders probably got in closer to 2.7 today. Tried to keep us all close together and fairly moderate, minus going over little over a half mile we kept that goal in tact. War Eagle was out front most of the work out ready to crush his 5k he has to start off 2019 this weekend, followed closely behind by Carney. Thunder Road and Smash let their work do the talking and absolutely crushed it today. I don’t get to come out to Base Camp or really any site in the week much anymore due to a new teaching job. It was nice to come on out to Base Camp and lead the workout for you all.

Announcements:
-Joe Davis Run March 9th(10 K and 5 K). This will be a huge F3 event, if you can do a boot camp there’s no reason you can’t run this course.

-Come out to Rebel Yell on Thursday’s to support War Eagle

-Thank you Smash for the take out

-Thank you for Goonie and Thunder Road for allowing me to lead today and for continuing to lead a strong AO

-Sound off with any mumble chatter YHC missed

-Have a safe and happy New Year, see you all in the Gloom in 2019

Hoover’s 2018 Backblast

A journey of 1,000 miles begins with 1 step.


I started the year like anyone else, with a vague notion of doing better than the year before. But better at what? I wanted to lose inches off my waist, stop always being the 6, get into the rucking thing. I’m not really sure I remember what I wanted, but I think it was forward momentum. Just not standing still.


And so, 2018 began. I remember training for the Joe Davis 10K run and treating it like it was a big deal. I had run 10 kilometers before, but something about this race was different. Maybe it was a huge F3 presence, or a chance to prove to the F3 pax/myself that I could run that distance at a respectable pace. A sense of accomplishment.


I did it, and then that race was over.


I had a great showing (IMHO), but there I was in the middle of January. The rest of the year ahead of me and it was time to decide on the next goal.
The next goal was a half-marathon, then it was SMR, Pathfinder ruck training, BRR, Go Ruck Events. After each of these, I found myself craving another goal just beyond the horizon. Working for that next CSAUP. After the half-marathon, I was sitting in a diner, ordering healthy food, and thinking about the next thing on my list. My family was happy, and proud, and kept congratulating me, but they were looking at that moment as the accomplished goal. I had already moved on to the next goal.


Maybe it’s because the destination isn’t the goal. The goal is the journey. The destination is just a chance for you to stop, look back and say, “Wow, that was an amazing accomplishment (or not).” Then keep moving forward.So, for 2019 I have more goals. This time the big one is to complete 100 miles a month, rucking or running, participating in a scheduled event or just at a workout. Pathfinder training for class 018 is almost done (a month ahead of schedule) and I’ll start class 019 in February. I’ve already scheduled 2 Go Ruck events and will be signing up again for the Joe Davis 10K.


I have so many people to thank for this, and I wouldn’t be able to remember them all in one sitting. So, here’s a thanks to everyone. Anyone who’s congratulated me, encouraged me, provided an uplifting comment, and even if you’ve thrown some shade my way, thanks. Although this is my journey, it’s not one I make alone.


2018 Achievements

Total Mileage: 1,008.6 miles of rucking or running or (sometimes) both

– First timed 10K (Joe Davis Run for Recovery)

– First ½ marathon (BB&T Corp Cup) – completed with a 30# ruck in under 2:30:00

– Ran #4 spot in the Smoky Mountain Relay, 9-man team, F3 Up ’n Over

– Ran #1 spot in the Blue Ridge Relay, 9-man team, F3 Up ‘n Over

– Crane Relay, Team Clean-Up

– Enrolled in 4 Pathfinder ruck training classes (2 Forward and 2 Endure classes)

– My neighbors (and my family) think I was crazy for walking around the neighborhood at all hours of the day (and night) with a backpack on and doing various exercises in the cul-de-sacs

– Go Ruck Light: Operation Red Wings

– Go Ruck Light: Carolina Ruck Club Battle (1st place team)

– Go Ruck Tough: Thanksgiving

– Go Ruck Light: Santa Ruck 2018

– Completed the Travis Manion 5K under ruck in 3rd place

– Completed the Let Them Soar 5K under ruck w/a track commander

– Q’d 15 F3 workouts across 2 regions

– Countless pre-runs, post-runs, pre-rucks, and post-rucks

If you’re looking for me in 2019, I’ll be that guy in the gloom always looking towards the horizon.

#ItsNotAllAboutThe1stF

Announcements:

  1. F3 Chimbote Peru Mission trip
    1. 2019 travel dates 1/25 to 2/3 and 2/8 to 2/17.  Open to all F3 Nation men.
    1. Contact Tolkien for further information view Slack or Twitter
  • Speed For Need
    • Calendar is being updated with 2019 races.  South Charlotte Region: If you have an event in line with the SFN mission please contact Gypsy view Slack or Twitter.
  • Prayers for multiple pax members as 2018 comes to a close.  Multiple members with surgeries, loved ones needing thoughts and prayers, and personal recoveries.  Reach out a pax you have not seen in while and check in on him today.
  • Thank you Smokey for the amazing take out in COT today. I always appreciate your natural leadership ability to step in and finish a 1st event with guidance and praise.

Disclaimer given.. (Little did I know at this point I was the one that needed to be worried about it)

This bootcamp was designed to help with the understanding that #ItsNotAllAboutThe1stF.

Name-o-Rama

Nothing in the F3 Nation principles that say you can’t start with the Name-O-Rama (Name-O-Rama is not the COT) and quite frankly I think it is a great practice that I witnessed at a Lexington KY Saturday bootcamp.  They started with the Name-O-Rama so that all the pax members know each other’s names before having to partner up… plus there was a cool pain station that played into it as well that we used as well.

Warm-up

BLIMPS OYO (5 Burpees, 10 Lunges, 15 Imperil Walkers, 20 Merkins, 25 Plank Jacks, 30 Squats)

The Thang (F3 Nation Quiz)  #ItsNotAllAboutThe1stF

7 pax catch their breath from the BLIMPS warm up as we mosey over to the bus lot.  Call out the 1st exercise but 1st YHC starts with the 1st question of the day.

Horeshead:  “We just had Name-o-Rama…. What is the 1st name of all pax here today?”  Needless to say we had no one named Larry, Curly, Moe, or Squirrel.   So it was time to perform a BLIMPS

Partner up:

Round 1: As partner 1 ran around the bus lot, Partner 2 had dips.  Flap Jack

Second question: (1 pax randomly draws question from a stack):  What is the Mission of Speed For Need?

“to raise awareness and foster inclusion of those with a special need through participation in fitness events supported by the men of F3 Nation.” He got it so we got out of BLIMPS and gave 20 Merkins to SFN instead.

Round 2: As partner 1 ran around the bus lot, Partner 2 had step ups on Brick benches.  Flap Jack

Third question: (1 pax randomly draws question from a stack): What is the F3 Mission trip scheduled to leave in January:  Chimbote Peru.  Yup.. Missed it.  Another BLIMP

Round 3: As partner 1 ran around the bus lot, Partner 2 had LBCs.  Flap Jack

Lets Mosey: Over to Shiloh Elementary school bus lot.  Mumble Chatter starts as soon as YHC favorite coupon comes into view.  25ft 5in supply line fire hose…50 lbs of dead weight to be used as the timer.

Gypsy rock

Everyone grab a rock from the pile and line up.  Pax one grabs the hose and drags it to specified location and back.  (much harder than it sounds)  While the remaining pax performs a called exercise.  Upon return with hose, all pax shift down one rock as the timer calls out next exercise.  Continue until all pax have had a turn as timer.

Question 4: (1 pax randomly draws question from a stack): What is the F3 Mission? Can’t recall what the response was… but the result was BLIMPS as we read out loud the actual Mission:… to plant, grow and serve small workout groups for men for the invigoration of male community leadership.

Round 2 of Gypsy Rock with a twist.  YHC all but passes out (Cold sweats, dizzy, cant hear) and can’t remember what happens for the best part of 5 to 10 mins .. When I get my wits back I am doing flutters with Horsehead calling them out in cadence.  Sorry guys.. but thanks for sticking it out with me there.. Okay.. Now that is over let’s get away from what every just kicked me in the gut.

Question 5: (1 pax randomly draws question from a stack):  What is F3 Disaster Ops?  YUP… another round of BLIMPS after the mission is read out loud:  “F3 Disaster Operations helping F3 Regions B/4, During & After Disaster”

Ladder 7s

Lets Mosey back to launch location: With enough time for some long distance 7s, there was Bomb-Jacks at one end and Merkins at the other.  But before we started….

Question 6: (1 pax randomly draws question from a stack) What is the Credo of F3?  Nope.. not Free to Lead.. Great another round of BLIMPS after the Credo is read out loud.. (to be fair, I had not expected to do this many BLIMPS) Leave no man behind, but leave no man where you find him. 

Okay.. Knock out Ladder 7s and we still have time for another question.

Question 7:  (Answered as a PAX)  What are 5 Principles of F3?

  • Are free of charge
  • Are open to all men
  • Are held outdoors, rain or shine, heat or cold
  • Are led by men who participate in the workout in a rotating fashion, with no training or certification necessary
  • End with a Circle of Trust

3 Mins of Mary

Flutters, LBC, American Hammer

COT

MoleSkin:

Solid pax as always and serious T-claps for Boonedock as he killed it on the Firehose.  I think that 2.0 is maybe 100 lbs soaking wet and smoked that one.  YHC made the mistake of saying before it started that we may need to modify for him.  Wow was I wrong… YHC needed the modify instead.

I love seeing all the PAX across the nation in the Gloom..  but I love even more to see the in the 2nd and 3rd Fs.  The beat downs are solid.. But F3 is more than just a beat down if you allow yourself to experience it.  Do yourself a favor and check out the various social media sites and get connected into more of what F3 is about.  The reward of finishing a crazy boot camp is 10 times greater when you know you did it with guys that are there for you (and you there for them) at more than just a partner DORA.. 

v/r

Gypsy

A Soaking Wet Leap Frog Game

18 Pax came out in nasty conditions to get one final end of year calorie burn in. I had offered the night before to potentially keep us dry if it rained. Unfortunately for the pax, when I arrived it was barely a mist which gave me all I needed to do the full workout. Of course less than 5 minutes in, the sky’s opened up and continued with mixes of drizzle to light rain the rest of the workout.

I had hinted on GroupMe that if the rain held off, I wanted to get in a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workout. Basically its moving fast with periods of rest in between. When I’m on the treadmill at the gym I typical incorporate some or all of HIIT into my treadmill workouts with some variation of 45 to 60 sec sprint (7.5 to 8 mph) and 15 to 20 sec off (jump on rails to rest). I was hoping to incorporate a similar workout in but with the added benefit of body weight exercises.

Several pax were there early. Thanks to Foundation for the Chiseled sand bag donation. Ignition came strolling through the parking lot at 6:25. Was this going to be a convergence that I wasn’t aware of? No, they were just dropping off Dead Weight Wood (THIS IS A JOKE. MAKING SURE SOME OF YOU REALIZE THIS IS A JOKE SINCE RECENTLY FEELINGS (NOT DEADWOOD’s) WERE HURT – PANSIES).

Posse gave an impassioned speech about safety that was so moving, he couldn’t continue on with the workout. In all seriousness, it was a good message to have at least one cell phone with us at all times, Q’s to give a proper disclaimer, Q’s to notify pax ahead of workout of potential hazards they might face and how to minimize risks (for example: we are crossing the road, please keep an eye out for cars and make sure head lamps are turned on).

Posse was 4 minutes into what appeared to be a 10 minute speech and my clock said 6:30. I was getting worried and anxious. I think Posse saw the strife on my face and decided to cut it short. Foundation returned from his car with a phone strapped on. Disclaimer given. Quick mention of HIIT and how all mosey’s need to be at a faster pace (3/4 speed and minimum). And away we go.

WARM UP

Run around the parking lot to the middle school. Circle up and partner up. Picking late arriving pax up along the way.

25 SSH’s – Picked up an additional 2 pax here.

25 civilian count merkins.

Warm up over, lets do some work. Mosey to road that connects middle and high schools (right in front of middle school.

THE THANG

Leap Frog? No real name for what we did today, but leap frog sounds as good as any. Partner one lunge walks. Partner 2 runs to first light then starts lunge walking. Once partner 2 reaches light, partner 1 stops lunge walking and sprints past his partner to the second light where he then starts lunge walking again. Repeat until all pax were at the end of the road (approximately 12 lights). This was successful in getting the heart rate up.

Toe taps while waiting on the 6. 10 count by zin who decided it would be cute of him to count down as fast as he could. I imagine the 6 had words for him, but ok…lets go.

Mosey down the hill towards the parking lot near the football stadium. Meet at center light pole.

Deconstructed Burpees Starfish? Square? Degeneration X? Some kind of shape. Start with 1 burpee at the center pole. Run to one corner for 25 squats. Run back to pole for 2 burpees. Run to another corner for 25 Merkins. Run back to pole for 3 burpees. Run to 3rd corner for 25 in and outs (some had trouble with this and since Q didn’t explain, potential Q fail here, though Foundation bailed me out saying I gave proper explanation). Run back to center pole for 4 burpees then 4th corner for 25 bobby hurley’s. Finish up with 5 burpees at the center pole. Not going to lie….that one wore me out. Asked for another 10 count. But better speed. Mosey to the bottom of….are we calling it Money Ball hill? Really???

Run to top of hill for 50 merkins at top and 50 carolina dry docks at the bottom. Split the reps up how ever you want as long as you get 50 total in 3 rounds. (I did 20, 15, 15). Some (Deadwood), found that it was better to do all 50 at once and just run the rest of the time. Honestly hadn’t planned on that kind of push so I did the only thing I knew to do when he asked what he should do….keep running and keep doing exercises until the 6 is in….that’s what you get for over achieving.

Asked pax to recover at the bottom of the hill. We arrived just in time to see Ignition approaching from the south. I suggested our next exercise was to grab arms and run full speed at them red rover style. None of the other pax were up for it. So instead we went for another round of leap frog, except this time with squats instead of lunges. The lack of solid markers (trees vs light poles) made for difficult start and stopping points, but the pax settled in and got it done.

Back at the main road that connects the middle and high school we leap froged again. This time with the exercise being inch worms. I asked running pax to call out their partners name when the reached the light so inch worm pax could keep their head down and focus on grinding out some reps. Abs were pretty sore by the end. Looked up to find about half the group marrying. I didn’t want ab work for mary today (in case you couldn’t tell) as it would get the heart rate lower than I wanted it to. I yelled a couple times for the pax to circle back for the 6. Either they didn’t hear me, or decided to Q jack me. Oh well….heart rates too low, lets go running up the road towards the entrance of the middle school to get the blood pumping again. Half way up the hill that was much longer than I thought, I audibles and asked for another 10 count. Zinfandel just happened to be the closest and wouldn’t you know it….that son of a gun did a speed count even faster than his first one. At this point I had to hold off the clydesdales from coming after him with a pillow case full of batteries. I leaned on Dana for a better ten count in which he just kept repeating TEYUN, TEYUN, ten times. It was better than Zin’s counting so I guess I can’t complain.

Called for an all you got jail break back to the bottom of the hill. We did 50 tee clamps while we caught our breath. Around 35 my shoulders were burning and based on the mumble chatter, I wasn’t the only one hurting. Watch check: 4 minutes left. Run the parking lot loop with half speed for half of it and full speed for the other half. Turned the corner only to see Rudy speeding past me. Love the push lately. Not sure if its a mindset change, just better shape, or extra propellant from his famous merlot and taco truck date nights (his poor wife).

2 minutes left. Asked pax to do ab work while I grabbed my phone. Rain on the car door made inputting the code into the touch screen keypad a little trickier so by the time I got back to the circle the pax were finishing abs and Ignition was huffing and puffing in. 6:15 – Time.

MOLESKIN

Thanks to those that attended Flash today. Working out in the rain sucks (hey, at least it wasn’t bitterly cold!). The rain held off just long enough to where I could blame that were were too far out and too wet to turn back for cover…but who am I kidding, I wouldn’t have let halfback have that on me that they worked out in the rain and we didn’t….we were doing this HIIT workout outside even if it was raining sideways.

I had 2.96 miles and 717 calories. One of the high burn 45 minute workouts I’ve done I’m sure the guys up front pushed over the 3 mile mark.

Welcome to our new FNG KaBoom. I didn’t catch all the details, but from what I remember he works with explosives in the army. He is Rockwells nephew. Rockwell was given the chance to name him and wisely said that he didn’t wan to piss anyone off that works with bombs. Good call Rockwell. Had a few other names come up but we settled on KaBoom. Welcome and good push today.

Hollywood brought out his duck taped 50 lb sand back. Said it was wrapped in 4 rolls of duck tape and could handle a slam. Yikes, it was heavy. Perhaps a Chiseled gear addition in the future. I will put Banjo in charge of the duck tape.

Deadwood, Banjo, and KaBoom led the charge today. Great work out of them. Rockwell was up front a lot today as well.

The 6 stayed close. Great push from my Clydesdale brethren today. A lot of running (probably more than you were expecting out of me), but yall hung tough.

Too many pax to call everyone out, but good to see Reaper out again. Honey Comb becoming a regular (bout time to Q). Akbar working hard. Zin and Dana still out in front of me. Love seeing the father son duo out in Rubbermaid and Tupperware (grow a pair and ask her out).

I’m not sure how the Flash/Ignition back blast works, so I just included Ignition in here. Halfback led ignition with Hollywood, Goodfella, and Stub Hub in tow. They ran a lot, got wet, and arrived to COT in time. The end.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Watchtower is holiday hours tomorrow. 6:30 Brooklyn pizza with Chick-Fil-A Coffeteria afterwards (Thank god its not Dunkin).

Big convergence also happening at Freedom Park. I don’t know the details but I’m sure one of the OG’s on GroupMe can hook you up with details.

Reminder from Goodfella about Posse’s message this morning. Safety is on all of us.

Rock Hill CPR postponed.

F3 South Charlotte Resolutions

Men of South Charlotte, Area 51, SOB and Union County.  

2019 marks the 9th year or F3’s existence and many of the originals in this region have been a part of F3 for 7+ years.  During this time, we have seen a lot of growth and now this region hosts 50+ scheduled workouts a week, 7 3rd F groups, and many off the books running and rucking opportunities.  Like many of you, we will likely never be able to give back to F3 as much as it has given to us over the past 5 years in terms of all 3 F’s.  

As we move into a new year, we would like to encourage your continued efforts to fulfill our mission to plant, grow, and serve small workout groups for men for the invigoration of male community leadership.  This mission remains our cornerstone from the newest FNG among us to the longest tenured PAX in the Region.  

To that end, and as you reflect on last year and make goals for next year, we would ask you to develop your leadership further within F3.  Here is where we need you to pitch in for us to continue to be successful.

  • Attend workouts: yes, even in the cold winter months.  Don’t hibernate, get yourself some cold weather gear and come out.  The right gear and a 30 degree morning feels great during the workout.  

  • Q workouts:  If you attend workouts you need to pitch in and help.  A good barometer is that you should be Q’ing at least once per quarter for each day you attend during a week.  If you normally post 3 days a week, then you should be looking to get on the Q calendar at least 3 times each quarter. New guys get about a 3 month pass before having to jump in and Q.

    Additionally, please remember that the challenge of a tough F3 workout is what brings much of the energy that keeps guys coming back. While “never leave a man behind” is always number 1 on your list, “never leave a man where you found him” is part of that same F3 credo and requires that we foster growth by pushing men out of their comfort zones and encouraging them to work a little harder than they think they can. Plan your Qs accordingly and ask for feedback after.

  • Add variety:  Set some goals to hit new or different workouts than you normally do.  Meet new guys or reconnect with ones you haven’t seen in a while.  And guess what, there will be some extra KB’s lying around at a gear workout if you don’t have one.  If you’re not normally a runner, come out, someone will stay back with you to provide encouragement.  No man left behind.  

  • Site Q an AO:  It’s not that hard or scary to set up and schedule some weekly Q’s for a workout.  Most of the Site Q’s set up quarterly to semi-annual lists so you don’t have to work it that often.  Also, just because you have site Q’ed before doesn’t mean you are off the hook forever.  We need your help to encourage new Site Q’s growth and to maintain the site.  50+ workouts require 100+ Site Q’s and we just don’t generate enough new guys to only expect them to pitch in.  If you’re a long time veteran and haven’t been a site Q in more than a year, please consider jumping back in to help a guy who may be getting burnt out after a year or two at an AO.  

  • Attend a 2nd or 3rd F Event:  Honestly, all of you can spare a morning here or there to be 45 minutes later to work than normal and you will be amazed at just how much further F3 can reach into your lives beyond getting you in shape.

  • Start something:  Even without permission.  If you see an opportunity to accelerate 1st, 2nd, or 3rd F then jump on it.  Maybe pick another man to help.  It doesn’t take much to create a one off 2nd F Happy Hour, F3 Dads event, a community service activity or lead a new CSAUP opportunity.  

Bottom line, please pick a couple of these bullets and put them on your list for 2019 to improve your leadership in your F3 region.  This doesn’t work without everyone leading their part.

Here’s to 2019 Men.

Alf & Thin Mint

SYITG

Back and forth, up and down and around and around

A sweltering 50+ degrees in December, brought out the pax and our resident Canadian, Strange Brew, went shirtless.

Warm-Up
10 merkins
15 Side-straddle hops
8 merkins
15 Imperial Walkers
6 merkins
10 low-slow squats
4 merkins
15 mountain climbers
2 merkins

R1 Back and Forth
10 rounds of traveling across the parking lot in various modes of locomotion and then completing Carolina Dry Docks.
We ran forward, backward, sideways. We broad jumped, lunged, duck walked, bear crawled and crab walked.

R2 Up and Down
We departed the parking lot and headed for Brixham Hill. Along the way, we stopped for 5 squats at each streetlight. Once we got to the base of the hill, we ran Native American style to Ballantyne CC. On the way down, we stopped for alternating calf raises and Bobby Hurleys.

R3 Around and Around
Climb Duckworth Wall and then start with 1 burpee, 2 merkins and 3 heels to heaven. Repeat and add a multiple of 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Keep going until we are out of time. By the end lots of guys were moaning on the ground or trying to catch their breath.

Moleskin
Mission accomplished. We managed to stay together for 3+ miles and squished in a healthy dose of bootcamp beatdown.

I missed, literally and figuratively, last week. It was great seeing the regulars Billygoat, Happy Meal, Shrinkwrap, Loogie and semi-regulars Kirby, Buckeye, Snowflake and Fire Hazard. Keep coming out and keep supporting each other.





Balls, Balls, and more Balls….

I am ghost writing this back blast for Bottle Cap since he is traveling and I have time to kill before football starts.

19 men showed up even after a warning from Bottle Cap that Slam Balls would be used. Several Pax jumped on a deal bandwagon to grab $10 $26 20 lb slam balls from Hibbet Sports. In total, there were 7 balls at today’s workout. I brought 4, Bottle cap brought his 15 lb ball, and he stopped by Five stones early to grab the two that were there. Bottle Cap thought I pulled a “fuse” and gave him the wrong code to the F3 gear box at Five Stones, but alas he was able to get in to grab the two remaining balls.

WARM UP

Teams of 4 grab one ball then mosey to the baseball circle.

20 SSH

10 Imperial Squawkers

20 Slow Count Merkins (with a call out in my direction from BC)

5 Reverse Burpees (candle stick to some, but I like reverse burpee better). Squat down into a heels to heaven then get back up on to your feet for the jump up. (I found my forearms to hurt the worst from these as I was using my arms/hands to help “pop” back up.)

THE THANG

Indian Run Slam Ball Burpee. Person in the back takes the slam ball and runs to the front. Drops slam ball and person in back does a burpee, grabs slam ball and runs to the front. This was incredibly difficult to grasp for some (including the crew I was with). It turned into the fastest person grabbing the ball and us all running to catch up with the lead group. Indian run to the school parking lot.

The Beast – 6 trees, 6 reps. Each partner takes turns carrying the ball.

Knee Ups (sucks when you are recovering from a back injury). Marry for 6

Dolly’s 10 count 4 times. Each partner had a turn holding the slam ball.

Reverse Burpees. (you thought they sucked we we did five of them, wait until you do 6 of them 6 times!). Shoulder taps waiting for the 6.

Bomb Jacks. Back pocket plank waiting on 6.

Indian Run Slam Ball Burpee Run back to cars…no wait…keep going…all the way to the club house (Slamming brand new balls in wet muddy gravel???!! Really BC???)

Mary for the 6…which was awhile, because as mentioned earlier….lots of groups either don’t understand the concept of an Indian run, or just like being dicks to the people trying to run to the front and continue in a full sprint.

The Beast round 2. 6 reps, 6 islands. Each partner takes turns carrying the ball.

Merkin Shredder – Hand release merkins with a shoulder tap. (I’ve heard for a week now how bad these were, but didn’t find them to be that horrible. Perhaps they did a lot more of them in Transporters workout.) Curb plank jacks waiting for 6

Flutters. 10 reps, 4 rounds, each pax holding the ball once. For whatever reason, my team decided to take forever to get to the ground. We never quite learned that it would be easier for a guy on the far end to start and just pass in one direction. Some how a guy in the middle always started. I blame Blue Screen and Xerox, they are the oldest wisest of the bunch and should have kept us straight.

Bomb Jacks with bunny hops in between. Lets be honest – bunny hops sucks. Makes us all look like idiots. I didn’t do any of these until the last island. I used carrying the ball as an excuse, but I really didn’t want to do bunny hops. Unfortunately, Blue Screen caught up with me and asked for the ball the last island so I was forced to hop…like an idiot. Curb Peter Parkers waiting on 6.

WWII (Big Boy) Sit ups. 10 count, 4 rounds, each partner holds ball for a round.

Indian Run Slam Ball Burpee back to start. Plank movements waiting on 6.

3 team members squat in a circle and pass the ball while 4th team member runs to light and back. Rotate out until all have run. I was last to go and met up with Rudy. Both of us were confused about which light to run to (first or second). Since we appeared to be the only ones still running I decided it would be first. I challenged Rudy to race me and was not quite prepared for how quick Rudy ratcheted up the speed. I turned on the burners but it wasn’t enough. Nice push Rudy.

Circle up. One at a time give a one word goal for the year and a brief description of why. Words like leadership, work, courage, better, wife, nice, and organized were use. After a word is said and explained, the group does a merkin. Briefly interrupted by a car, but quickly back on track.

Jail Break back to start. Again, I find Rudy near me. Another Race? Yup, lets go. Rudy sprang to an early lead, but faded towards the end just enough to allow me to pass. Again, good push.

Circle up and count em off.

MOLESKIN

From Bottle Cap: We are a great group of guys, but we are also a group of guys in need. As evident (BC typed evidence) by some of the words during the new year merkin circle, each of us needs help. Lets build each other up and hold each other accountable in 2019. Happy New Year Fella’s.

Good to see Blue Screen and Eli Back

Squirts made another appearance

Hate to see Mad Dog not out there (Prayers for you my friend)

Rubbermaid with a strong 2.0 showing in Tupperware and Ziploc

From Fuse Box: A nice change of pace today with the slam balls.

Some recent new faces and some pax that have had extended absences. Keep coming out.

Squirts hates his name as much as Southern Belle but has already caught wind that a name change likely means a worse name.

Good push by Rudy today. If you’re near me during a jail break – fair warning, I like to race to make myself push harder.

Good discussion at Coffeteria today. Zinfandel taught those with Crapples how to use the space bar to zoom in on the exact place to delete or add letters. Also found out that Dunkin charges for tea refills (REALLY???!!!) I continue to be baffled that pax choose that place for coffeteria.

The usual’s were at the front of the pack today (Posse, Dana, Rudy, and myself) while the habitual slackers were the consistent 6 (Bottle Cap, Dasher, Goodfella, and Deadwood). Come on guys, you really have to step it up and work harder out there.

Thoughts and prayers with Mad Dog as he words to get his puny, Grinch sized heart fixed.

A call to action for all pax. Its the time of year for resolutions. I am blessed that for my second year in a row since joining F3, losing weight is not my resolution (I’m pretty sure for the previous 20 years it was). That being said, a lot of guys have losing weight on the list. Now is a good time to reach out to friends, family, and/or neighbors to invite them out.

Christmas Eve

Five men met in the 530 gloom on Christmas Eve for a little cheer! All were disclaimed and we took a mosey around the parking lot.

COP – IW, SSH, LSS x 15

Wheel of Merkin on the raised sidewalk x10 in each of the 4 directions.

Mosey to the track for some 4 corners work. Lap 1 was 10 merkins at each corner. Lap 2 was drydocks x 10. Lap 3 was LSS x 10 and Lap 4 was lunge x 10 each leg.

Next stop was top of the hill and we all acquired a lifting rock for curls, triceps and overhead press x 10 each. Next we ran to the bottom of the hill for dips and pull ups x 10 each. This circuit was repeated x 4.

We grabbed some wall and did air presses.

We proceeded to the parking lot and lined up. The first man called a core exercise and ran to the far light pole while the other men performed the exercise. I believe we did LBCs, Flutter, Rosalita, Freddy Mercury, American Hammer.

We finished up with suicide sprints to each of the 4 baseketball goals.

More like….Conver-Audible-Hot-Route-Utah-gence….am I right

35 men joined yours truly for what would turn into one of the biggest clusters this side of Union County. I did have a solid Weinke planned today (I did Zin) but underestimated the number of PAX that would show.

Tons of gloom outside but no rain so I was ready to get it. Q Juice at 11 and it was time to rock. 

Disclaimer Given… I doubt half the guys heard it.

THE THANG:

Mosey to First Watch – Big gap between front and back Pax. This was when I realized things were about to get hard. Missed the left turn to First Watch which was sad considering myself and Chainsaw cruised around for tenyyyn minutes prior.

Anyways lets circle up:

50 SSH IC

20 Merkins CC

20 Potato Picker IC

10 – 6″ plank jack IC

Plank – Calf Stretch Left over right, flap jack

Let’s mosey – The initial plan was to do 150 supines (sets of 25) and run around the building, half way around hit 50 squats – until all were completed. However it seemed a few were afraid to get a bit wet. I wasn’t sure how anyone would get wet during a supine but I’m used to the mouths during all of my Qs. Then mumble chatter about being able to get out of the actual space for the lap and….. AUDIBLE #1

Everyone knows my love of running so I shot out of a cannon due to the Q juice coursing through my veins.

Mosey to Traffic circle and the group was pretty spaced out by this point. Mountain climbers waiting on the 6. Thought I would be able to get the train back on the track at this point but things deteriorated a bit more. I attempted:

First traffic circle 5 merkins

First road to left (turns out the first “road” was an entrance not a road) 20 speed skaters each leg. Done properly this exercise will destroy the glutes.

Next road 10 burpees, maybe I said 5?

Second traffic circle 30 squats

Rinse/repeat 4x’s

The mumble chatter from the guys I didn’t really know by this point was not the typical banter. It was legit bitching and complaining. One guy said, “yes I heard you!” and another said “who picked this guys to lead?” #priceless

I had the idea to increase the number of reps after each round hoping the PAX would shut up reduce mumble chatter but it just got more confusing because of how spaced out everyone was. Regardless by round 2 we just kept it moving and powered through rounds 3 & 4. 

Finally for the love of all things holy, 4 rounds were complete. Some form of planking yoga was completed while waiting on the 6. I spaced out for 10 seconds and awoke to everyone yelling, “7 minutes left DW!” Damn it. 

Mosey to parking deck. I could feel several of the SOB guys light up as we approached the safe haven from the wet asphalt. It was scary out there….

Run to the top of the deck and do 5 burpees… twice. Alf made a great point by saying we didn’t have enough time to complete 2 rounds… he was right. One round complete…recover.

Head back to COT…watch out for the puddles, I would hate for anyone to get their feet wet. (Moneyball was working vicariously through the PAX today). 

MOLESKIN:

Welcome Speedo to the group…as for everyone else I hate you. I’m mostly kidding. I’d be lying if I told you that I wasn’t just completely overwhelmed with the sheer number of PAXs there today. I had specific plans for the morning but all of that was thrown out the window when several people complained about getting moist during supines. Weak!!

Hell of a showing from my brothers in WUC, I appreciate you. Also you all probably saved me from a potential mutiny at different times with wise cracks and complaints suggestions. While we saw some confusion, that workout should have still kicked everyone’s tails. If you put the effort in you burned over 800 calories.

Any PAX in SOB or WUC that has not Qed and post often…its time to step up and see what you’re made of! It ain’t easy and sometimes down right awful…but it makes for a learning experience. We are all in this together. 

See you all at my next Q, I think I have 13 in January alone. Lots of learning to be done. 

Announcements:

Q Source 6:30-7 on Thursdays at Egg Up Grill – See Alf for details of www.f3nation.com













An F3 workout at NIGHT?!?! Believe it!

A world record 4 PAX showed up for #ClyentDinner, the only best nighttime workout in Western Union. With the new time (5:30-6:15pm) and location (Cuthbertson Middle), the hashtag was trending throughout the day on GroupMe.

MODE OF TRANSPORTATION FOR ENTIRE WORKOUT:

  • Grab the 15lb SlamBall and start the Burpee Indian Slamball Run (BISR)
  • Last PAX does a Burpee, grabs the SlamBall, runs to front of line
  • Once at Front of line, he drops the SlamBall
  • Last PAX does a Burpee, grabs the Slamball, runs to front of line
  • Repeato until we get to each workout location

APPETIZER:

  • Burpee Indian Slamball Run (BISR) to High School baseball field
  • SSH x 15
  • Peter Parker x 10
  • Mosey to hill on backside of track in right field of baseball field

MAIN COURSE:

  • “Escalator” on hill (1 PAX carries SlamBall up and down, Rotate each time)
    • 40 Jump Squats, 4 x up and down hill
    • 30 Jump Squats, 3 x up and down hill
    • 20 Jump Squats, 2 x up and down hill
    • 10 Jump Squats, 1 x up and down hill
  • Mosey to WELL LIT football practice field for Ab work
    • 10x Flutters with arms over head
    • Rotate PAX holding SlamBall
  • Partner work
    • P1/P2 runs to other side of field; does 5 high 5 merkins
    • P3/P4 does SlamBall side toss on knees
    • Flapjack x 3; 2 side tosses and 1 WW2 weighted situps
  • BISR to high school parking lot
    • 4 corners to light poles
      • 20 Dry Docks at each
      • 1 PAX brings SlamBall each leg; Rotate
      • Meet back in middle for plank shoulder taps; 10 IC once 6 arrives
    • Ab work
      • 10x Rosalitas with arms over head
      • Rotate PAX throwing SlamBall in air x 4
  • BISR to parking lot gates
    • Supines
      • 10x with SlamBall between legs
      • Rotate PAX x 4
  • BISR to front of high school
    • Timer: P1 Frog Jump with SlamBall 40 yards-ish
      • P2, P3, P4: Derkins, Dips, Box Jumps
      • Rotate
    • Ab work
      • 10x with SlamBall on top of shins
      • Rotate PAX x 4
  • BISR to Middle School parking lot
    • 4 lightpole sprints
    • Rotate PAX carrying SlamBall

DESSERT:

  • Quick announcements about Waxhaw Service Project and Cerberus convergence start time/location (6:00am at Waverly)
  • Happy Hour at Queens South followed; 3 PAX for a couple beers . . . With a photobomb from Lt. Rubbermaid
  • YHC took us out with a prayer of thanks for 2018 and a request for F3 to reach more Sad Clowns in 2019. Keep your eyes open to invite others
  • ClyentDinner will continue to meet Thursday nights 5:30-6:15pm at Cuthbertson Middle; please invite those who give horribly lame excuses about not being able to post in the mornings