Author Archive Ackbar

Dreaming Up a Workout…literally

When I lead Q, I am a nervous wreck and sleep like crap, every time. Same when I preach on Sundays, I’m a nervous wreck and sleep like crap. And with nerves, I tend to dream about the Q I planned, or the sermon I’m going to preach. Homer Simpson Dreaming GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY This time my dream altered my plan, somewhat. So on a stupid hot morning, with 5 other gents, it was time to rock. Al Bundy Lets Rock GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

Warm Up

  • Mosey from Brooklyn Pizza. We took an extra lap around the roundabout beside Chickfila to celebrate the new roundabout in front of New Town Rd. Truly, it’s a miracle (random aside, 1st time I saw it open, I went around it multiple times, just because I could!) Round About GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Moseyed on to Target.
  • 30 SSH
  • 15 Imperial Walkers At At GIFs | Tenor
  • 20 Merkins
  • 20 Mt Climbers
  • Tater Pickers to Stretch (and Swimmers raised a complaint, where are Damascus’s beloved calf stretches?! Patience!) Stretching GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Calf Stretches.

The Thang

  • Ran to the neighborhood to the top of the hill on the right.
  • 20 Big Boy Sit-ups at the top of the hill, 10 Shoulder Tap Merkins (was going to be 20, audible was called), 3 rounds for each. Everyone loves audibles. Audible GIF - Audible - Discover & Share GIFs
  • And…every time we passed the entrance with the hill, 6 merkins every time. That was my dream, I had planned for only 3, but dreamed someone complaining that 3 was too few, so it was 6. The Simpson Dream GIF - The Simpson Dream Day Dream - Discover & Share GIFs
  • Returned to the hill entrance. Top of the hill, 20 Carolina Dry Docks, at the bottom of the hill, 20 Squats. 3 rounds each. More fun! Career Lessons from Star Wars: May the Fourth Be With You (GIFs Aplenty!)
  • Bluescreen bragged, “I could do a hundred of these things!” So as we returned to the top of the hill, 50 more Carolina Dry Docks in honor of Bluescreen’s suggestion. New trending GIF online: movie, star wars, episode 4, harrison ford, han solo, a new hope, episode iv, star wars a new hope, dont everybody thank me at once
  • Moseyed to Pet Smart parking lot. Time for a (Death) Star Fish! 3 Burpees in the center, the 4 corners consisted of 20 Merkins, 20 Dips, 20 Heels to Heaven, and 20 Freddie Mercuries. Fan Movie Watch — The iconic Death Star trench run gets a...
  • Almost time, so we took a leisurely jog to the start…- JAILBREAK to the start. And time!

Moleskin

  • Everyone worked their tails off, some wore headlamps, and were “mostly” quiet in the neighborhood.  Rogue One Cassian Andor GIF - Rogue One Cassian Andor K2so - Discover & Share GIFs

Announcements

  • FuseBox led Q Source, is F3 truly welcoming, and why or why not (sorry I couldn’t stay, 1st day of school)
  • Many prayer requests were lifted. Prayers for Loafer’s son with an ear injury. Also Covid is effecting a lot of our F3 brothers and their families. . Stay safe, keep each other safe, and if you can, lend a helping hand to those who are ill. Speaking from my own experience being sick with Covid last December, it was pure hell (and yes, I felt like Han, seen here: YARN | Shh. You have hibernation sickness. | Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) | Video gifs by quotes | ffdaa838 | 紗, and the well wishes, prayers, groceries and meals from my F3 brothers made a real difference. Be the difference, let’s show how awesome our F3 Brotherhood can be! Star Wars Anakin Skywalker GIF - Star Wars Anakin Skywalker Obi Wan Kenobi - Discover & Share GIFs

May the Force be with you!

Mandalorian GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

Copy and Paste, & A– at Impromptu

Today at Impromptu we looked forward to a fellow F3 brother to lead Q…and it’s 5:28, 5:29…. I hadn’t planned on Qing, but I am Site Q, I just Qed on Monday, we can copy and paste some. So let’s do it! Now I’m going back to my previous backblast to copy and paste some!

  • 50 Side Straddle Hops (25 or 30 is way too few)
  • 15 Imperial Walkers  Top 30 Star Wars Atat GIFs | Find the best GIF on Gfycat
  • 20 Mountain Climbers
  • 20 Merkins
  • I told you I was going to copy and paste! Best Copy And Paste GIFs | Gfycat
  • And a good long stretch including the beloved calf stretches (well done FuseBox on channeling the spirit of Damascus). I also added some yoga, because yoga is fun!  The Simpsons Gifs

The Thang

  • Mosey back to the start. For the long journey to Transporter’s/Ruby’s/Breadbowl’s Shed, 3 burpees at every light.
  • At the shed, grab some wall. 50 Airpresses followed by 10 Donkey Kicks and 5 Derkins (ShopDog who was at Asylum caught on the copy-paste. He’s right). Copy Paste GIFs | Tenor
  • Mosey up to the sidewalk headed up the hill toward the Football field. Based on feedback, 20 Monkey Humpers. Because Monkey Humpers are fun. Funny Monkey GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Top of the hill with the circle island. 10 Bobby Hurleys, mosey down the hill to the other side, 10 Mike Tysons. 3 rounds. UGH! Mike Tyson GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • That was fun! Mosey to the benches.
  • 30 Dips, Bearcrawl around one turn of the triangle island, 20 Step Ups. 3 rounds. Chewbacca GIFs | Tenor
  • Mosey back to the bottom of the hill. 20 Monkey Humpers. Kowakian Monkey Lizard GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Back to the TRB Shed. 50 Airpresses, 7 Donkey Kicks, 1 Derkin.
  • Mosey up the hill to the start. We did a couple of burpees, but ran out of time, so mosey back to the start.
  • And we are done! Star Wars: The Force Awakens' ending is the only part that doesn't feel  like Star Wars.

Moleskin

  • Thanks for letting me Q today and for not giving me too much grief on where I copy and pasted (Yes ShopDog, it did feel familiar didn’t it). My thoughts, if it’s good and painful, let’s do it again!
  • I was challenged by many gazelles today, especially Schnitzel, Swimmers, ShopDog, our FNG, & Chernobyl! Rock on guys! Light Speed GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • My instructions on the Bearcrawl were poor, sorry, led to a bit of a cross-traffic jam. As Swarm passed me he gave me a well deserved shove. I tried to return the shove…and made contact with the gluteus maximus. 11x01 homer simpson GIF - Find on GIFER
  • And it got worse. For the 2nd round of Monkey Humpers I suggested we make a good show of it. Trying to keep it light and funny. Swimmers took my instructions literally…Monkey Humper to my face. Well we are at the middle school… Stupid Sexy Skinners | The Simpsons | Know Your Meme
  • Definitely too much a– today. I am not a butt - GIF on Imgur
  • Welcome to our FNG! I can’t remember his hospital name; he’s originally from Ethiopia, is a business owner of gas stations, has kids at Cuthberson High and NC State. And a spirited debate regarding his name began. Ice9 suggested Falcon, O69 suggested Pumper. Well this is a dictatorship…Falcon sounds cool, reminds me of a spaceship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs, so Falcon it is! Millenium Falcon GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

Announcements

  • Blood Drive at 5 Stones on June 19th. Plenty of registrations available. Sign up!
  • Swimmers reminded us of a father-son F3 camp shindig coming up in August, a Friday – Sunday.

Respectfully submitted, Ackbar Admiral Ackbar May The Force Be With Us GIF - AdmiralAckbar MayTheForceBeWithUs StarWars - Discover & Share GIFs

A Grungy Asylum

Oh how I love GroupMe…when I see I have a message from 2 months ago I never read. Sorry Swimmers. accident oops GIF-downsized_large - Explore Drinks

He asked me to Q last month…so I took a rain-check for today! And I even set my alarm a few minutes earlier so I wouldn’t be late to Q…which I almost did last time. Wakeup Call GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY  So here we go!

Warmup

  • Mosey from Brooklyn Pizza to beside Target
  • Que up my F3 playlist I made last night. Star Wars Opening Theme of course!  Star Wars Text GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • 50 Side Straddle Hops (25 or 30 is way too few)
  • 15 Imperial Walkers  Top 30 Star Wars Atat GIFs | Find the best GIF on Gfycat
  • 20 Mountain Climbers
  • 20 Merkins
  • And a good long stretch including the beloved calf stretches (well done FuseBox on channeling the spirit of Damascus)  The Simpsons Gifs

The Thang

  • Mosey to Pet Smart. Let the games begin! Lots of pain and fun while jamming to some amazing Grunge music. Made the playlist last night.  Grunge Rock GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Partner up. One partner runs up to the end of the parking lot, the other does the exercise till the count is met. We begin…
  • 150 Bobby Hurleys (and everyone groans. Good. We’re Asylum dang it!) I Dont Want To Go Back To The Asylum GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • 150 Carolina Dry Docks
  • 150 Big Boy Situps
  • BREAK! Grab some wall, have a seat, 60 Air Presses.
  • And continue. 100 Donkey Kicks Donkey GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • 100 Derkins
  • BREAK! Grab some wall, have a seat, 60 Air Jabs.
  • 10 Donkey Kicks on your own. Inmates Running The Asylum GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • One last partner lap. One runs, the other does hand release merkins until they return.
  • Jailbreak to Brooklyn Pizza.
  • TIME!

Moleskin

  • I always workout to music when I’m solo, and darn it I wanted music this time, so I brought it. Props to Radar for calling out “All right it’s Chris!” when Soundgarden came up. Soundgarden GIF - Soundgarden Chris Cornell - Discover & Share GIFs | Chris cornell, Cornell, Say hello to heaven
  • FuseBox has some smack for Alice in Chains. Boo.  Alice in Chains gifs | Alice in chains, Alice, Gif
  • ShopDog called us out for slacking off toward the end, “Stop your whining!” Empire Strikes Back GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • Props to EVERYONE who came back to join the 6th at the end, our FNG! Rock on! Kylo Approves GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY
  • And for our FNG, whose hospital name escapes me…..but I do remember he is from Ukraine and Nazareth, Israel, and has lived in the States since college. FuseBox came up with the name Chernobyl, which I approved. So everyone, welcome Chernobyl, which I consider a rather bada– name! Thanks Schnitzel for bringing him out! (using a Star Wars gif explosion for Chernobyl, because I can, plus Chernobyl busted his butt. Well done!) Death Of The Death Star - Star Wars GIF - StarWars MilleniumFalcon Explosion - Discover & Share GIFs

Announcements

  • Blood Drive at 5 Stones on June 19th. Plenty of registrations available. Sign up!
  • Props to Flanders for taking the baton as Site Q for Asylum as Loafer (ah yeah!) has done a fantastic job. We are looking for a 2nd gent to partner with Flanders. Step up somebody! You’ll never find a more impressive shovel flag. It’s epic. Ned Flanders GIFs | Tenor

Respectfully submitted, Ackbar Admiral Ackbar May The Force Be With Us GIF - AdmiralAckbar MayTheForceBeWithUs StarWars - Discover & Share GIFs

May the Force be with you

Thunder, Feel the Thunder

4:30am, lightning and thunder. OH COME ON! Why must every Impromptu I lead lately involve rain or worse! So should we do it? So I arrive early at Cuthberson…maybe no one will show. Wrong. And then my phone rings (which in my line of work, a phone call at 5am usually means church member is sick or worse…so my heart sinks). Wake up call GIFs - Get the best gif on GIFER

It’s Chatterbox, what do you think Ackbar? Swarm threw in the towel. Checking radar….meh, lightning is good for us. seen here.

Or here!

So let’s do this!

Warm Up

  • Mosey to the front of the middle school
  • 50 Side Straddle Hops…or was it 30? I forget
  • 20 Imperial Walkers (yes, this needs a gif) Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Clip - Imperial Walkers Attack [2K ULTRA HD] animated gif
  • 20 Merkins
  • Stretching (side note, after a good warmup, stretching is freaking awesome. Prevents injury, warms the muscles, a chance to breathe…before breathing becomes optional)
  • Calf Stretch (and the legacy of Damascus’ love for these was heard by all)

The Thang

Time to Mosey to the High School entrance. 3 Burpees at every light. If Admiral Ackbar is Qing…expect burpees! Everyone loves burpees!

Raise The Roof GIF by Star Wars - Find & Share on GIPHY

One good flash of lightning…but the thunder was lagging, so we were fine. 5 Mississippi’s! We can handle some silly lightning! Episode 2 GIF by Star Wars - Find & Share on GIPHY

At the High School Entrance, teams to 2 (or 3). One person runs around the traffic island, the other does the exercise till the count total is met. We started with…

  • 100 Step-Ups
  • 150 Dips
  • 100 Derkins (and everyone groaned. FINALLY! Everyone was too casual up till now, too much joking. No more!) All Gunny Hartman gifs - Album on Imgur
  • And 150 Big Boy Sit-ups (audible to 100, the clock was running out). Matching Their Pace – Tweaking For No Reason

Now let’s find some wall.

  • 50 Air Presses
  • 10 Donkey Kicks….followed by,
  • 50 Air Presses
  • 5 Donkey Kicks. Everyone loved those!

Now let’s return to Middle School, Mosey, and 3 Burpees at every light. Two for the Dough (Stephanie Plum, #2) by Janet Evanovich

By those last few burpees though… Revenge Of The Sith Episode 3 GIF by Star Wars - Find & Share on GIPHY

We return to the parking lot, take a left to the corner. Let’s burn some rubber: the 1st light, run to it at 50% speed, return. Run to the 2nd light, 75% speed, return. Run to the 3rd light directly across, 100% speed (my 75% and 100% speed was strangely similar. Meanwhile ShopDog and Chatterbox smoked me! Well done)! The Flash Running GIF by CraveTV - Find & Share on GIPHY

  • One minute left…we need another exercise. And we are still dry-ish and I don’t want to get wet laying down. Suggestions guys?

Crickets Chirp GIFs | Tenor

Fine…uhhh…25 Bobby Hurleys. And TIME!

Moleskin

  • We are the Magnificent Seven! We can do lightning! (seriously the storm did stay south so we kept an eye on the skies but I’m proud of these gents). Sony Mag 7 Movie GIF by The Magnificent Seven - Find & Share on GIPHY

 

  • Shop Dog did a great job catching up, pulling in as we starting Moseying (he also got to enjoy my Qing twice this week…rock on!
  • We were able to do 2/3rds of what I planned. Stupid lightning and soaked grounds. There was a lovely hill I had prepared to climb…oh well.
  • Last Remote Learning Day for Union County today! Next Friday is Good Friday, so that’s off, but after that, school is on, and traffic will increase. Be prepared.

And that’s all I got. I stopped recording during announcements, so they’re a blur, sorry. There’s CPR training Monday I think, some super awesome but super long trail run in partnership with the TapHouse coming soon, and Christ’s Closet is getting a trailer soon so mobile food-truck-style giveaways can happen, find a neighborhood, set it down, show God’s love!

Surge is on Q next Friday! Surge GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

Be there, or…Non Square GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY. You got to sleep THIS time. But the weather for Good Friday, cool and dry. See you then!

Respectfully submitted; Its A Trap GIFs | Tenor

Here is King Ghidorah! And Happy Birthday ShopDog!

Good morning gents, Ackbar here. Big day at Impromptu as Transporter, Chatterbox, and I (Ackbar) are the Tag Team Site Qs for 2021! Transporter suggested we should be the 3 Amigos (starring Steve Martin), but as a nerd I preferred King Ghidorah, the 3 headed monster that battles Godzilla who shoots lightning out his mouths. So Ghidorah it is! To celebrate we broke down our workout into 3 segments led by each of us. And ShopDog shared it was his birthday! This moment of celebration was later regretted….

Warm Up

  • Chatterbox starts us off, Mosey to the front of the Middle School
  • 15 Side-Straddle Hops
  • 15 Imperial Walkers
  • No time to stretch. Damascus lamented the loss of his beloved calf stretches

The Thang, Part 1

  • 10 Donkey Kicks
  • 10 Big Boy Sit-Ups
  • Take a lap around the parking lot
  • Halfway pause for 10 Jump Squats
  • Continue until the 15 minute mark.

Part 2

  • My turn! Mosey to the steps.
  • At the top, 10 Mike Tysons
  • Run down the ramp, 10 Mountain Climbers
  • Run to the bottom of the steps, 10 Big Boy Sit-Ups
  • Calf Lifts up the stairs.
  • Rinse and repeat till the 15 minute mark
  • I made the mistake of bragging how I was not putting burpees into my Q as I’ve been accused of doing every time. Famous last words.

Part 3

  • Transporter leads us to the front of the high school.
  • Damascus laments that Transporter is closing us out.
  • At the high school, Transporter wants to celebrate ShopDog’s 56 Birthday!…
  • 10 burpees every minute, and then 6 for the last minute.
  • Bloody hell that was rough. Personally, I changed Shop’s birthday number to probably 40 something.
  • Mosey back to the parking lot.

Moleskin

  • The first Friday of the month twice now has been raining. But at least it wasn’t 35 degrees but 41. Big difference.
  • Chatterbox showed off his fantastic tech skills with the family photo, using his phone and then his watch to “snap” it. Whoa!
  • Everyone busted their butts today! And a good turnout considering the weather.
  • Including Swarm-ers again in the count here. I can’t keep track who is who when we circle up
  • Beware the Ghidorah!!!

Annoucements

  • CSAUP is tomorrow!
  • Shop Dog was the 6th man. He shared how important it is to have good brothers and neighbors to lift you in your time of need, and SD thanked the group and beyond for love for him and his family as they’ve battled Covid and grieve the loss of his father. SD implored us to take the time for build and foster these relationships, they matter.
  • Transporter took us out.

May the Force be with you.

A Funner Impromptu (sorry for the inflated numbers)

Good day gents, Ackbar here. Recalculating was originally leading today but is on the mend (get well soon Recal). So I came up with this over the last two days, no titles, no themes, just knowing it was cold so we got to work. Oh when I joined the group before starting everyone was talking about GameStop. That makes be happy, because I love videogames! Also when gents were comparing notes of how Recal dresses in this weather compared to me, I said we were polar opposites. Get it?! ….I didn’t get so much as a groan. Time for payback! 😉

Warm Up

  • Mosey to the front of the middle school
  • 50 LBSs (get warm)
  • 15 Imperial Walkers
  • 20 Mountain Climbers
  • Calf Stretch (received much positive feedback)
  • More stretching of the legs, felt good.

The Thang

Quick mosey to the bus pickup/drop off roof. Gotta make our way to Rudy’s shed. This meant…

  • Bear Crawl through the roof area
  • Take a left to the picnic tables, 30 triceps pushups
  • Continue, take a left on the basketball court, Bunny Hop across and back
  • At Rudy’s Shed, 20 Bobby Hurleys

At Rudy’s Shed, find some wall and then…

  • 50 Air Presses
  • 15 Donkey Kicks
  • 5 Derkins

Oh, we must return to the Bus Stop, but repeat the above, just in reverse order. Then find some wall, and do the Air Presses again and etc. The Air Presses were a bit much this time.

Mosey back to Rudy’s Shed, saying this was going all downhill. Got some groans this time, progress! At this point I said “now we will have some fun.” “You mean it hasn’t been fun yet?”  ….good point. Well now it’s going to be funner! Funner is a fun word.

  • Run to the first light, 3 Burpees, return to the start.
  • Run to the 2nd light for 3 Burpees, but every previously “Burpeed” light you must do 5 Merkins (at this point I heard much groaning…told you it would be funner).
  • Return to the start. The goal is to make it past every light to the parking lot and return…
  • ….but time ran short, and I am no gazelle right now, so we returned to the parking lot for some LBCs, and TIME.
  • See, funner!

Moleskin

  • Impressive turnout considering it was 26 degrees today and kept dropping.
  • When we planked up waiting for the 6th, Mad Dog yells, “Get your butts down!”  And he was right, even without looking. I wasn’t looking either, but I was doing a downward dog…so guilty as charged.
  • It is impossible to recognize Fuse Box with those high beams on.
  • Shop Dog was killing it today, very impressive!
  • Schnitzel lapped me on the final run. Amazing work!
  • So I’m having trouble remembering who was all in Impromptu vs Swarm this morning, and with our check-in I recorded everyone…..and I do not want to leave anyone out, so Swarm & Impromptu is in the “attendance.”  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
  • Thanks Schneider for keeping everyone moving while waiting for the 6th with Heels to Heaven and LBCs. You rock!
  • Good times had by all!

Announcements

  • WAXTRAVAGANZA next Saturday, starting at 7:30 at Floater. 3 hours with good mileage and boot camps, and finish at Waxhaw Taphouse 11 or so.
  • The Rice & Beans/Christ’s Closet giveaway is Feb 20th.
  • Apparently everyone has been the 6th man, except Nails & myself. Nails shared his F3 journey, ups and downs, and losing 60 lbs last year, wow!  That’s like my kids, rock on, and you do look amazing! Thank you for sharing your journey; it was both encouraging and awesome!
  • I took us out…partly because I figured someone would yell, “What about the preacher…” Trying to stay ahead of y’all, for once! 😉

May the Force be with you! Peace!

Jingle Bell Rock

Good morning Imperials and Rebel Alliance, Admiral Ackbar here.  So FuseBox kindly asked me if I would Q Chiseled today. Well, I’ve never Q’ed Chiseled, or even been to Chiseled before. Of course I had to be out of town on vacay the Wednesday before. So after reading way too many backblasts and constantly asking FuseBox questions (is there actually a Mt. Chiseled, is there gear available, etc), and after digging out a cinderblock half buried in the backyard, here we go. Hopefully this is “Chiseled” enough. PS, it was very very cold. Not Hoth cold which kills tauntans (and things get messy), but pretty darn cold.

Warm Up

  • Mosey to Mt Chiseled
  • 30 LBSs
  • 20 Mt Climbers
  • 20 Merkins
  • 15 Imperial Walkers
  • Calf Stretch (received much positive feedback here)
  • Downward & Upper Dog

The Thang

Phase 1:

  • 1 Overhead Curl & Press, 5 Squats with block
  • Run to the Mt. and back
  • 2 Overhead, 4 Squats
  • Run to the Mt. and back
  • 3 Overhead, 3 Squats
  • Run to Mt. and back
  • 4 Overhead, 2 Squats
  • Run to Mt. and back
  • 5 Overhead, 1 Squat 
  • Run to Mt. (as usual, I had a hard time explaining it, but it worked out).

Phase 2:

  • Bearcrawl Over Mt. (kinda steep the other side, wasn’t expecting that)
  • 20 Big Boy Situps
  • Bearcrawl Back
  • 20 Big Boy Situps 
  • Plank it up
  • Return to Cinderblock forest (so dubbed by Mad Dog)

Phase 3: JINGLE BELL ROCK (the coup de grace)

  • First, 20 Kettle Bell Swings
  • So I had been saving a version of this for Impromptu. I brought my handy Bluetooth speaker, paid up for Spotify, and now I can play Jingle Bell Rock by Bobby Helms over and over. Bicep Curls with the Blocks every time you hear the word Jingle! Yeah, it says Jingle a lot. The catch, whenever at rest waiting for a new “Jingle,” hold the block at 90 degrees. It’s a long wait at the bridge. By the way, the word Jingle is used 28 times (just counted afterward). So Jingle Bell Bicep Curls!
  • Mosey to Mt Chiseled. 30 Bobby Hurleys. Return to Cinderblock Forest
  • Jingle Bell Rock again with Blocks. This time on your back, holding the block above you, go down and push up on the word Jingle. DO NOT LOCK YOUR ELBOWS. And on the bridge take the block behind you on my command, work those triceps. Equally fun.
  • Mosey to Mt Chiseled. 20 Heels to Heaven. Return to Cinderblock Forest.
  • 20 Kettle Bell Swings
  • Jingle Bell Rock Bicep Curls. (The Christmas spirit felt dimmer this time).
  • Mosey to Mt Chiseled. 15 Mike Tysons. Return to Cinderblock Forest.
  • 20 Kettle Bell Swings.
  • Jingle Bell Rock Presses on your Back with called Tricep Curls (2 this time).
  • Mosey to Mt Chiseled. 10 Burpees (because I have a reputation to maintain, how dare I not do burpees).
  • Returned at 6:15 on the dot!

Moleskin

  • For my first Chiseled, it was fun! I hope it Chiseled appropriately. It’s hard to type right now if that’s any comfort.
  • Props to Schneider on the planks (while waiting for the 6th) to keep those butts down, especially on elbows. (I was one of those…but fortunately he was looking the other way. Whew!)
  • Every time in Jingle Bell Rock when Bobby Helms sang the lyrics, “Giddy-up!,” that was mistaken for a “Jingle.” Every time! It tickled me!
  • Big thanks to FuseBox for his Yoda-like advice as I prepped today’s workout. Bless you sir!
  • The 6th man today was Golden Plates. Golden Plates shared about his name (Golden Plates are the source of the Mormon Bible as he grew up Mormon, apologized to any Mormons for the quick description [as a religious-clergy dude it sounded okay to me!]), how he’s been working out for a few months now, and appreciated the fellowship. “A great bunch of guys.” I spotted Golden Plates busting it hard today, especially with those evil elbow planks. Well done sir and thank you!

Announcements

  • Q School this Saturday, Nov 21st, 7-9am at Calvary Church (5801 Pineville-Matthews Rd, Charlotte NC 28226). Sign up is on GroupMe.
  • Union UMC says thank you to everyone who has donated to our Children’s Food Drive, to make “Kids Bags” to the children who come with their parents and grandparents to the Thursday Food Drive. We will continue to collect through the month. Look for the Green Poster Boards to find the donation plastic tub (under the bell tower in front of the round building/sanctuary.
  • Union UMC is also sponsoring a family for Christmas. This family is a grandmother raising her 5 grandchildren, ages 2-9. She is a bus driver for UCPS (and many of you know how much I care about our bus drivers, #fedupfather). We have set up a Amazon Wish List, and all purchases will go to our team leader who will wrap and deliver the presents before Christmas (some are necessities, some are gifts). Any help is appreciated. I’ll put a link here and also in GroupMe.
  • https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3U6OTFMOXME2O?type=wishlist

May the Force be with you, and that’s the Jingle Bell Rock!

 

Impromptu Group #2: I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This

Back at Impromptu! Good to be back! Recalculating and I planned ahead to keep social distancing rules: if we break 10 guys we’ll split the group and he and I would Q each group. Recal also was an awesome gentleman and made two maps of a workout so we could use the entire Cuthberson campus and not run into each other, mostly. 6am, we counted off. Recal got the #1s, I got the #2s. Know that “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This” is a long running line/joke in the Star Wars movies. It’s always said when something bad is about to happen. It’s how I feel about Indian Runs…

 

The Warm Up:

  • A fun Mosey up to the high school entrance.
  • SSH x 20
  • 15 Imperial Walkers (because Star Wars. We will ALWAYS do our Imperial Walkers!)
  • 20 Merkins
  • Calf Stretch (and somewhere in Union County, Damascus smiled with approval).

The Thang:

The front of the high school served as Home Base. From there we would Mosey to 5 separate locations across campus (my terms; the Echo Chamber, High School Parking Lot, Bus Parking Lot Spot, The Circle, and The Former Transporter Shed, now Rudy Bathroom…I think), do stuff, and Indian Run back to Home Base. Always 5 Burpees at Home Base. We started with 5 Burpees at the start, then…

  • 25 Donkey Kicks
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • Bear Crawl
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • 20 Knee Slaps
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • (I saw a bunny on the way to Transporter/Rudy Shed, so in honor of the bunny), 25 Bobby Hurleys
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • 25 Carolina Dry Docks (Recal suggested Merkins, but the Burpees were adding up, no thank you)
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • 25 more Donkey Kicks
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • Bear Crawl (across the road this time…time was short)
  • Indian Run to Start/5 Burpees
  • Mosey back to the Middle School Parking Lot
  • LBCs for the last 30 seconds, TIME!

Moleskin:

  • Thanks to Recal’s awesome map, the workout wasn’t printed on a paycheck envelope like last time for me!
  • I cannot read maps. 2 1/2 years later working out at F3 at Cuthberson…I still can’t figure it out. So I took educated guesses. The gentlemen had lots of commentary about which way to go, shortcuts, and I was occasionally overruled on directions. I was okay with that!
  • Some Indian Runs worked great! Others fell apart. Many jokes were shared; it’s now a Cowboy run, me calling out to Mad Dog at the front to “slow down the engine,” someone observed Indians…engine…punny…uy we’re in trouble.
  • Gator Cub and Xerox busted their butts today! Well done!
  • Fusebox had several things to say, deep wisdom that could change my life, but for the blood pumping in my ears, I couldn’t hear any of it…
  • Mad Dog knows where to go!
  • A jogger asked if we were military as we worked out at the Circle. No we told her, but Mad Dog is, and she thanked him for his service. Rock on man!
  • Sprinkles likes short cuts.
  • I have no legs now.

Announcements:

  • The 100 PAX Challenge is still going on. Any and all gifts and contributions are welcome as they’ll go to a local charity.
  • Q Source is back on Fridays. Shop Dog brought coffee to share! Next week, bring a lawn chair so we can provide distance and still gather!
  • Prayer requests were lifted: Gator Cub’s son is on the mend after a long illness that severely effected his mobility. He still has a long road ahead but a diagnosis and plan is a God send! Mad Dog lifted his father-in-law who is battling cancer and a dear friend/runner who is in grave condition and is needing a lung transplant. Let’s lift them both to God in prayer.
  • I prayed us out. May the Force be with you!

Watchtower/Mos Eisley Cantina Crunch

After a long hiatus, Ackbar returned with many for F3, and my 1st appearance at Watchtower. Thanks Doughboy for asking me. Well we broke the law; no more than 10, and we were at 11…well this is Mos Eisley, a wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious. 10 ft apart and I believe we did that at least.


The Warm Up:

  • Fun Mosey around the school.
  • SSH x 30…I think it was thirty. More than 2o I know, 20 is too few!
  • 15 Imperial Walkers (because Star Wars of course)
  • 20 Merkins
  • 20 Mountain Climbers
  • Calf Stretch (and we recalled Damascus’ love of these stretches)

The Thang:

So this is a modified workout that I’ve been doing once or twice a week while in quarantine, and I call it Burpee Hell. Because it’s hell (at least 100 burpees by the time we finish). (Mad Dog suggested it be something about the Star Wars Mos Eisley Cantina, so a new name was born). Did some audibles in the workout too, so this is MOSTLY correct:

  • 10 Burpees (if modifying, no less than 7. If you finish early plank it up).
  • 50 Air Presses
  • 10 Burpees
  • 40 LBCs
  • 10 Burpees
  • 30 Lunges (both legs equals one)
  • Fun Mosey around the parking lot
  • 20 Mike Tysons
  • 10 Burpees
  • Long Bear Crawl
  • 10 Burpees
  • 15 Mike Tysons
  • 10 Burpees
  • 30 Lunges (both legs equals one)
  • At this point, I overheard some gentlemen whining about not covering major distance. Fine then, let’s Mosey around the school and get your precious mile in! Everyone’s a critic. 😉
  • 20 Carolina Dry Docks (once I remembered the blasted name!)
  • 40 LBCs
  • 10 Burpees
  • 60 Air Presses
  • 10 Burpees
  • Mosey back to the parking lot meeting place!

Moleskin:

  • When I asked Fusebox to give us a 1o count or 5 count, he counts very fast……
  • Great job gentlemen keeping up with the 6th man. We finish together!
  • I screwed up on calling the Carolina Dry Docks. The blank stares got my attention. Eek!
  • So I have this workout on my phone, but was using my phone for music (I like music when I workout. I don’t like listening to my own breath). Crap, gotta write it down. Need paper! Dig in the car, found an envelope, wrote it down, problem solved. Well Schneider & Goodfella get to studying it, and recognized it was blue lined, so a paycheck? Yes, it was the envelope for it! I’m recycling! You can thank me for the extra blue skies!!! (well, all of us together, but it adds up!).
  • My chops were definitely busted today! I feel loved…

Announcements:

  • Goodfella, Mad Dog, and Carb Load are on Q tomorrow at Dromedary
  • The 100 PAX Challenge is here. Our goal is that every PAX raises $100 to go to a local charity. Any and all donations are welcome, even if it’s $5, it’ll help our neighbors.
  • FuseBox shared that Chiseled will switch to a high exercise boot camp, no gear (darn you Covid-19). Rocks are available though. Rudy is on Q. Goodfella suggested that if you have cinder-blocks, they would be helpful for future workouts.
  • We took a knee to pray out, and that’s it. May the Force be with you!

 

Amazing Race Feb 2020

Happy Friday everyone, Ackbar here! Today was another cold southern morning, which may be muggy and warm the next. It’s the last of the month, so that means Recalculating’s Amazing Race! Distance-wise, my Pokemon Go’s tracker clocked in 3.5-4 kms. It’s what I got…I’m a dork I know it. Everyone busted their tails today, well done, and here’s how it went down.

Warmup:

  • Mosey to the Middle School parking lot, as usual.
  • 20 Side Straddle Hops (Recal sorta ended at 19, many were confused)
  • 20 Merkins
  • A beloved Calf Stretch (I can hear Damascus’ approval from afar)
  • (It’s possible I missed something, I was in a fog)
  • One more Mosey around the parking lot

Thang

Recalculating divided us into teams of 3 for the Amazing Race. 5 stops. And it went like this:

  • Stop #1: 50 Bobby Hurley’s in front of the path toward Rudy’s Shed. Hurley indeed…
  • Stop #2: 50 Donkey Kicks at Rudy’s Shed (They add up.)
  • Stop #3: 40 Overhead Presses with evil cinderblocks in the HS parking lot (“It’s a trap!”)
  • Stop #4: 25 Mike Tysons in the other HS parking lot (there was much rejoicing, yay).
  • Stop #5: 50 Step Ups in front of the HS (they add up quickly!).
  • After each stop we return to the front of the MS for 5 burpees. 

Here are our teams and results, and thank you Recal for sending me this!

Gold Medal Team #5
Dasher
Chainsaw
Recalculating
Silver Medal Team #3
BottleCap
Schneider
Ackbar
Bronze Medal Team #2
Nails
Loafer
Dana
Aluminum Medal Team #1
Gerber
Ricky Bobby
Premature
Tin Medal Team #4
FuseBox
Doughboy
Deadwood

After the race, there was a lot of Mary-ing with extra time available, as every team finished! Moseyed back to the MS Parking Lot, and wrapped up.

Moleskin

  • Everyone busted their butts today. It was also awesome to see that everyone finished with extra time! We all finished the race, so everyone won! Gold stars for everyone!
  • I confess that I was not in top shape today, DRAGGING…but my teammates Bottlecap and Schneider were super encouraging. Thank you my brothers!
  • Sorry I can’t post the map on the Backblast…I like to think I’m computer savvy, in this case I’m stumped. You’ll have to use your imaginations!
  • Thank you Recalculating for leading Impromptu today! Indeed it was an Amazing Race! 

Announcements

  • The Father/Daughter dance is on March 6th. Sign up is at markthismoment.com
  • There were many prayers lifted, spouses, parents, in-laws, and I believe many left unsaid. Pray, think positive thoughts, we carry each other, lighten the loads, and the world is made right.

Signing off, may the Force be with you!