“Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit [running The Wiggler].”
Don’t quit running The Wiggler! 5:45 am Tuesday – corner of Foxcroft and Rothwood – fellowship pace…
** Airplane!
At 0515 on Tuesday, the only Charlotte area running workout South of 1-485 will launch from the Vine American Kitchen in Ballantyne into temps not seen in these parts for a while. 53degrees at the start sounds pretty nice!
The THANG:
With both Site Q’s running the Heather’s Heroes audible 5K, Transporter took control.
Read on….
The day was rainy nasty and cold, my clown car crew started dropping like flies starting at 6:10 and I was concerned that no one would show up,,,but,,, there was one other dedicated soul that braved the elements. We kept dry and still managed to get a killer work out in utilizing the entrance of the school and 6 stations to drive the work
The Thang:
Six stations
1 Curl Bar
2 Push up bars
3 Reverse lunges
4 Jump rope
5 Should press
6 Squat
In doing the stations the first rotation we partnered to do the station while the other did 10 Burpee’s finished that to incorporate ABS in-between rounds
20 LBC
20 Pulse ups
20 Bicycles
Another round of stations while Flow and I rotated 6 Burpees,,, followed by
20 LBC’s
20 Russian Twist
20 Heels to heavens
Another Round of stations while we completed 5 Burpee’s each,,, followed by
20 LBC’s
20 Russian Twists
20 Heels to heaven
Had to get to 130 Burpees so we did 4 more followed by (10) 1 armed row’s each arm and 10 back flys. Figured we couldn’t do 130 Burpees so we cranked out 10 more for 140.
Did one more round of back and FLOW says, we might as well go to 150 so we pushed to finish off 10 more for a solid 150 Burpees each and 180 ab exercises!
Moleskin
Have to give Camacho some ribbing for not showing up as he was supposed to co-lead with me, he must have been scared of the rain!:) Secondly, very proud of Flow, he has only been in the F3 crew for a month or so but he pushes himself and has shown up to every work out on Saturdays and Mondays!! He is stepping up his game!
Posted on Behalf of Transporter
I think the title says it all. Our resident Frenchman aka Film Fest is apparently visiting home, which is actually England. I was standing in the middle of the slow forming circle of Pax arriving, which afforded me the opportunity to steal the Q. Everyone cheered. Really, it was a special thing you had to be there to appreciate.
The Thang
Run like a 5-year old (aka spastic AYG, customary start for YHC) to RTS. Brilliant, original COP consisting of:
SSH x 20ish
Merkin x10
LBC x 26
Wide Arm x10
Flutter x26
Diamond x10
Boone LBCs x10 each side
CDD x10
Knee ups x10
Run around RTS and discover small playground. Those that could jump did 10 pullups and 20 dips. I have no idea what SemiGloss or others did here. Needless to say, this was not the Q’s most well executed portion of the workout. The swingset bar was a little high, but the 10 foot estimate was ludicrous.
Mosey out RTS side drive and across Sharon View, into Pellyn Wood with a left on Gorham. Mini-plank at Howland to regroup, and then continue to Walden Pond. Dips on the guard rail.
Mosey down to the circle of Le Maison Dr (look it up) where chose some alternate Qs:
Swiper – Russian twist (insert lots of surprised faces)
Pothole – 10 burpees OYO (unwelcomed, lots of comments and a Semi refusenik)
Steinbrenner – Rosalita (welcomed, knew he wouldn’t let Pax down)
Mosey back the way we came, stopping at the guard rail again. Inspired by Semi’s refusenik, Squats x20, then dips x20, then more squats x10.
Mosey back up the hill with some plank variations at the Hardison stop sign to regroup. Mosey back to RTS, stopping at the wall for Derkins x10, dips x?.
Mosey back to Carmel Park with time to spare. Finish it off with a mini-COP of LBCs x26ish, Merkins x10, Freddy Mercury x20, Mtn Climbers x10, and thanks to Pothole’s call, 10 BOYO.
COT with takeout by Snowflake.
Announcements:
Columbia has been hit hard by flooding. Another region set up a GoFundMe page for donations to help, and F3Columbia has a post on “how you can help” here: http://f3nation.com/2015/10/04/be-a-him-and-help-out-the-columbia-community/
New 3rd F – Rally Point – meeting after DMZ on Monday’s at Dunkin’ Donuts (Rea / Colony). If you’re interested, pick up a copy of True Measure of a Man.
SOFA WIB tomorrow at Olde Providence – Sundancer promised me it would be epic.
Moleskine:
Good group this AM that followed YHC, who basically stole the Q at 5:28 when it was discovered that Film Fest was visiting the motherland (fatherland? I have no interest in trying to understand the whole England / Great Britain / UK thing). YHC ran like a 5-year old, as is my custom at the outset, and the Pax reluctantly followed along.
Bushwood nixed my “never leave the parking lot” idea, so I was forced to borrow heavily from prior material. Somehow we only hit 2.6 miles today, which I’m going to say was preparation for my upcoming Base Camp Q next week #moderate #INCONCEIVABLE. (Going parenthetical for self-promotion here #Iam3rd, if you were here today for the workout, you should come back to DMZ next week. On the other hand, if you’re interested in laughing, mild 2nd F, and / or Q heckling, I’d invite you out to Base Camp). Lowlight of the morning was the impromptu pullups – we apparently need to work out plyometrics / jumping drills in addition to pullups. #Qfail
Highlight of the morning was Pothole calling for 10 burpees OYO. SG refusenik was classic, and anticipated, as were the calls by Swiper and Steinbrenner. With time running down, I had to call on Pothole again. Great way to finish, and then we caught ABBA and Rapper’s Delight returning to the parking lot. They apparently missed us, and we would never be found in Pellyn Wood, which may be the darkest place in Charlotte. No street lights – only natural gas lamps, which made Agony lightheaded. That’s all I’ve got, which misses quite a bit of the chatter, so chime in with comments.
Tomorrow the B.R.O.O.K.L.Y.N Double-Decker will come to life in the only AO that provides the necessary deck-nology: Bagpipe. Here is a sneak-peek:
Burpees – Deck 1
Reverse Burpees – Deck 1 ( Example )
One-legged Burpees (left) – Deck 1
One-legged Burpees (right) – Deck 1
Knerkins – Deck 2
Lateral Step Merkins – Deck 2 ( Example )
Yerkins (Yoga Merkins) – Deck 2 ( Example )
Nipple-scraper Merkins – Deck 2 ( Example )
For the first time we will be able to answer the question that has plagued the great thinkers of our time:
Which is better: Brooklyn Decker or the B.R.O.O.K.L.Y.N Double-Decker?
Find out for yourself tomorrow at Bagpipe.
In January, my wife Heather was diagnosed with a nasty version of breast cancer with frightening statistics. Six months of chemotherapy, a mastectomy, and a second surgery to remove the remainder of the impacted lymph nodes followed. It has been a trial unlike anything imagined. Heather is the toughest person I know by far (she gave birth to two of our children, standing up, without so much as an aspirin). Yet chemo and cancer at a point reduced her to crying in the fetal position. Still, I have been amazed at the blessings God has provided through this trial: our marriage has never been stronger, our faith has grown, Heather has been forged like steel, and we have become more fixed on the permanent. But I do not write today about those blessings.
I write today about you. You have prayed for Heather. Many of you every day. You have asked how she is — sincerely and without pretense. I cannot describe what your support has been like. Many go through life relatively alone. They have friends through work, or church, or their hometown. Yet those friends are there when convenient or pleasurable, and often want something. They are friends of expedience.
You are not like that. Today proved it. Heather had a team called “Heather’s Heroes” to run the Komen Race for the Cure. Yesterday, Komen cancelled the race because of Hurricane Joaquin. NC was in a state of emergency. But Heather was having none of it. She organized her own race to meet at AG Middle School in Charlotte — the home of an F3 workout nearly every day of the week. Notice went out 18 hours before the race. All night long my phone buzzed with emergency warnings; lightning and heavy rain never ceased.
Yet at 8am, 54 runners and over 60 supporters — unflinching against the downpour — stood as witnesses to true friendship. They were there for love. God offers us life through sacrificial love. Today was all about love, and sacrifice for Heather.
F3 offers something special. We offer each other adversity. Daily. Through adversity, we sharpen and assist each man in mortifying his flesh so that it is ready to offer powerful love when the time comes. One such time was today, when my wife needed to make a statement against her cancer, supported by friends, her heroes. I am overcome with gratitude. Thank you.
Pictures of the Heroes can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/7a5ag7sb88nd6c4/AAAi7ogAu1yYSzMJNOmD4GiVa?dl=0.
#Cantorre had no effect on the PAX of Mountain Goat on Friday morning. Great turnout with the 9 PAX that met and started up at 0515 at South Charlotte Middle School.
The THANG:
The Moleskin:
Announcements:
Monsoon or shine, YHC will be out there. YHC feels less than adequate for the fail this morning.
#Cantore tells us that Noah may post for the Anson launch. On the drive down, torrential sheets of rain coming down. And just as the workout begins, the rain stops. Never trust #Cantore. And so begins F3 Anson….
The Thang
Begin with a mosey from the Wal-Mart parking lot down to the parking lot in front of Shoe Show.
COP (Circle of Pain)
SSH (Side Straddle Hop) IC (In Cadence) x 10
IW (Imperial Walkers) IC x 10
3 Count Down Merkins IC x 10
Mountain Climbers IC x 10
Low, Slow Squats IC x 10
SSH IC x 10
Mosey back to the Wal-Mart parking lot near the vehicles
2nd COP
SSH IC x 10 (Horsehead’s anger rising over SSH three times)
Burpees (poorly demonstrated by HH) OYO (On Your Own) x 5
Mosey along the back of the parking lot (approx. 200 yards or so maybe)
Mix in backwards running, buttkickers, high knees, karaoke left and right
Active recovery plank exercise mix
Bear Crawl approximately 10 parking spaces
Lunge Walk approximately 10 parking spaces
Indian run around the parking lot back to pain stations
3rd COP
Carolina Dry Docks IC x 10
LBCs (Little Baby Crunches) IC x 10
Flutters IC x 10
Dolly IC x 10
Pain Stations (probably not in this order but these are all of them). Our timer was hairburners. When the guy finished hairburners (or lunge walk modification), we rotated stations:
Merkins
Jump Rope
Mountain Climbers
Body Blade aka Floppy Stick aka Probably shouldn’t use this in public
Carolina Dry Docks
LBCs
Flutters
Burpees
Dollies
Hairburners
Curls w/ your choice of weight Kettlebell (25#, 30#, 40#)
Triceps w/ 30 pound Dumbbells
Micah (Mike) Tyson punches w/ 10# dumbbells
50 Yard Run and Back
We didn’t get through all 14 stations but had more to show you so off we go.
Pinball run to lot between Wal-Mart/Shoe Show
Low, Slow Squats x 20
Indian Run in front of CATO/Shoe Show group of buildings to the end of the parking lot
Sprint to each light pole and do 5 merkins at each one. Did this for three light poles spaced maybe 25 yards apart.
Plank Active Recovery till everyone is done.
To the side of the building and someone (HH maybe) mentions the wall and can’t believe I almost forgot:
The People’s Chair with Air Presses x 30. Repeato
BTW (Handstand against the wall – acronym goes unsaid) for a EE 10 count
Mosey back to the vehicles
4 MOM (Minutes of Mary)
Extended Protractor
Rosalita IC x 10
Flutters IC x 10
DONE!!!
COT (Circle of Trust)
Thanks to Shepherd for his heart-felt prayer for the men of Anson
Announcements:
Anson Round 2 will meet next Saturday at Anson Senior at 7 AM. Double E is your Q (leader) and he can’t believe the great facility Anson has. Truly one of the great AOs in all of F3 in my humble opinion.
For the F3 Union County guys, join us Friday at Overdrive for Hoodie’s VQ. His growth has been awesome to watch.
Also, new workout: #F3THRIVE meeting on Tuesday’s at 5:30 AM at Chestnut Park in Indian Trail (Carolina Courts is also at this park). Happy and Turnpike are your Site Qs. Way to step up guys and give Union County a Tuesday option.
Moleskine:
Great launch with a lot of trying circumstances today. Probably the worst weather for a F3 workout since February. An AO change yesterday due to #Cantore. But the PAX were up for the challenge. Everyone pushed really hard. Few close moments of potential merlot spillage (throwing up) but none came to fruition.
I had said it would be 0.0 on social media after the move to the Wal-Mart parking lot. Honestly, the UC guys were probably laughing as I just can’t do a 0.0. It’s not in me. But, what a great spot that parking lot ended up being. Lots of space and few cars to have to dodge and the ability to move between different lots. Really thankful we launched today even in these circumstances as I almost canceled yesterday (Thanks Tiger Rag for re-focusing me).
We started with two FNGs which was encouraging enough given the weather but two more FNGs joined in the first COP and oh yeah, it’s on.
Great work by Flash Card. Almost spilled merlot but held it in and pushed through it. Believe me, you would not have been the first to lose it. Just ask Nekot….times two. So named Flash Card because he mentioned he was pursuing his Masters and Viper said he’d come call out words to him and FC said he needed Flash Cards. Now you are forever known as Flash Card.
Half-Moon was on two wheels entering the parking lot and ended up not being the Last In (thanks to OMB). Way to push through it and attempt those Hairburners. They are not easy even on the F3 vets. So named Half-Moon because we were close to calling him Outhouse due to his work with water stuff (I’m not an engineer so it’s all stuff to me) and then someone mentioned that Half-Moons are on the door of an outhouse and so you are now known.
One Man Band was Last In but came out the gate strong. And then we find out he’s only a few months removed from brain surgery. #inspiring And here he is out in some raw gloom pushing through it. My excuses went out the door. One Man Band is so named because of the many instruments he plays and when Shepherd names someone, it sticks. #PastorPrivilege
Viper to be transparent is my Dad. But I did not name him with such a strong name. Heck, I skipped him in the naming circle as I was taking notes on my phone. #apologies But when you are an almost 59 year old Navy veteran, you get a strong F3 name. Just the way it is and just the way it will be. So named Viper as he mentioned he served on the USS America so we made it to Top Gun but Maverick/Goose were too easy.
Kotters to Nekot who proved he can make it through a workout with spilling merlot (you also made it through Coffeeteria without spilling which didn’t happen last time – Bojangles may still be cleaning that up). Keep coming out to Outland brother!
Special thanks to all my F3 Union County brothers who came down to support the launch. Boondocks, Countertop, Double E, Horsehead, Nekot, Shepherd and The Late Show. It was a 45 minute drive in torrential rain and you just knew it was going to be a raw workout. You came anyways. Some of these are the guys who were on the Sun Valley fields getting stronger before I even knew of F3 and they gave it away to me. Thankful for these men and the impact they had and continue to have on my life. I’m stronger because of you men.
It’s not often you get to give back to where you are from. I know what F3 has done in my life and I have very little else to give but when something has impacted you so greatly, it would be wrong to not share it further. Society says take all you can. F3 says give to other men and impact them.
Anson PAX, you did it. You survived your first F3 workout. Now, tell other guys. Give it away to them. And one by one, we will end #sadclownism in Anson County forever. Stronger men make for stronger husbands, stronger fathers, stronger sons, stronger brothers and stronger friends. I truly believe this.
I thank you for letting me lead you guys. I truly don’t deserve to lead men better than me but I am thankful for the opportunity.
It will not get easier but you will get stronger if you keep posting.
Glass Joe
3 men (yeah, men) laughed in the face of #NotJoaquin and posted at F3Ascent to see what lie ahead in the rainy gloom. With adaptability that’d make MacGuyver proud, they got to it and moved some serious metal.
The Thang
COP:
Simple & Sinister:
Round Robbin’
Metal Mary (all exercises with KB):
Done
COT
Wet Moleskine:
Backblast Disclaimer – the above may or may not have actually occurred, as there was no #weinke, i.e. 100% audible, and YHC’s memory isn’t that great during or after a workout. #Cobains for any errors or omissions. If you were there, you know and likely still feel what we did.
YHC had originally planned an LSD run this morning, #RainRunner, but we quickly audibled out of that once we saw just how substantial the rain really was. So, now, what to do? Go to the #plasticficus with the M? Sit on the couch and watch cartoons? No and No!! Hmm…could go swing some KBs under the awning at Olde Providence Elem, but would that be awkward if Pele was running the Ascent pax around on the fields in the rain? What if there was no Ascent pax – would Pele join YHC for some KB action? Let’s give it a shot!
At 7:00, just as YHC & Pele had determined it’d just be us two and we were heading to the awnings on the rear of the school, two became three when 777 pulled into the parking lot. YHC informed him of our audible, we assembled under the rear awning and commenced to unload some bells. The workout was completely made up on the fly, so YHC relied heavily on personal favorites. As you know, that means one-handed swings and TGU’s (aka Simple & Sinister). Again, #cobains. But, I think a solid, overall workout was had by all. At least YHC feels like it was.
Pele is becoming an old hand with KBs and really focused on TGU form today with the shoe drill. Keep after it, brother! Triple 7 also made a strong showing with his first KB workout. Welcome to the #meathead club!
Guys, thanks for the opportunity for a fun, impromptu lead. Always an honor.
Aye.