Hence The Name
6. Yep, that was the number. You heard it right. 6 of the toughest, manliest and mouthiest pax took to the streets for some Day Zero. One of those workouts where on imaginary paper, it didn’t look so bad. But it sucked. Bad at times. We are all tougher for attending DZ this morning.
The Thang
Radar leads us to center of soccer fields for a quick warm up.
SSH x 20
Mt Climbers x 20
Something else
Indian Run the Bevington loop – fast pace. If you get left behind, you will catch up when we stop to do exercises. Very Radar-esque.
Alternating partner merkins 1-10 at Greenway stop
Alternating partner slow squats 1-10 at some street
Alternating partner CDD’s 1-10 at start of Bevington loop
Repeat but with:
Alt partner walking merkins 1-5 at Greenway stop
Finish Indian Run to some street.
Spackler’s turn – Mosey to Touchstone Rose parking lot
Starfish – 4 corners perform exercise x 20 with 5 hand release merkins at the center
Round 1 – Bear Squats, Sister Mary Catherine’s, Squats with Radar’s fun bags, Squat Jacks
Round 2 – Old Man Sit Ups, Dolly holding bag above chest, Rosalita, Freddy Mercury
Done
Moleskin
Another great day at DZ. Probably could have marketed it a bit better but seeing as Alf only got 9 at his ‘workout’ after spending ALL DAY on Twitter yesterday, we were very content with just 6. Haze did try to market it as some kind of show of entertainment between Radar and I sharing Q. Something about ‘spillage’. He was correct about the spillage. Although it wasn’t merlot. Simply constant ramblings from no other, The Mouth. Hence the name. Bunch of ‘That’s What She Said’ dropped out there even when I’m not sure it made sense. Pretty sure The Mouth was also posting at DZ to see what he is up against for the BRR, Radar and his form in particular. It got a little weird seeing him stare at Radar’s calves. Don’t mess with Free Range pal. We are out to hurt everyone emotionally. On another note, not sure what YHC has been eating lately but it was fed like a hot pocket to a few of you during the Starfish. Get you some. #urwelcome Last but not least, Strange Brew decided after a few years it was finally time to cheat on The Rock. Good for you sir. Branch out. Spread your love. I condone cheating every now and again #mudrun. Hope you enjoyed it.
PS
Radar doesn’t tell anyone but shows up early to supposedly run a few miles before posting. The ole’ ‘wait for guys to show up and then roll around in the dew behind a bush’ technique. Well done sir. Well done.
Announcements
Some BRR teams need drivers. Team Free Range has a driver but is currently accepting applications for the following positions:
Calf/Hammy Massage Therapists
Grape Feeding Therapists
Foot Bath Therapists
Gold Bond Spray Application Therapists (specifically for the grundle region)
The Rock – Not for the faint of heart
14 of south Charlottes finest refused the fartsack on a muggy Saturday morning and responded to the challenge posted by YHC on twitter yesterday afternoon.
Mall Cop planted the Shovel Flag at 6:59, and after the disclaimer (which some called professional), we were off.
THE THANG
Warm-up
- Jog around parking lot, with a little backwards run and karaoke mixed in
- Exercises (x25) in cadence
- SSH
- IW
- Slow squats
- Mountain climbers
- Peter Parkers
Mosey to Baseball Field – Partner Up and grab a rock that you can be proud of
- Partner 1 does exercise; Partner two runs a lap around the outfield
- Exercises:
- Curls
- Overhead Press
- Squats
- Tricep Extensions
Mosey back to launch point – Perform the Starfish to all of the Entrances
- Exercises (x20)
- Merkins
- Wide Arm Merkins
- Hand Release Merkins
- Diamond Merkins
- 5 burpees in the center
Mosey to Shelter for People’s Chair
- 1 min People’s Chair, followed by 15 arm presses in cadence
- Rinse and repeat
Triple Nickel on Soccer Field Hill
- Jump knee tucks at top (x5)
- Burpees at bottom (x5)
- Repeato (x5)
Mosey home for Mary
- LBCs – 25 in cadence (x2)
- Plank for 1 minute
THE NAKED MOLESKIN
While not everyone is doing the BRR (and for those that aren’t, they’re probably getting pretty annoyed with the heavy dose of running in workouts these days), YHC wanted to continue the prep for those that are with some running with boot camp exercises mixed in this morning. Not sure how much ground we covered, but it was a lot.
As usual, the workout looked better on paper, as YHC was hurting towards the end of the starfish – it makes you realize how big the Calvary campus really is (I don’t think some of our “legs” were much shorter than those done at Fast Twitch on Tuesday – and THAT is a running workout). The PAX should be proud of pushing through this one today!
Mall Cop tried a couple Q jacks, and his arm press suggestion during the people’s chair was actually a good one (though he opted out of round 2 – #dontsuggestitifyoucantdoit). YHC did give him the call on the exercises during the Triple Nickel (an exercise with a nod to Mermaid), but when he called out jump squats and burpees, YHC quickly regretted that decision. #wontdothatagain. He’s a beast, that one.
Props to Bushwood and Hops – you guys were killing it this morning. Stone Cold, way to push through on a bad leg/wheel, and Hopper, those huge strides will come in handy on the mountain roads in a few weeks. Great to see some new faces out there this morning, and you all represented well. Runstopper – I hope you just tweaked something and are back at it next week.
Hops, thanks for the strong take out. As always, and honor to lead you guys.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- There will be a number of convergences held in the coming weeks due to both the BRR and Labor Day. Please check emails.
- The BRR alternate list is at zero. If you are interested and want to get on that list (there are rumors of more injuries), please let Mall Cop know.
- If there are other announcements, please sound off below.
Whistle While We Work
We had a group of fellas circle up and hit the bells at 5:30. The rest of the boys arrived at the usual time and we went to work.
Break into 5 teams, grab a weight plate and start running with it over your head. When the whistle blows, pass the plate to a teammate. We ran to the soccer fields, stopping a time or 2 for merkins or MTN climbers to keep the pack together.
Once at the field we did 4 corners. Teams stay in a group, do said exercise while one teammate runs with the plate to the soccer goal and back. Simple to explain, difficult to perform.
First corner:
- Merkins until everyone on the team has run with the plate.
- Diamonds
Second corner:
- MTNs
- CDD
Third:
- Jump Squats
- Lunges
Fourth
- Merkins
- Burpees
All teams at one end line for a finishing relay race. AYG to end and back with plate.
Return home the same way we arrived, weight plate over your head run changing out with a teammate on the whistle. A few stops for merkins, and final circle back home with more merkins, and Crowd pleasing plank work.
Thine Ole Moleskine
what a group today. Strong work displayed with the early bid KBers. TR broke out the 100 pound behemoth and he even used it once. Haggis and FNG Jack Black made their KB debut.
Good to see Fort regulars Beacon and World Wide Leader trek north to Stonehenge.
Lots of strong work by a lot of PAX today. I think the team concept had people pushing one another throughout. Big shout out to my team who pushed me. Old Man Frehley, Morning After, Checkpoint and Guarantee.
We also had a number of good races throughout the team exercises. Guys pushing each other while carrying the plates. Camacho, Pulled Pork, Loogie, just to name a few.
Capped the morning off with bagels and coffee at Einsteins with a crew of us who were soaked to the bone. I say that’s a perfect start to the weekend.
Announcements:
Area 51 BRR teams are still looking for a couple of van drivers – All of the fun with none of the run! Great way to experience the fellowship of the BRR. Also, our list of alternate runners is dry after a couple of guys had to pull out over the last couple weeks. If someone wants to be in the “on deck” circle, or if they are interested in being a driver, please have them reach out to me, Baracus.
Meathead Tabatas
12 pax gathered in the humidity for the 3rd installment of Meathead, giddy for what the next 45 minutes had in store, KB’s by their sides. With a brief disclosure, here’s what they did while not standing around:
The Thang:
COP
Mosey to playground area and drop your KB
- Take a warm-up lap #cuethemumblechatter #rumblesofrefusnik
- SSH – 15 IC
- Low Slow Squats – 10 IC
Main Event
- 4 sets of each exercise – 1 min on, 1 min off – as many quality reps as possible
- Goblet Squat
- Push Press
- 2-hand Swing
Tabatas
- 4 sets of each exercise – 20 sec on, 10 sec off – as many quality reps as possible
- Pullups
- Pushups
- Situps
- Cleans (alternate L & R between sets)
Mary
- Slow Freddie Mercury
- Dolly
- Little Baby Crunch
COT
Announcements:
- F3Meathead – next week –
BananasTiger Rag on Q (Bananas on Q the following week) - Kevlar – tomorrow – Busch on Q
Moleskin:
YHC was disappointed to miss the launch and 2nd installment of Meathead, and so couldn’t wait to join the group. Q’ing was an added bonus. We’ve got a strong group of Q’s in the lineup for the upcoming weeks, so there is a lot to look forward to.
YHC got the mumblechatter and threats of refusnik started early by opening the workout with a lap around the track. While not 0.0, it was a short lap and the only running we did, although later on, running might have been a welcome relief.
The main set of exercises were long sets of a minute each, and we all quickly learned to pace ourselves and watch the seconds slowly tick off the timer. The first round wasn’t too bad, even prompting a few pax to knockout a few merkins during the rest, but that didn’t last throughout. Still, there was something that felt odd about standing around so much, even with our hands on our hips trying to recover. YHC will see about tweaking the work/rest splits before next time…
The second set was traditional tabatas, and the timing there felt familiar. YHC’s only complaint was (1) the height of the pullup bars/area was a little awkward and (2) all the swings prior to the pullups left me with minimal grip strength. #reshuffle
There was a lot of mumblechatter throughout that YHC planned to remember, but alas, it is gone now. If you feel it should be memorialized, please sound off below.
Thanks, Bulldog, for the tunes!
Thanks for the opportunity and the support, meatheads! It was an honor!
Aye.
High Tide
Man, F^%# That Bird!
16 men grabbed their kettlebells, embraced the soupy Gloom and got their weekend off to a good start at Combine. This is what we did…
The Thang:
Farmer Carry/Partner Chase. Partner up! Partner A lugs both kettlebells, Partner B knocks out 7 diamonds and gives chase. Switch when B catches A. Repeato until you hit DES tennis court parking lot (long way). Flutters for early arrivals.
5×4, Round 1: 5 minutes to execute AMRAP with 4 exercises (swings x10, push presses x5/5, rows x5/5, goblet squats x10…repeato until you hear the beep). Plank 1 minute.
Mosey to tennis courts for sprints, Round 1: 5 AYGs across length of 5 courts.
5×4, Round 2: AMRAP of snatches x5/5, racked backward lunges x5/5, thrusters x10, diamonds x10. Plank 1 minute (including LH/LL high and RH/RL high).
Sprints, Round 2: 4 down-and-back AYGs across length of 5 courts.
5×4, Round 3: AMRAP of one-arm swings x5/5, sumo high pulls x10, curls x10, xfit burpees x10. Plank 1 minute (mostly on elbows or at “6 inches”).
Sprints, Round 3: AYGs of varying lengths (1-2-3-2-1) across length of 5 courts.
Finish at bells with 20 swings, 10 rows, 5 burpees…
COT
Naked Moleskin:
Soup’s On! With the humidity at 150% (#approximate) this morning, it felt downright swampy out there (even in SFox’s absence). Stinger and Ice-9 ran 2 laps of the park as pre-warm-up (#BRRprep), and Stinger looked like he had jumped into a pool before we got started. Much longing for the some humidity-free days of fall…
Intro of 5x4s. Thought these made a solid debut at Combine. (I had originally planned these as a 4 minute exercise — the 4×4, which rolls off the tongue easier but wasn’t as tough a test for Combine — before adding the extra minute of pain.) Not a lot of mumblechatter after the first minute of each round, though there was an occasional BS to YHC (#holla) and some random outbursts from unexpected members of the Pax, including the title to this backblast via Coop Dog (#heynow). (Not sure what that was about except maybe the cheerfulness of the bird’s chatter was too much for Coop to bear in the grind of the 5x4s.) No spilled merlot (#thankfully) but a few close calls. Good work all around, with P.S. shout out to Rocky Top who was leading the field for just about every sprint. #respect(thespeed)(butnotthebell)
Shameless Plugs. F3 Connect (check it out). Billingsley/AG (check the website for updates on after school mentoring/tutoring opportunities). Let Me Run (ditto).
Thanks, BF, for the opportunity to lead this morning. Always a privilege and a pleasure.
—Lee
“The world is the great gymnasium where we come to make ourselves strong.” — Swami Vivekananda
Just Plain Hard
The Thang:
Partner up with someone of similar speed and strength.
10 by 10 Merkin Burpees
20 Bear crawl steps, 20 Merkins, repeat all the way to the other side of the field going lengthwise
20 Crab walk steps, 10-20 Diamonds, repeat all the way to the other side of the field going lengthwise
MTJ walks all the way to the other side of the field going lengthwise
Now that we are warmed up, time to go down the ladder racing your partners, loser has to do the previous number of reps:
50 Dry Docks, sprint across the field lengthwise, 40 Dry Docks, sprint across the field, 30, 20, 10
50 Lunges, 40, 30, 20, 10
10 by 10 Merkin Burpees (just for fun)
50 Squats, 40, 30, 20, 10
50 Flutters, 40, 30, 20, 10
50 Merkins, 40, 30, 20, 10
Mosey to parking lot
30 Merkins in your own to make 500 total
Extended Flutter right into overly extended Protractor
20 Diamonds for good measure
Moleskin:
A humid morning brought out 20 pax, and 5 for preKBs. TR brought out his inflatable KB that read 48 kg, or 105 lbs for the non Englishmen in the pax. Oh, it was fun to take a pull of that bad boy! Anyone that can do the Beast Master is insane! It was amazing how there was zero mumble chatter from the get go when the 10 by 10 Merkin Burpees were called and it stayed that way until the lunges. Well, we YHC decided to throw in another 10 by 10 just for fun…that took care of it! The pax pushed hard and it was a pleasure as always to hear people question others’ form on certain exercises. Hope everyone has a great weekend and all the best to the BRR boys!
Mud Run Style Training Course Awesomeness at Olympus
The Mud Run is just 6 weeks out. Let’s get a preview of how ready you are or how ready you ain’t. Tomorrow 8/23 – Olympus goes Mud Run style training. Get your popcorn ready.
Normally I am not one for a pre-blast because I like the element of surprise. But this one is necessary so you can mentally prepare for the level awesomeness about to go down.
Some FAQ’s to help eliminate your fart sacking, soft commits, and posting at other locations:
- Alf, will this workout be friggin’ amazeballs: Yes, Yes it will. And amazeballs is a legit word
- Alf, will this just be another kettle bell workout? It’s a gear workout and we incorporate KB’s, so bring your KB but we will only use it a bit. Maybe.
- Alf, you’ve been BRR training, will this just be all running? We will run, but a few miles tops, and spread out over the hour.
- Alf, are we going merkin crazy for the #10KMerkin challenge? No, but we’ll do a few.
- Alf, I’ve never been to Olympus, don’t they just carry logs and watch The Hoff lift huge things like he’s Magnús Ver Magnusson? No, there will be cardio, strength, running, agility, etc. so come out and give it a try. Your cars should be safe tomorrow. I think.
- Alf, this sounds friggin awesome, but I am already set to Q Outland/Area 51/Day Zero/Ascent/The Rock/Stonehenge? Do yourselves and your PAX a favor and tweet out you will be converging at Olympus. Nothing you do will be this awesome. 110% money back guarantee. (Except for Stonehenge, you guys can shut it down 10 minutes early and roll to Elizabeth Ln for a double down, which would be extra awesome)
- Alf, will I get mud run style dirty at this workout? A little dirty, but nothing will require you to be hosed off before getting into the car.
- Alf, are you a professional? At leading a workout – no. At being Awesome – yes.
- Alf, will Runstopper show up and take his shirt off? Not sure, but the ladies living on Elizabeth Ln are hoping so?
- Alf, will I need Bugeater style nipple protection? I’ll let you manage your own personal health and safety. Whatever works for you.
- Alf, will Tiger Rag provide an appropriately themed YouTube video along with this pre-blast? Surely that is a likely outcome
- Alf, Is it 2.0 friendly? 2.0’s will have a blast, but wouldn’t recommend it for a 2.0 FNG unless they are natural beasts.
- Alf, I am fat/lazy/tired/looking forward to something easier/habitual refusinik, will I be able to do this? Yes – it will be a no drop format.
- Alf, Do you think you are overselling this a bit? Absolutely not. It will be Ri-donk-u-lous
I might add more FAQ’s as I think of them today. Check back often.
You need to come to this, and to quote Kim Kardashian’s perpetually puss faced baby daddy:
“Cause my life is dope, and I do dope sh*t,”
-Alf
The Colosseum
The shovel flag was firmly planted by Escargot as the Pax gathered for another episode of #F3Centurion. There seemed to be no hangover from last week’s visit from the Nan’tan himself, as the everyone appeared eager to work. So, after delivering the disclaimer, we got right to it.
The Thang
SSHs x 10 IC
Run from the launch point at CCHS to The Colosseum across 51 just off Carmel Commons…it’s about a mile run. Along the way:
- High knees
- Butt kicks
- Carioca left
- Carioca right
- Stop just across Carmel for Merkins x 15 and IWs x 15 IC
Enter The Colosseum and grab a respectable rock and circle up:
- Squats x 10 IC
- Side lunges x 5 each leg
- Good mornings x 10 IC (down on 3, up on the count)
- Squats x 10 IC
Mosey to the big hill in The Colosseum for Mermaid’s Triple Nickel:
- 5 times up the hill
- 5 jump squats at the top
- 5 monkey humpers at the bottom
Back to the rocks:
- Straight out with rock then up at 45* angle with rock x 10 IC
- Shoulder presses x 10 IC
Mosey to a little shorter hill for Triple 3s:
- 3 times up the hill…backwards bear crawl up, forward bear crawl down
- 3 CDDs at the top
- 3 CDDs at the bottom
Back to the rocks and line up along another hill of the Colosseum:
- 10 bicep curls, drop rock, run up the hill, back to rock
- 10 tricep extensions, drop rock, run up the hill, back to rock
- Do this x 3
Return rocks and start our run back. Stop just across 51.
- Plank work: RAH, RLH, LAH, LLH, Mission Impossible (10 second hold)
- Merkins x 15
Keep running back. Stop at McMahon for SSHs x 20 IC while we wait for the six.
Run to the bus parking lot for Mary:
- Flutter kicks x 15 IC, hold it
- Dollies x 15 IC, hold it, spread ’em, together, spread ’em, together, drop ’em
- 10 groiners OYO
- High flutter kicks x 15 IC
- Rosalitas x 15 IC
- Elbow Plank for ~1 minute plus 2 10 counts
Mosey back to base. COT
Moleskine
Bucking YHC’s trend to just go over and run the heck out of Palatine Hill for 45 minutes, we ventured to another area across 51…a drainage area in the Carmel Commons surrounded by hills and with access to rocks. Ever since @Jamboree found it weeks ago, YHC’s wanted to go back. Today was the day. YHC dubbed it The Colosseum. No one died there this morning.
It was only a little soggy in The Colosseum but it added to the humidity. Plus there was very little air stirring. So after the mile run over and starting in on the leg work, the sweat was pouring pretty heavily. There were groans when YHC called for #MonkeyHumpers. Relax men…it was dark and we were down in a hole…no one saw. Just us guys. It’s called #bonding.
YHC had no idea how the Triple 3s might work or feel. YHC didn’t like it…but will certainly do it again. After the shoulder work with the rocks, failure on the backwards bear crawl up the hill came quickly.
@Semi-Gloss was a #hero this morning…clearing a huge spider web away for us on the last hill so we could run up it. As legend would have it, the spider was so big it blocked the light from the adjacent parking lot.
YHC caught some flack on the Merkins…as apparently it was heard that we were doing 10. YHC went to 15 each time. Don’t remember saying 10. But, as @BoomerSooner points out each time he runs past me, YHC is an old man. #HateHates
Chelms was quiet today. Either he was hurting or is just mellowing as he gets older. He did give us a solid takeout in the BOM to send us out into our day.
But It Goes to 11
19 PAX climbed out of their fartsacks and posted at Peak 51
The Thang;
COP
- Side Straddle Hop x 30
- Mountain Climbers x 15
- IW x 15
- Merkins x 15
Four Corners
Move to the track and run 1 lap completing the called exercise at each corner. After each lap complete the the following set of exercises:
- Merkins x11
- Squats x 11
- LBCs x 11
- Lap 1- CDD x 11
- Lap 2- Hand Release Merkins x 11
- Lap 3- 11 LBCs
- Lap 4- 11 Wide Arm Merkins
Circuit Work
Mosey to the baseball field bleachers for some circuit work
- Incline Merkins x 11
- Dips x 11
- Lunges x 12 (Okay, so we rounded up here)
- Repeato for a total of 4 circuts
The People’s Chair
Mosey to the school wall for “The Semi Gloss”
- Round 1- Arms out
- Round 2- Arm raises x 15
Mary
Ten minutes left so return to the parking lot for Mary
- Dolly x 15
- Rosalita x 15
- Flutter x 10
- 30 seconds left, finish strong with Merkins AYG
The Moleskin:
- Strong work by the PAX today, they got a good start on the Merkin challenge today, 180 total before completing many as they could in the last 30 seconds
- After Q’ng Basecamp earlier in the week with Whitesnake and Tawny, YHC was inspired to keep the 80’s Rock theme going with today’s workout and taking it to 11 a la Spinal Tap. Thanks to the PAX for indulging YHC.
- There wasn’t a lot of mumble chatter in the Gloom, but a whole lot of grunting an O2 deprivation. Although Slimfast tried to get the PAX to provide some but to no avail.
- Whitesnake mentioned that after so many merkins he started wishing for some running #BeCarefulWhatUWhish4
- Slimfast chimed in about YHC’s rhythmically challenged cadence #MetronomeRequired
- The circuit work between laps came back to actually bite YHC after stumbling upon some fire ants.
- Thank you Insomniac for taking us out
- Sound of with any mumble chatter. As always it is an honor and privilege to lead, thank you.
Abbreviated post, extended exertion
23 men entered the gloom for a new tempo route for DT. To YHC’s knowledge, only one PAX was momentarily lost and that was on the way back in known territory. #notmyfault
The numbers at DT keep growing as BRR gets closer. It is great to see everyone out for a good old fashioned run.
As in weeks past, YHC only has a limited view of the happenings of the morning. Frasier and Haggis are fast, Bratwurst is faster and likes to pass people for sport. But you all know that already.
What did you see out there today?