Failure…is a good thing
15 men (including 1 FNG) brought their “A” game this morning to Hydra.
The Thang:
Warm up: There wasn’t one. At 0530 sharp YHC explained the workout. YHC calls out exercise and Pax were to complete as many reps as possible (until failure) of said exercise for the amount of time determined by YHC.
Excercises:
1- burpees (2 minutes)
2- run laps around track progressively faster. (2 minutes)
3- run to field for merkin pyramid (YHC’s favorite). Complete merkin and hold at plank position for 5 seconds. Up to 10 and back down (total of 100 merkins plus 5 second plank=unsavory)
4- run to playground and complete pull ups or knees to chest; then on backs to complete slow bicycle touching opposite elbow to opposite knee.
5-run to wall at concession stand for decline merkins and dips.
6-run to back field. Line up on goal line and bear crawl accoss field until YHC calls out “sprint” then sprint to opposite end of field. Rinse and repeat.
7-run through woods to Foxworth Lane for some hill work. Complete 30 slow bicycle elbow to knee touches at bottom of hill then run to top of hill and complete 25 wide arm merkins. Rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat… and so on and so on.
8-run back to field and repeat exercise #6
9-run to concession stand and repeat exercise #5
10- you get the pattern…
Finish same way we started with 2 minutes of burpees.
Moleskin:
-Failure/AMRAP is a great way to really push the Pax. It’s you against you; so everyone gets a max workout… well if you were honest with yourself.
-Harley is a bear crawling monster. He looks awkward and funny but he left the pax in the dust, and I believe bear crawled the entire 100 yards on the first trek across the field. YHC believes the 2nd, 3rd and 4th rounds he had to take advantage of the sprint.
-Slim Fast is getting faster. He was tearing up the laps around the track, as well as the hill work on Foxworth. Definitely Thunder Road ready.
-T-Claps to Greyhound and Philmont. They defintely pushed themselves and finished strong. At 73 years old Greyhound is no doubt the biggest stud in F3!
-Thanks Stone Cold for pressuring YHC to join him on the 2.5 mile run in and to The Shore for driving us home after the workout. SC had planned to run home but changed his mind. Luckily The Shore had a bag of rugby balls for SC to sit on to prevent christening a “sweat seat” in Shore’s car. YHC knew was was instore and brought a towel for the ride home.
-Great having former Harvard football player Jeff S. nic-named Ivy League join us. Hope to see you again in the gloom.
Announcements:
-The Shore is Q’ing a 3 to 5 day canoe trip ending at Lake Wylie called F3 Banjo’s in mid November. Contact him for details
-New workout, Joust, on Friday’s at Charlotte Christian.
Straight Up Rebel Yell Burns
As Billy Idol’s rock classic “Rebel Yell” blared from the Crabcake’s hatchback, Spackler firmly planted the site’s shovel flag into the earth at Polo Ridge Elementary School. 13 men assembled and stretched, in anticipation of the workout that was to come. Then, at 0530, we launched into the foggy gloom to pay our last respects to the Thursday we were about to crush.
The Thang
A baby jog from the parking lot to the soccer pitch where, with the sounds of our running on the rain soaked ground filling the air, we gathered for COP:
- SSHs – 20 cadence
- Diamonds, Narrow, Regular – 5 cadence each
- IWs – 20 cadence
- Regular, Stagger R, Stagger L – 5 cadence each
- Squats – 20 cadence (hold at the bottom on the last one for a 10 count)
- CDDs, Wide-Arm, Regular – 5 cadence each
- Flutters – 30 cadence
- Regular, Narrow, Diamonds – 5 cadence each
Line it up at one soccer goal for sprints. Sprint to other soccer goal and perform called exercise. Sprint back and plank it up. Called exercises:
- 10 burpees
- 20 jump squats
- 30 LBCs
- Rinse and repeat
Then just sprint down and mosey back…x2.
Run from the soccer pitch to the bus parking lot. Each pax find a bus parking space line.
- Bear crawl to end, backwards bear crawl back…x2
- Rinse and repeat
Run from the bus parking lot to the far side of the school…find yourself a bench on the picnic tables.
- 10 step-ups each leg
- 15 dips
- 15 decline merkins
- Hold the decline merkin plank at the end
- Rinse and repeat…x2
Mosey back to the front of the school and circle up for some Mary:
- Dollies – 30 cadence, hold it, spread ’em, together
- Protractor – 45 degrees, spread ’em, together; 90 degrees, spread ’em, together
- Exploding merkins – 15, on YHC’s count
- Rosalitas – 30 cadence
- Freddy Mercury – 20 cadence
- Groiners – 15, on YHC’s count
- Elbow plank – 1 minute…then 10 count…then 10 count…then 10 count (this one lasted about 20 seconds actually)…then one last 10 count
COT
Moleskin
- As the Rebel Yell label says above, this morning brought forth an Original Time Honored Recipe for pain: push-o-rama supersets, burpees and jump squats in between sprints, backwards bear crawls, exploding merkins, groiners and holding a plank well after you thought you were done.
- A great group of men this morning who pushed it hard throughout…so there wasn’t much mumble chatter…except a twerking callout during the squat hold at the bottom and some complaints about the water soaking through our shorts and shirts as we went to our six for the flutters in COP.
- The bear crawls, especially the backwards ones, on the school bus parking lot lines seemed to be a crowd pleaser…so much so that we did it again. It is amazing how all coordination is lost on the last backwards bear crawl of each set.
- YHC loved adding the multiple 10 counts at the end of the 1 minute elbow plank…there’s something about going past when you think you are done that brings on an added element of burn. Deadwood’s 10 count lasted at least 20 seconds.
Announcements
- New workouts – Friday bootcamp #F3Joust; Sunday run #F3Nomad
- 3rdF on Friday after #F3Centurion at the Carmel/51 Panera – #F3TheStand
- #F3DayZero Challenge – Saturday 0700 at McAlpine Elementary
- Young Life Mud Run this Saturday
- ThunderRoad Half and Full sign-ups
Can I get that for you?
4 SPEARHEAD strong for early morning ruck!
The Thang
Distance: 4.17 Miles (one sandbag and two logs)
STOP 1 (Mile 1): Colony & Giverny –
- Merkins x 25
- Squat x 30
- Merkins x 25
STOP 2 (Mile 2): Shaker & Mountainbrook –
- Merkins x 25
- Ruck overhead press x 30
- Merkins x 25
STOP 3 (Mile 3): Mountainbrook& Carmel –
- Decline Merkins x 25
- Squat x 30
- Merkins x 25
Return to school.
COT
Moleskin
Good moving with a purpose this morning. Audible on the big log with four pax. We beat the newspaper past most of Mountainbrook this morning! SPEARHEAD Q for Liquor Cycle tomorrow, come on out for his inaugural Q! I believe shoulders will be involved.
Announcements
- The SPEARHEAD Patch Challenge continues until 9/27. Patch Challenge Standings
- SPEARHEAD T-Shirts are available at the F3 Gear Site
- PT Reflector belts for those that signed up should be available on Tuesday.
Check out www.SPEARHEADF3.com for more information and to join our Google Group mailing list
“So, why didn’t you change the workout??”
35 of Area 51’s #Faithful posted in the Gloom for a workout that YHC should have modified…read below for more.
The Thang
Mosey to football field for COP
SSH, Mountain climbers, Imperial Walker, Slow Merkins, Slow Squat
Partner up with someone you don’t know for Catch Me If You Can
Lap 1: Partner 1 runs, Partner 2 does 10 Merkins then sprints after P1 – flapjack
Lap 2: P2 runs, P1 does 5 burpees, sprints after P2 – flapjack
Lap 3: P1 runs, P2 does 10 LBC’s – same routine as Laps 1 & 2
Lap 4: P2 runs, P1 does 10 squats – same routine as Laps 1, 2, 3
3 Minutes of Mary led by Double D’s then Mosey up to parking lot & find your partner
Partner 1 runs back to football field gate, does 10 burpees, & runs back to parking lot while Partner 2 does LBC’s – Flapjack
Same routine with P1 doing 20 Merkins, P2 doing squats – Flapjack
Same routine with P1 doing 10 burpees, P2 doing Turkish Get-ups – Flapjack
Circle up for 5 MOM
Dolly, Freddy Mercury, Rosalita (en Espanol)
10 Burpees OYO
COT
So when YHC crawled out of the #Fartsack this morning he could hardly walk – #PlantarFascitis. YHC mentioned this to a couple of the pax as we were running and their response was, “So why didnt you change the workout?” YHC thought about around 0500 but was just too tired to come up with another game plan before posting.
Great work by all today. The running up the sidewalk to the parking lot was a little tougher after doing a bunch of burpees, merkins, etc.
Kudos to Robinhood, our War Daddy. Robinhood, way to push yourself, Brother. You are an inspiration to many.
Little bit of the usual, then not so much…
19 of the The Mauls finest showed up for a Wingman led Q
The Thang
Mosey to the theater lot for a lot of the usual
25 x Side Straddle Hop
25 x Imperial Walker
20 x Merkins
20 x Low prayer squats into tall X. Spirit fingers optional
Mosey to the fountains
10 – Derkins
10 – Jump ups
10 – Dips
Run to the lingerie store and back
Plank it up – 6 inches
Mosey back towards the lot
Parter up, size doesn’t matter
100 total in cadence count LBC or 200 non-cadence
Parter 1 runs to Cantina and back
Parter 2 LBCs
Flapjack until total count reached.
Plank it up RAH, RLH, Regular, LAH, LLH, Regular (Hops)
Mosey towards our friendly cab driver by target
M100s
– 10 burpees
– 10 mountain climbers (1-2-3-ONE, 1-2-3-TWO)
– 10 squat/squat jumps (double pump and jump)
Repeat until total reps = 100
Crowd Pleaser
Mosey to find Mary behind Target
1 min of:
– Freddie four count
– Heels to the heavens 4 Count
30s of:
– Half burpee (plank -> feet to chest)
Repeat for 3 rounds.
Mosey towards hills behind target…audible due to rain.
Peoples chair for two minutes with ~30 presses
Bear crawl first speed bumps
Lunge walk second humps
Mosey/Run home
We still have time for more Mary
15 x Flutter
15 x Dolly
15 x Windshield Wipers (shout out to #F3TheForge)
Protractor until exactly 615a
Moleskin
Somehow we started talking about exercise queens before launch. YHC was trying to remember Aerobicise but somehow not a single PAX could come up with the name. Strange. Or was it denial.
This was YHC FTQ at the Maul. Everyone brought it today. I introduced a few new things and there was a bit of chatter around mountain climbers and burpees. YHC had planned a m100/m200 fest but decided to nix the m200 after the noticing the sweat on the first round. The Rain didn’t stop the crowd, except for Frehlys Comet and Chippy not wanted to get wet in the end. Somehow YHC was getting called Wingspaceman. He thinks he missed something.
Announcments
- Please keep Passport and his wife in your prayers
- Sign up for Young Life Mud Run, family event, this Saturday at White Water Center
Preblast: Devil’s Turn – Sept 26
So here is this week’s plan for Devil’s Turn. There are plenty of options so everyone’s invited to partake in the running bliss. See you in the gloom.
Instructions Prior to the Run:
1) Go to http://www.runbayou.com/jackd.htm and input your latest race time (Bagpipe vs. Fast Twitch mile time would be a start).
2) On the right side, note your “R” Repetition Pace for the 400m (1-lap) distance
3) Some examples:
- 6:00 mile race time = 1:30 sec 400m R-training time
- 7:00 mile race time = 1:46 sec 400m R-training time
- 8:00 mile race time = 1:59 sec 400m R-training time
- 9:00 mile race time = 2:16 sec 400m R-training time
Plan for the run:
– Everyone launch together from Greenway parking lot (corner of Rea Rd. and Bevington Pl) at 5:15 am. Across Bevington Place from Starbucks @ 6432 Rea Rd, Charlotte, NC 28277
– Run 2 miles out to S. Charlotte Middle School track
– 3-Options:
1) 4-mile folks: 15 min of boot camp (Q TBD)
2) 6-mile folks wanting speed work:
- 400m (1-lap) at R-training pace (calculated above)
- 400m recovery lap (fellowship pace)
- Repeato 3 more times for a total of 8 laps = 2 miles
3) 6-mile folks out for a cruise: 8 laps at desired pace
– Run 2 miles back to parking lot for COT.
YHC will hand out directions before we start. However, the intent is to run relatively together on the way to and from the school track.
Anvil – Takes a Partner for Iron to Sharpen Iron
12 Men posted by the virtual shovel flag, in the dark, not realizing that rain was pending, and put in a strong workout. Some strong efforts out there this morning, I’d say about 12 of them.
at 0530 hrs the pax went to do something like this:
SSH x 40
Merkins x 20
IW x 20
CDD x 20
Mountain Climbers x 20
Butt Kickers x 20
High Knees x 20
Low, Slow, Squats x 15
Mosey to pavilion to partner up for:
Partner 1 5 BTW Push ups, Partner 2 20 dips then flap jack
Together Low Slow Squats x 15 (all reps add up to 40)
Repeato
Jog to baseball field area, pick up large rock
Partner sit ups with rock exchange x 20
Partner paddy cake merkins x 10
Repeato
Mary:
Flutter x 20
Dolly x 20
Mason Twist x 10
Elbow plank x 30 sec x 2
Prairie Fire Mary x 10 with partner
Jog to cars for Q timing failure, Q announces that we’re done, only to realize that this isn’t Fast Twitch and Anvil ends at 0615, good news, 15 more minutes
Indian Run to entrance to Rea Road
Partner 1 run down hill to Rea Road, bear crawl back
Partner 2 LBC’s
Flapjack
Partner 1 sprint to bottom and back
Partner 2 CDD’s
Flapjack
Partner 1 run to light post (about half way down), crab walk back
Partner 2 Merkins
Flapjack
Indian Run circuitous route to median near cars, 10 burpees on your own
Sprint to cars to circle up for COT
Moleskin:
Q failure on the timing, was able to get in a bit more pain this morning. A lot of the reps are somehow adding up to 40, either directly or via cadence x 2, not sure why this was but just seemed to end up that way. Very strong effort by the pax today, I can see how Lobster Roll got his name, seriously fast on the crab walk and bear crawls (DK better watch out for some real competition here). Salt Lick had to put up with YHC as a partner, garnering leads on almost all movements to have them not only lost but to have YHC finish last, that’s why we do these things, they’re tough which makes us strong, very good partner efforts today with strong encouragement amongst teams. Partner sit up rock pass seemed to be a crowd pleaser. Spackler, despite at the end declaring he would be last at #F3Nomad on Sunday was a blaze of speed on the Indian Runs, well done, even gutting out the bear crawl despite a tweaked back, don’t make it worse brother, want to see you in the gloom. Abacus was pretty strong all around, hadn’t seen you in a while (problem of Area 51 getting so large!), always good to connect. When YHC Q’s and Stone Cold posts, the goal is to make the workout hard enough so that he breaks a sweat, unfortunately today it was full on raining by the end so will just have to imagine that at least one bead of the water was sweat, always great to post with you brother.
Oh yeah, the reference to 40 above, YHC turned 40 this morning, great to Q on your birthday.
Great send off by Stone Cold, always good to be reminded of our larger responsibilities and how what we do represents our faith in all situations.
Announcements:
Joust, new workout on Fridays, site Q of Stone Cold, great campus
Thunder Road: Sign up and let 49’er know, F3Nomad workout on Sundays for LSD training, so effective YHC got disoriented and lost on the last one, come on out
Bagpipe beatdown
14 SOBs fought their way through another Tuesday morning.
The Thang:
Mosey to parking lot for warm up: 25 side straddle hop, 16 imperial walker, 21 mountain climber, 5 merkins, hold, 5 merkins, hold, 5 merkins, hold.
Mosey to lake side: 10 slow derkins, 10 slow dips, 25 flutter. Lap around lake. Repeato.
Mosey to parking lot for Mary / merkin combo: 2 merkins, 25 abs, 4 merkins, 25 abs, 6, 8, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, hold plank on elbows for multi-pax countdown.
Mosey to grassy knoll for sprints: Sprint to end, mosey back. Repeat. Sprint to end and sprint back. Repeat. 5 merkins then sprint to end and back. 10 merkins then sprint to end and back.
Grab a partner: Partner 1 does one lap of lake, partner 2 does jack webbs. Flapjack and repeat.
Mosey back to parking lot for COT.
Moleskin:
– Not much chatter from the Pax today. This workout was serious business.
– Minimal breaks and strong effort by all.
– Soft Pretzel takes it next week.
1/2 Reverse Devil’s Turn with a Merkin Twist
12 men, including 1 defector from #F3Bagpipe, showed up at #F3FastTwitch on a nice morning for running. At 0515, we set off into the gloom. Here’s what we did.
The Thang
Ran from the parking lot to the front of the school for COP…
- SSHs – 30 cadence
- Buttkicks – 15 cadence
- High Knees – 15 cadence
- Merkins – 15 cadence
After COP, we took it to the road…
- R on Strawberry. Stop at Rosecliff. Plank it up. 15 cadence merkins.
- R on Rosecliff. Stop at Coburn Ct. Plank it up. 15 cadence merkins.
- R on Coburn Ct. Up the hill and stop at Bevington. Plank it up. 15 cadence merkins
- Give it all you got for the 3/4 mile run down Bevington to Rea. Stop. On your six. 30 cadence flutter kicks.
- Up the hill on Rea from Bevington to 51. Stop every 30 seconds or so for 10 merkins on your own. 4 stops…40 merkins total.
- Plank it up at the corner of Rea and 51. 20 cadence merkins.
- Run the final 1.25 miles from Rea back to South CLT Middle at your own pace.
- Circle up for some Mary…led by Turkey Leg (because he beat YHC back to the school): 30 cadence dollies, hold it. 30 cadence LBCs
COT – great send off by Chelms a/k/a Tatertot
Moleskin
- We covered 4 miles in 45 minutes with several stops along the way. That means all the Pax pushed it hard on the runs which enabled us to enjoy some 2ndF along with our 1stF.
- By YHC’s count, we knocked out 200 merkins this morning. Does stopping and doing merkins while running decrease or increase the chances of nipple chafing? But trust that YHC will not be gathering any data from this morning’s field study…thus, we may never know.
- In either an undercover mission to discover what makes #F3FastTwitch so good or a complete defection from the dark side that is #F3Bagpipe, Mighty Mite joined us this morning. He got out of car explaining that he had to train for ThunderRoad and thus wanted to join an elite running workout. So wise for such as young man.
- All in all, a solid effort by all the Pax.
Announcements
- Sign up for ThunderRoad full or half under the Area51 team. Let 49er know.
- Please pray for M. Passport.
- Several 3rdF meetings going on…check one of them out.
- DayZero Challenge this Saturday…come get some.
Wheels On The Bus GO Round & Round
13 of Charlotte South’s finest arose out of their slumber only to be welcomed by the cool air of a cold front moving in and brisk breeze as Fall is only a day away.
The THANG:
LBJ (little baby jog) around the campus and head to the VSF for some COP.
– SSH X25, Slow Squat X20, IW X20, Merkins X15, Peter Parker X15, Parker Peter X15
The MAIN THANG:
Mosey to the far side of campus to receive your syllabus and be schooled in 4 painful physical education courses.
– Rail Work (Rail Slides)
– Wall Work (Donkey Kicks X20)
– Brick Bench Work (jump ups X10)
– Table Work (Dips X20)
Work through all 4 pain stations at a high rate of speed between each station X4 ensuring each of the PAX covered 2 rail slides in each direction (right/left).
– Peoples Chair 1 minute
– Peoples Chair 1 minute w/ 30 air presses
Wait, what’s that jingling I hear? I hear it, I know what that sound is — To quote Dickie V, “WARM UP THE BUS BABY BECAUSE HERE COMES CT TO DRIVE US HOME”!!!!
Magic School bus
- Run weaving through the ~ school buses
- Lunge walk through the School bus pick up area
- Burpees x10
- Repeato
Indian Run to the High School soccer fields
COP Ring of Fire
- Each member of Pax calls an exercise for the remainder to do while bear crawling sprinting around the outside of circle
Rand-o-rama Sevens
Station 1
- Squats (various)
Station 2
- Merkins (various)
Station 3
- Hanging leg lifts
Mosey to Disc Golf Course
- Plank
- Jail break up the hill
- Jackknife x 20 (hold)
COT
Mokeskin:
Aye, it was a beautiful morning with the cool air and cloud cover. Great to see the turnout of such a strong PAX! With Swiss, Schnitzel and of course Fish Taco #oneofthesonsofballentynesfinest posting, the race was on. They brought the speed and the rest of us simply hung on for dear life for 60 minutes. The only thing slowing them down were being flagged with penalty burpees for being too fast and because the Qs said so!!! YHC was just a tad disappointed that Electric Slide was out because with those 3 thoroughbreds posting, the race would have been on for the jail break up the hill and ES possibly would have had to give up his WWF3 sprinters belt.
Great to have you out guys, you made us all better on this day.
Strong performance by ALL though. Hairband, dude is getting faster, faster & stronger each week. Hardwood, the transformation you’ve gone through in the past 6-8 weeks is uber impressive. Not so sure about this Wardaddy stuff and may need to check and verify your birth certificate.
Also great to have the newest member of our PAX out (Boon Dock 2.0 Charlie) there with us who was smoking it. Just came off of an arm injury and just had his cast removed; however, he didn’t shy away from anything and was leading the way. #nofear #madedadverynervous
Great turnout and it was an absolute privilege to co-Q such a strong group of young men.