12 brave souls shared the experienced of my VQ!

The THANG

COP
Mosey to the end of the parking lot for COP. Warm-ups included Windmill x15, Squat Kicks x15, bob and weave drills (or sway dance as some appeared to be doing) x15

Curb Drills

– Wheel Of Merkin (OYO) – The Pax remain in plank position as you transition to the next merkin exercise (Encouraged people to do at least five, more if they need the challenge)

Incline merkin x5
Uneven merkin (R) x5
Decline merkin x5
Uneven merkin (L) x5

At the end of each merkin set, the PAX planked until everyone is finished. Then performed one of the exercises below, in cadence.

Seated Row Crunches (crunchy frog) x10
Single leg toe raises x10 each
Dying cockroach x10
Squat hops onto the curb x10

Rinse and repeat 4x

Grass Drills

Mosey to the grass field

– Quad Hoppers x5 (I called an audible after the first set, and moved on to the next exercise)

Broke off into groups of three/four

Over/Under at 10 yard intervals (sprint/high-knees/arm-crawl)
– Explanation: First person sprints to the 10 yard line and assumes the plank position. Second person sprints to the first person and hops over him, then high-knees to the 20 yard line and assumes the plank position. Third person sprints, hops, high knees, then crawl under the second person and continues to crawl to the 30 yd line, then assumes the plank position. Rinse and repeat to the other end of the field and back.

TIME CHECK: 5:36 or 5:46 (I can’t remember which.  See below why this is important)

Parking lot drills

Mosey to the football field parking lot
– Stayed in our groups. First person sprints to the 50 yard line and back while the rest does SSH. Rinse and repeat with squats, merkins

Mosey to the other parking lot and did sprints to each painted lines at 50%, 75%, 100%, 110% speed.

Ab workouts and some burpees
Russian twist, protractor, hello Dolly, boat/canoe, burpee for good measure.

Announcements:
Baxter Trail Club New Year’s Day Trail Run. Jan 1st, 2015
Joe Davis Memorial Run – Jan 10th, 2015

Parting thought:
– Be aware of destination addiction – the preoccupation with the idea that happiness is in the next job, next next partner. Until you give up the idea that happiness is somewhere else, it will never be where you are.

Prayers:
Lord God, thank you for giving us the opportunity to gather on this beautiful day. We are here because we desire to be better men; physically, mentally, and spiritually. Help us grow to be more compassionate, for we know what it is like to be in need. More forgiving, because we have betrayed others. And to be more loving, for we know what it is like to hurt. We also lift up those that are hurting during the holiday season due to the passing of a loved one. This can be a very difficult time and we ask that you give them peace and strength.

Moleskin:
What went wrong? Well, let me see….where do I start?

Bob and weave
– The Issue: This is the first inkling that things are not going as I had envisioned. Note to self: not everyone is a fighter. Some are….dancers?!?

– The Take Away: What appears to be simple can be foreign to some. Exercises that requires coordination and proper form takes time to learn.

Over/Unders
– The Issue: It started off good, but quickly turned ugly. Some confusion as the exercise continued. With a 3 man group and 3 exercises between each interval, each person ended up repeating the same exercise rather than moving to the next one

– The Take Away: Just because it looks good on paper or in your head, it may not translate well when applied. Think through the process and make sure new exercises are explained well in the beginning.

Quad hoppers:
– The Issue: Another great exercise that takes coordination and proper form. Easy to do when you are well rested. Not so much after the Wheel Of Merkin.

– The Take Away: Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Run through the exercise plan until you get a feel for things.

Time Check:
– The Issue: At this point (see above), I have ran through my list of exercises. I thought what I had would completely fill up 45 minutes. It wasn’t!

– The Take Away: Create your plan with more exercises than what is scheduled for. It is much easier to leave out exercises than to think of one on the fly!  (Thank you to the veteran PAX for lending a helping hand and providing a few suggestions in my time of need. Thank you, Cakeboss!)

What went right? I got there early as planned. Gave me a chance to run (or drive) through the area to confirm my route plan.

Final Thoughts:  Don’t be hard on yourself.  Don’t shy away from a challenge.  Don’t be afraid to step out your comfort zone.  Learn to follow and learn to lead.  Have fun!