Today I pinch-Q’d at PoopDeck. DarkHelmet, having pushed himself to injury at the Paintheon Games, needed someone to step up and fill in.

Fun Fact #1: I didn’t want to do it at first. My 2.0s haven’t been sleeping well the last few nights, waking my M and I up all hours. I was so freaking tired! I had a busy day at work, a challenging evening flying solo, helping with homework and getting the kids fed and ready for bed. I also made the mistake of looking at the forecast. Selfishly, I wanted the choice to “oversleep” or “not hear my alarm.” I wanted to be able to decide at 0455 whether or not to drag out of bed and post. Some days it is an easy choice. Some days it’s low 30s and foggy.

But a brother needed help, so I made the choice to HC.

Fun Fact #2: When you’re Q, you have to come up with a workout. This stresses me out to no end. I’ve posted 3, 4, sometimes 5 times a week for months now, and am so impressed by how easy some Qs make it look. No Weinke. No Sharpie-scrawled forearm notes. Seemingly no plan at all, but they just keep it moving, mix it up, and before I know it, I’m at COT trying to catch my breath and remember how old I am for Name-o-Rama. I’m not there yet. It’s like the moment I agree to Q all ideas fly out of my head.

Thanks to DH for the idea of pairing exercises to each letter in D-A-V-I-N-C-I. As he was texting me options, I sensed a little disappointment that there’s no B for Burpees or K for Kraken Burpees, but hey, he named me…

Fun Fact #3: I got stumped on “N.” So, I turned to the “Exicon” section on the F3 website. A quick peek on the site and I found a couple that I’d never done before: the “Not-So-Lazy-Boy” and the “Never-Cross-Dolly.” Both are terrible, terrible ab exercises that I will be putting into my Q arsenal.

The Thang.

YHC announced the deal: we’re going to spell my F3 name with exercises. With each letter, the PAX had the choice of an exercise from Set 1 or Set 2.

Set 1

D=Dive Bomb Merkins x 10
A=Alternating Shoulder Taps
V=V-Ups
I=Imperial Walkers
N=Not-So-La-Z-Boys
C=Carolina Dry Docks
I=Iron Mikes (aka Jump Lunges)

Set 2

D=Dan Taylors (aka Lieutenant Dan’s)
A=American Hammers
V=V-Up Twists
I=Indian Bear Crawl (Dang!)
N=Never Cross Dolly
C=Crunchy Frogs
I=Imperial Squat Walkers

We made choices, worked through a set, took a lap around the parking lot, and rinse and repeated, doing whichever exercise we didn’t do first go-round. Then, another lap, and back to “D.” This time, I opened it up to the group to offer ideas. Dips for “D,” Decline Merkins, etc. The funniest moment was on “A.” WitchHunt said he tried to clear his mind, but he had a “Stay Puft” moment. I of course had to know what he thought of. “It’s terrible. I tried to think of nothing.” And then we found a wall for “Ascending Testicles.”  After that was “V” which became a “Variety Pack” of merkins. By this time, we were a few minutes before COT, so we sat on our 6 for some Ab Lab. Big-Boy Sit-Ups (Andretti), Slow/Fast Freddys (WitchHunt). Then one final lap to level set the day and back to COT.

COT

We talked about relationships. How they require hard work, commitment and tenacity to survive and flourish. About how important the family unit is. How little things like sharing a meal around the table make such a big difference in our sense of feeling connected to the people most important to us. As we approach the Christmas holidays, choose to seek moments to be present, be focused, and BE TOGETHER, in one place and time, with those you love.

Prayers for family members with health issues. Praises for the birth of Olaf’s new baby and the health and strength she’s showing. Praises to the amazing will and dedication of Olaf’s M.

Moleskin

As I have gone through my day after our workout today, I kept coming back to this idea of “choice” and what a powerful thing that can be.

Sure, some choices are fairly benign.
Paper or plastic?
Booth or table?
Patriots or any team that plays the Patriots?

Some choices can be life altering.
Should I find a new job or keep the job I don’t like, but is familiar?
Should we work on fixing our marriage, or just throw in the towel?

Often in life, it’s the choice that requires more work that makes us stronger.

You take the job. You fight for your marriage.

This morning, in the gloom, I offered a choice: “Okay, next we have ‘I’: Imperial Walkers or Indian Bear Crawls?” And seconds later, we were bear-crawling across the parking lot. The harder choice.

That’s what I find so humbling and so inspiring about the men of F3. You push yourselves and me every day to be better. And I thank you.

Gratefully,

DaVinci