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10 bootcampers appeared in the gloom 15 minutes after 7 runners took off for parts unknown in the greater Fort Mill area.

Began with a disclaimer followed by a short mosey to the band practice parking lot for a predictable count warm-up:

Squat x10
Windmill x10
Cherry Picker x10
Imperial Walker x10
Hillbilly Walker x10

With a call for “on me,” YHC sprinted erratically and planked up waiting on the PAX. Once all the PAX had planked up, the call for “on me” was immediately repeated and followed by another erratic sprint. Repeated this sequence a few times until the mumble chatter began.

Planked up and discussed how we respond when our expectations (mosey–>circle up–>cadence exercises, etc.) are challenged or directly defied.

The Thang (see  photo w/ working thoughts as well)

Exercises:
Burpees, Merkins, LBCs, Squats, Carolina Dry Docks, American Hammers, Mountain Climbers, People’s Chair+Moroccan Night Club

As the exercises became predictable in count and repetition, YHC challenged the PAX to notice if the consistency and expectation made the workout any easier. How does our response change knowing or not knowing every detail of what lies in the 43 feet ahead? How is that response helpful, hurtful, instructive, or destructive.

Added 5 more burpees at COT for what was initially suggested as hitting 60 burpees. Upon further review it was only 45. #1000burpees in September for Double D’s fundraiser supporting Let Me Run.

NMM:

This workout was inspired by a backblast from Lake Norman: https://f3lakenorman.com/backblast/a-good-f3-workout in an effort to keep the PAX together and create  opportunities for as much 2nd F and 1st F. Personally I find it amazing in my own life that I’ll show up at 5:15am and do whatever the Q (F3 makes no representations with regard to the skill level of workout leaders) has in mind (or makes up in that moment) without a problem. But if something goes awry during my workday or home life, my emotions and specifically my patience seems immediately depleted. As we work to grow and train physically, it is important to remember the DRP (Daily Red Pill: The Q’s daily Commitment to Accelerate his Fitness, Fellowship and Faith) includes our spiritual, emotional and mental health as well.

If any PAX know the Professor in Lake Norman, please relay to him YHC’s appreciation of his Back Blast.

Announcements:

Invergence 9/21
Additional runner need for relay: see Hasselhoff

Band Camp dismissed

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“Where No Man Has Gone Before…”

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9 men braved the gloom on a humid early September morning so that we could explore new worlds and new civilizations….   Not really actually, I just wanted to incorporate some running into my bootcamp in preparation for the quickly approaching Ragnar.  In my Twitter advertising for the Bootcamp I recommended the Pax to bring headlamps for the run.  After the disclaimer I told the Pax the game plan, mosey on up to the Copperhead Bar (about a mile).  It took about 10 minutes to get there, which was not bad considering the incline to get there.

COP

At the parking lot of the bar we did

30xSSH

10xSun God’s Fwd and Reverse

10xWind Mill

10xCherry Pickers

Down Dog into 10xThigh Master’s Left and Right Legs

The Thang

I set up 4 cones in the 4 corners of the parking lot with 3 exercises on each cone.  We did a 4 count with the respective numbered Pax going toward a cone.  The plan was to do the exercise’s bear crawl to the center, do 5 burpees, then crab walk to the next cone.

Cone 1- 30x’Mericans /30xCDD/30xLBC’s

Cone 2- 30xRanger ‘Mericans/30xSquats/13 Burpees

Cone 3- 30xInch Worm ‘Mericans/30x Jump Lunge’s/30xBig Boy Sit Ups

Cone 4- 30xArcher ‘Mericans/30x 1 Legged Squats/30xFlutter Kicks

The Pax were not able to get the full cycle finished before we had to head back to COT, but as Jedi once said, always plan for too much exercise instead of too little.  We moseyed on back to COT and the six arrived at 0600 hours exactly.

Thanks to Peg for the opportunity to lead.  Great push by all the PAX!!! 

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Parking lots, Stairs, 4 Corners & a Couple of Thoughts

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19 Showed up to take the DRP.  After a quick disclaimer and Q check for FNGs, we were off on a slow mosey.

Warm-Up 

Slow mosey to upper portion of back parking lot of FBFM.

Windmill x 10

Moroccan Night Clubs x 15

Low Slow Squat x 10

Imp Walker x 10

SSH x 15

Cherry Pickers x 10

Merkins x 10

The Thang

Mosey down to lower part of parking lot

Overhead Claps x 10

Lunge x 10

Moroccan Night Clubs x 15

Squat x 10

Flutters x 10

Moroccan Night Clubs x 10

Overhead Claps x 25

Wall Sit , Arms High, Several 10 counts

Mosey across street, down stairs to lower lot.

4 corners with a stair climb and descent after each round

Round 1 x 10

Round 2 x 15

Round 3 x 20

Merkin

Flutter

CDD

American Hammers

Mosey to COT for Mary

Mary was Dealer’s Choice (5 minutes)

Windshield Wipers

Weezy Jeffersons

Freddy Mercurys

Flutters

Hello Dollys

NMM 

YHC asked everyone to consider whether they have a relationship with their Lord and Savior….or just their Savior. A lot of us (YHC included!!) forget the Lord part of the relationship. For Him to truly be your Lord, you must surrender all to Him and be willing to have your life disrupted for His purpose. Easier said than done. Based on the response from the PAX, this is a topic that should be discussed often.   Also, touching on the monthly theme of Presence, are we really present with our M and 2.0s?   Are we just “there” or do they really feel our “presence”?

Honored and humbled, as always, to lead such a great group of leaders.

SYITG

Beacon

 

 

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No ___ Collusion Here!

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Youts brought the pain on his V-warmup!  After an assist on the disclaimer, we immediately moved into Low Slow Squats and Mountain Climbers.  A quick story about a sinking ship and a husband and wife…the husband gets in the lifeboat and sends the wife back to the ship to die – what?  is this a joke?  where’s the punchline? wait….here it comes…”let’s mosey”….well, we weren’t expecting that.

Mosey the parking lot for a bit and then circle up for SSH, windmills, Moroccan night clubs, planks, downward dog, honeymooner, and peter parker.  Move right into some burpees – sprint – bigboy sit ups – sprint – flutter kick – sprint – and merkins – sprint.  So much for a V-warmup.  This dude needs to be on his VQ!  I think we now know that all of that work was to get our attention – for the end of the story….the husband isn’t a “class A” jerk afterall…the wife has a terminal illness and he needs to stay alive for the kids.  Wow…we really should not judge, especially when we don’t know the whole story.

We also shouldn’t abandon our plans when the going gets tough – or in this case when the warm-up Q led almost the exact same workout as the Q?  How did that happen – collusion?  I’ve never even met Youts before, let alone skated (err – I mean worked out) with him.  After contemplating an impromptu-Q, I offered up the main course that I had originally planned.

So, there was an ask in the pre-blast for SkateOrDie to do the McTwist or something like it.  I opted for a version of the McNasty (and apparently Youts had the same idea and paved the way)…

We mosey’d to the asphalt marching band football field and got into the plank position.  I provided some instructions for the exercise and off we went.  The group of 14 was divided into groups of 3 (two groups had 4).  PAX 1 (extra PAX shadowed), PAX 2, and PAX 3.

    • PAX 1 will perform ab exercises (1) Heels to heaven, (2) Flutter, (3) Freddy Mercury, (4) American hammer, (5) LBC during each of the fives times through the circuit
    • PAX 2 will sprint to the opposite end of the field and relieve PAX 3 (taking over burpees)
    • PAX 3 will sprint to the opposite end of the field and relieve PAX 1 (taking over abs)
    • PAX 1 will sprint to the opposite end of the field and relieve PAX 2 (taking over burpees)
    • Rinse and Repeat until everyone has complete each station and the ab exercises 5 times

Upon completion, the group mosey’d to the pull-up bars and broke into 3 person groups; PAX 1 3 legit pull-ups, PAX 2 provided assistance as needed, PAX 3 wall sit; rinse and repeat 3 times with pull-ups and 2 more times with chin-ups.

Mosey and bear-crawl back to COT for 2 minutes of Mary.

Count-o-rama, Name-o-rama, Annoucements, Prayers/Praises, BOM

As always, I appreciate the opportunity to lead.

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Board of Pain at the Fire Ant

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It was an honor to again be placed on the Q list of the long list of candidates for The Fire Ant. After Spiderman renewed the mission of this AO, I knew I needed to make it worthwhile for the 14 others who decided to remove themselves from the fartsack this gloom.

THE THANG

So we began with the following: We took a quick ruck march around the building to the front of the Harris Teeter where YHC had previously placed the BOP. At this point YHC gave the F3 Disclaimer. YHC requested that everyone partner up. I then explained the Board: Partner 1 was to perform the first exercise and partner 2 was to perform the movement timing mechanism/then flapjack. The the pair was to go to the second exercise and timing mechanism. The exercises and timing mechanisms are listed below:

Exercises: Merkins, Low Slow Squats, CDD’s, Lunges, Flutters w/Press, Ruck Thrusts, Curls, Tricep Extensions, Lateral Lunges, American Hammers, Overhead Presses, Ruck Swings, and Man Makers.

Timing Mechanisms: Shuffle, Karaoke, Butt Kickers, High Knees, Ruck Run.

After much mumblechatter was had and we made it through the list YCH led us into the following word. Once the message was given the group headed back to the COT and held our Rucks overhead until 0600.

NMM

This was a morning surrounded with many HIMs in whom YHC is intrigued by. Men who wake up at 0345-0445 to get to a workout at 0500 or 0515 almost every day of the week. Most of the PAX in attendance this gloom are planning on taking what they do with fellow F3 brothers each day and taking it into the world this coming weekend. These PAX will be participating in a Goruck event in Charlotte in remembrance of 9/11 and the men and women who sacrificed their lives on that horrific day. 9/11 is a day, if you were alive, that all will remember no matter what you were doing on that dreadful morning. However, our country came through the struggle united and closer than I had ever seen before.

This morning I challenged all PAX to remember who and what they represent when they leave the workout each morning. First they represent the one who they place their faith in. Second, they represent their families. Then they represent F3 Nation (an event is a great place to EH Sad Clowns into the brotherhood). Finally, they represent the communities they are a part of from where they live to where they work.

The challenge was to represent well no matter where or what they are doing. And trust me, I write this to remind myself of this challenge.

Announcements, Prayers, & Praises were given with the whole group.

Longshanks led the COT.

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Colosseum 9418

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What a delicious swampy suckfest at The Coliseum today.  10 (real) men were brave enough to post today including two former nantans(DD, Pusher), a former #kotter (LULU), and a former #D1(Crab Cakes). Who among us doesn’t love a dirty McDeuce?

YHC came in on 2 wheels this morning but was ready to go disclaiming that which needs to be disclaimed and off we went for a yog/mosey where we learned that McGuyver still hates me from a Sunday run where I may have underestimated the mileage.  In the back of GHMS our freshly minted black top served as our warming grounds.  Various heartpumpers: SSH, Squats, LBC, Flutters got it going.  Oddly I thought we would have a Chippendale this morning but everyone kept their shirt on. looking at you Jedi.  Making an appearance in our warmup was the always welcome 10- down burpee count sprinkled in.  got down to 7 before we changed direction to a new section of our Roman fortress.

The THANG

Dirty McDeuce- 3 exercises, 12 reps, 4 rounds.  Usually Upper, Middle, Lower but Q’s call.

  • Merkin, LBC, Squat
  • Carolina Dry Dock, Dying Cockroach, Lunge
  • Wide arm Merkins, Big Boy Situps, Jumpsquat
  • Diamond Merkin, Freddie Mercury, Apolo Oh-no

Spliced in some more burpees with 6 through 4 down.

Mosey to back parking for suicides, 5 points, 3 burpees each.

curb action with 60 seconds each of alt shoulder plank walk and steps ups.

Finish with Mary and the rest of our Burpees: 3 through 1 down

Naked Man Moleskin

Good to see Rebel this morning.  Strong, fit and at front of pack today in Dirty McD.  No question he could beat the 55th ranked tennis player unlike Federer.  Coliseum regulars JWoww, and Objection crushed as usual.  McGuyver lead from the front in his silent assassin way while LuLu  still had enough breath to explain the origin of his name.

We got in 70 burpees on the day to help our totals for the September of 1000 burpee challenge and support Double D in his efforts running in the NYC Marathon for Let Me Run.  If you finish with more than or less than 1000, pay up friends.  Lets financially support DD for this great program,

Twas a great morning.  Aye!

F3 the Fort Invergence 9/21 5:30 Rush Pavlilion!

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Octagon of Pain, same low price, but now with more jumping!

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Great morning and a great crowd of 16 PAX at the Poopdeck.  I mean it was still hot and humid as hell, but that’s par for this summer.

After a quick disclaimer we took off around the lot for a mosey that included some shuffle steps, NUR, and Toy Soldiers before circling up near where the cat lady roams for some Warm-A-Rama.

  • Windmills x10 IC
  • Planks (2x 10 counts)
  • Merkins x 10 IC
  • Morroccan Nightclubs x 10 IC
  • Low, Slow Squat x 10 IC
  • Hold squat (2x 10 counts)

Short Mosey to the upper lot (deck?) at the Poopdeck, I’ve been Q-loaded the last couple of weeks and the previous 2 Q’s were brutal on the arms and shoulders so I decided to mix it up a bit this morning by giving the upper body a complete break at the expense of all leg plyo workout.  I wasn’t sure how it was going to go over, but everyone seemed pretty beaten by the end.  In any case, here is the breakdown of how it works:

  • 8 Cones setup in an Octagon in the parking lot (fairly large in diameter though I didn’t count the paces) with a 9th cone in the middle of the Octagon.
  • Each cone had a (jumping) exercise on it
  • Pair up (only for the push, none of this required a partner)
  • Pick a cone, do the exercise on the cone, and then Broad Jump to the center cone and do 8 Burpees, then Broad Jump back to one of the 7 remaining cones and continue through until all 8 are completed and a trip back to the center cone after each cone for 8 more Burpees.
  • The exercises were:
    • 100 SSH
    • 100 Jump Rope
    • 50 Jump Squats
    • 50 Jump Lunges (25 each leg)
    • 50 Lateral Jumps (25 each leg)
    • 50 Knee Tuck Jump-ups
    • 50 Squat Jacks
    • 25 Bomb Jacks
      • ~64 Burpees
      • lot of broad jumping!

Everyone made it through at least once, which was the goal. In typical Jedi fashion he made it through a couple extra.  With about 10-15 minutes left we lined up for some Indian running around the parking lot.  Lead PAX drops and does 4 Burpees and rejoins at the back of the line.  We cycled through each of the 16 PAX twice before heading back to CoT and about 2 minutes of Mary to end the workout.

  • 6th annual Invergance at Rush Pavilion 9/21 @ 5:30
  • Prayers for all the teachers and kids in school
  • Prayers for injured PAX

Thanks Peg for the opportunity to Q!

Until next time,

-Flux-

 

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6 pack at Sea Legs

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I don’t usually document the runs, but I figured it could still be helpful for those Q’ing a workout at Sea Legs that may be unfamiliar with the lay of the land.  Every backblast counts.

Nothing special this morning, there were 6 of us on a, what’s now typical, muggy morning.  We met at the parking lot at the Palisades Elementary and went up the back road/hill by the basketball hoops and down Langston road where we hit Grand Palisades pkwy and took that all the way down to the roundabout and back.  About 4.5 miles of safe running off the main roads.  This is a good route that fits nicely within the time slot and has a deceiving amount of hills.

We finished up a few minutes early and circled up for CoT

  • 6th annual Invergance
  • Prayers for travel and the PAX attending the GRT
  • Prayers for Routers Grandmother-in-law who is having surgery

Thanks for the Q Hauschka!

-Flux

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Labor Day Hero VQ!

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First time… nervous… big stage at Honey Badger… I was cornered by Dark Helmet last Monday to lead. And by cornered I mean he casually asked if I would lead, and I said yes. I can say I didn’t get much sleep out of fear for sleeping in and missing the opportunity. Welp, I made it and so did 12 other PAX.

The clock struck 5:00, and we were off.

Warm Up

MOSEY 600 Yards
SSH x 30
Windmill x 15
Moroccan Night Clubs x 20
Low Slow Squat x 15
Mountain Climbers x 21

The Thang:

Hero WOD in tribute to Petty Officer Second Class Danny Dietz of the Navy SEALs – Posthumous Navy Cross Recipient

Jun 28, 2005. Operation Red Wings. A mission inserting four Navy SEALs into the Afghan Mountains in an attempt to eliminate a Taliban threat. Outnumbered once they were compromised, they descended the hills in search of cover.

Dietz was hit multiple times in his torso yet continued to fight on. He was finally killed when hit in the head.

Dietz was the first of the group to be killed, followed by Murphy, then Axelson. Marcus Luttrell was able to escape to a village where he was cared for until they could send word to a local marine base.

Danny Dietz was KIA during Operation Red Wings alongside Lt. Michael Murphy, Petty Officer Second Class Matthew Axelson, and 16 other Special Forces who were shot down in a Chinook Helicopter while attempting an extraction. This took place in a mountainous region of Afghanistan and was an attempt to quell a Taliban threat. Though the mission was deemed one of the greatest losses in Special Forces history, it paved the way for more success in the war on terror in the Middle East. It is because of missions like these that we are able to enjoy the freedoms we sometimes take for granted; if it weren’t for these brave men we wouldn’t have what we have today. I hope that today we honored their sacrifice through our small amount of pain.

10 Rounds

200M Run
5 Pull-Ups
10 KB Swings
15 Goblet Squats
20 Merkins

Since it was my VQ (and I obviously didn’t realize the kind of animals I’d be working with), we finished a liiiiittle bit earlier than anticipated. About 20 minutes. Whoops! Needless to say we jumped into some Mary.

LBCs (Led by Dark Helmet because I was too busy lagging behind in my WOD)
Rosalitas (Also led by Dark Helmet)
Flutter Kicks
Hello Dolly’s
Heels to the Heavens

We got up for a nicely paced 400M run, then headed back to the hill near the pull up bars for some timely Quadzillas! New to me, not to the group. They were welcomed with groans.

We circled back to the COT to do some last second Weighted Flutter Kicks. Phew! We made it! First VQ complete. Nerves relieved.

Number off (13), Name-a-Rama, announcements, praise/prayers.

Spiderman is celebrating 13 years of marriage today (Sep 3rd), good on you!

Invergence is coming 9/21/18 at Rush Pavilion, 5:30PM. DON’T bring a box of fried chicken. Apparently some people don’t like chicken.

PAX who showed up.

Harry Carry
Jiffy
Shady
Dark Helmet
Spiderman
Long Shanks
Youts
Zima
Geronimo
Twister
Dirty Harry
Sasquatch
Punch List

A few animals stayed around for a 6:30 Maltz Challenge as well as some #HIM from other AO’s. Needless to say, it was a sweaty morning filled with camaraderie and pain.

Thanks to all for giving me the opportunity to lead in the company of leaders! Looking forward to next time.

Punch List out.

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Suffering in Silence

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18 assembled this morning for some bells (6) and #Beyond (12). YHC decided to change things up slightly. We did the Name-a-Rama first. Read on to see why.

NMM

You’ll also note that I’m posting the Naked Man Moleskin before the workout. Sometimes the message is more important than the workout. Today was one of those days. #Beyond is designed to take you out of your comfort zone and push buttons we would rather leave untouched. Today’s discussion was on depression.

Some facts:

  • There are 123 suicides in America every day
  • The highest suicide rate is adult males between the ages of 40 and 54
  • White males accounted for 7 out of every 10 suicides in 2016

These sobering statistics spoke to me because our PAX fit right in the sweet spot of these ranges. The average age this morning was 44 – right in the thick of these numbers. Depression effects men in different ways. This group is sandwiched in between the traditional silent, strong fathers who went to work and provided for their families and the more progressive, open generations of their sons who share parenting duties and aren’t always the breadwinners of the household. Many men never mastered either of these roles and now feel lost. We’ve married capable women who take care of everything from the children to the social agenda, leaving men to feel a void of purpose. Around this age, men look around at their neighbors and ask, “why am I not as successful as my neighbor?” Outside of our homes, we are lonely. We’ve lost track of our college buddies and only connect with our co-workers on a water cooler level. We feel like we haven’t accomplished enough. For all intents and purposes, men in their mid-40s often feel neutered – unable to provide the ways their dads did and unwilling or unprepared to be Mr. Mom to their older children. To make matters worse, a job loss or divorce often leads these men into a downward spiral of addiction and despair. Chances are, you’ve felt this way or know someone who does. It becomes our responsibility to reach out to these men and invite them into a brotherhood of love. Medical professionals recommend a few steps to battle depression. I added number 5:

  1. Seek social support
  2. Support your health (get enough sleep, control stress, and go outside)
  3. Exercise
  4. Eat Healthy
  5. Give your concerns to God

All of these are incorporated into what we do each morning at F3. Social support comes in the form of other men who are battling or have battled this demon themselves. To me, its finding blades and stones to sharpen each other. It’s the second F – Fellowship. Doctors recommend finding outlets to blow off steam, exercising and getting outside. How else better than exercising outside in the elements pushing past pain with your brothers in the Gloom? This is the first F – Fitness. Finally, acknowledging that there is a higher being that loves you and wants what is best for you. Rather than telling God how big your problems are, tell your problem how big your God is. This is the third F – Faith.

I realized that the reason F3 is growing is because it is the answer to the question we never knew we had. It is the antidote to society’s poison of depression. We all struggle, from project managers to pastors. We all battle life. Why not surround yourself with guys who can build the 3 Fs right beside you? Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 says it best: “Two are better than one because they have good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, the other can help them up. But pity anyone who falls and has no other to help them up. Also if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”

Interpret those three strands however you wish. I like to think of them as me, God, and my brothers. That dream team can win any fight. Grab your shield and suit up, we’ve got a battle to wage.

The Thang

  • Mosey to the front of the church
  • Hold the Plank for the duration of Disturbed “Sound of Silence”
    • Listen to the lyrics. Acknowledge that many men battle depression in silence. We weren’t made to fight alone.

Mosey to the upper parking lot

  • 1 Minute of Squats
  • 40 SSHs (IC)
  • 10 Prison Cell Pushups
  • 40 Imperial Walkers (IC)

Mosey to the front of the church

  • 1 Minute of LBCs
  • 1 Minute of Flutters
  • 1 Minute of Rosalitas
  • 1 Minute of Freddie Mercuries

Mosey to the side lot

  • 1 Minute of Mountain Climbers
  • 1 Minute of Alternating Shoulder Taps
  • 1 Minute of Ski Abs
  • 10 Burpees

Mosey to the upper parking lot

  • 40 Overhead Claps (IC)
  • 35 MNCs (IC)
  • 40 Little Baby Arm Circles (IC)
  • 45 Overhead Press (IC)

Mosey to the front of the church

  • 1 Minute of Box Jumps
  • 1 Minute of Irkins
  • 1 Minute Dips
  • 1 Minute of Merkins

Mosey back to COT

  • Butterfly Stretch
  • Left Leg out Stretch
  • Right Leg out Stretch
  • 10 LBCs (IC)
  • 10 Pretzel Crunch Left (IC)
  • 10 Pretzel Crunch Right (IC)
  • 10 Pretzel Stick Crunch Left (IC)
  • 10 Pretzel Stick Crunch Right (IC)

-Italian Job

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