Let’s make it 3

Warm up

Needed a fast warmup given the temp was dropping so headed for a quick mosey around the school. Circled up for some poor counting by the Q that included: SSH x25, Imperial Walker x10, Windmill x10, Merkin x10, Low Slow Squat x15, Moroccan night club x25, Mountain climber x20.

Headed over to in front of the school to get this thing started.  Started in front of the main entrance with 10 lunges / leg, then a quick run down to the end of the pillars for 10 hand release merkins.  Did this set 3x!

Then we found a pillar each for a wall sit.  While everyone did a wall sit, first person did 10 Carolina Dry docks, then the next PAX and so on down the line.  Next we did some Al Gore with 1 PAX doing 10 LBC, then the next PAX, etc. while everyone else held the Al Gore.  Then we went back to the wall sit and baked in 10 Flying squirrel for PAX 1, then on down the line.  So 3 sets here in total!

Last we headed over by the softball field where we did some Jacob’s Ladder up the tiered hills.  Set one (adding up to 7) included burpees and bombjacks to the top tiered hill.  Set two was seal jacks and knee to chest  jumps.  Set 3 was plank jacks and diamonds.  So another set of 3!

Last we headed over to COT for a 5 min cool down and some abs and core.  All in, 8 PAX stayed warm, not much time for mumble chatter, and we managed to stay dry for the most part!  Great time as usual.

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2018 Joe Davis Run for Recovery

What-

The 6th Annual Joe Davis Run for Recovery

When- 01/06/2018 at 8:00 AM.

Where-Walter Elisha Park in Fort Mill, SC

Please join my family again this year as we celebrate my younger brother Joe’s life and continue our efforts to #breakthestigma associated with Addiction. All proceeds of this event go to benefit Keystone, York County’s authority on substance abuse and their unwavering efforts to help those fighting Addiction in York County. This event is family-friendly and will offer a 1 mile Fun Run, a 5k Walk/Run and a 10k Walk/Run. Ruckers welcome! It focuses on HOPE!

Why-

Because my brother Joe died on October 4th, 2009, of an accidental drug overdose, at the age of 28 with most of his life still ahead of him.  That is tragic. Joe struggled with Addiction from the age of 12, but had gotten sober in conjunction with turning his life over to Jesus Christ in October of 2007.  In the end, though, this battle was one that proved too strong for him to fight alone, unfortunately. Our family was unaware of Keystone as a resource for Joe to get help until after it was too late.  So, in the wake of his death, we felt a call to serve  and we decided to take action to get the word out. With my sister and I both being involved in running, we felt a race was a great way to not only get the word out about Keystone as a path to Health, Hope and Healing, but also to bring awareness to what our family already knew was becoming a serious problem in our society now.

This is an issue we need to face head-on. it affects and is affecting more people in our community than you realize. Think about these realities-

  • More than 21 Million Americans struggle with Addiction. That is more than the number of people battling all cancers combined.
  • According to the Surgeon General, Addiction will affect 1 in 7 Americans.
  • Drug overdoses are the leading cause of death among Americans under 50 years old.
  • Drug overdose deaths eclipsed 64,000 in America in 2016. Up 19% from 2015. Every 19 minutes an American dies from opioid or heroin overdose.

Action-

Last year, F3, FiA and their family members accounted for at least  275 of our almost 1000 participants! If you are unable to run or walk, we can always use volunteers and there is also a Sleep In option to support the cause from afar. To date, we have successfully raised more than $125,000 for Keystone to fight the awful disease called Addiction. These funds are primarily used to support the Men Under Construction program.

In appreciation for the continued support of F3 and our sisters of FiA, we have arranged for a $5 discount code, F3FIA, that will apply to whatever the current price is for the 5k or 10k races at time of registration, for as long as online registration is open.  It will not stack on top of any other discounts, however. Please help spread the word at COTs!

Register HERE.

Final Thoughts-

Joe spent a lot of his adult life as a lonely man. I firmly believe F3 could have helped change his course. While this event does benefit Keystone from a financial aspect, it is also allows for an incredible opportunity to let our communtity know what F3 and FiA are all about, so let’s take advantage of that. Wear your gear, let’s get the F3 flags and tents up, bring the business cards and let’s EH some folks while we fight Addiction. Aye?

I am especially excited for this year’s race as we will be hosting Speed for Need to kick off 2018. If you know of someone who would like to ride or you would like to push in the 5k, please reach out to myself or Dark Helmet. Check it out this amazing effort that goes hand-in hand with ours at Speed for Need!

With gratitude,

Rock Thrill

 

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Bags for Beds

The PAX of F3 the Fort are being called on to support a local effort to help the less fortunate. This particular campaign, however, requires no (real) time to contribute to and will cost you NOTHING. But the impact you will make is a powerful one.

The “Falcons Give Back” club at Nation Ford High School is collecting lots of supplies to help various organizations in need throughout the year. Right now, they are in desperate need of plastic grocery bags. These bags are “hand woven” together to create matting that is used for bedding by the homeless. That’s right. Bedding for the homeless. This is a simple act that can give less fortunate community members a little more comfort.

The Deal :   We will be collecting clean plastic bags (no spilled milk or hamburger juice, please) at each workout, beginning on Monday 11/13 and concluding at the Thanksgiving convergence. Site Q’s (or a designated PAX member) will collect at each workout. I will coordinate pick-up. We don’t need a few guys bringing a ton of bags.  We need a ton of guys bringing whatever they have. Clean out from under your kitchen sink! Aye!

11/13-11/23

Be “That Guy”!!

Beacon

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3×3

In the better late than never category was able to get out to lead my VQ.  Joined in the rainy gloom by 15 PAX.  After a quick disclaimer we moseyed over to the basketball court area for warmup (Squats, Cherry Pickers, Merkin, Windmill, SSH, and Moroccan Nightclub)

Prepping for this had the #3 stuck in my head for some reason so wanting to not overthink things and keep it simple for my VQ I had exercises written down at 3 stations w/3 exercises at each around the track.

  • Station 1 – 30 Squats, 50 SSH, 20 Lunges
  • Station 2 – 20 Big Boy Sit Ups, 50 LBC, 30 American Hammer
  • Station 3 – 20 CDD, 30 Dips, 15 Burpees

I never really have a great concept of time out in the gloom so planned on 2x through each and see where we’re at (thank you Royale & Bones for helping me keep time!)  Had some extra time after that so decided to mosey to the top of the track for partner up exercise of wind sprints and burpees (note to self, don’t ask for suggestions on partner exercises)

Recovered and had a few minutes left so wall chair was recommended.  Ran the wall chair with the pax at each end doing a bear crawl to the curb + 2 burpees.  Mosey back to COT for LBC, Flutters, and Freddie Mercuries.

Thank you for the opportunity to lead.  I found it to be a good and enjoyable challenge.  Was great to have encouragement from the group!  Till next time

Baywatch

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The Hive 2017.45

So I wasn’t the real Q of this one but I’ll write it up.   Truthfully, I’ve been slacking on my worshipplanning.com duties.  So we improvised with a few different PAX providing thoughful inspiration for activities to perform.

Warmup was me
SSH x25, Toy soldiers x10, Merkins x10, Mountain climbers x10, Peter Parkers x10, Merkins x5

Geronimo
Turkish Getups x5 each side
(There was something else, but all I remember is feeling glad nobody was watching.  I probably should practice this movement…)

Airborne
Wall sits with toes up 30ish seconds, squats x10 repeat 3x
(I think he did something else, but i have a vivid memory of my quads a burning and everything else seems like a blur.)

Assassin
Curls, Clean-Press, Russian twist repeat x3
Halo’s, around the world, Stephen curry, KB Swings x3

8 Minutes left so Airborne did the glutus medius exercise… that’s always humbling.
2 minutes left, so we did Flutters until time ran out.

Stones got to sit this one out, cause he helped me last week.  Good work by all!  Next time I’ll schedule an official Q.

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The Ranch 2017.45

For this one I went back to my roots, the Dora 1-2-3.

Warmup SSH, Hillbilly Walkers, Cherry Pickers.  Mosey to the middle school entrance for some cover.  Discuss where the name (Dora) for the workout came from.  Procrastinate.

Partner up for Dora with 100 Pistol bench squats, 200 Carolina dry docks, 300 Freddy Mercuries

Go over what the word of the month, Victory.  You can’t have a victory without a struggle, without the risk of losing.

20 jump squats, 20 slow merkins, 20 jump squats, 1 min partner plank (1 arm plank with some support from your parnter by placing your hand on their shoulder), 20 jump squats, 1 min other arm partner plank

wall sits with everyone getting a request for the setlist, 1 leg up, other leg up, (something else?), switch for balls2wall, back to sits for 2 more requests, then balls2wall with shoulder taps x10

Mosey back for COT.

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The Hive 2017.44

This workout was a triple-triple.  Three sets of three rounds of three exercises.

1st – Snatch, Russian Twist, Tricep Extension
2nd – Wall sit, Flutter w/ bell, Curl
3rd – Single Leg Deadlift, Freddy Mercuries, and Chest Press
Between each set there was a 100 yd mosey for active rest.

Since there was a few minutes left 3 sets of KB swings.

Simple as that.

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Pushing through Puddles at Laces In

17 men (6 for Laces Out at 0500 and 11 for Laces In at 0515) posted in the cold wet gloom this morning to get better. After a quick disclaimer with a repeated reminder to modify as necessary and not sue missionaries, YHC took 10 other PAX (10 + YHC makes 11, for those counting) for some mobility work mixed with a little bit of pain.

Warm up mosey zig-zagging through the big parking lot mixed with high knees, butt kickers, and toy soldiers before circling up for the following:

  • (Really) low (really) slow squats X 10 in cadence
  • Windmills X 10 in cadence
  • Hillbilly walkers X 10 in cadence
  • Peter Parkers X 10 in cadence

Holding plank after the Peter Parkers, we pushed back into Downward Dog to open up the calves, hamstrings, back, and shoulders, then proceeded with a little yoga series.

  • Right leg up for 1-leg downward dog
  • Keeping leg up, go to plank, drop to 6”, back to plank, back to downward dog (X 5)
  • Swing right leg forward into lunge, then come up into high lunge for thighmasters (X 10 in cadence, a real crowd pleaser)
  • Moving through plank then side plank (right arm up), flip over into back plank
  • 10 count with right leg up
  • 10 count with left leg up
  • Flipping to side plank (left arm up) then to plank, bring left leg forward into lunge for more thighmasters (X 10 in cadence)
  • Hands down, press back into downward dog with left leg up
  • Repeat downward dog/plank/6”/plank/downward dog cycle (X 5) with left leg up
  • One final downward dog

Recover and shake it out. Feeling warm and fuzzy, we took up a mosey to the band parking lot for the real fun.

The Thang

Avoiding the cars, two lines of cones were set up 60 yards apart, making a 60 yard x 30 yard rectangle. PAX were to perform suggested (since they’re all suggested, right?) exercises, complete 5 plank circles (names suggested by PAX included “breakdancer” and “pommel horse”), then run at 80% to the other set of cones. Repeat the same exercises, plank circles, and run 60 yards back, completing the lap.

The exercises were:

  • Lap 1: broad jump with 5 yard side shuffle, back and forth for 30 yards
  • Lap 2: 2 Carolina dry docks, then flip over and do 2 double-count crab cakes, moving laterally 30 yards
  • Lap 3: lunge walk for 30 yards with 5 jump squats completed every 10 yards along the way
  • Lap 4: bear crawl for 30 yards with 10 LBCs completed every 10 yards along the way

Lacking time to complete lap 5, we ended with 20 burpees OYO and a mosey back to COT to meet up with Laces Out.

Announcements

  • Bonsai needs a sub Q for Saturday at Alcatraz, and encouraged the PAX to go to the Fort at WEP anyway because Olive will be there.
  • Thanksgiving convergence coming up on Thanksgiving.
  • Bring frozen turkeys when you post on the 18th.
  • Beacon is collecting plastic bags to make beds.
  • Christmas party December 1.
  • “We should really have something like a newsletter that contains all these announcements and goes out at the beginning of the week. That would be really nice.”

Praise and Prayer

  • CSPAN noted that 30% of posted PAX were missionaries, which is a praise and a good reminder to pray for missionaries, their ministries, and their families.
  • Prayers for Trucker’s family as they deal with two losses in the family.
  • Veteran’s Day is Saturday (following Marine Corps birthday on Friday). Praises and prayers for those who have or are serving (and good reminder to reach out to and thank veterans in your life).
  • Prayers for families and relationships

This may not have been the most difficult workout ever, but I had fun. I try to incorporate some different skills into all of my Qs to change up from the norm and improve flexibility and mobility and hopefully prevent chronic injury. We may look ridiculous, but you’ll thank me later.

And as always, it’s an honor to get to Q surrounded by a great group of men. Thanks to Lil E for the opportunity, and nice to see Chinito Grande making a cameo during a brief trip Stateside for meetings.

Until next time.

-Jedi

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PreBlast: Thanksgiving Day Convergence at The Ranch…The Tradition Continues

It’s that time of year again! Time to give thanks for the blessings we have been given and show appreciation to those around us. Time to remember the progress that we’ve made in various areas of our lives and the intentionality with which we wake up each day that drives this progress. Time to be grateful for the fact that we are better today than yesterday, this month than last month, and this year than last year…all because we were given the ability and opportunity to improve ourselves.

Yes, we have a lot to be thankful for, and at F3TheFort, we’ll show our appreciation the only way we know how…commit ourselves to a ridiculously difficult workout at a time when everyone else is still snuggly tucked in their beds. But hey, at least we’ll all do it together. That’s right, it’s TIME FOR THE 5th ANNUAL THANKSGIVING DAY CONVERGENCE!

We’ll gather at The Ranch at 0600 on Thanksgiving Day morning (Nov the 23rd), where we’ll find 3 workout options led by 3 HIMs and 1st time convergence Qs:

  • Moderate Bootcamp – led by Wapner 
  • Regular Bootcamp – led by Lil E
  • Black Diamond – led by WitchHunt

The workouts will be bookended by special messages from a couple HIMs who always know exactly what sweet nothings to whisper in our ears to get us in the Thanksgiving Day mood, Pusher and Santini.

CakeBoss & McGruff will be providing the pot of golden fried fowl at the end of the rainbow of pain.

Make plans to join us on T-giving morning and bring Cousin Eddie and the random nephew sleeping on your couch.

Aye!

– Ginsu

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