Category: Beyond

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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16

BEYOND the JOY

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I’m sitting down to write this BB and literally can’t do what I challenged the PAX with at this morning’s BEYOND workout. Eliminate the distractions. Oh, what’s this text say, how about this tweet mention (can’t miss that), work email really needs my immediate response, man those kids left their cereal bowls on the counter, what time are we leaving today, etc, etc, etc. At times it can be funny but others, it can be really frustrating. I allow myself to continuously chase progress and other tasks rather than finding joy in where I am. It then leads to what you’ll read about later…burnout.

So there you have it, this BEYOND post will be focused on a struggle many of us face and that is running from joy, not finding joy where we are or honestly, not being a joy to spend time with. That latter one has been my challenge over these last several years because of those first two.

On to it. Car after car after car rolled into the Hive parking lot and you know the feeling, the feeling of way more cars than you were expecting. It doesn’t happen often but when it does, it gives you that kick in the pants, that extra motivation, that reminder of why you put your feet on the floor in the 4 o’clock hour. That’s what I was blessed to experience this beautiful morning as 33 other men, men that have pushed me over the years, men I’ve looked up to over the years, men who are about to bust it right along side me as we embark on something that typically looks better on paper. But that’s the idea, to push ourselves BEYOND our sense of normalcy both physically and mentally.

Funhouse escorted a group of 5 PAX for his killer initiative of RYAOA (T-claps on keeping that going) and the rest of us, 29 to be exact, circled up. After a quick explanation of BEYOND for the rookies and the search for any FNG’s, we discussed the plan with the weight, either Kettle Bell or Ruck…your choice. What I just realized, and to which nobody held be accountable, was that I forgot the all-important disclaimer. Men, never do that again. DO NOT START A WORKOUT WITHOUT A DISCLAIMER. You don’t have to be an attorney but verbalize the basics.

Starting on the curb nearest the tennis courts, run to the other side of the parking lot at 50% then 25% back. 10 Squats, 5 Burpee Broad Jumps then run to the other side at 75% then 25% back. 15 Diamond Merkins, 5 Burpee Broad Jumps then 100% to the other side followed by 100% back.

Switzer up for the first part of the discussion. I read the following definition: “Feeling of great pleasure & happiness.” After a few likely words were tossed out when I asked what word that defines, we got to the word of the day, JOY. I’m sure guys were wondering why in the world we’re talking about joy at an F3 workout, what kind of soft, starbucky-hands nonsense is this? That exact reason is the reason we’re discussing this word. It’s a word and feeling we don’t allow ourselves to enjoy often enough. There are people I enjoy being around and things I like doing but do I truly find joy in those situations? Said differently, do I enjoy being around those people or being in those moments and perhaps more importantly, do people find joy in being around me? Over these last few years, I’ve been operating like a hard-ass, focusing on task completion and moving from one thing to another. I can tell you, I’ve not been a joy to be around. While I was in it, I didn’t even realize it. How did I get here? Really, how do I get out of it?

That said, we split up into 4 groups, 1 for each corner of the large parking lot. In each corner, we did 10 Man Makers with your weight of choice. What varies is your mode of transportation between the corners.

  1. Lunge walks with the weight overhead.
  2. Bear crawl and transport the weight by any means necessary.
  3. Reverse lunge walks with weight overhead or held out front. (This was definitely better on paper as many of us had to modify to a bear hugging of the weight.)
  4. 4 Kettle Bell swings or Ruck swings followed by 4 walking steps.

After 3 of these 4, time got away from me and I had to audible and bring the group back to the center of the lot. As mentioned before, us task-completers run from one half-baked focus to another and we rob ourselves of contentment and joy in the moment. After weeks, months or years of doing this, we inevitably get burned out. Very rarely does something positive come after this stage. However, here in the gloom of our Hive AO here, burn out means something different. I was hoping to have 15mins left at this point but as it was, we had 6 and only got part of the way (you see, I tried to fill the schedule with too much and didn’t complete what I intended). See the irony?

  1. 21 Curls in cadence (3ct down, 1 up)
  2. 21 Flutter Presses in cadence
  3. 21 LBC in cadence
  4. 15 Overhead presses in cadence (b/c I didn’t have what it took to get to 21)

Closeout: We have a hard time refocusing once something bad happens or if it’s not bad, just something that temporarily knocks us off our trajectory. Oddly enough, our kids do a better job of getting back on track than we do. If something negative happens to you during the course of the day, how quickly are you able to course-correct? Are you able to move on from a less-than-positive comment made about you and not let it affect the rest of your day? Watch your kids and take note. Watch them get in a disagreement with a sibling, maybe pout, then start playing or hanging out with them 1-2hrs later. Could you imagine what it’d be like if we dusted ourselves off and went back at it? There’s joy in overcoming.

Listening to a podcast yesterday where Rob O’Neill was being interviewed, he briefly touched on this by saying something that hit me like a 50lb Kettle Bell across the bridge of the nose. A little background, Mr. O’Neill is the Operator on Seal Team 6 who fired the shot that killed the most wanted terrorist of all time, OBL. I’ve been fascinated by our military and specifically, SF, for years and imagine how quickly they need to pivot on a decision and adjust to chart a new course. His comment was this when discussing attitudes, “Are you having a bad day or did you have a bad moment that you’re milking into a bad day.” Don’t shake that off, marinate on that for a while and it might just change how you respond in that next bad moment.

Tesh, I appreciate your willingness to let me run BEYOND at the Hive.

Men of F3, I’m humbled by your company this morning and every morning you allow me to state my hospital name, age and F3 name.

No man left behind but leave no man where you found him.

Maximus

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10

BEYOND – Discussion on Perseverance

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Cobains for the late BB, but wanted to make sure that YHC got it out in the ether. First off, thanks to Maximus for the Q. When asked to Q Beyond, it does bring with it a deep message or at least reflection for the Q, and hopefully, YHC did Beyond a service by bringing an impactful message to the PAX. 14 of us descended upon Block Party in near perfect conditions for a message on Perseverance. We started as usual gathered around the entrance to WEP and had plenty of 2nd F prior to the WO.

Read the definition of Persistence and asked the PAX to think of a situation in their life where they had to persevere.

noun
1. steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.
2. Theology. continuance in a state of grace to the end, leading to eternal salvation.

With that, we were off with a mosey to left along the path until we came upon the hill towards the back of WEP. We circled up for a nice warm up. Warm up consisted of some usual merkins, planks, peter parkers, mountain climbers, parker peters, CDDs, squats, and windmills…probably not in that order.

Next up, with the hill looking unused and lonely, we had to make sure she felt appreciated. So the PAX lined up and we did elevens of Burpees and Squats with a run up the hill in between. That was a little longer than projected on the wienke, so modifed the next set to sevens of Merkins and Bombjacks with a bearcrawl up and a backward bearcrawl on the way down.

James 1:12
12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

Mosied to the playground. Partnered up.

Partner 1 did pull ups / Partner 2 ran the loop and flapjacked. We did this with chin ups next, then toes to bar, then knees to elbow.

Perspective – Think about whether we are standing still or in motion. We are moving at about 1000 MPH compared to the earth center, or 67kMPH from the sun’s perspective. We are not standing still, even if we feel like we are. We are heading in a direction even if we feel like we are standing still, that may face obstacles, but with perseverance and our brotherhood within F3, we can and will overcome the challenges that we each face.

Still partnered up, 20 partner Merkins.

20 Seal Sit Ups

5 Junk yard dogs.

Mosey back to COT.

Proverbs 3:5-6   

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 

6in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

COT.

 

Prayers for family, CSPANs new adventure, prayers for courage.

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1

Beyond with Tinsel’s Utensils at the Ranch

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Today I had the opportunity to lead a Beyond Workout, I’ve been to many of them and decided to share some of my personal stories. I was welcomed by all the PAX that decided to get better and a new name for my toys/props, Tinsel’s Utensils, great name Mainframe!!

We started the warm up with a short run around the parking lot with high knees and butt kickers and then circled up for a few warm up exercises:  Windmills, Moroccan night clubs, low slow squats followed by story sharing while on different variations of planks (regular, elbows, right/left leg up while on elbows, right/left arm up while on regular, back to regular), downward dog-honeymooner; with 9 minutes into the WO we split in 4 groups and each group went to a different station.

Station 1:

-> 10 diamond merkins

-> 15 wide arm merkins

-> 20 regular merkins

-> 30 battle rope wave SC

-> 40 plank jacks

-> 50 Shoulder taps

Station 2:

-> 15 boat and canoe

-> 20 Rosalitas

-> 30 Sledgehammer swings (15 each side)

-> 40 Heel Touches SC

-> 40 Dying Roach

Station 3:

-> 15 overhead press

-> 15 biceps curls

-> 25 dumbbell swing

-> 30 SSH

-> 50 Carolina drydocks

Station 4:

-> 10  Tire flips

-> 20  Monkey Humpers

-> 30 reverse lunges

-> 30 squat pops

-> 50 calf raises

After each group completed a station we met at the center for a brake and to continue my story sharing, on first brake we had a visit from Captain Thor (1 big boy sit up and 4 american hammers, 2 BBSU and 8 AH, 3 BBSU and 12 AH and so on) the plan calls for 10 BBSU and 40 AH but it’s looks easier on paper so we stopped at 8 BBSU and 32 AH. Back to the next station.

Time for brake number 2 and more story sharing, we did one of my favorite exercises the famous Worst Merkin ever, start with wide arm, down to regular and finish with a diamond merkin, that counts as one, we did 10 total. Back to the next station.

Brake number 3 came up and more of the story of my life was shared and since we were running out of time we went back to finish our 4th station.

I guess I didn’t take all the talking that I was going to do into consideration and we stopped at about 49 minutes, circled back into COT for a final chatter about my personal story.

We finished up with prayers, praises and announcements.

Thank you Straight up for lifting us up for the final prayer.

I think the best part of the WO was at the end when some of the PAX decided to skip the fist bump and switched it for a hug!!

Big props to Maximus for this great idea to go Beyond!

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9

Beyond My Comfort Zone

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14 PAX joined YHC on this day to push themselves Beyond their comfort zones.

When I was offered the opportunity to Q, I’ll admit, I hesitated for a moment. I had a busy week ahead and wasn’t sure I was up for the challenge of delivering a message during the beatdown. Then I remembered, never pass up an opportunity to Q! They don’t come too often.

Standard Disclaimer, Disclaimed

Disclaimer to my message – I felt it necessary to preface my message and inform that I’m not an overly righteous person. I come before the PAX with a heart of humility. I come before the PAX not with an attitude of confrontation, but rather with a heart for caring.

The Thang: 

Mosey around the parking lot. Karaoke left/right, mosey, high knees, ankles to chest, mosey. Ended up down the hill past the pull-up bars and circled up.

COP –

50 SSH

20 Windmills

20 Merkins

20 Peter Parkers, Honey Mooner, Downward Dog

20 Parker Peters, Honey Mooner, Downward Dog

Message: Going into the planning process for the Q, I thought I would discuss with the PAX what was going on in my life, mainly where my faith has led me to this point. I’ve been thinking a lot about my relationship with Christ Jesus because I’m 6 months into a 9 month Journey (Offically called: The Journey) with at least a dozen other PAX in which we’re learning to abide in Christ through scripture, journaling and weekly meetings. It’s an intense program that has really started to transform my level of faith for the better. I could talk more about this process (and certainly that would have been okay!), but I also knew that was well within my comfort zone. I wanted to go Beyond my comfort zone and challenge the PAX to do the same.

I decided, rather, to share how my faith walk as help me to overcome obstacles in my life.

Beatdown: 

Run to Pull Up Bars –

3 Sets:  Partner 1: 8 strict pull ups / Partner 2: SSH

Plank until 6 is finished

Bear Crawl from the pull up bars down to the first speed pump (~50 yards)

Message: James 5: 15-16

15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

I admitted to the PAX I lost sleep when I decided to go beyond my comfort zone with this message. I was anxious and uncertain about my decision. But I also knew by confessing to my Brothers, I could continue the healing process. I then shared with the PAX that I’ve struggled with porn. I was clear in sharing I didn’t put this out there lightly, without a lot of thought or consideration. These PAX I know and respect.

Why put this out there and risk losing that mutual respect? See above – James 5: 15-16.

Stats on Pornography:

$97 Billion Dollar industry

35% of all downloads are porn related

25% of all internet searches are porn related

70% of men ages 18-34 visit porn sites monthly

YHC then asked the PAX: Have you seen the affects of porn on the world? In your community? In your family?

Beatdown: 

Run to The Wall –

BTTW – 40 seconds

35 Donkey Kicks

24 Merkins in cadence

10 burpees

Message: Galatians 6:1

6 Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.

I felt it was a sign from the Lord when the  Sunday before my Q, my Pastor spent 40 minutes talking about accountability. During his sermon on accountability, I couldn’t stop thinking about the PAX.  F3 is a unique organization that a lot of good comes from. We’re a band of Brothers who desires to lock shields anytime necessary. The problem of pornography can be overcome. It’s much more likely to be overcome if you’re being held accountable. To quote my Pastor, “sanctification requires community”. Again, what an opportunity the PAX provide through this community which is F3! (#WhetStone)

Beatdown: 

Mosey to the Band Practice Field:

Sprint 40 yards, mosey 60 yards (3X).

Bear Crawl 20 yards, 20 SSH

Walk 20 yards, 20 Bomb Jacks

Bear Crawl 20 yards, 10 Burpees

Walk 20 yards, 20 Squats

Bear Crawl 20 yards, 10 Burpees

Rinse, Repeat. Modified with doing half the number of reps.  Also, we didn’t do the 40 yard sprints.

Message: Philippians 4:13

13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

This habit, this drug, this problem, can be overcome. To quote my Pastor, again, “our ultimate accountability is to God”.

I wasn’t able to get beyond my problem of porn until I got serious about my relationship with the Lord.

My final question to the PAX that morning in the gloom: What is your relationship like with the Lord?

Beatdown: 

Sprint 100 yards, mosey to COT.

COT –

Name-O-Rama

Announcements

Prayers/Praises

NMM:

It’s an honor to be among the PAX. The process of preparing the message (and beatdown!) was an exhausting one for YHC.  The process also sharpened me in ways I wasn’t expecting. To revisit some bad habits of my past has really helped me to realize how far I’ve come in this life and in my faith. I thank you all for the support.

It’s was an honor to Q.

Maximus – thank you for the opportunity.

#CoopStrong

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24

BEYOND – CONFIDENCE & SELF-WORTH

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Being the BEYOND Q has been something that I’ve found to be quite intimidating after the first few that I attended. I’ll admit, I’m not the most experienced in the 3rd F. How will I find a message that will resonate with the PAX? Will it impact them? Will it move them? These are all of the questions that have been on my mind since getting on Q schedule for BEYOND.

5 brave PAX split from the group and went off into The Gloom with YHC.

Pre-Amble:
Throughout the majority of my life I’ve had the luxury of being able to take the easy way out when things got tough. High School Sports Injury? Rehab is too hard I’ll just find something else. Finding out the career you want involves hard classes and real work? Find something easier that takes less effort. Tough time finding a job? Take the first and easiest option instead of facing rejection. I can’t even count the number of goals I’ve set for myself and just sat back watched as goal date just floated on passed.

What do all of these easy way out decisions lead to? Regret. They lead to happy hours and late night talks about how I could’ve done X, but (insert lame excuse here). They lead to late nights saying I should’ve been Y, but (insert lame excuse here).

Where does all of that come from? What makes it so easy to compromise? I think it comes from not knowing who you are as a man, or what is important to you. I’ve spent most of my life trying to assimilate into whatever peer group would have me. Tupac summed up my teen years the best, “I hung around with thugs and even though they sold drugs, they showed a young brother love”. The quickest way to make friends in college? Find the party or hang out in front of dorms and meet the smokers. So far, probably not the most High Impact Men to surround myself with.

Enter F3 about 2.5 years ago. This group of men has given me confidence. It has built enough self-worth in me that I can now look people in the eyes when I talk to them. It has given me the desire to want to finish what I’ve started, to complete the task, to not accept not meeting the standard. The saying we’ve adopted is “Do the Harder Thing”. That is how I want to live my life.

Today the feeling of regret stops. Today we come back to one task, one goal that has eaten away at me slowly for 18 mos…

THE THANG
About halfway through our F3 Custom GoRuck Challenge, after carrying heavy logs and each other, Cadre Danny and Cadre Flash challenged us to a PT Test.

100 Burpees
Run 1.1 Mi
50 Burpees
Run 1.1 Mi
Time: 32 minutes (for the vent they added an extra few minutes)

My time the first time was over 40 minutes.

All participants finished in 31 minutes or less!

Thank you Maximus for the opportunity to lead.

Until next time in the gloom,

Wild Thing out!

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8

Beyond Adversity

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Adversity: A state or instance of serious or continued difficulty or misfortune  through showing COURAGE in the face of adversity. 

The Beyond workouts have been influential in pushing us all beyond our normal tendencies. As each of the Q’s created hard, meaningful, powerful workouts, the messages have been even more impactful. I dug deep into why F3 has been so impactful to me for the past 5 ½ years and realized that if I wasn’t Headlocked by Sen Tressel and Decible, I would never have found the reason why I am who I am, nor stepped outside of my comfort zone. As many know, I am not one to speak messages or bring attention to my birth defect. Yes I love to rattle the Q’s and bring sarcasm – but that is to hide my anxiety and self-awareness. Growing up with a birth defect being extremely skinny and frail had a huge negative impact on me: from being prohibited from playing organized sports, to ridicule, to hash words, to being left out. Growing up I became extremely self-aware of  how I was different, how I looked, and how people looked at me. Up until college, I had no self-esteem. I was shy and timid. A college roommate encouraged me to hit the gym with him and from that point on, I became a gym rat for the sole reason to make my body look normal. That never happened, and I knew it wouldn’t. But I had to find a reason – COURAGE – to face Adversity. When Sen Tressel approached me about F3, he knew that I worked out religiously, but I bet he knew I was missing something. That was the fellowship and faith aspect of my life. Don’t get me wrong, my wife is my treasure, and she see’s through all my fallacies and understands the importance of my working out. Adversity has smacked me right in the face more often than not, and without the courage of my F3 brothers, pushing me, encouraging me, accepting me, I would not be a better man, husband, nor father. If you asked me 20 or 25 years ago to participate in a GoRuck Tough, a Mudrun, a 5k, a CSUAP, I would have said something that is not print worthy. We all deal with Adversity, we deal with it differently, but courage is the root of the means to fight adversity. I will never be normal, I will never be as strong as Maximus or as fast as Sen Tressel or courageous as Dark Helmet, or a leader like CSPAN, but without F3 and our brothers locking shields together, adversity would overrule our lives and we would not find the courage to push each of us through the hard time.

So the Thang represents one of the hardest WO’s F3 experiences. I thank Jekyll for introducing the board of pain many years ago. But I wanted to put a twist on it – different exercises and a little more running. I wanted each of us at Beyond to encourage each other to push through the adversity that the box of pain presented.

Ran ½ mile to the FMHS ROTC pull up bars. Conduct each exercise listed on box of pain, then run around the parking lot (approximately 0.3 miles). Complete as many as you can until Q halts WO.

100 LBCs

50 Burpees

25 Pull Ups

100 Big Boy Sit Ups

150 Squats

100 Merkins

100 Mountain Climbers

Wrap up with round of 10 count Abs:

A = American Hammers

D = Dying Cockroaches

V = V-ups

E = E2K (oblique crunch with RL on L knee then switch

R = Rosalitia

S = Sit ups

I = Imperial Walker on your back (bicycle)

T = Tummy Tuck (LBC)

Y = Yo Rosalitia this is Dolly (Start in Hello Dolly brings legs together then bring legs up)

Run back to COT

Thank you Maximus for allowing me to Q Beyond and for us all to find Courage to fight through Adversity everyday. F3 is a conduit to each PAX finding the courage and accountability to get through whatever Adversity your are dealing with, and F3 brothers are the foundation to help each of us through adversity.

Trucker

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28

Creativity in Leadership/Beyond

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Beyond Workout & The Ranch joined up to discuss and experience Creativity in leadership through the lens of F3 – Fitness, Fellowship, and Faith.

As I spent time preparing for this Beyond workout, a lot of what I planned to cover resonated pretty heavily with me.

I asked 3 things of the PAX: (1) challenge yourself (2) encourage one another (3) engage in the workout/discussions and begin responding to the challenges in the days and weeks to come.

Started with dynamic warm-ups: a combination of mosey, toy soldiers, knees to chest, ankle toward chest, karaoke.

The Thang:

Mosey to first location at the end line  of soccer field in front of Springfield Elementary School. Talked about part 1 of 3 things that I believe is necessary to achieve creativity in leadership: Get out of your comfort zone, leading from the front and when more appropriate partnering, delegating and/or supporting.

There’s the adage “don’t Q it if you can’t do it”.  In every workout I Q I try to push myself and the PAX outside of the comfort zone, because the biggest gains come from being challenged.  There is a guy I’ll refer to as Geronimo, who once said “if you want to run faster, you have to practice running faster.”  This  can be applied to many facets of your life – whether talking about actually running faster or getting stronger or if you want to be a “better” husband, father, friend, employee, saver, giver, fill in the blank.  Get out in front of it (outside the comfort zone) and hallenge yourself.  All f that being said, there are enevitably things that are not my/your strengths or are the strengths of others – where it s doesn’t make sense to lead from the front.  In these situations, Partner, delegate and/or support those around us that have those strengths.  It could be the PAX to our left/right or our M, a Whetstone partner…again fill in the blank.  We are all HIM, but we can’t do everything ourselves. Remember that 1 grain of sand doesn’t make a beach.  Challenge: Think of the impact we can make when we both lead from the front and (when more appropriate) partner, delegate and/or support those around us.

exercise group 1: First, from the end line, lead from the front in a soccer field length sprint (if your not in the front or are the 6, make sure you challenge yourself).  Down and back 3 times.  Next, on the sideline, partner-up and support someone by carrying them across the field.  Alternate back and forth 3 times.

Mosey to second location at the bottom of the hill at the bus loop in front of Springfield Middle School.  Talked about part 2 of 3 in achieving creativity in leadership: always look for opportunities to set yourself apart.

When I took the reins at Varsity, we had plenty of bootcamps and I was reluctant to Q “another bootcamp” – it was winter, attendance was very low, and frankly there was talk of consolidating the AO.  I knew that for it to remain on its own, it needed to stand apart from other workouts, which resukted in choosing the HIIT workout format.  The AO went from many weeks of myself and maybe 1 or 2  others to consistently 10-15 PAX.  I believe that the uniqueness of the AO and the willingness to try something new outside of the comfort zone is what drew the PAX.  Challenge: Think about what it means to start ourselves apart in how we interact with those within our spheres of influence – out Ms, 2.0s, coworkers.  Light always frowns out darkness.

exercise group 2: The PAX we’re split into two groups with group 1 running the bus loop while group 2 performed a modified Jacobs ladder of 3 burpees at the top of the hill and 3 v-ups at the bottom until the first group returned.  Switcharoo.  Rinse and repeat until each group ran the bus loop 3 times.

Mosey to the third location at the back entrance to the middle school.  Talked about part 3 of 3 in how to achieve creativity in leadership: don’t be predictable.

I was a runner pre-F3.  In fact, that’s is what drove me to F3 (a story for another time).  When I was asked to Q my first kettlebell workout, my natural inclination was to run with the bell. There have been many iterations of that since – bells, blocks, rocks, flat ground, hills.  My goal is to alway challenge myself and the PAX in ways we may have not been challenged before.  There are reasons why there are different variations on the merkin or squat!  Not to mention I get bored doing he same thing over and over.  Challenge: think about he areas of your life where you are predictable – your relationship with you M or 2.0s or how you exercise your faith – what are some ways to break out of that comfort zone and be less predictable?

exercise group 3: 3 LEGIT reps of each – Merkins, Squats, Diamond Merkins, Sumo Squats, Wide Arm Merkins, Alternating Solit Squats, Hand Release Merkins, Pistol Squats.

Running out of time, bear crawl to the straight away and then mosey back to COT.

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Round and Round at Beyond

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Sweatbox of a Monday. I was honored to be given the opportunity to Q a BEYOND workout.  BEYOND, the brainchild of Maximus acting on the very definition of reverse flow incubator.  See a problem/opportunity- create the solution.  Maximus so a need to push the men of The Fort not just physically but mentally as well.  Typically a bit of a deeper dive into what’s going on in a man’s life.

Theme of Concentrica was revealed to me through #collisionlearning only about a week prior.  I chose TCES as its a fountain of unlimited and varied painstations.  8 men answered the bell and after a disclaimer we went.

COP

More a of dymanic warmup with #Usualsuspects at either end of a short 70% run distance.  Although squatjacks and Imperial Squat Walkers created a voluminous amount of mumblechatter.  #crowdpleaser

Mosey to back parking lot.  Discussed Concentrica which is the conception of relationships, how they tie together and ordering them from most important relationship in the center moving outward to the “relatively” less important.  In order you have:

  • Center: M
  • 2nd ring: 2.0s
  • 3rd ring: Shield lock/brothers/horizontal friendships
  • 4th ring: Whetstone- mentor, mentee
  • 5th ring: Mammon (Work)

The THANG: Do exercise run a lap.  Simple enough

  • 5 Merkins/lap
  • 10: Squat/Lap
  • 15 Bombjacks/Lap
  • 20 Burpees/Lap
  • 25 LBC/Lap

We started with 5 laps and 5 merkins at each lap but I called audible.  STH and Gekko kept me honest up front, Double D, Rad, & Mr. Clean kept us moving and Pick 6/CB kept us motivated driving forward and never quitting

Naked Man Moleskin

Men- the concentrica model has been an incredible tool and roadmap for me.  I shared however that as someone who possesses an abundance of self awareness, I often know WHAT to do.  My problem is DOING it.  I’ll be successful in keeping the rings in good priority for a while, then slowly over time, I will revert back to an innately selfish being.  Before long, I have put work in the center, and yes even altruistic endeavors like F3 and Scouts in the center moving my M further out.  When conversations shorten, or happen less frequently, you risk the headspace of the most important relationship telling you they “don’t feel loved”, “don’t feel heard”, “don’t feel like a priority”.  This is the is RED ZONE men that you must pull the nose up immediately.  None of your relationships can truly flourish with out having the M in the Center. (Sky Q is inherent).  Remember that if we are pouring in to the M, have our alignment correct, she is much more likely to give you grace and latitude during your “peak work” times than when every work time is “peak”.

Go BEYOND and be the man at home that you are at the workouts and in the community.

Aye!

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Beyond – how selfish are you

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The message for Beyond was around being selfish

 

Humans we are naturally selfish people.  As a child you grow up thinking everything should be centered around

you.  Even as I moved into adulthood I still didn’t completely understand what it meant to put others first. 

Because I never had anyone who was dependent upon me.  When I got married I was quickly called out that it is now “we”

and not “I” which was initially hard for me to understand at first.  Then several years later reality smacked me in the face

when we had our first child.  Now there was someone in my life that was 100% reliant upon me.  I quickly had to figure

out as all parents do how to adjust and make things happen.

 

In my life I am the most selfish with my time.  I don’t like to spend “my” time on things that “I” feel are not as important

as other things. 

 

There are 24 hours in a day

1440 minutes

 

Average person sleeps 7 hours

                       works 9 hours

                       spends 2 hours in a car

 

This leaves 8 hours for everything else (Wife, kids, Quite time, F3, Whetstone, etc)

 

How do you manage your time?  Is is the smartest way?

 

As I was preparing for this Q I kept going back to how do I manage my time and how I think I should be.  I will be

the first to say I am nowhere near the model, but I desire to be able to say that I will one day get there.

 

Time Priority:

1. God

2. Wife

3. Family

4. Friends

 

One of the most important things that I hope the Pax take from the workout is Kids spell LOVE – TIME.  The more time you

spend with them the more love they feel.  Think about that next time when one of your kids ask you to do something and you

would rather be doing something else.  They won’t always be around so enjoy the time you have with them now.

 

 

 

 

Warmup:

SSH 20 IC

Hand release merkins 10 IC

LBC 20 IC

–With being a beyond workout figured since it just rained we needed to embrace the suck and get on the ground

 

 

 

The thang:

 

Partner up

P1 – runs to end of parking lot and back

P2 – works on burpee / sandbag thruster (1 burpee / 1 thruster, 2 burpees, 2 thrusters, etc until 10)

 

Each partner does their own until they reach 10 of each

 

Next

P1 – runs to end of parking lot

P2 – pick up sandbag on shoulder and toss backward until P1 returns

 

rinse and repeat x 3

 

Exercises done holding either ruck, sandbag or cinderblock:

Squats 20 IC

Squat pulses 10 IC

Flutters 20 IC

 Thanks for the opportunity to lead.

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