When Double D asked me to take the Q, I noticed my palms began to sweat.  I know you’re thinking, Cornhole sweating that’s not surprising.  Anyway, I started thinking, when’s the last time I’ve Q’d or even been to WEP outside of Convergent type activities.  Question’s started forming like: Do they still work out in the grass?  Do they use the hill?  Where is the closet parking lot?  Where is this Stairway to Heaven they mentioning in the back blasts?  Is that near the gun shop?  Deep Breath! You’ve Q’d lots of workouts.  Relax.  Think. Think.

After revisiting the purpose of this AO is to relearn things forgotten and helping others I knew exactly what I would focus on.  As Q’s “YHC included here” we are always thinking of ways to push each other and usually focus our attention on challenging the fittest PAX that show up and secretly hoping that those less able chose another AO.  As a result, the six is left chasing the group, sometimes catching the group just in time for them to take off again.  Having spent and still spending a great deal of my beat downs as the six I know this doesn’t need to be the case.

The Thang,
Dynamic Warm up using paved path around park (Light Jogs, High Knees, Butt Kickers, Side Shuffles)  Stopping at Corners to perform 10 ea in cadence: SSH, Slow Squat, Mt Climbers, Lounger, Merkin.  Mosey to next corner with dynamic exercises.  By doing this Run, Stop, Exercise, Run again allows PAX to stay together, lots of mumble chatter and modification by those that need it.

After the first round had PAX perform the cadence counts.  Started with those that have never Q’d a workout.  Everyone did great.  There were some adjustments/heckling needed but that’s why we practice.  Look forward to attending one of your Q’s in the near future.

Mosey to Playground (Partner Up – Size does not matter)
P1 makes a lap around playground (When did they add on that other section?)
P2 Performs Exercise,
Flapjack 2x Pull-ups, LBC’s until all finished – Yes this includes you Dark Helmet
Then CDD, LBC’s until all finished
Russian Dips LBC’s until all finished
For some reason YHC kept forgetting to take the second lap appreciate Cha-Ching holding me accountable.

Discussed story from The Swamp a couple weeks ago and how our intentionality of posting to workouts, 2nd F’s and 3rd F’s is bringing awareness to others.  Shows that we are a group that takes action.  Disciplined to not let the elements, others judgments sway our actions.  Committed to holding ourselves and others accountable.

Mosey to COT.
Thanks Double D for reaching out and holding me accountable.  Was great to get back to Block Party.

Honored to lead and follow this morning.  This is a very lively group and will definitely be back to take part in one of your Q’s.

Cornhole

12 Pax posted to Block Party to  put the finishing touches on Month 1 of 2017 and get a preview of Month 2’s theme of “Intentional.”

As we stood there in the gloom on the last day of January 2017, 1/12 of the year was almost in rear view mirror — are you happy with where you stand for the year so far?   Time goes by quickly, and goals and One Words don’t take care of themselves without intentional focus and effort.  After the Disclaimer, the pax were presented with two questions:

1. What are you committed to in 2017 (ie, goal, one word, resolution, purpose or person)?
2. What is the one exercise that you dread the most at any workout?

Pax were then instructed to pick a partner and share their answer to #1 with the partner so that today’s workout could be dedicated to that intention and their answer to #2.

The Thang

Warm up in the parking lot — Mtn climbers, Peter Parkers, merkins, SSHs, Squats

Warm up run along path w/Karaokes, butt kicks, high knees & toy soldiers

COP for some first time leadership by Fellini (Merkins x10, CDDs x10) and Fat Boy (SSHs x20, Bear Crawl).

Muster at the first post for Drillbit Session #1 — One lap around path with stops at each post where pax will do exercise they hate the most x10.  Wait for group to finish before moving to next stop.

COP for more first timers — Sauerkraut (Windmills x15, Merkins x10) and Kooter (IWs x15, Pull-ups x10).

Muster at post for Drillbit Session #2 — One lap around path this time doing your partner’s exercise at each post.

Monkey humpers x15

Makhtar N’Dyae x10

Run home

COT

The message today related to being Intentional.  The first step is to set your mind on a direction.  It is best if you state it or put it to paper.  And highlighting your weakness or an obstacle to getting there is also important.  Sharing these with a partner who will hold you accountable can be a big help in keeping yo on track.  Encouraging another man with his intention can also help inspire you to hold true to yours.  The pax experienced a taste of all of this today.  There is still time to pick a word, goal, intention, purpose to 2017.  Eleven months remain.  This is also time to consider the Whetstone program as a structure to help you grow.

Solid work today by all the pax.  Cha-ching and MP were partners and both picked  burpees as their exercise — which meant 100 burpees!  Great effort by everyone.

Speaking of getting a taste, 4 pax had not yet experienced a VQ, so they responded to the ad hoc challenge to step up and lead from the center for two exercises each — nice work!

Great to see Sauerkraut posting for the 3rd time in 4 days!

Outstanding teamwork and perseverance by the #Respect tandem of Hee Haw & Fellini!

Always an honor to lead gents.  Thanks for posting and pushing each other.  Keep it up for the next 11 months!

A cool 13, bakers dozen if you will, slowly emerged from their vehicles to conquer the gloom at Block Party.  It was an honor to lead the Pax physically and spiritually with the purpose of getting better.

THE MESSAGE:

In my 4 years of being a Q the message has always been the most challenging part of being a Q.  The first F workout plan is put together based on where I’ll be but the message requires much though and refinement to tailor to the Pax.  It is nothing more than what is on my heart but it requires some introspection to understand how to apply.

The reality is that your message of what is on your heart will benefit others.  Your experience or trial can help others going through similar trials. We have three bible studies but we have something like 50 AOs where a message can be shared each week that will help sharpen a man in your midst.

Marriage: three keys that you can control.  1 understand what your wife needs from you 2. Serve her the way she needs to be served 3. Bring the lord into your marriage. Read the Bible and pray together

THE THANG:

Start with some running stretch of high knees, butt kickers, karaoke, side shuffle etc.

Mosey to the top of the parking lot for COP

Cop shared with Mccracken, thank you for stepping up and out of your comfort zone brother!  Included in COP was SSH, Windmills, Merkins, mountain climbers, imperial walkers and some other fun to stretch and prepare for the main event.

Mosey to the Hill – ladder increase by 2s (i.e. from 2 – 10 at the top of the hill)

  Burpees

  Rinse and repeat with Bomb Jacks

Courtyard (20, 10, 5)

  Wall jumps or step ups

  Dips

  Derkins

Wall 

  Muscle ups

  Handstands

  Wall sit with air press

End with Some Mary on the nice not-so-smooth pavement at COT

It was an Honor, thank you to Double D and to F3 for the opportunity to lead and to make myself better.

CH

Six pax took their chances with the weather and posted to a soggy (yet not too cold) WEP. YHC was humbled by the opportunity to Q at AO. The theme of this workout would be my word for 2016, “attentional”, which is quickly described as a combination of “intensional” and “mindful”.

Warm-up-o-rama

Run to small parking lot (between WEP and the Springs building) for warm-up part 1
* SSH x25
* Mountain Climbers x15
* Regular Squats (not low-slow) x10

Run to brick garden area near Springs building entrance for warm-up part 2
* Windmills x10
* Crab Cakes x10
* Morning Wood x10 OYO

Quick discussion about personal “Word of 2017”. Choose, Committed, Discernment were words picked by pax for the new year. YHC’s word for 2016 was “attentional”, which is not just paying attention to detail, but also being aware in the moment – NOT doing things in automatic mode. One area I still need to work on being attentional is in prayer. What are areas other packs feel they need to be attentional? Having a partner can help you be attentional by holding you accountable and paying attention to things you miss.

Pax asked to partner up before moseying to driveway beside Hobo’s

Two “attentionality” considerations when leading a workout:
* 1. Planning –
* Taking time to plan and prepare shows you take the Q responsibility seriously.
* Don’t do it for self glory. Do it for the F3 mission.
* 2. Execution –
* Be thoughtful and mindful as you lead
* Be observant of the pax how attentional they are. Help them be more mindful, when you can and where appropriate.
* Note places where attentionality tends to drift, and use that info for helping plan your next workout.
* An attentional workout is much more engaging, and much more likely to bring someone back

The Thang

Partner 1 runs lap
Partner 2 hits the circuit
* 5+n Burpees
* 10+n Crab Cakes
* 10+n LBCs
* 7+n Morning Woods
* 15+n Dips
n = number of combined laps by team

Most teams got about 7 rotations in before we ran out of time.

Back at COT, YHC mentioned that the litmus test for planning and leading an F3 workout is to ask yourself “Will this help the mission? Will this help to plant, serve, or grow small workouts for the purpose of invigorating male leadership in the community?”

I tried to keep us out of the swampy grass, but Cooter still was wishing for his dry yoga mat for the most of the workout. All the pax seemed to have choice words for the Morning Wood station of the circuit. No one could figure out which muscle groups it actually was helping to strengthen.

It was a pleasure serving the pax this morning. Thanks, DoubleD for the opportunity!

Block Party was a sellout this morning with 22 pax punching their ticket for the unveiling of Figaro as Q.  The man did not disappoint, and the critics will be raving.

The Thang

Run to Founders parking lot

COP

SSH x30

Windmill x20

IW x20

Moroccan nightclubs x50 (so much for warm up!)

Merkins x15

LBCs x20

Flutters x20

Run to top of road by gun shop and partner up
Partner 1: Run to bottom of hill and AYG back up
Partner 2: Continuous LBCs
Flapjack
Rinse & repeat 2x w/Merkins on 2nd round and Flutters on 3rd round

Mosey to wall at Springs building

People’s chair
Lunge walk across parking lot
Wall pull-ups OYO x10
Rinse & repeat sequence

Mosey back to WEP circle

Run to top of Stairway to Heaven and back down
Freddie Mercury OYO x10
Rinse & repeat sequence

COT

Naked Man Moleskin

Stellar VQ by Figaro!  Stepping out of his comfort zone in the back of the pax, our brother nailed a 45-minute first-time effort with no assistance, including a solid message on #Hope (no matter what your struggles are — we all have them — hold on in your current days so you can enjoy better life in your latter days).  T-claps!  Thanks for leading and challenging the pax!

Speaking of struggles, Rock Thrill delivered a heart-felt challenge to the pax to support York County residents seeking to overcome addiction by registering for the Joe Davis Run.  Just do it!

S/O to our brothers from The Rock, who posted to support Figaro.  Great to have you up in The Fort for the Block Party adventure.  No shortage of barristers on hand to keep everyone in line.

Thanks for the energy and spirit everyone brought today.  You’d think it was Christmas week or something…

Have a merry one!

Eleven men met this morning at Walter Elisha Park to get their morning pick-me-up before heading to work.  Block Party is meant to be a teaching AO where the Q gives pointers for leading effective workouts and where new guys get a chance to get Q experience.  Today, I shared Q duties with Nuke and this is what we did.

The Thang:

Dynamic warm up:  knee pulls/ankle pulls,  walking lunge with arm raise, arm and shoulder rotation, inch worm/downward dog, toy solders.  Hand off to Nuke for COP.

SSH x 25, Morrocan night club x 20, Merkin x 10/hold/Peter Parker x 20, Squat x 20, Hello Dolly x 20, Diamond merkin x 10/hold/Parker peter x 20, LBC x 20,

Senator Tressel on Q

Slow mosey to the play ground

Three rounds of high intensity training

5 pullups, sprint to tree line and back, 10 merkins, sprint, 20 LBC, sprint, 15 squats, sprint

5 pullups, sprint, 10 diamond merkins, sprint, 20 flutter, sprint, 15 monkey humpers, sprint

5 pullups, sprint, 10 wide arm merkins, sprint, 10L/10R pretzel crunch, sprint, 20L/20R lunge, sprint

Margin is the theme this morning so we took some time getting to know each other a little better.  YHC asked each person to tell the group something about themselves.  To make good use of the time, we did this in a plank position and also while we worked our abs   Time ran out before we got to everyone so we stopped and made our way to COT.

Moleskin

Really enjoyed co-Qing this morning with Nuke.  I’ve worked out with him at Alcatraz and Pantheon, and I was happy to be there for his VQ.  He did a fine job today, and his military background was obvious when we heard his command voice..  At Block Party, the Q is asked to share some of his ideas about Qing a workout and about F3 principals.  Here is what I shared today.

1.  Always start with a warm up – decrease your chance of injury and makes hard stuff easier when your body is loose and warmed up.
2. Slow down the count – fast counting leads to poor form and less effective exercise.
3. Go to different AO’s to get new ideas and steal them.  My half of the workout today was stolen from Geronimo – thank you, sir!
4. Explore all 3 F’s.  F3 workouts are fun and get your body in great shape.  If all you do is attend a few workouts during the week, you will improve your physical condition and feel fine.  But, don’t miss out on the rest that F3 has to offer.  If you are not sure you want to Q a workout, try it.  I guarantee you will grow to love it.  Take advantage of 2nd F opportunities when you can.  You’ll find a fantastic group of guys who you will want to know better.  They will become your brothers. Learn more about the 3rd F.  Everyone is welcome whether you are a person of faith or not. Get involved in service and give back to the community – you’ll be a better man for it.

Thank you DD for the invitation to Q Block Party.  I truly enjoyed leading the group with Nuke today and it was a privilege as always.

Xmas party on Dec 17.  Rumor of a $5 discount for tix purchased on Friday – check that out.  Joe Davis Run on Jan 7.  Annual Thanksgiving convergence at The Ranch. 6am start.  Fried turkey after workout!  All Thursday workouts closed.     Read the newsletter!

13 pax emerged from their fartsacks and posted at WEP for the repurposed Block Party, a more intentionally lead workout geared for new Qs.

WWL & Repeat were the Qs, likely asked to Q based on their reputation of being hate hate (at least for a few more weeks for WWL) and picture perfect Power Skip (aka WWL’s) form.

The disclaimer was given, the pax were reminded of why we wake up at 0 dark thirty, to plant, grow and serve small workout groups for the invigoration of male community leadership.

WWL shared his thoughts on what a good Q looks like, its not the youngest pax, the fastest pax, the pax who can do the most pull ups, etc, its a pax that is prepared. Draw up your winkie, run through it, be prepared. the last thing you want as a Q is to either forget your winkie or run out of materials and start grabbing for straws. Stick to what you know.

The thang:
Warm up lap around WEP
COP – SSH, squats, IW, merkins, mountain climbers, moroccan night clubs

Mosey to Stair Way to Heaven, partner up, partner 1 does a bear crawl suicide with squats at each light post, partner 2 does 20 squats and abs, flip flop.

HYC is a fan of partner work, for a few reasons, 1- it breaks up the pax into a smaller more manageable group and 2- it promotes accountability and support among the pax.

Mosey to open field, a WWL Q is not complete with some Power Skips, two lengths of some WWL’s.

Hand off to Repeat

Mosey, COP:
10 merkins
10 lbc
10 diamond merkins
10 lbc
10 wide arm merkins

Mosey to playground, divide into two groups, 1st group does pull-ups while second takes a lap, switch, round two with burpees.

Mosey, Repeat tried a new exercise that he stole from F3Charleston, like jack Webb except with LBCs and russian twists, we made it to 5.

Finish with a victory lap around the park.

Mole Skin:
Both Qs felt great to be back at WEP. This repurposed block party has certainly reinvigorated the pax.

Repeat shared some great thoughts on Margin and that we all had to say no to SOMETHING to post this morning, whether that be saying no to sleep, to waking up with your M, with your 2.0s, to reading the newspaper, etc. You said no because you valued the time in the gloom with your brothers. Two things can be gleamed from this, 1- you are out here, make the most of it, be present, give it your best and 2- be aware of saying no to the good opportunities, so you can say yes to the great opportunities. He also talked about effort and often when you bow out and drop out of an exercise, the pax next to you will bow out as well. So when you’re feeling like its your last rep, stick in there and knock out one more, for the guy next to you.

Prayers go out to What Did, Ollof and all of our pax and their families as we look to gather for Thanksgiving next week.

Was a pleasure and a honor.

Aye,
WWL & Repeat