Category: Cannonball

Cannonball for One and All

Leave a comment

Eleven of the roughest and toughest PAX joined YHC for my 12th Q of the year at Cannonball.  Here is how it went down:

At 5:16 AM as I waited for Whitesnake to limp his way to the group, disclaimer was given and a short mosey around the parking lot was commenced.  (Whitesake and his bum ankle did LBCs while we moseyed).

Warm-o-rama:

  • Imperial Walker – 15 IC
  • WindMill – 10 IC
  • SSH – 20 IC
  • Balance Merkins – 10
  • Moroccan night clubs – 10 IC forward, 10 IC reverse 🙂
  • 10 LLS, IC

The Thang Part I

We counted off by 4 for the 4 station kettlebell work out:

Station 1:

  • KB Swings – 20
  • Single arm row – 20
  • Goblet squat – 20
  • Take a lap and go to station 2

Station 2:

  • Curls – 20
  • Single arm floor press, 10 per arm
  • Tricep Extensions – 20
  • Take a lap to station 3

Station 3

  • Single arm snatch – 10 each arm
  • American Hammer – 20 single count
  • Tiny Tim deadlift (75lb bell) – 15
  • Take a lap to station 4

Station 4

  • KB Turkish get ups-5 each arm
  • Big boy situps – 20
  • Stationary reverse lunge -10 per leg
  • Rinse and repeat once

The Thang Part II

Balls to wall while guys on the ends did 3 burpees

Moleskin

Announcements: Savage race 5/18, Kids workout at the Deep on 5/25;

Prayers for Enrique, injured PAX, Thanksgiving.

Like you all, I get some much more out of this than I put in and I am grateful beyond words.

Wolverine

TClap |
4

10/20/30 at Cannonball (Back to the Basics)

Leave a comment

12 PAX appeared in the gloom. We got the Kettlebells out and No FNGs present, but a lot of new faces in the gloom. Gave a basic disclaimer as we moseyed around the parking lot and through the dark tunnel and into the old Church Parking lot were Whitesnake took control of the COP. He has a VQ coming up so I hit him up yesterday and asked him if he wanted to lead us in the COP and he said “heck yah” . He was prepared, he later told me that he watched a Video online of Dredd showing how to lead a COP. Whitesnake killed it with some Imperial Walkers, Produce Pickers, Sun Gods both ways, MNC’s and then some fast paced until we slowed him down Wind Mills (something we all get a little fast on when we do them for the first time). I remember Jedi stopping me and setting me straight. I then went into the middle of the COP and had everyone hold an Al Gore and I briefly talked about all the new faces and that when leading up to the VQ’s remember you are the one in charge and to take lead and men will follow you. Also keep in mind that it is only exercise and not surgery so it is ok if you mess up.

We then moseyed over toward the New Parking lot and on the way we did some Toy Solders. Picked up our Kettle Bells and did the Following

10/20/30 (3 reps)
Big Boys with a Kettlebell raise and push over the head to the knees
Tricep Ext.
Lawn mowers (15 each arm)
Then take a lap with the Bell

10/20/30 (3 reps)
Kettlebell squat thrusters
American Hammers counting the right side only
Skull Crushers
Then take a short bear crawl lap with the Bell to the first cone and back

10/20/30 (3 reps)
Turkish Get ups 5 each side (not a popular one just ask Whitesnake and the Pax with the Ruck on
KB Swings
Shoulder Presses 15 each arm
Then take a lunge lap around the second cone with the Bell

Ended right on time with cheers that the Turkish Getups were done.

Announcements as usual Canoli Run, Savage Race, Heavy Coming up, New River Men’s Breakfast, F# Dads May 25th, Memorial Day Convergence, Read your news letter.

Prayers and Praises, O’Reilly had a friend end his life recently, Roger (Riverboat) and his battle with cancer, Traveling Pax and sick Pax.

Thanks to all that came and got better. I am glad to be out there with each of you . You make me stronger. Kudos to Whitesnake for leading the COP.

TClap |
3

Of Dice and Men

Leave a comment

6 men decided they liked the cold steel of a kettlebell more than the comfort of a fartsack. Disclaimer was disclaimed, and we were off for a mosey.

Warmup

sun gods, produce pickers, mountain climbers, some static stretching, downward dog, honeymooner… If you are actually reading the warmup portion of this backblast Tweet @toddbrodie2 a money emoji. He’ll give you $5 next time he sees you.

 

Farmer Carries

Partner up. P1 takes two KBs and farmer carries them the length of the parking lot and back (about 200 yards round trip). P2 AMARAPs the static exercise for the round while waiting. Flapjack. When both partners are done they do the partner exercise together. Then rinse repeat for each round.

1.       Static:  Merkins, Partner: 20 goblet curls (SC)

2.       Static: Boxcutters, Partner: 20 KB American Hammers (DC)

3.       Static: Bombjacks, Partner: 20 KB Partner Twists (DC)

 

Dice’n in the Dark

YHC’s cushy foam die made the trip to Cannonball this morning. PAX take turns rolling the die to determine the exercise. Reps are determined by the round: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 60, 50, 40, 30, 20, 10 though we did not make it nearly that far. Between rolls run to the top of the hill and back (without KB) and do an increasing number of KB swings (+1 per round). The die values were:

1 = Flutters w/ Press (DC)

2 = Goblet Curls

3 = KB Calf Raises

4 = Tricep Extensions

5 = Monkey Humpers

6 = Bent Over Rows

Great to be out in the gloom this AM. Both the mumble chatter and the sweat were flowing richly. Shout out to Two Ferns for the opportunity to have some fun planning a KB workout. If you haven’t been to this AO yet, you should definitely make plans to roll by and check it out.

Stay Classy,

Homebrew  

TClap |
3

KB Tabata Time!

Leave a comment

Good times for my 1st Q at Lake Wylie’s Premier (and only) Kettlebell workout!

Everything you see below was completed with music going on.  Because why not?  Music makes the workout more fun.  And yes, mumble chatter can still happen.  Events below kicked off with Kickstart My Heart-Motley Crue… booyah!

WarmORama–

Mosey around the full parking lot. Followed by toy soldiers, high knees, and butt kickers.

Exercises in quick succession:

Windmills, SSH, Weed Pullers, Imperial Walkers, Mountain Climbers

The Thang-

Tabata!  8 sets of 20 seconds AMRAP of an exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest. After set completion, Indian Run with 40 (or 50?) pound sandbad up front. Switch weight to person in front when they make it there.  Order of sets as followed:

  • Jack Press
  • Goblet Squat
  • Partner Curl/Merkin (one partner- merkins– the other takes both KBs for double curl)
  • Flutter w/ Press
  • Triceps Press
  • (And a couple rounds of KB American Hammers to finish out)

NameORama/COT

Great group of guys this morning with strong work.  I heard a lot of huffing and puffing from the group so I know that everyone worked hard.  We finished up with praise for Wolverine’s positive trip to the doctor, prayers for the tragic loss in Columbia and that the suspect was found, and prayers for the continued investigation for the lady in Lake Wylie.

 

Thanks for the opportunity to Q Two Ferns!  Can’t wait to make it back our for the next round!

TClap |
3

Walk around the Kettlebell Clock…

Leave a comment

Two Ferns was kind enough to put me on the Kettlebell Q at Cannonball.  I decided P200 will be plenty of running, so why not work the rest of the body?  I showed up to set up and it was pitch black in our parking area… seems Two Ferns didn’t change the timer at the church for day light savings!  Well he fixed that in two minutes and I set up for the fun.

Guys were gathering and it was great to see two of our FNGs this week, Whitesnake &  Speed Handle show back up for there 2nd and 3rd WO (respectively).  And it’s ONLY TUESDAY?  These guys are in for a treat… and are hitting the ground running!

Gave the long disclaimer, and we left our kettlebells and started a mosey around the parking lot.

High knees, butt kickers and some Toy Soldiers

Circle Up for some COP

Standard exercises with a varied rep count to keep the guys guessing.

Side Straddle Hops – Windmills – MNCs – Imperial Walkers – Ranger Merkins – Mountain Climbers – Peter Parkers

We moved on to my setup. So I’m still new to kettlebells, so I stole this WO from my friend Fishsticks WHO DID THE PROPER THING AND POSTED A BACKBLAST!  Let’s keep that going Site Qs and QICs.

12 cones, one centered. One PAX move from clock to center, KB Lunges then 5 burpess at center and lunge back. Rotate to next spot holding KB overhead. Continue pattern for as long as I want.

  1. American Hammers
  2. Curls
  3. KB Swing
  4. Flutter
  5. Upright Row 10x times 2
  6. Goblet Squat
  7. Tricep Press
  8. Figure Eight
  9. Shoulder Press Single Arm and rotate
  10. Floor to Shelf 10x times 2
  11. Chest Press
  12. KB Clean 10x times

After we make it around the whole clock, do a lap without KB –  We repeated around the clock 2 times.

Round 2 finished right at 6:00am to we moseyed back to COT

Annoucements

Read your newsletter, join us tonight for 2nd F at Mac’s Speed Shop

Praises and Prayers for unexpected passing of F3 WaterBug, our children and being present, and a friend to the PAX’s mother who is 92 and in the hospital for potiential NORA virus.

Two Ferns shut down the lights, and it was time to go!

An Honor to Lead

~Royale

TClap |
2

Being Vulnerable is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength

1 Comment

P.S.A attendance is highly recommended. March 27th mark your calendars. F3 St. Louis very own Miyagi and Aerobie has brought light to a sensitive subject that’s right Suicide-mental health awareness. A subject we try and avoid talking about at all or till it’s to late. YHC will be on Q at the Panethon if you can’t make it to the west side of town Stang is on Q at Tomahawk and will also discussing the subject.

I am encouraging you to step up and share your experience. Whether it be about yourself or family member or even a friend. YHC will testify how this subject has effected my life. Please remember what we talk about in COT stays in COT it’s okay to be vulnerable. We are stronger together rather than alone.

Quotes
Don’t be ashamed of your story it will inspire others. Author Unknown

“You don’t have to control your thoughts. You just have to stop letting them control you.”

”I hide all my scars with an I’m fine.”

The bravest thing I ever did was continuing my life when I wanted to die. – Juliette Lewis

The world is a better place with you in it.

Suicide doesn’t end the chances of life getting worse, it eliminates the possibility of it ever getting any better. – unknown

TClap |
30

Cannonball Party for 4

Leave a comment

I got to the AO a little early and put Tiny Tim out in a inconspicuous place so we could later let him join the party.  I also did a little sidewalk chalk art which would also play a part of today’s action.

We took a quick not so quick run down a dark road partially lite by my head lamp to the other parking lot in front of the Pre-school for our COP.  We took our Kettle bells along for the Mosey

COP
 Sun Gods (10 each direction)
Cotton Pickers x 10
Merkins x 10
Downward Dog and some Honey Mooner
Basic Leg and Arm Stretching

The Thang:  Part 1
We moseyed over to the One-Way up hill road where Tiny Tim joined the party.  We did a basic ladder – 4 Turkish Get up’s (in honor of Iced T being injured and those are his favorite) at the bottom of the hill and ran up the road (with kettle bells in hand) at which time we did 1 big boy at the top with the kettle bells and the 3-2, 2-3 and so on ladder style.  The small twist was each Pax had to transport Tiny Tim up and down the hill at least once and instead of doing the Turkish Get up’s and big boys they did dead lifts during this rep.

Part 2
On the patio I pre-wrote with my kids side walk chalk 3 exercises.
Kettle bell Jaxs
Kettle bell swings
Kettle bell squat thrusters

Each Pax wrote their name on the patio next to the exercises and we did all three exercises for 3 rounds.  1st round was 3 minutes, 2nd round was 2 minutes and the last round was 1 minute.  The goal was pretty basic, track your reps and get better each round.   Good push and dialog this morning.  These are some HIM that I am glad are in my Shield lock and have become my Guard rails.

COT

Announcements
 Joe Davis run is this weekend!
P200 is getting closer and Wolverine is Driving the Van!!!!!

Prayers/Praises
Chop Block lifted up My M
All we thankful for the ability to be able to work out and worship openly

I closed in prayer, this always gets me, as I have stated before.  I truly feel that when I close my eyes and pray He grabs my heart and humbles me to the ground.  Today was no different.  I broke down in front of my HIM and they were there to support me.  I apologized and one of the Pax told me later “There is no wrong way to pray.  The Bible says those who are emotionally brought to their knees are regarded as holy and closet to God.  Sometimes just to sit and weep with our faces on the ground is all God wants.  So thank you for being faithful this morning”  I know that am far from being regarded as holy but I am glad that I am one day closer.   I am proud to announce that I have made the decision to get Baptized and I know my Shield Locks will be their yelling to from their seats “Halleluiah Two Ferns”! 

TClap |
6

Getting Funky

Leave a comment

Waking up this morning I was trolling YouTube for an original workout I could “borrow” for Cannonball and came across an MMA trainer who actually specializes in training people over 40 who goes by the name of Funk Roberts.  I had done one of his kettlebell workouts before and remember being smoked afterwards so I figured I would share his knowledge of  torture to the Pax of F3.  

COP-5 Burpees/30xSSH/10x Sungods fwd and reverse/Down Dog into honeymooner for 3 rounds with left and right arm high/ 5 Burpees/ 5 Turkish Getups each arm(there was much weeping and gnashing of teeth for this one)

Round 1

Alternating merkens with one hand on the kettlebell x5

Kettlebell Halo’s fwd and reverse x5

Crossbody Cleans x5 each arm

Single Arm Squats x5 each arm

Single Arm Rows x5 each arm

Rinse and Repeat for 10 minutes

Round 2

Overhead Press x5 each arm

Lunges x5 each leg

Single Arm Curls x5 each arm

Single Arm Tricep x5 extension each arm

Kettlebell Thrusters x5 each arm(squat to overhead press)

Rinse and repeat for 10 minutes

Round 3

Kettlebell Swings-Burpee ladder starting at 7 Burpees to 1 Swing 

Rinse and Repeat for 10 minutes

I finished the workout with an exercise I call All Around The World-While holding a Sumo Squat Position you move the kettlebell over your head in a windshield wiper pattern left-right/right to left and finish with a hop from the sumo squat position-2 minutes rinse and repeat.

Prayers for the sick and injured Pax out there and for an injured 2.0 of one of our Pax.  Stay Funky everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

 

TClap |
4

Soggy Bells

1 Comment

7 PAX showed up for another soggy outing and I have to admit I was a little nervous to lead my 1st kettlebell workout.  Sure I’ve been to a few, but this was my first time leading one so it was difficult estimate the time and reps.  Not mention it was wet and raining so I was concerned someone might slip or let go of their kettlebell…which ended up giving me an idea that worked out really well in the end.

We started with the usual disclaimer, nothing fancy, and took a mosey around the parking lot.  Some karaokes and toy soldiers were mixed in before circling up.

CoP

  • 9 Windmills
  • 15 Low Slow Squats
  • 10 Tempo Merkins
  • 25 SSH

1st Routine

After the warmup it stopped raining completely for about 5 minutes or so so I checked the time and decided to bear crawl to the middle island of the parking lot, about 40-50 yards.

“Bear & Bell”, by getting in crawl position with the bell between our legs we would then reach back with one arm and bring the kettlebell up and past our head.  Crawl until the bell was between our legs again and reach with the other hand, once again bringing it above our head.  We repeated this until we reached the middle island.  Extra kudos to Chop Block and O’Reilly for hauling at the end as I counted down the seconds before coming up with some sort of penalty.  We then walked back to the front of the building with our kettlebells held high above our heads.

2nd Routine

As I mentioned earlier, I knew the weather report was going to be bad so I planned something that would keep us as dry and safe as possible.  I put together 30 minutes of a Tabata-style workout set to some fun music and with no running around in the rain.  All the cardio would come via stationary exercises so we all just huddled under the awning of the Church.  Luckily, it wasn’t raining too hard throughout the workout and we all appreciated that it warmed up a bit.

There were 10 “routines” and they all followed the same pattern. The 1st exercise would be 30 seconds of Kettlebell work (with a rep goal in mind) so whatever came 1st, 30 seconds or the rep count, followed by 15 seconds of a cardio/kettlebell-less exercise and then 10 seconds of rest before repeating 2 additional times and then moving on to 3 sets of the next routine.

Here is the list:

  • Kettlebell Swings (20 reps or 30 seconds)
    • SSH (15 seconds)
  • Kettlebell Curls (25 reps)
    • Merkins
  • Kettlebell Rows (25)
    • Mountain Climbers
  • American Hammers (40 single count)
    • Plank Jacks
  • 25 Tricep Extensions
    • Burpees
  • Goblet Squats (20)
    • Monkey Humpers
  • Single Arm Bench Press (15 each arm)
    • Crab Cakes
  • Single Arm Shoulder Press (10 each arm)
    • MNC
  • Dead Lift (25)
    • Bombjacks
  • American Hammers (40 single count)
    • Plank jacks

This brought us to 6:00AM on the dot so we circled up for CoT.

Yeti coming up as well as the Joe Davis run and Operation Sweet tooth at the end of March– read your newsletter.  Prayers for sick and injured PAX and family and for the ability to come out and be together every morning.

Speaking of every morning, LKW is getting strong and I love how consistent we are, rain or shine.  I feel a real brotherhood with these men and I’m honored to know each and every one of you.  A special shout out to some of our newer guys like Chop Block and O’Reilly who have been coming out consistently since their 1st posting during the toughest time of the year to post consistently.  Also, Wolverine, who is a seasoned vet, but getting better with age.  He posted every day last week and is back at it again this week!

It was a privilege to lead you all this morning.  Thank you for the opportunity to Q Two Ferns.

Until next time,

-FLUX-

TClap |
4

Get “Tiny Tim Home”

Leave a comment

7 Pax came out to Cannonball this morning.  It is such an awesome feeling when you see recent FNG’s pull into the parking lot.  Thanks to Royale, Homebrew and Flux we had extra Kettlebells to share.   After a detailed disclaimer, since we had some newbies, we mosied around the parking lot once and then circle up around “Tiny Tim” for our warmup.

COP – SSH, Sun Gods, Downward Dog, Honey Mooner, Cotton Pickers and basic leg stretches.

The Thang

We began with a new thang that I called “Get Tiny Tim back home”.  Basically the Pax had to carry our Mascot (the extremely heavy Kettlebell that Royale donated) around the parking lot.  One Pax started off with it until he could not carry it any longer and then passed it off onto another Pax whom was trailing behind carrying their normal Kettlebell.  At that time they would switch Kettlebells and so on until Tiny Tim was back home.

We then did some 4 Corners with reps declining from 10, 8, 6, 4 and 2 running from corner to corner with Kettlebell in hand.

  • Corner 1 Kettlebell SSH’s (not sure what to call them yet)
  • Corner 2 Lunges with Kettlebells
  • Squats with Kettlebells
  • Calf Taises with Kettlebells

Took a 10 count opportunity to tell the newbies about the Q Source on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Next we partnered up and did Partner Run/Reps of 100

  • Curls, Tricep exten. and Overhead presses.

Finished up with some ab work (I called out a couple different exercises and lead the cadence then we sprinkled in a little wall sit time and dead lifted Tiny Tim.

COT Yeti and P200 announcements (explained to the newbies what we were talking about), Prayers and Praises.

Then had to circle back to Get my Flag………thanks Constanza

 

 

TClap |
0