Want to Run or Ruck and Sweat? Join YHC for both. Let’s get out of your comfort zone.
Come out and enjoy 5.75 miles of running or rucking. Included with your ticket is 3 pain stations that will test out if you have been posting to workouts over the summer/ Covid pandemic. This has been and will continue to be the summer sweatdown.
Launch from Coliseum (1025 Dave Gibson Blvd) you will be told where to go next.
Ruck- depart 0530
Run- depart 0600
Water will be available at pain stations. Bring your own if you are against trash.
Coffee will be provided by The Fort. Donations to the fund are accepted.
Q Source will follow at this site. Please bring chair and Q Source manual (not required)
Q source will start shortly after PAX catch there breathe.
This was YHC’s second Q at MP – and what a joy it was. I scanned through all *cough* ten *cough* of the back blasts to ensure the weinke was worth the price of admission.
As the HIM rolled in, the clock struck 0513 and we headed to the flag to say the pledge of allegiance.
0514: Disclaimer, quick run down of the warm up lap and a hint at the plan for the day.
And we’re off.
.55 mile loop at a 6:45 pace up Main St, left on Clebourne, left on 160, back to the gravel lot for a quick few movements.
Dynamic Warm Up
Karaoke in Gravel Lot, facing 160 out and back
Side Shuffle in Gravel Lot, facing 160 out and back
Butt Kickers
Circled up for Wind Mills in the paved lot.
It was at this moment that the bat flippers thought I wouldn’t get the required mileage due to the stop for the wind mills. I enjoyed their words and snickered on the inside as we prepped to head out.
Weinke
The weinke was to be simple, but effective; a DIY DORA, if you will.
Start at the base of Massey St and mosey up to the end of the Sisk Memorial Church Parking Lot
Upon arriving at the end of the lot each PAX was to do the following:
10 Merkins
20 Squats
30 LBCs
Mosey back down the hill, rinse and repeat ten times to total 100-200-300.
After that first lap, it got awfully quiet.As we passed each other, like ships in the night, each PAX put in the work necessary to conquer “Hill One.” Esso did give me a good laugh. At one point he and I passed and he whispered “I hate you right now.” 100% worth it.
Fish Sticks, Long Duck, Maximus, and Gears led the pack as the rest of us hobbled behind. I am sad to say that nobody completed the full 10 rounds, though a few hard hitters made it 9.
As quickly as it started, it ended, and we ran back to COT across 160. 3.9 miles total.
Naked Man Moleskine
This weinke, again, was simple yet effective. YHC has been attending Sweep The Leg and the hills have been my downfall. My goal today was to target a weakness and attack it, in the hopes to become better. That is the life we as leaders must live, or else we will become stagnant and fail.
We should have this perspective with our faith as well. I think of Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 9:26-27.
26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
This is the way we must live out our faith. For if we run aimlessly and without plan, the enemy will overtake us. Take some time today to focus on your current path and what trajectory you are on – intentional or unintentional.
Thank you to the 11 PAX, including YHC, who showed up at Minnow Pond on this moist humid gloom to sharpen iron and push each other. It was a blessing to be back at this AO with my brothers and facing the gloom together and not alone.
WARMUP
We began this workout by sharing the F3 Core Principles and the F3 Disclaimer. Then at 0514 Longshanks led us in the Pledge of Allegiance.
The warmup included the following in 5-Merkins in Cadence, 20 Jump Lunges OYO (10 Each Leg), 10 Flutters in Cadence. YHC then gave the route and plan to all and we began.
THE THANG
After this everyone was pretty much warm, we began the thing. The Prelude was to head up Main St. to the corner of Academy St. and turn Rt. The route was down Academy St., Left of Withers St., Left of Tom Hall St., Left of Main St., and Left on Academy St. until we were complete with time.
YHC asked the PAX to stop at the four corners (Fort Mill Church of God, Fort Mill Town Administration, Fort Mill Animal Hospital, and Fort Mill Police Dept. parking lots) and perform the following exercises at each location:
10 Merkins, 20 Jump Lunges (10 Each Leg), 20 Flutters (Dbl. Count), and 10 Burpees.
Then we headed back to the COT where YHC shared from the heart a little.
All men did an awesome job this morning. Great work was displayed by all. Thank you again for joining YHC and Longshanks this morning.
NMM
This past Saturday there was a discussion in the Region about the current situation we are experiencing in our country. The unfortunate thing is that this current situation is not current. It is ongoing and has been since the beginning. People are different, but the issue is the same. I am not talking about the beginning of the founding of our country. I am speaking of the day Adam & Eve decided to eat of the fruit. Since that day, man has been dead, and his heart has not been right.
Ephesians 2:4-10 ‘But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved- and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.’
Paul was speaking to the church of Ephesus and to us in the beginning of this passage concerning their state prior to salvation, and then explained their state after Christ. This passage has been resonating with YHC over the past few weeks. God has shown us mercy and given us grace through Him. And because of that we have been ‘raised up’ from the dead and seated us along with Christ at His own right hand.
What we are experiencing in our world is a display of the state of man without Christ. Without change in the heart, no change in the world can happen. Policies may be changed; reforms may occur; the world may feel different; but will it be different without the changing hearts of man? The things of this world will rust and fade away, but the things of Heaven will last forever.
My challenge to you today is to look first at your heart. Not what is around you, but what is inside you. If you are not spiritually alive, then things may appear to be changing, but they technically are not. Once you have made that heart change, you can be a part of the real change that must occur in this world. A change in the direction of where we should be heading and need to be heading. The direction of Christ.
Once you know your heart is right, then I challenge you to go out and love others as you love yourself. If you love others in this manner, you will want to serve them, and by serving them they will respect you. Show love and be blessed.
If you do not know how to make this Heart Change for yourself, please let YHC know and we can discuss further.
Aye!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Reach out to a Site Q to Q a Workout.
Hog & Coyote this weekend in Rock Hill. See YHC or Honeypot for info.
F3 The Fort Convergence – July 11 – Location TBD.
Cutting Grass at FM Care Center – Speak with Corruption for details.
Read your Newsletter.
PRAYERS/PRAISES
The PAX shared their prayers and praises and YHC lifted them up.
Differences between this version of Minnow Pond and the last time I Q’d the MP:
1. Societal tension coming from years of oppression and ignorance.
2. The disgusting humidity
3. PAX age range: 14-57
One of these, we discussed & analyzed.
One of these, we suffered through.
One of these, we appreciate.
For the first time in I don’t know how long, there were 0 PAX for extra credit BUT (anything before the but doesn’t matter) we had 11 of us post for the Pledge of Allegiance to our great Nation at 0514. A brief disclaimer followed by a very brief warm-up mosey followed by a very, very brief round of Windmills led us into the substantive portion of the post.
With the Nation (and world) now (and always, really), we need to address our own personal sins and shortcomings before looking elsewhere. We have to own it rather than saying it is due to someone or something else. Specific to our present tensions onset by centuries of racial injustice, what have I turned a blind eye to, or what have I tolerated? In other words, we need to have a Michael Jackson moment by taking a look at the Man In The Mirror.
As he sings in that song,
“I’m starting with the man in the mirror
I’m asking him to change his ways
And no message could have been any clearer
If you want to make the world a better place
Take a look at yourself and then make a change.”
A key component to addressing these ignorance’s and learning is to put yourself into challenging 1:1 conversations. In the spirit of the 1:1, we’d be doing 1.1mi loops with 3 stops along each loop.
The loop had us run up Massey to the gas station for stop 1. R/T onto Harris then R/T McCammon then into the Founders bank lot for stop 2. R/T Clebourne then R/T Main St then back to the AO parking lot for stop 3.
At each stop:
10 Mak Tar Jai’s
10 Inch Worms
10 Toe Touches
10 Mountain Merkins (4ct Moutain Climber + 1 Merkin)
After completing the first lap, I realized the rep count was a bit too aggressive. So, we cut it from 10 to 5 and I think everyone was able to complete at least 2 laps. Had I talked a bit less in the beginning, we might’ve even gotten to a full 3 laps.
Back at COT, we talked about the topic a bit more, shared some announcements and offered prayers & praises. Great start to the day with brothers to my left & right.
19 Pax posted on a Yumid morning to salute Old Glory and dig deep to tackle the surrounding hills. We were honored to welcome FNG/The Fonz (EH’d by Pusher) and a quasi-Kotter in Santini ( who has lost his excuses for not posting to any downtown FM AOs). Longshanks led The Pledge and then the fun began.
The Thang
Hills, hills and more hills — that was the recipe for the day.
Brief warm-up in the parking lot to allow Body Wash to catch up with the pax on his late arrival — SSH, Mtn climber, Parker Peter, Merkins
Run to parking lot at WEP
Muster at bottom of hill leading to stop sign at entrance of parking lot
Run to top, do # Burpees of your choice, run back down; rinse & repeat adding # Burpees on each return to the top (UvU format — you pick initial # and increment); continue repeatedly
Muster at bottom of Stairway to Heaven
Run to light pole at top, do # Merkins (starting from last # Burpees, using same increment pattern), run back down; rinse & repeat adding # Merkins on each return to top; continue repeatedly
Run to large parking lot across from gun shop on Massey Street
Run to bottom of Massey Street; run back to top, do # Freddie Mercurys (starting from last # Merkins, using same increment pattern), run back down; rinse & repeat adding # Freddie Mercurys on each return to top; continue repeatedly
Mosey home
COT
Naked man moleskin
Thank you to Longshanks for the Q invite at Minnow Pond — great AO, great format, lively pax who all got after it today. It was especially sweet since it was my first Q back in The Fort in 90 days. (Apologies to a few pax I missed in the attendees — Gen X camera malfunction)
Welcome to The Fonz! Yes, he set a new fashion standard to rival Slash’s collars. Plus, he pushed toward the front of the pax throughout. Great first time out….look forward to seeing you again. And T-claps to Pusher on the EH.
Great to have Santini in The Gloom! If you have any history with this #Redwood, then you know why it’s great to have him back. If you don’t, then find the chance to saddle up next to him the next time you see him in the circle and ask him about origin of the Moroccan Night Club. or Stairway to Heaven or the Echochamber.
Theme for the day was hills, because they provide great training for runners. AND, because we’re living in “uphill times” in my view (pandemic, unemployment, social distancing, racism, injustice, protests, rioting — pure chaos in the headlines). These hills in life (short, long, steep or any combination) can be strong training ground as well. Much has been said by many about the “silver linings” of lockdown life. Certainly that’s been true for me and my family. At same time, the tough stuff, the difficulties, the adversity in life are also challenges that can build endurance, resilience, passion, vision for the road ahead. Take some time to reflect where the tough parts of your current situation are sharpening you and your family for the journey ahead. Don’t limit your review to just the fun, funny, joyful, positive experiences — the darker more challenging moments can provide training benefits too.
13 was the count for minnow pond.
0514 Pledge and disclaimer
0515 take off to the FM Golf Club. Circle up for instructions.
Back 9 @ tee boxes 10 merkins, 10 squats run cart path to green 10 burpees.
Make way around the back 9. (Dark Helmet complained a lot. reminded him of his and Essos race just a few weeks earlier)
( I love making Dark Helmet complain along with the rest of the PAX) about the 4th hole we made a small adjustment to the burpees 5 at the green. keep merkins and squats the same. once finished give good push to make it back to Veterans Park by 6.
It was a lot of fun. We got better.
Announcements- Fort convergence planned for 11 July location pending. look for coms on opening all sites early June.
prayers- Bandcamps family friends and the loss of a child, JWOWW and the loss of high school friend to Covid. Tinsels son on surgery for elbow injury.
Praise for being able to get out and workout.
Backdraft out.
Preparedness is discussed in Foundation Point F5 of the the Q- Source. As Defined Preparedness is: Getting Ready for the Expected While being Ready for The Unexpected. This is an all encompassing need to us as men. It is valid in all parts out our lives; Father, husband, boss, team member, Site-Q, WO Q ect.
The purpose for this pre-blast is in regards to life saving measures that Pax can take in the event of an unexpected medical emergency at home, work, or at an AO. We have talked about it in Site-Q Meetings and at the last Invergence.
Last week HomeBrew ,a Pax from Lake Wylie, who is near and dear to our hearts, had just this type of medical emergency come crashing down on him after his 2.0 suffered a Febrile Seizure and stopped breathing. He had no training but HAD to ACT. So he mimicked what he had seen on TV and was able to revive her before EMS was able to arrive. Good On Ya for maintaining a cool head and doing what needed to be done. CPR and Faith in the Sky Q is what saved her life. I have maintained CPR/AED/First Aid certification for 6-8 years now for work. I feel better knowing that if I am put in that sort of situation I have at minimum the base knowledge to try and keep someone alive till EMS-Fire arrive on site to take over.
Here is what HomeBrew and I are proposing. This will be a friendly competition between The Fort and Lake Wylie regions. From 4-1 to 4-15 every PAX from either region that completes certification or re-certifies in CPR/ AED/First Aid he and I + the Nan’tan and 1st F Q will complete 5 burpees. The region that draws the most new or recerts will pass that number on to the “Loser”, but honestly- Who really loses in this situation? IE The Fort get 30 pax LKW gets 20 pax = LKW will do 150 burpees. The Fort will do 100. As you all know, I HATE BURPEES, but have committed to drive action across the regions.
The Certification I have been using comes from NationalCPRFoundation.com. It is Red Cross compliant and should take between 30 mins to 1 hour to complete. It is free unless you decide to purchases the hard copy certificates. We will require a screen shot/ picture Tweeted or slacked to both HomeBrew and myself of the completed training for a CPR/AED/First aid at the end. It will be added to the spreadsheet we will use to document Pax completion. The certification is good for 2 years.
It is highly recommended that All Site Qs get on board with this effort, but all PAX can benefit from this training. What better way to show leadership than making sure the Pax that Post to your AO know you have that training and are ready to act in the even that someone goes down.
Please join us in this and lets Ensure we are Prepared for the unexpected. Stay tuned to TwEETAR for a message from Homebrew.
Minnow Pond on a brisk 35 degree morning? Sure, I’ll bite. This one’s gonna be short on content but heavy on work. First I must say that it was good to see some of the not-so-regular guys at this edition.
We had 2 post for extra-extra credit, a few more post at 0500 for the extra credit. Finally at 0514, 10 of us made our way over to Ol’ Glory for The Pledge Of Allegiance. Have I said that I do love this tradition ‘Shanks has established.
Ok, it’s 0515 and here is your brief disclaimer to cover the bases. After that, we took off up the Massey hill just to pull a U-turn at the Church and run it back to the Minnow Pond parking lot for a little more warming up:
SSH & some 180 degree jump squats…THAT’S IT, after all, you just ran up and down that hill.
We then took off on our 1.1mi loop that we’d get more comfortable with. Again, go up the Massey hill but this time, go down to the gas station.
Post up at the gas station for our first set of exercises. Every time we stop, we’d be doing the same 3 exercises and the same number of reps.
So that is 1 lap and the goal is to do this repeatedly to ensure you cover the 3mi minimum but also including the exercises at each of the 3 stops on each lap.
Some of the PAX got close to 3mi. Some got over 3.5mi but all pushed and got pushed.
YHC had the privilege to cross the river and Q for 11 at Minnow Pond. Conditions were stellar: 67 and dry. Here’s what we did:
The Thang
Run to First Baptist (.3 miles)
4 Corners
10 Burpees at each Corner (40 Burpees)
20 Merkins at each Corner (80 Merkins)
30 Shoulder Taps at each Corner (120 Shoulder Taps)
40 Squats at each Corner (160 Squats)
50 SSHs at each Corner (200 SSHs)
40 MNCs at each Corner (160 MNCs)
30 LBCs at each Corner (120 LBCs)
20 Seal Jacks at each Corner (80 Seal Jacks)
10 Burpees at each Corner (2.2 miles) (40 Burpees)
Return to Veterans Park (.3 miles)
Circle the lot twice (.2 miles)
Total Miles (3.0)
NMM
Thanks for the opportunity to Q today, Longshanks. I wanted to mix up the run this morning by adding the element of a full-body beatdown. As you can see above, we did some work. I also wanted to keep us in the parking lot as a reminder that we should always have eyes on our brothers. Though we have varying fitness levels and some guys got to the next station before others, its a reminder that we are all living life in different phases. Some guys have already been where you are now. Other guys are stepping into a phase where you are currently. Just the same as a workout, we should always look out for the guys ahead and behind us. Call the guy you haven’t seen in a while. Reach out to the guy that seems a little down. We are called to be our brother’s keeper. If he falls down, we are to help him up.
Let’s take care of each other. Let’s be intentional.
Willpower is only the trigger to get a person started on a positive habit (#Brick). In order to maintain and continue #Bricklaying, a person needs to change the mental and physical environment in which they live, so that the habit can develop the “muscle memory” needed to go the distance. My #DRP list is lengthening, as is my ability to have #IMPACT in the men around me, and the following is intended to continue to put me on the right trajectory.
For the year of 2020, my word is “GO”. In an effort to continue to #Accelerate my 1stF, and beginning on 1/6/20, I am instituting (for myself and anyone who wants to join me) an EC (Extra Credit) 15 minutes (of Boot Camp or running, or maybe even Broga) prior to every 45 minute workout. I will tweet and Slack the location with the hashtag #BTP the day before for those who wish to join me. (It’s a way to “trap” myself into an accelerating habit…)
For example, Monday I usually hit Honey Badger which is an hour workout. There would not necessarily be an EC prior to this (though there could be). Tuesday, I will be at Golden Corral. At 0500, I will begin an EC portion of the workout for those that want to join. It will launch from the same AO, and will be back at the AO in time for the 0515 normal start of the Post.
Clear as mud? Good. Ask me your questions. Otherwise, check your Twitter/Slack and #Accelerate with me.