Two of the regular inmates of Alcatraz were given parole to Q Swap with The Fort and show 23 men how we get stronger in the Prison Yard.

Gears on Deck, Disclaimer disclaimed.

The Thang:

Mosey to soccer field at top of hill

#SpokenWord to the PAX

COP
– SSH x 20
– IW x 15
– Windmill x 10
– MNC x 15
– Mountain Climbers x 20

Clock Merkins (12 x 5)

Protractor BTTW on the fence
– 12 count at 30 degrees
– 12 count at 60 degrees
– 12 count at 90 degrees
– 12 count at 60 degrees
– 12 count at 30 degrees
– Recover for 12 count

Repeat (Crowd Pleaser)

Mosey around park to area in front of playground.

Dirty Mac Deuce (12 of each with 12 count between sets):
– Merkins
– Hello Dolly
– Mountain Climbers

– Wide Arm Merkins
– Slow Freddy Mercury
– Peter Parker

– Diamond Merkins (Crowd Pleaser)
– Dying Cockroach
– Parker Peter

– CDD
– XOs (12 x 4 count)
– 6 inches

Split into 1s and 2s
One does small lap around playground while other does:
– Pull Ups
– Toe Touches on Pull Up Bar

Hand off to Maximus

Ab Lab:
– Hand Walkers x 12
– Seated Knee Tucks x 15
– Sky Touches x 12

Line up:
Burpee Broad Jump for 20yds
Sprint distance b/w two trees then 5 Burpees, repeat, then repeat again
20sec low squats x 3
Single leg squat  x 10sec each leg, repeat

Jog back to the starting point
Peter Parker’s on your elbows x 20
Heels to Heaven x 15
V-Ups x 12 each side
Russian Twist while varying speed x 15

Run in Place (4ct) x 60
Knee Tar Jai’s x 16?

Mosey to the hill
Sprint to the top and jog down, repeat then repeat again

COT

Naked Man Moleskin:

YHC’s VQ at the AO that gives our Region its name, and the PAX there do not disappoint.

#SpokenWord today was about being Present.  YHC chose Present as the word for this year after Santini’s challenge, and this is not just being physically present, but actually pushing off selfishness in whatever way that manifests itself and pouring yourself into what you are doing.  Examples from YHC include being mentally engaged with my family, especially the M, as well as being engaged in my job to care about what I do and make a difference.

YHC then challenged the PAX to be present for the workout today and they did not disappoint.  There was much mumblechatter about getting out of the workout what you put into it, so I think the #SpokenWord was truly heard.

Announcements:

Spearhead ruck starting at Dunkin Donuts Sunday

BRC running group starting 0630 tomorrow from Starbucks

Ziplock and Fonda starting Silver Bullet workout in parallel to WEP workout Saturday at 7am, need to EH “seasoned” men

Great words from Red Banjo regarding our need to be running in order to “WIN” …don’t be in it for just the t-shirt, pour yourself into your goals.

S/O to Santini for bringing his “A” game this morning.

Prayer Requests:

Crab Cakes dad, Hugh going in for surgery Monday.

Honor to Serve.

16 courageous men pulled into Publix grocery store lot, not to pick up the staples of bread, milk and eggs but to leave a downpainment on this potential new AO for The Fort.

YHC dived into a conversation around ROI or Return on Investment. We all want a return on our hard earned hours of labor and our cash that is invested in some fund or real estate. However, we need to examine where we get our most important and HIGH value returns. I believe its investing in men! Getting them out of sad clown and into leadership so that the ROI is re-invested into their wives, children and community.

I encourage each of you to thank whoever “Invested” in you and brought you into the F3 PAX and the challenge is to use your talents for an even higher ROI !
The Thang!!

Lap around the Store Building known as Publix and then COP:

Old Bay at the Q – 20 SSH, 10 Peter Park, 15 Merkiins, 10 Windmills, 10 Imperial Walkers, 15 SSHs,

Cake Boss at the Q – 20 slow squats Mosey to office park

COP – 15 Carolina Dry Docks

Groups of 3 (if possible)

#1 Run Hill, Steps, Path back down hill

#2 Plank on #3 feet

#3 Full Sit ups

2 rounds each

#1 Run Hill, Steps, Path back down hill

#2 Plank

#3 Freddy Mercury’s

2 rounds each

Mosey to Wall

#1 Bear Crawl, Sprint back

#2 Wall Sit

#3 Curb Merkins

2 rounds each

#1 Lunge Walk, Sprint back

#2 Wall Sit

#3 Curb Derkins

2 rounds each

Mosey back to Publix Lot

Mini-Jacobs Latter with Bomb Jacks 1-5 top of hill 2-10 bottom of hill

COP – Cake Boss tried something silly and had to call audible, so did couple rounds of Ab Lab until Omaha was called and the PAX sprinted to front of Publix for 10 derkins/20 dips and sprint back to COT

Great time with 15 of my closest buds. We got a good vibe from the Publix AO and we will be returning 2/10 with Beacon at the Q. More to come on official launch of Tuesday AO.

Honored and Proud of my F3 PAX brethren as always! – CB

25 members of the Army for Good got after some #GoodLivin on a cold Saturday morning at WEP.  YHC and Private Ryan were there to provide an hour version of a GORUCK Challenge.  We talked about how a GRC is not about you but the brother to your right and the brother to your left.  We needed to think about that as we went through this exercise and try to find ways to truly live “I am Third” for more meaning and purpose in your life.  We also remembered our brother Cobra Kai who lost his grandmother this week and could not make it out to lead our group.

The Thang:

Partner up and grab one coupon per team.  Catch Me If You Can around the park (crowd pleaser!)

COP

IW x 10

Windmills x 10

Low Slow Squats x 10

Good Mornings x 10 (Pax Confused)

Mountain Climbers x 10

Parker Peters x 10

Peter Parkers x 10

Grab the remaining coupons and ranger run to the NW corner of WEP for further instructions.

First Movement:  Team Leader:  FNG  (Wait!  What?!?!  We’re really making him TL???)

14 blocks, 3 plates, and pallet.  1/2 mile to Veterans Park.  One casualty (Lil’ E – not so “Lil” when you have to carry him)

1/2 way – another man down

Almost there – another man down (Pax suddenly under heavy load)

Summary:  Poor.  Did not move together.  Missed time hack by a lot.  (You try carrying Lil E’ half a mile!)

Result:  Punishment.  Tunnel of Love and Team Bear Crawls

Second Movement:  Team Leader:  Lil’ E  (Thankfully we don’t have to carry him.)

14 blocks, 3 plates, and pallet.  1/4 mile to Church of God (shout out from Red Banjo).  One casualty

1/2 way – YHC down  (Uh-oh.  That’s a tough ask.  #HalfHippoHalfMan )

Almost there – another man down (Pax suddenly under extremely overweight load….literally)

Summary:  Slightly better than poor.  Missed time hack.  Struggled moving together.  Cadre reminds us the importance of constant communication in order to move as one team.

Result:  Luckily no time for punishment.  Need to double back to WEP for COT.

Final Movement:  Team Leader:  Can’t remember but he did a great job – sound off in comments!

14 blocks, 3 plates, and pallet.  3/4 mile to WEP.  No casualties (at the start).

1/2 way – 2 men down (luckily it was skinny people like MacGyver and Rooney)

Almost there – another man down (Pax under lots of weigh but finishing strong)

Summary:  Better!  Missed time hack by small margin but more communication and teamwork to carry the load.

Result:  Minor punishment with 3 Min of Mary.

COT

STRONG work out there by everyone.  Pax were stepping up left and right to carry the load and help out the men to their….left and right.  Constant #IamThird practice out there.  Special shout out to FNG – Road House for the HUGE step up to Team Leader on his FIRST (that’s right – FIRST) F3 Post!!!  Incredible work.  Private Ryan is an unforgiving Cadre or as the kids say these days he has “no chill”.  Another nod to the 4 brothers that were saddled with the no-so-great task of trying to carry YHC.  I apologized profusely for the toll the holiday season took on my waistline.  Welcome The Fort FNG – Poncherello.  Great to have you join us brother!

I can honestly say that gave you a fair taste of what a GORUCK Challenge would feel like.  Now just do it for 11 more hours, cover 12 more miles, in total darkness, under A LOT more weight, with a TON more PT/punishment, while getting yelled at A LOT more than you did this morning….and you’re there!  Sounds fun doesn’t it???

Announcements:  For everyone who missed Santini’s talk about Purpose in your Career yesterday – it was a great event.  The Pax are encouraged to reach out to the fantastic resources amongst your F3 The Fort/Indianland/Rock Hill brothers.  They can help you find purpose not only in your career but in your life.  They are ready and willing to serve!

Always an honor to lead such a great group of men.  Humbling to see what this Army for Good is doing for me personally and this community.  Aye!

This was not an undertaking that YHC was prepared for [sanbags]. Yes, Q knows how to lift a sandbag but no, [Q] he does not know how to teach others to lift a sandbag. After finding some internal motivation to Q this workout and mind you some blatent hesitation, YHC was also reminded of one of the greatest quotes from the battle of Normandy (also known as Operation Overlord).

“This operation is not being planned with any alternatives. This operation is planned as a victory, and that’s the way it’s going to be. We’re going down there, and we’re throwing everything we have into it, and we’re going to make it a success.” ― General Dwight D Eisenhower

The expression of “We” and not “I” held true as this quickly became a team effort when YHC introduced some new exercises, he himself was not prepared to encounter. However, there was a strong showing of men (13) prepared to do battle and came willing to undertake whatever YHC had to throw at them.

Warmup:

• 25 SSH
• 20 Mountain Climbers
• 15 IW
• 14 Windmills
• 14 Air Squats

And there off…

The Thang:

• 20 Rotational Deadlift
• 10-15 (Wherever you ended up – HARD!!!) Rotational Lunges
• 10-15 Rotational Power lunge Clean – EXTREMELY HARD!!! – Imagine picking sandbag up from your side, then going into a Cean and then stepping one leg behind the other into a reverse sideways lunge. UGH!
• 20 Squats
• 10 Overhead Press
• Maybe a few more i cant remember

Now onto the interesting part of the WO. On paper, the next idea looked to be something that the PAX would enjoy. On paper, i imagined maybe 8 PAX tops doing this – remember, 13 posted. But YHC went with it anyways because he had already planned 15 min in the WO for this.

• Stagger (diagonally) sandbags across field. Pax runs to each sand bag and snatches overhead. Ran through this twice, first time was kind of a bust because the PAX were literally walking through it. So YHC decided to COP, which included merkins, burpees, etc… to allow PAX to filter through the obstacle and not allow this to be a walking exercise but yet a running exercise.

Once that was over, the PAX grabbed their sandbags ran around Soccer field.

COP

• Forward lunges (CSPAN thought these were reverse lunges or he said something to the affect that his legs would not bend that way – old man excuse, but PROPS to him for leading the WO later that day for Run n Gun). FACT: Old men can recover.
• Squats
• Power Cleans
• Good Mornings
• Shoulder squats
• A few AB exercises with sandbags

COT – Run back to parking lot with Sandbags

There was alot of mumblechatter this day but just as General Dwight D Eisenhower said, “This operation is planned as a victory…” – and a Victory it was, no one was hurt but we all suffered TOGETHER! #f3brothers

Announcements:

• Murph this Saturday (1/31) at The Reservation
• 1/30 0600 – hear the words of the great Santini at Eternal Church – no chickin and wisdom

Prayers

• Many prayers that YHC unfortunately cannot remember but lifted up at the time

Even though the AO is still without a name 11 posted for a Monday morning workout throughout downtown Rock Hill….image the potential if this AO gets a name!

The Thang:

Warm Up Run – Headed out for a 3/4 Mile loop with a brief stop for pull ups and SSH’s. Pax was on its way to several hundred SSHs when Pusher thankfully called an audible and switched up to the Windmill while pax completed pull ups. Continued around the loop to the parking deck for a series of wide/narrow bunny hops up the stairwell and continued the run down the parking deck to Fountain Park.

COP

– 20 SSH

– 15 Merkins

– 20 Squats

– 15 Diamond Merkins

– 15 Mountain Climbers

– 20 SSH

Grab a Wall

– 12 Derkins

– 12 Dips

– 12 Box Jumps

– Rinse/Repeat (Reps of 8)

Fountain Park Fun Run

– 8/4/2 Burpees with a lap around Fountain Park between sets

– 40/20 LBC with lap around Fountain Park between sets

Stairwell Time

– Short run to to a 6 Story Stairwell

Main St Abs

– Short run to Main St

– 25 LBC

– 25 Freddie Mercury

– 30/1/1:30 Plank

COT

Announcements: Reminder of event at Eternal Church 1/30 6am

Prayer Request: Prayers for all those injured or sick during this time of the year.