Tag: Bones

Fiststix on Q

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It’s been difficult for me to make it over to Quagmire on a consistent basis lately. It use to be my regular Monday morning hangout.  There were several great workout options this morning. It was great to see a good turnout.  After the standard disclaimer, we made our way over to the parking area near Jush Fresh.

COP:  SSHs, imperial walkers, merkins, squats, more merkins, flutters, LBCs

Next, we moseyed to the side of Books A Million for a sidewalk shuffle (plank walk between light poles).  Rinse and Repeat.

More running to the front of vacant Gander Mountain.  We partnered up for a few unique exercises.  The mode of transportation based on the number of hands and feet.

  1.  2 feet, no hands – Partner Carry
  2.  2 feet, 2 hands – Wheelbarrow
  3.  4 legs, no hands – Leg lunges (recovery from wheelbarrow)
  4. 4 hands, 2 feet – one-legged bear crawl

Jedi showed off his skills by walking on his hands….impressive!

Next, we jogged back to Just Fresh for a recovery wall sit while each person ran up and down the stairs.

The final ten minutes were spend running back to Office Depot for 7 minutes of rugby sprints.  We alternated with the following exercises:  CCDs, LBCs, Flutters, Calf Raises, Merkins.

Great job by all! We covered over 2.5 miles this morning.

Prayers:

Healing for family and friends suffering from illnesses

Families in Texas

 

 

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1

Of Relays and Dance Parties

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Truth be told, YHC is losing his mind.

When I was asked to Q at the Deep for the return of the 0630 launch, my first thought was, “Hey! That AO is at a school. I don’t normally post at schools. I should do something to commemorate that.” Forget the fact that the majority of our AOs are at schools. That’s irrelevant. But, it does set us up for the dumb ideas that followed…

My memories of middle school in May involve basically two things: Field Day and the end-of-the-year dance. So, to harken back to the days of old, that became our theme for today. Twelve PAX (including one FNG) joined YHC for a baker’s dozen at Oakridge Middle. Here’s what we did (kinda):

Warm-up

Mosey around to the back of the school for our “field day” warm-up. Split into two teams for four relays:

  • Sprint (i.e., the basic relay)
  • Bear crawl
  • Broad jumps
  • Crab walks

That got our heart rates up and ready for the dance party. We moseyed back around to the front of the school for the fun to really begin.

The Thang

When I think of middle school dances, I think of songs you can’t really dance to, weird mixes, and lots of wallflower moments. So, we relived my childhood. Six songs. Wallflower between (people’s chair or balls to the wall each time). Today’s playlist:

  • Jukebox Hero – SSHs (slow and fast to match the music) during the verses, Rock Star jumps during the chorus/refrain/hook
  • I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) – Imperial Squat Walkers during the verses, bear crawl and crawl bear during the “well I would walk” segments, and donkey kicks during the “da da da da” parts. You know what I’m talking about, because you’re singing it in your head.
  • The Middle – LBCs during the verses, flutters during the refrain, and some Freddie Mercuries during the bridge/interlude/guitar solo
  • Smooth Criminal – Plank jacks during the verses and a merkin for every “okay” (“Annie just freaking answer him already!”)
  • Sorry – Hold boat throughout, dropping down and completing one V-up for every “sorry”
  • The Devil Went Down to Georgia – curb dips during the “singing,” crab cakes during the musical interludes/fiddle or guitar solos
  • I Will Survive – lateral plank walks with merkins during the refrain (longest version of this song ever, but the brief rain made it a little more manageable)

We actually left out the song with the burpees. That’ll be reserved for the next dance party.

Quick mosey back to COT.

No earth-shattering announcements that can’t be found in the newsletter, so read your newsletter. Prayers for teachers (and students and parents) as school wraps up, and for Whopper in his job search/potential promotion. Late request added for the shooting that happened down in Texas.

Cofeeteria at Dunkin because it’s cheaper (in many aspects of the word).

As for the (somehow now infamous) FNG naming, well, that story can be saved for a verbal diarrhea run with Q*bert. You’ll also want to ask Cha Ching about his comment regarding the arrival of “Mr. Wood.” Um…………

I appreciate everybody participating in the stupidness of this morning. I wanted it to be fun and different. I think that happened. Thanks to Shakespeare for the opportunity to lead, for changing the launch time to 0630, and for the speaker to blast the music.

-Jedi

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2

Broga, Tater Special, and Quagmire Handoff

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The plan for several months has been for YHC to receive the shovel flag for Quagmire sometime in May. Eventually, the 14th came out as the best option, so it only made sense when the call for a substi-Q went out on Friday that I should rise up to the occasion. Given the recent arrival of two new Monday bootcamps in the region, you never really know how many to expect come 0515. We had a respectable size (with 4 respectable PAX), with 11 posting to what turned out to be a beast of a workout.

(Mostly) full disclaimer given, with promise of no crawling (especially low crawls) and no balls-to-the-walls. Promise was given to start slow, but no promises for the time after the warmup.

Warm-o-rama

Long-ish mosey around Home Depot, behind Target, and out to Books-a-Million.

Rather than the standard exercises, today’s warmup was a couple sun salutations, replacing with the manly F3 names for poses because, well, Broga.

Once warm and limber-ish, we did a short mosey to the fountain for

The Thang

Twelve cones were spaced somewhat evenly around the fountain parking lot, including one cone on each traffic circle. On each cone was an exercise with a rep count. I referred to the workout as the “Tater Special,” as I got the idea from one of Tater’s Qs several months back. Basically, PAX run to the first cone, do the exercise, and return to the start. They then run to the second cone, do the exercise, then the first cone, do the exercise, then back to the start. And so on. Pretty simple. Not super original. But it’s great for PAX who want to push themselves, those who are recovering, and those who are new. Everything was modifiable, and everybody got a good workout. The exercises that were reached (I’m leaving out the ones that weren’t in case I bring this back…):

  • Burpees x 5
  • Jump Squats x 10
  • Merkins x 20
  • Freddie Mercuries x 30 double count
  • Prison Cell Burpees x 5
  • Jumping lunges x 10 double count
  • Diamond Merkins x 20
  • Flutters x 20 double count
  • Breakdancer Burpees x 5

That’s as far as the fastest men got. For those doing the math, that works out to 45 burpees, 80 jump squats, 140 merkins, 180 Freddies, 25 PCBs, 40 jumping lunges, 60 diamond merkins, 40 flutters, and 5 breakdancer merkins, plus over 2.5 miles of running. It doesn’t actually look like that much, but we felt every rep.

Grab the cones and quick, er, modified quick mosey back to COT.

Announcements, etc.

  • Cannoli Run on Saturday, Patriot Run on Memorial Day, if not doing Patriot Run, do the Murph pseudo-convergence.
  • Prayers for MOAB and ChaChing’s Ms, both of whom are fast approaching due dates for baby #3.
  • Prayers for wisdom and discernment, as well as trust and confidence, for, well, all of us.

We handed off the shovel flag after that. DaVinci had some great words; YHC didn’t. No surprises there.

Honestly, though I’m excited to take over as site Q, DaVinci’s are some big shoes to fill. Great leader, quiet and would prefer to sneak by under the radar, he is not one to be underestimated. Loyal, reliable, and solid, all would do well to learn from this HIM. It is an honor to get to follow after him.

 

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6

Truck full of concrete at Colosseum

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If you’ve posted at the Colosseum, you know Jekyll guarantees it’ll be worth your time. So for all the future Q’s of this AO, the nation looks forward to you keeping the streak alive. Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to post with our brothers in Huntersville/Lake Norman and got absolutely smoked on a Wednesday morning as we spent much of the 45mins pushing cinder blocks around while bear-crawling the parking lot. It was way too painful to keep to myself. After all, we’re supposed to give it away, right?

With a little pre-hype on the machine yesterday, 21 brave souls joined me at The Colosseum and after a donation from Bonsai, I was able to ensure we had enough coupons. Little did I know that you can’t give some of these guys nice things because their way out of doing the workout is to break my blocks.

Once all were accounted for, we moseyed to the bus parking lot for an abbreviated wind mill and stretch session. This was purely at Santini’s request but wasn’t frowned upon by anyone. After all, when you get a request from the guy that EH’d you into F3, do you really have a choice? After that 2mins, we took off for the back entrance road which just so happened to be the launch point of Jekyll’s horribles last week. Some assurance was necessary as people got a little anxious while we stood there. I guess the memory was still fresh from the previous week.

At each light post, 10 SSH and 10 Freddy Mercury’s. Once you hit every light post, bring it back to the start where you get your form called out by none other than CSPAN…hmmm, seems ironic!! We love him anyways.

Now that we got that out of the way, mosey back to my truck where we begin the next chapter. Like a jewelry dealer opening their trench coat to show his watches, I opened the tail gate to reveal 25 cinder blocks. Oh, it’s on now. Grab a block and line up in a straight line with the basketball hoop. I also learned that for those speedy folks out there (that’s you, Tesh), I need to be very specific with my instructions.

Round 1:

10 Burpees

20 Carolina Dry Docks

30 Squats holding the block

Bear Crawl pushing the cinder block to the line at the other basketball hoop.

Round 2:

10 Bomb Jacks

20 Flutter Kicks with a Press

30 Bicep Curls

Bear Crawl pushing the block back to the start

Round 3:

10 Diamond Merkins

20: Deadlifts

30: LBC’s (with or without the block but seriously, is there really an option?)

Bear Crawl pushing the block to the other hoop.

Round 4:

10 Toe Touches (with or without the block)

20 Lunges (20 each leg)

30 Shoulder Press

Bear Crawl pushing it the block back to the start

Circle Up:

Staggered Merkins (6ea side)

Flutter Kicks w/ the press again

Ended with more bicep curls

As a Q, it is great to hear all the chatter but to then have that followed by the moaning and then…silence as the PAX are trying to stay focused, that’s affirmation. Great job to the guys and special T-claps to the next level’ers (Dark Helmet, Trucker and Bonsai) for throwing the ruck on during this. The original workout had a ruck or weight vest involved so I respect you for going that rout. I will join you with the ruck next time. The bear crawls pushing that block while wearing a ruck…that’s memorable.

Prayers:

Upcoming graduations, appreciation to the PAX for checking in on us and holding us accountable, Badger.

Jekyll…I thank you.

Until next time.

Maximus

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4

Gambling in the Abyss

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What happens when you’re granted the honor of Qing at an AO you’ve not been to much and therefore, not to familiar with? Why, you scout it on Sunday with your kids after Church of course. Completely normal, right? For this group, you’re expected to “bring it” so you’d better know the turf. For those Ft. Mill’ers who’ve not frequented The Abyss, put it on your short-term bucket list. I didn’t explore much of it due to our card playing but this place is a gem.

Once the 16 of us rolled in on this beautiful Wednesday morning, I quickly noticed the footwear NASA was sporting and got a little concerned…for him. He let me know that he and a few other PAX would be breaking off to do a busted-foot-friendly-workout so I felt a little better about what we were getting into. The people-pleasing side of me wanted to make sure I had a little something for everyone so after typical butchered disclaimer, we took off for the basketball courts for our warm up:

Windmills

Side Straddle Hops of course

Super mans

Hand-Release Merkins

Jump Squats

Mosey back to the main lot and I had to grab the deck of cards I slipped under the cone. As many but not all were familiar with, each suit is a different exercise and the number on the card represents how many reps. Jack = 11, Queen = 12, King = 13 and the Ace = 14 (not 1).

Hearts = Wide Arm Merkins

Clubs = Carolina Dry Docks

Diamonds = Jumping Lunges

Spades = BURPEES (Yup, we did that)

After we recognized the deck must have been front-loaded with Wide-Arm Merkins and Jumping Lunges, it wasn’t long until we started getting smoked and a few 10-counts were necessary. In the end, we completed it all which totaled 104 of each, that’s right, 104 Burpees.

There was still a little left in the tank and on the clock so we had to round it out with Dying Cockroaches, descending 10ct leg lifts and the finisher…Lt. Dan’s. The latter was a lesson I would remember the rest of the week.

Bones, I appreciate the opportunity and I look forward to the next time.

Leave no man behind but leave no man where you found him.

Maximus

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5

Our 2 Year Celebration for F3 in Lake Wylie @ the Deep!

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I was privileged to get the opportunity to lead (with Dark Helmet) the 1st workout at the Deep, and on this Celebration Day to get the opportunity to lead once again! We’ve seen a lot of new and consistent faces over that 2 years and I truly feel there is something special about the guys that come from the west side of Lake Wylie.  It was really great to show up 10 minutes before the 7am launch and see so many of the tenured Fort Mill PAX already there to support us at this celebration!

I used that opportunity to open with a little message.  3 of the PAX were FNGs, so I gave the long disclaimer, but then I asked for a show of hands for how many years each PAX had been posting at F3.  It was awesome to see guys like Cornhole, Sen Tressel, Maximus and Spitz who have been posting 4-5 YEARS now.  All of those guys have had a direct impact on my life so I was really honored that they came out to support our Lake Wylie PAX.

The Thang

Quick mosey around the parking lot for a dynamic warmup

Made it over to the soccer field for our COP

SSHs – Imperial Squat Walkers – Windmills – MNCs – Merkins – Mountain Climbers – Yoga – Plank Jacks

Before we got into the next evolution, I shared several messages about the foundation of F3.  Started with the Mission, T-Claps to NASA for knowing it by heart! Then I shared one of my favorite Q Source Posts, the Daily Red Pill.  (Link Below)

The Daily Red Pill Feb 2017

1st Exercise Evolution

4 corners – PAX counted off by 4s

There were 4 cones set up at the corners of the field.  1 in the center. What would a Lake Wylie celebration be without the original exercise FOUNDED AT THE 1ST WORKOUT? That’s right, 5 Kraken Burpees (check the lexicon if you do not know this favorite).  That was our center cone.  The groups would split up and run to their assigned number, complete the exercise, run back and do 5 Kraken Burpees

1st corner = 20  Worst Merkin Ever (Wide Arm Merkin, Regular Merkin then Diamond Merkin = 1 rep)

2nd corner = 40 Flutter Kicks double count

3rd corner = 30 Jump Squats

4th Corner = 30 Imperial Squat Walkers

Took a break and shared some more about Sad Clowns, and how F3 is the antidote to Sad Clown Syndrome from the DRP post.

2nd Evolution = Mosey over to the big hill

Partner Up

1 partner down and up the hill, 2nd partner says and does the exercise I call until I’m tired of it.

They were: CCDs – Burpees – SSHs : This lasted a lot longer than 2 sentences gives credit.

More discussion around DRP

3rd Evolution = Mosey to the back of the school

Lt Dangers to the 1st basketball goal That’s a lunge – lunge – squat – merkin (crowd pleaser)

Bear Crawl to the 2nd BB goal

Lt Dangers back to the end of the school

That’s like 200 yards, little Link (Bones 9 year old 2.0) crushed us all – including his Dad!

4th Evolution = Mosey to the front of the school

Time was running short, I had two boards with 5 exercises set up, audibled to just 1 board.  We did the five exercises in cadence.

5th Evolution = Saved 6 minutes for my last favorite – Captain Thors!

1 big boy sit up to 4 America Hammers, go to 10…we ran out of time at the 9 rotation.  It hurt anyways!

COT was great with 3 new FNGS, two were 2.0 of regular PAX and they held their own!

Cross Check (Peg’s 2.0 Logan) for his lacrosse skills

FIFA (Flux’s 2.0 Evan) for his soccer skills

Wesley our 29 year old previous college pole vaulter so his F3 name forever shall be Bubka!

It was really a great time with great friends and great mubblechatter.  I hope everyone else enjoyed it as much as I did.

(and we got 16 out to Coffeeteria, our best part of Saturdays)

An Honor to Lead

-Royale

 

 

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6

Too much work at Golden Corral

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Here’s what the bootcampers did after the ruckers took off with Wild Thing.

Dynamic Warmup around parking lot

Then COP

20 SSHs – 20 MNCs – 10 Slow Cotton Pickers –

10 WA Merkins – 20 Moun Climbers – Yoga – 15 Plank Jacks

 Partner Up

 Dora 1-2-3

100 Burpees

200 Sumo Squats

300 SSHs

While other partner ran around the parking lot triangle

 To Fort Mill BBQ Lot

11s with Bear crawls

11 WA Merkins

1 Bomb jack

Run backwards to start

I had 2 other evolutions on the Weinke, but I miscalculated on how much 11s would suck with the distance and number of bear crawls.  Most of the PAX got to 11, but it hurt!

During our 10 counts I shared some quotes and insight that I’ve been gathering from my most recent reading, Jordan Peterson’s “12 Rules for Life.”  The rule I reviewed was Rule #8 : Tell the Truth – or at least Don’t Lie!

Attached are the quotes:

Tell the Truth or at least Don’t Lie

An honor to lead…

-Royale

 

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1

Motivation Monday @ Quagmire: by Shakespeare

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I had the honor of leading 7 men (1 FNG!) this morning at Quagmire.  The drive in was a bit of a shock as rain drizzled down the entire way.  According to the weather report, rain was supposed to start a bit later in the morning.  I wasn’t much worried about the rain for the workout, but more that some of my writing on paper would smear off and make it a bit harder for us to read the writing on my cornhole bags (more on that later).  But, the Big Man Upstairs was nice enough to get rid of the drizzle and save the smearing for another day.  Note to self: always use ziplock bags… no matter the weather report.

Warmup:

Begin at COT with disclaimer for our FNG and started with some light stretching.  After a day of rest on Sunday (I’m sure many were in the same boat) some light stretching definitely helped to loosen the body up for the work we were about to do.

  • Mosey around Home Depot to Target Parking Lot.
  • Circle up and completed following routine…
  • SSH x20
  • Imperial Walker x10
  • Hillbilly Walker x10
  • Moroccan Night Club x20
  • Mountain Climbers x15
  • Parker Peters x10
  • Merkins x10
  • Honeymooner/Downward Dog x2
  • Warm-up Over… mosey over to Foutain

The Thang:

1st)  Find a bench. Completed the following routine twice….

  • Step Ups x10 each leg OYO
  • 1 Legged Lunges x10 each leg OYO
  • Tricep Dips x10 double count (in cadence)
  • Derkins x10 double count (in cadence)

2nd)  Partner up.  Four Corners with partner.  Exercises written on notecards, duct-taped to cornhole bags (needed something that wouldn’t fly away in the wind… total MacGyver move on my part).  All groups start in center with 5 burpees, run to a corner of the businesses around us.  After completing a corner, return to center for another 5 burpees.  Wash, rinse, repeat until all 4 corners were completed with 25 burpees.  Corner exercises as followed:

  • 50 Seal Jacks (double count)
  • 30 Wide Arm Merkins
  • 50 Flutter Kicks (double count)
  • 50 American Hammers (double count)

3rd) Mosey back over near COT to drop of cornhole bags and find some wall.  Completed the following exercises with same partners.

  1. Partner A) People’s Chair until Partner B) completes 25 squats… switch positions… x 2 (two People’s Chair per partner/50 squats each)
  2. Partner A)BTTW until Partner B)completes 20 Carolina Dry Docks… switch positions… x 2 (two BTTW per partner/40 CDD each)
  3. Bonus Set w/ extra time!  Partner A) People’s Chair until Partner B) completes 20 Monkey Humpers… switch positions… x 2 (two People’s Chair per partner/40 Humpers)

Mosey back to COT

Name-O-Rama followed by the naming of our FNG… Welcome Kenny G!

Announcements:

  • Read your newsletter. Carolina Beer Temple Tuesday!
  • Strawberry Festival, Operation Sweettooth 8K, Whetstone, the usual.

Praise/Prayers:

  • Students/teachers returning to school following Spring Break.
  • Lutefisk’s mother, praise for making into town for Easter, prayers for continued healing as she continues her fight.
  • MOAB for upcoming job interviews this week.
  • NASA… him and the M’s anniversary. (Congrats!)

Takeaways:

  • Thanks DaVinci for the opportunity to Q!  Enjoyed coming up with this routine… hope that the BackBlast isn’t too long (it probably is… my bad guys).  I wanted to push myself with a tough workout to get the week started off on a great note.  I knew going into this one I was going to have to reach deep; the adrenaline from the Q sure helped!  All in all, everyone tallied a couple miles of running in addition to some high numbers of leg, shoulder, and core exercises.
  • Getting close to my 1-year F3 anniversary, I finally got the chance to name my first FNG… looking forward to getting more opportunities to do that!
  • P.S.- Cornhole bags really do work to write down exercises.  DaVinci gave me kudos for the last minute idea.  The next prototype might need a little work in the event that it rains!

-Shakespeare

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13

Never Board at the Abyss

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Great morning!! Or was it? As I was setting up the BoP out back, I saw a couple of cars parked. Lights off, side by side. I was wondering if I was about to become a crime statistic. Then as I drove back towards the front of the school, I noticed an unusually large number of cars rolling in. Someone more self-effacing might have thought it was for them. I was hopeful. Turns out there was a school field trip gathering. Oh well.

Disclaimer was disclaimed. Moseyed around to the side of the school for the COP:

  • SSH x 15
  • WM x 15
  • IW x 15
  • MNC x 20

Didn’t want to take too much time away from the main event. No talking (believe it). Due to the full lot out back, moved the BoP to the front of the school for the main event .

The MINI Board Of Pain

The real Board of Pain has become somewhat of a legend in The Fort region. I figured we need to keep our eye on the prize and came up with the mini version to break out every now and then to keep us prepared for the real deal. Three groups of 5 exercises, 25 reps each OYO (unless otherwise noted), nonstop, with runs after every 5th exercise:

  1. Burpees
  2. Calf raises (50)
  3. Ski Abs
  4. Merkins
  5. Long, slow squats >>> Run a lap
  6. LBCs (50)
  7. CDDs
  8. American hammers
  9. Mac Tar Jai
  10. Jump squats >>> RUN FORREST, RUN!!
  11. Mountain climbers
  12. Shoulder raises (50)
  13. Mary Catherines
  14. Hello Dolly!
  15. Wide arm merkins >>> Run like the wind(ed)…
    >>> RINSE AND REPEAT
    (missing from the original BoP were squat jacks, nipplers – whatever the hell those are, and burpees)

Again, NO talking from the Q. I did provide some Pandora streaming music, and it was noted that my playlist stunk. Playlist? I don’t have time for that. That’s why I use Pandora. The PAX really got after it! Alot of great support and mumblechatter. Everyone completed 2 full circuits, a few started on their third. GREAT JOB BY ALL!!

We took it right up to ~ 5:57. Enough time for a slow Indian run back to the COT.

COT:
* Read your newsletter. Get out there, get involved, make a positive impact somehow. Get better every day.
* Brewruck 002 Sat 3/31
* CAH Guidance 3/31
* Whetstone is starting back up. Get better!
* Prayers for families, children, parents, and health
* Prayers for MOAB’s Dad who recently survived a heart attack, and that he is given the strength, discipline, and courage to follow through with the changes needed in his life to get better.
* Prayers for Zoe Deen, the man who hit her on Tuesday AM, and their respective families/loved ones.
* Many more said – sorry I cannot remember them all

NMM:
I kept quiet today at this workout. Did not say much at all. No moleskin, deep thoughts, or talking about the word of the month. I kept thinking about what happened on Tuesday morning, around 6am. Right about the time many of us were in COT. It’s regarding the Olympic high school girl Zoe Deen who was killed on Tuesday AM as she was crossing Youngblood Rd not too far from the location of The Abyss……as those who posted that morning were in prayers and praising, she left this earth.

Life is very precious, and can be very fleeting. You never know when your time will come. I’m sure this young woman and her family thought that day would be like any other. Going about their normal morning routines. Setting off to begin another day. I’m sure the driver of the SUV thought the same thing…..just like any another day. They never suspected that morning their worlds would change forever. In an instant she was gone. In an instant his life was forever scarred. In an instant those kids who saw it happen were forever changed. In an instant the lives of the families all those involved were forever changed as well. That’s all it takes. An instant. And it’s not just one life affected……the wave of change spreads outward and touches many others. We are blessed with this precious thing we call life. What you do with it is up to you, but if you leave doubts in anyone’s minds – yours or others – about how precious it can be, then you failed regardless of how much else you may achieve, gain, or accomplish. Take nothing for granted. Value every moment. Leave no doubts in anyone’s minds about love and life.

Thanks for the opportunity to lead,
– NASA

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8

Risking it All and Going Beyond

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Better conditions led to 14 PAX posting at Golden Corral for this week’s edition of BEYOND. Turnout was improved in part because Rad cancelled the ruck workout, encouraging the usual ruckers to join the fun, while he bailed and went yogging at Sea Legs instead.

After Copperfield gave the disclaimer, the 14 BEYONDers took off for a short mosey around the perimeter of the main parking lot, incorporating butt kickers, high knees, toy soldiers, toe walks, and heel walks. We then lined up at the shovel flags (we had three…I don’t know where the third came from…) and did 10 merkins at the island, jog to the next island, 10 more merkins, etc. for a total of 40 merkins. This was followed by a short mosey to the HT loading docks for some final warming up. (Note for GC Q’s – people drive like MANIACS behind HT, so keep the PAX out of the main roadway if possible.)

Brief COP included 10 windmills, 10 low slow squats on our toes (in relevé, if you will), then a couple yoga lunge stretches on each leg. Then partner up and jog around to the HT wall facing the six of O – O – O – O’Reilly for the Thang.

The workout sets were generally done in Stand By Your Man style, with one PAX performing the prescribed reps of some form of merkin while the other does some other exercise, then switch places until all merkin reps completed. Once done, run around oil change place and O’Reilly and back to the HT wall with your partner. Pretty simple…ish…

Let’s get going.

The original plan was to build this week’s message off of what was covered at BEYOND last week, but that had to be modified when we had only three last week and fourteen this week. So, we started with some quick catch-up. If you want a recap of last week, check out that backblast. Main point to remember for today: dig deep and determine your purpose, as this will give a filter through which to handle today’s questions.

Living with purpose inherently involves risk.

During this first set, discuss with your partner how you would define “risk.”

Set 1: Breakdancer merkins (20-16-12-8 reps each) while partner does Rockette Chair (People’s Chair with alternating leg kicks)

Plank it up for the six, then hold it while we chat (with rotation to side, reverse plank, and other side).

Risk can have a variety of definitions, but generally it is an action that exposes you or somebody else to the possibility of harm or loss. We all face risks every day, from driving to relationships. Some risks are bigger than others, but we live lives of risk. Taking risks is necessary for growth and gain, in work and in life. Without some level of risk, we won’t get better.

Risk and sacrifice are different, but related.

During this set, discuss with your partner how you would define “sacrifice.”

Set 2: Mike Tysons (15-15-15-15 reps each) while partner does BTTW (with shoulder taps for the brave).

People’s Chair for the six, then stay for the talk.

Sacrifice is the act of giving up something you want to keep in order to get or do something else (and potentially better). You could say that sacrifice is the realization of the potential loss involved in the risk. Sacrifice has an intentional, willful component to it – you choose to give something up, whether under compulsion or not. Today, most of us sacrificed more sleep to post (thanks for that!), and in doing so also took the risk of maybe getting a good workout, maybe making our day a bit rougher because our arms won’t work after, etc. Silly example for an obvious point.

Personal examples of risk and sacrifice.

During this set, discuss a current or recent example of risk or sacrifice in your life.

Set 3: Pseudo Planche merkins (15-15-15 reps each) while partner does breakdancer. It’s like the breakdancer merkin, but without the merkin, a little more jumpy, and ideally a bit faster.

Return and breathe while waiting for the six, then for the talk.

An easy example of sacrifice in my life was giving up our life in Africa to return to the US. Again, for more on this, refer to last week’s backblast. But for the risk component, there were two risks that weighed heavily on our last year in Africa and played into our decision to return. The first was our son’s health. He was premature and had some health issues that went with it. He also began having seizures while we still lived overseas. As a father, was I willing to risk his health to continue living and working in Zambia? Then, we wanted more kids, but my wife is a high-risk pregnancy, and we lived in a place where premature babies die more than they survive, and maternal mortality is high as well. These risks paired with other circumstances played into our decision to return, giving up our identities, our home, our relationships, etc.

Much of the reason for me wanting to talk about all this today stems from a conversation with Cha Ching and Olaf from several months ago. They may not remember it, but it has stuck with me ever since. We were talking about the new security training I’m helping develop for our new workers, and there are three main questions that come out of this training. These questions are what I want to leave with everybody today (with one more set thrown in for good measure).

The first two questions to consider:

How much am I willing to risk in order to achieve my purpose? (This makes more sense if you spend the time determining your purpose.)

What, if anything, would be an unnecessary level of risk or a risk that would actually hinder accomplishment of your purpose?

No need to answer the questions this time, as they take time to really work through.

Set 4: Battering rams (drop to six inches, then, using your arms and not your feet, thrust your torso forward so your hands end up between ribs and hips; 20-20-20 reps each) while partner does Monkey Humpers. For some, this proved to be a somewhat inappropriate combination of moves. #badplanning #somethingsyoucantunhear

Pressed for time, we gathered following the run around the buildings for the final point. I actually left out two full sets, but I don’t think anybody’s arms are particularly missing them (see below for what we missed).

The final question to ponder: Do I believe strongly enough in my purpose that I’m willing to sacrifice everything for it?

Simply put, are you willing to die to achieve your purpose? Fourteen years ago, my answer would have been a lot different. But now, with a wife and children, I hesitate. If I know that they will be taken care of, then I’d probably be willing to die. But what if the tables were turned? Would I be so committed to my purpose, to my faith, that I’d be willing to sacrifice my family? I’ve never been in that situation, so I don’t know. But this is a reality faced by many in other parts of the world. For some, it’s a daily reality, being faced with the possibility of losing everything for what they believe.

What would you do? Do you have a commitment to something that is so strong that you’re willing to sacrifice everything for it, even your family?

Time never seems sufficient to cover the topic, but discussion doesn’t need to end when the workout does.

We ended there and ran back to COT to meet up with the bootcampers.

Announcements

  • Deacon reminded us of the opportunities in the Paradise community, with the reading program on Mondays and Wednesdays and G-Fit on Saturdays. Take a risk and make an impact in the community.

Prayers and Praises

  • Pray for those involved with the Palmetto 200 this weekend.
  • Keep praying for our wives and kids.
  • Pray for those with mental health issues and the practitioners who care for them. Specifically, pray for Copperfield’s M as she deals with some very difficult situations.
  • Bolt’s neighbor passed away last week. Pray for this man’s family and friends and others who are dealing with this loss.
  • Prayers for one of Decibel’s employee’s dad, who is in the hospital.
  • Bonsai and his wife are praying about a few things right now; prayers for wisdom and discernment as they consider some options.
  • Deacon has a friend with serious health concerns. Prayers for him as he seeks care at Mayo.
  • Praises for F3 and the impact it has had on our lives.

It was an honor to get to lead this group, and I really appreciate Maximus pushing me to do two BEYOND Qs in a row. If you haven’t had opportunity to do this yet, talk to him. Whether or not the other PAX benefit from the message you bring, your life will be changed by working through the material in preparation to lead. Definitely worth it. And I’m happy to not do it again for a while.

-Jedi

Missed sets

For those wondering what we missed for lack of time, the remaining sets were:

Set 5: one-arm merkins (16-12-8 reps each) while partner does bomb jacks.

Set 6: Scorpion merkins (16-12-8 reps each) while partner does jump squats.

You’re welcome.

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