14 HIM #RolledOut instead of #RollingOVer on the 2024 Leap Day. After a brief disclaimer we noted 1 FNG–Sergio Franco- Soon to be named quite perfectly XciteBike.
Off we went headed up the road into the shopping center where opportunity stuck and stairs were found to traverse up and down. As the legs warmed up the pace quickened for most. Rucking with/beside @Bonzi really requires a stretching of the stride, and man we were cooking.
Into the apartments for some quick planks as the group caught up then some squats and we were off again. Back up and down the stairs then shot up over 160 in the office complex. We had a nice jaunt over to #The-Coachs-Box to say good morning to @Cyclopes &Co. In route I stopped the train for some over head holds, OH presses, and curls. As the group filed in a caught up on reps it was time for a quick message. With Rucks held High- I drew from Tony Dungee’s book Uncommon Life and talked about how Failure while it does suck, ( so does holding a ruck overhead) it does not have to be a big stumbling block for us as Pro’s, Dads, Husbands ect. We all agreed that we fall into the trap of getting too down in these instances. What TD reminds us is we can be energized by our failures. The SkyQ made us this way. Use them as growth and learning opportunities, get energized knowing we won’t make that mistake twice. AT this point arms began to shake and it was time to roll.
On the move YHC noted a fantastic parking lot and strongly recommended a ruck shuffle from the entry to the 90 degree corner. Mumble chatter surged, as Duck(s) typically don’t run , but this day I/We did. Around the corner and Cyclopes &Co were nowhere to be found. Guess they felt running ruckers converging on them and took Flight.
Around the school and back toward the EndEx. Across 160 and another Ruck Shuffle through the Panera Parking Lot. I said 3 medians but ran 4-Noone said Ducks were good at counting , esp while on the run.
Couple quick laps and little more shuffling and we hit 0600. My watch said 3.63 miles at a 14:46 Avg–Not to Shabby.
Pledge of Allegiance-Announcements, Praises& Prayers.
3D led off with some running and warmup then to the Pike Engineering brick wall for wallsits with arms up, alternating legs and the 5 burpees each HIM starting from the end. Run to Massey Hill. Jacobs Ladder to 7 with squats at bottom and Merkins at the top. Several PAX were losing clothing. 3D led mosey back to WEP playground for Q handoff to LTrain.
LTrain
Partner work
5 sets
10 merkins, partner holds plank
250 yard run
5 sets
15 squats, partner holds Al Gore
250 yard run
5 sets
20 big boy situps, partner holds plank
250 yard run
Well the Site vs Site was CRAZY good thanks to some excellent leadership on both sides of the workout. 0500 launch, 6 Q’s (3 from fire ant, 3 from golden corral) took 10 minutes each. Lutefisk forgot how to flip a coin but managed to have it land in favor of fire ant going first. The first fire ant Q was Router who took us through a ruck run/pain station. Next up was golden corral’s first Q Mile High who took us on a sprint-fest in the back of HT with some wall work on the legs. Fire ant Q #2 was Cha Ching who put us through some nasty ruck reps. Golden corral put Bones in charge of some repeating leg work by the green olive – some funky squat jumps that didn’t feel good. Spiderman finished the fire ant lineup with a terrible idea of bear crawl/crawl bear for what seemed like eternity while the partner did reps with the ruck. Lutefisk finished it up with the final golden corral Q by starting, and staying, in the plank position for the duration of his 10 minutes. Dark Helmet notable threw in the towel and to make himself feel better he poked the Q. I will not forget. Welcome FNG Thigh Master (not Jane Fonda) but he’s from New York so evidently it’s OK to drop F-bombs whenever and wherever. All in all 30 PAX came out for a nasty beatdown that was surely a crowd pleaser. It was an honor to be a part of it and special thank you to the Q’s for stepping up and all of you ruckers for bringing us some extra gear to use.
Final tally of the votes: Fire Ant 15, Golden Corral 11, Tie 3, Bonsai = disqualified for his answer
It was a swampy morning in the Fort as 8 HIM showed up ready to accelerate their Thursday morning. A quick disclaimer and we were off.
Moseyed over to The Hive parking lot.
10 Side Straddle Hops
10 Windmills
10 Tappy Tap Taps (Cherry Pickers)
10 Low Slow Squats
Moseyed over to the band parking lot.
10 Merkins
10 LBC’s
10 Hello Dollies
10 Rosalitas
Moseyed over to the front of the school.
The Thang:
Partner up for Jacobs Latter. One loop around the parking lot and met your partner in the middle for hand slap merkins. Loop back and met for big boy situps.
Jacobs Latter:
10 Hand Slap Merkins -1 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
9 Hand Slap Merkins – 2 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
8 Hand Slap Merkins – 3 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
7 Hand Slap Merkins – 4 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
6 Hand Slap Merkins – 5 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
5 Hand Slap Merkins – 6 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
4 Hand Slap Merkins – 7 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
3 Hand Slap Merkins – 8 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
2 Hand Slap Merkins – 9 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
1 Hand Slap Merkins – 10 Hand Slap Big Boy Situp
Moseyed over to the band parking lot for Jack Web. This next set was hot off the press from the Waxhaw convergence.
Jack Web:
1 Carolina Dry Doc – 4 Count Bear Crawl
2 Carolina Dry Doc – 8 Count Bear Crawl
3 Carolina Dry Doc – 12 Count Bear Crawl
4 Carolina Dry Doc – 16 Count Bear Crawl
5 Carolina Dry Doc – 20 Count Bear Crawl
6 Carolina Dry Doc – 24 Count Bear Crawl
7 Carolina Dry Doc – 28 Count Bear Crawl
8 Carolina Dry Doc – 32 Count Bear Crawl
9 Carolina Dry Doc – 36 Count Bear Crawl
10 Carolina Dry Doc – 40 Count Bear Crawl
Moseyed over to the back of the school wall for wall sit/overhead claps. The timer was 5 burpees as each of the PAX took turns.
When I pulled into the parking lot near Best Buy, there were several cars already parked near the AO. Based on the mumble chatter on social media, several of the PAX were getting in some early training for upcoming events. There were 23 men at the work out, 13 for ruck, 8 for BC, and 2 runners.
After the disclaimer, we jogged to the front of Best Buy. We started with a few warm up exercises (Butt Kickers, Toy Solders) before we moseyed over to the back of Just Fresh.
COP
SSH x 20
Imperial Walker x 20
Windmill x 10
Plank Stretches
Next, we moseyed to the front of Home Depot for a round of Dora 1-2-3
100 Lat Pull-ups on the bicycle rack
200 Squats
300 LBCs
Next, we moseyed back to Just Fresh near the staircase for a round of Arod 3-2-1 (reverse Dora). Instead of running around the parking lot, we ran up and down the stairs.
300 Calf Raises
200 Lunges
100 Jump Squats
Next, we headed back to COT for one last exercise, the Merkin Gauntlet. The Pax lined up in a plank position. Each person performed 4 merkins in front of each person.
COT
Special prayers for Twister as he recovers from his eye surgery
I haven’t been to Colosseum in a long time. I’ve been doing the ruck WOs on Tuesdays so it was good to shake up the routine. It was also great to see so many cars rolling in. I haven’t seen several guys in a while due to being under a ruck so it was great to be out in the gloom with them again.
Go time arrived and disclaimer was attempted. Mosey around loops in front of school with high knees, butt-kickers, karaokes both ways. Circle up for normal warm-ups: SSHs, windmills, Peter Parkers, Parker Peters, and some Hillbilly Walkers.
Moseyed over to side lot. Today’s theme was simple, 4 exercises done 4 times. First off was Bear Crawl from top of parking line to curb, 4 Merkins, Crawl Bear back to top of parking line, 4 Donkey Kicks. Repeat 4 times.
Mosey over to lot behind school. 5-Worst Merkins (Wide, Normal, Diamond), 10-Big Boy Situps, 15-Plank Jacks, 20-Shoulder Taps then run to other side of lot. Repeat 4 times.
Mosey to loop in front of school. Starting at center of loop: 10-Burpees, 10-Mtn Climbers (4 ct), 10-Lunges (each leg), 10-Smurf Jacks, then run around loop to center spot of on other side. Repeat 4 times. Lots of good mumble-chatter during this segment, except for Tesh who almost lapped everyone.
Slow mosey over to front of middle school for some Wall Webbs. Start in People’s Chair, walk out on hands into Merkin, walk back up on hands into chair for overhead claps. Normal ratio of 1:4. I cut it short at 6:24 so we had time for some mary (and my legs were starting to burn). Back at cars to finish up with 10 tiny circles clockwise, 10 counter-clockwise, then 20 flutters. Time’s up. Hopefully the PAX got their money’s worth today.
Continued prayers for Stang’s family as they mourn the passing of his grandfather as well as all of the kids that Cornerstone is involved with in their treatment group.
18 assembled this morning for some bells (6) and #Beyond (12). YHC decided to change things up slightly. We did the Name-a-Rama first. Read on to see why.
NMM
You’ll also note that I’m posting the Naked Man Moleskin before the workout. Sometimes the message is more important than the workout. Today was one of those days. #Beyond is designed to take you out of your comfort zone and push buttons we would rather leave untouched. Today’s discussion was on depression.
Some facts:
There are 123 suicides in America every day
The highest suicide rate is adult males between the ages of 40 and 54
White males accounted for 7 out of every 10 suicides in 2016
These sobering statistics spoke to me because our PAX fit right in the sweet spot of these ranges. The average age this morning was 44 – right in the thick of these numbers. Depression effects men in different ways. This group is sandwiched in between the traditional silent, strong fathers who went to work and provided for their families and the more progressive, open generations of their sons who share parenting duties and aren’t always the breadwinners of the household. Many men never mastered either of these roles and now feel lost. We’ve married capable women who take care of everything from the children to the social agenda, leaving men to feel a void of purpose. Around this age, men look around at their neighbors and ask, “why am I not as successful as my neighbor?” Outside of our homes, we are lonely. We’ve lost track of our college buddies and only connect with our co-workers on a water cooler level. We feel like we haven’t accomplished enough. For all intents and purposes, men in their mid-40s often feel neutered – unable to provide the ways their dads did and unwilling or unprepared to be Mr. Mom to their older children. To make matters worse, a job loss or divorce often leads these men into a downward spiral of addiction and despair. Chances are, you’ve felt this way or know someone who does. It becomes our responsibility to reach out to these men and invite them into a brotherhood of love. Medical professionals recommend a few steps to battle depression. I added number 5:
Seek social support
Support your health (get enough sleep, control stress, and go outside)
Exercise
Eat Healthy
Give your concerns to God
All of these are incorporated into what we do each morning at F3. Social support comes in the form of other men who are battling or have battled this demon themselves. To me, its finding blades and stones to sharpen each other. It’s the second F – Fellowship. Doctors recommend finding outlets to blow off steam, exercising and getting outside. How else better than exercising outside in the elements pushing past pain with your brothers in the Gloom? This is the first F – Fitness. Finally, acknowledging that there is a higher being that loves you and wants what is best for you. Rather than telling God how big your problems are, tell your problem how big your God is. This is the third F – Faith.
I realized that the reason F3 is growing is because it is the answer to the question we never knew we had. It is the antidote to society’s poison of depression. We all struggle, from project managers to pastors. We all battle life. Why not surround yourself with guys who can build the 3 Fs right beside you? Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 says it best: “Two are better than one because they have good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, the other can help them up. But pity anyone who falls and has no other to help them up. Also if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
Interpret those three strands however you wish. I like to think of them as me, God, and my brothers. That dream team can win any fight. Grab your shield and suit up, we’ve got a battle to wage.
The Thang
Mosey to the front of the church
Hold the Plank for the duration of Disturbed “Sound of Silence”
Listen to the lyrics. Acknowledge that many men battle depression in silence. We weren’t made to fight alone.