Tag: Nasa

No Arrival

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40-some pax posted to the region’s Ground Zero at WEP for a smorgasbord of pain, from 6@6 to Millkshake to a tried and true BC beatdown.  A very explicit and thorough Disclaimer was pronounced by Dark Helmet for the benefit of our FNG, and then the pax blasted off.

The Thang

The recitation of the 5 Core Principles quickly failed to meet DOAH’s standard, leading to some burpees.

Mosey around the parking lot with some toy soldiers and knee lifts mixed in, with the pax following onto the bandshell stage.

COP proceeded including more core principles along with some Merkins and DOAH’s proclamation that maybe the FNG’s fitness surpassed that of many of the pax present.  {Yes, he’s good at stirring the pot whether he’s poking at the Q or Qing himself.}

More mosey and more warm up exercises until the pax reach the far side of the WEP.

Enter stage left — the BAOPS boys via Clown Car — Trucker, Smuggler, Change Order & Longshanks, who just couldn’t stand the thought  of missing out on the best 1st, 2nd & 3rd F in The Fort on this given Saturday.  {Pro move by whoever made that call!}

Partner up for wheel barrow…to the playground…Yes…to the playground!…where the fun really starts.  {Fishsticks promptly cruised 85% of the way there to prove to his FNG that no matter what DOAH says, the FNG’s fitness had room for improvement.}

At the playground, each partner does 50 (yes, Five-O!) pull ups.  {Jiffy cranked out 30 in rapid fire.}

Some core work followed including LBCs and Rosalitas among others.

Handoff to Double D

Run to the bottom of the hill

Jacob’s Ladder with Donkey Kicks at the bottom and Sumo Squats at the top.  Traverse to the top via Bear Crawl and run to the bottom.

Mosey back to the parking lot with some Mary led by Jekyll

Climb the Stairway to Heaven via lunge walks, pausing for Carolina Dry Docks at each lamp post, starting with 5 reps and adding 5 more at each successive post.

Mosey down to the monuments with some Mary led by Longshanks

Circle up for an FNG introduction to Jack Webb by Change Order

Run home for final 2 mins of Mary by Longshanks

COT

NMM

A spirited pax at The Fort on this pleasant late winter morning!   Back to back weeks with a convergence at The Fort — thanks to the Alcatraz boys for adding their zeal to the day!

Maximus delivered the tailgate coffeeteria in the parking lot afterward and our FNG (EHed by Fishsticks) hung around long enough to learn the backstory of his name (Roy Kent) and to fill his rolodex with roofing customer prospects.

Welcome to Roy Kent!  Barry Manilow was quite vocal about the quality of the name and the importance of RK living up to it.  Well, if he doesn’t meet the mark, we can always default to what RK thought we named him — Rockette!

It was great to have Car Bomb among the pax today, fresh off his return trip from New Zealand, prior to his resettlement in another adventure.

The theme for the day was geared around the notion of life being an endless series of mountain climbs, peak after peak, with no arrival to the top in sight — ever.  Depressing, huh?  No, not for the HIMs of F3 and The Fort.  Give us the hard stuff.  We’re playing the long game and we know you can’t play it alone.  So keep posting, stay engaged with your brothers.  Together we’ll keep accelerating.

It was a treat to Q with DOAH for the first time.  We all look at him as just another member of The Fort, which of course he is.  At the same time, he also invests a huge amount of his life leading the 43 feet for the Nation.  Not only is it not easy being Frank {imagine how hard it must be for Traci his wife}, it’s also lonely at the top of any organization {how about leading one with 50,000 type A men?}, and it’s incredibly challenging to serve as the successor to any founder {would you want to try one Dredd’s shoes}.  Despite the small jabs, I say this with all seriousness — DOAH has taken on an extremely difficult challenge, one that he executes well with tremendous energy and virtue and that we all benefit from.  We’re fortunate that he calls The Fort “home” and that we get to take his crap on a regular cadence.  Thank you, DOAH!

Thanks to Grinder for the opportunity!  Always an honor to lead the men of this brotherhood!

SYITG

 

 

 

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In Da Club

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Five men showed on a cold morning at Golden Corral.  After the disclaimer, we moseyed over to Bubbles and Bows for a few warm-up exercises (SSHs, Imperial Walkers, Windmills, and Plank Stretches).

Next, we were on the move around the HT building and down to the traffic circle for a round of merkins, lunges, and calf raises.  We then ventured to a little-known hill in the back of the apartment complex.  Three rounds of Nur up the hill, three burpees at the top, and ten Carolina Dry Docks at the bottom.  We made our way around the neighborhood with exercises (Merkins, Squats, and LBCs – 10 each) at each stop sign.

After traveling around the neighborhood, we ended up at a familiar fountain where we bear crawled around the circle and completed 20 dips on the guardrails.  We continued our run to the top of the hill and found a quiet parking lot for a few rounds of Mary (Flutters. LBCs, and Hello Dollies).

We returned to COT for a 2+ minute plank and finished our discussion on the Superbowl Halftime show.  50 cent was the most talked about artist.   I shared a story about a time when I was traveling to India for work.  One of the managers took me and a couple associates out to dinner.  He drove us to the restaurant in his car, playing “In Da Club”.  I remember closing my eyes thinking “I am driving around India, listening to 50 Cent”.  Wow.

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Convergence: Love & a passing of the flag

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Station 1 (Santini): Traditional Pain Platoon

Just your basic beat the hell out of your legs exercises of lunges, squats, and burpees intermixed with meditation and box breathing exercises. Sprint to the top of the hill, recover, and do more exercises including Moroccan night clubs and Carolina dry docks.

NMM: Anxiety and gratitude are not able to occupy the same space.

Station 2 (Shady / Maximus)

Warmup (Shady) – 21 SSH, 5 burpees, 18 SSH, 5 burpees, 12 SSH, someone whined about burpees so we did 10 diamonds merkins…then did 5 burpees
Group 1
  • partnered up and Dora style started out with 100 pull-ups.  Partner 1 on the pull-up bar, partner 2 did a lap around the playgroud
  • Stayed on playground, stayed with partner, Partner 1 AMRAP merkins while partner 2 ran the length of the playground and back to AMRAP merkins
  • Stayed on the AMRAP theme with flutters, then back to merkins, then back to flutters…then (I think) time was called

Group 2

  • Partnered up and Dora style, but this time 50 pull-ups with the run around the playground (Q modification given time and we aren’t cyborgs)
  • AMRAPs were just 1 round of merkins and flutters (again, I think…may need a lifeline here from Max)
  • We made our way to the hill with the statue where Maximus laid down the NUR up the hill and at the top 10 bomb jacks and ran to the bottom where we did 20 American hammers..we did this twice
  • W/ time to spare we ran to the top for 10 diamond merkins and ran to the bottom for 10 V-ups
  • In buzzer beater fashion, we ran to the top again for 10 ranger merkins and ran to the bottom for a partner 1 lay on the ground and grab partner 2s ankles where partner 2 would throw partner 1s feet down 10 times as you straight leg lifted them to his face

Group 3

  • Dora style 50 pull-ups with the run around the playground
  • We made our way to the hill with the statue where Maximus laid down the NUR up the hill and at the top 10 bomb jacks and ran to the bottom where we did 20 american hammers..we did this twice
  • Running low on time ran to the top for 10 diamond merkins and ran to the bottom for the ankle grabbing / feet throwing core exercise 10 times
NMM: After each of the groups had done their pull-ups, Maximus and Shady shared their thoughts and experiences on LOVE.
  • Shady – areas of focus were loving your brother and being your brothers keeper.  Sending a text or reaching out to someone to just say “hey, thinking of you” could change their day.  Realizing that the ones you love are watching you, emulating you, picking up on good and bad habits.  Realizing we don’t know it all, especially to the ones we love, is a sign of humility and a factor of growth and development.  For those of us with children, we have never been parents before so we honestly have no idea what we’re doing.  Love starts with servant leadership and personally for YHC, this usually progresses when the mouth is shut and ears are open.
  • Maximus – For my discussion on love, it begins with being intentional as love is a decision. We must make the decision to be intentional with our actions. Whether it be in our faith, marriage, parenting of our kids, with friends and yes, even with work relationships, we must be intentional. Think about how easy it is to get distracted, whether at dinner with your wife or even on a Zoom call for work. We often allow our minds to wander or even start doing something else while the other person is talking, looking for our engagement. Stop. Be the person who is present in the moment. Put the shoe on the other foot. Love that person as your relationship to them allows.

Station 3 (Pusher & Cakeboss): Love Edition

COP
  • SSHs
  • Windmills
  • Squats
  • Mtn Climbers
  • Merkins
  • IWs
Cake Boss spells love “B-U-R-P-E-E”
The Thang
  • Jacobs Ladder with Derkins and Monkey Humpers
  • Plank/Dip sequence
  • Bear crawl to top with burpees
NMM:
  • Cord of 3 strands cannot be broken. Having God in your marriage is the 3rd string. Adding communication to the marriage strengthens it. – CB
  • Gifts vs Gaps. Focus on the gifts that your wife or significant other bring vs what she is missing. Seeing her this way builds love. – Pusher
  • Much love was on display with all of the mumblechatter and fellowship. The relationships formed through F3 has increased our love internally and is reflected outward to our Ms, 2.0s, PAX and community… #morethanaworkout

Shovel Flag hand off for two leadership positions in the Fort:

Shady handed off the Nantan role to Double D
Esso handed off the Weasel Shaker role to YHC

Awesome work by the PAX today. Hard to put into words how much improved my disposition on life is since moving back to Fort Mill because of F3. Grateful for an opportunity to serve the PAX of The Fort.

NMM: Double D was the site-Q at Block Party when I started posting. If it wasn’t for his steady presence with a commitment to the integrating 2nd F and 3rd F elements into each workout, I doubt I’d have kept posting. Double D is a genuine human, I’m a better dude for knowing him, and I’m excited for his leadership.

—
Band Camp dismissed

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Chills, Thrills, and Hills at Sweep the Leg

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Chilly morning. Could be worse ….at least it wasn’t raining. No FNGs. Disclaimer disclaimed and off we went.

Quick run around the lot to find a dark road for COP warmups. 15-20 of each:
* SSH
* WM
* IW
*MNC

Then to the top of the hill at Dave Gibson Blvd. Noted this to the PAX as the top point of our journey. Then down the hill to where the cell phone access area is near the creek. This is the bottom point of our workout.

Hills of Thrills
* Start at the bottom of the hill. Do 5 reps each of merkins and plank jacks.
* Run to the top of the hill and then do 5 reps each of flying monkeys (jumping monkey humpers) and LBCs.
* Back to the bottom to repeat.
* Each round the reps of each exercise increased in increments of 5.
* So it was 5 reps of merkins and PJs. Run the hill. 5 reps of flying monkeys and LBCs. Run down the hill. Then 10-10, run up, 10-10, run down, 15-15, run up, and so on. Stopped at 25 reps of each at both points.
* In total we did approx 3 miles and 75 reps of each exercise.

Back to the parking lot for a loop around the lot. Short ends we did LT Dans. Long ends we sprinted.

Back to COT/endex.

Announcements, P&P:
* A LOT going on, read your newsletter
* Santa Boss, Christmas Eve convergence on 12/24. If you run AND do the convergence, an anonymous donor will give up to $75 for D2D causes.
* Prayers/praises for the coming of our Lord!
* Prayers/praises for Vuvu as he meets up with his boss after a long time apart
* Prayers for Yard Sale as he breaks away from a bad work situation and starts off on a newer more positive one
* Prayers for healing, patience, and support for those in need

Golden Nugget quote of the day…..heck the decade…..from Quack Attack:
Remember that every day we wake up is like Christmas, every evening is like Thanksgiving, and every night before bed is like New Year’s Eve. We are blessed to wake up every day and start over.

Man that one really puts things into perspective. Each day we are truly blessed to be here, each day is a blessed gift. As the day ends we should be thankful we were here for it, and as it ends we should celebrate being a part of it and look forward to the new beginning of tomorrow.

Thanks for the opportunity to lead. God bless.
– NASA

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Nas on a Nasty morning at Varsity?

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11 met on this misty/chilly morning at The Varsity. Band Camp led off with disclaimer that covered both he and I (fortunately). Then 3 PAX went on their own for a long run. The rest of us followed Band Camp the get started.

From Band Camp:
This morning I kept the yoga simple under the awning as rain was approaching:
We built up in segments to flow through Surya Namaskar A. Then had time for one sequence of Surya Namaskar B.
YHC passed the reins over to Kermit at exactly 0530. Always an honor to lead any workout, but leading Broga is an enjoyble chance to maintain focus through some excellent mumblechatter and groaning from the PAX.

From Kermit:
I thought we should wrap up the work week with some fun. And with the dry conditions and good lighting under the awning, I gave my “message” to the PAX: “Everything will eventually come to an end, So try to savor the moment, cuz time flies don’t it. The beauty of life, you gotta make it last for the better, cuz nothing lasts forever.” – Nas

Let’s get to work.

We left the dry comfort of the awning and moseyed through the rain to the stop sign at the bottom of the hill.

The Thang
ELEVENS – burpees at bottom of the hill and pull ups at the top of the hill.
We may have referenced the lyric “savor the moment” a couple of times.
Band Camp and Poppins led the way, and finished with a few minutes left in the gloom. A DORA of merkins, squats and more hill running was waiting for them.

Back to CoT, and joined back up with the runners.

NMM, Announcements, Prayers & Praises.

Thanks to Bodywash for the opportunity to lead.

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Pantheon – the Gam Guillotine Part 3

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Another last minute Q request, this time from 38 Special and Gears. I jumped on this opportunity. Pantheon was were it all started for me on 6/26/16. F3 workout #1 was right here at Pantheon, back when it had a much stronger following because there were fewer Wednesday options. The workout I led today was the same workout presented that day, led by Jekyll. It was just as ugly today as it was back then.

Only 3 of us on this chilly morning, almost 30 degrees out. No FNGs, just beasts ready to hit it. Disclaimer was disclaimed, and off we went.

Nice run to Memorial Gardens and Veterans Park. Triangle up around the flag.

COP:
15-20 of the following
SSH, WM, IW, MNC, and STRAWBERRY pickers (cherries are on trees fellas)

The Thang:

Mosey to the grass field park near Trailhead park, to the trail that leads up to the dreaded power lines and Heart Attack Hill. At the end of the field is a nice little trail hill that leads up to Cascading Pines Dr. At the base of that hill is the north end turnaround. Then we ran up the hill, crossed the road, and continued up to the top of the hill next to a power line. That is the south end starting point. Between the two is what’s known as the camelback. The hills are short, maybe 100-120yds total, but quite steep. There is a little flat area when they cross over the road, but otherwise they’re nonstop.

Run the Camelback.  5 squat on southend, run downhill, 5 jump squat on Northend, run uphill back to start.  1 round is down and back up. 5 rounds total.

Afterwards we did some body destroyers while discussing what we are thankful for and why.

Run Camelback: 5 side squat (2-ct), run downhill, 5 Mary Catherines – essentially a jump lunge w arms overhead (2-ct), run uphill back to start, 5 rounds total.

Altogether that was 10 rounds of that hill, about 1.5 miles. Ugly.

Back to the Memorial Gardens. More exercises and ab lab.

Pledge of Allegiance

Back for COT, announcements, P&P.
* READ YOUR NEWSLETTER
* Prayers for those who may not be as joyful over the holidays for various reasons. Reach out and let them know you are there for them
* Prayers for those traveling.
* Prayers for health, healing, patience
* Praises for the blessings we have, including everyone in our lives
* Praises for F3 and what it has done for everyone, both PAX and community

Thank you for the opportunity to lead. Have a happy Thanksgiving. God bless.
– NASA

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Mini BoP: Small Board, Big Pain

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I was a last-minute Q request from Lutefisk. I’m thankful he asked. As cold as it has been, it kept me from fartsacking, which I am very thankful for him asking. Accountability! Coming up with a weinke on last-minute notice can be tough. Luckily I keep a BoP or two in my garage for times like these.

Super cold out. 5 hard-chargers showed up ready to take the red pill. No FNGs, disclaimer was disclaimed, and off we went.

Mosey around the parking lot to get warmed up, approx 1/4 mile. Circled up for warmup. 14-20 random qty, 4-count of each:
* SSH
* WM
* STRAWBERRY pickers (cherries grow on trees yo)
* HW
* MNC

Then over to the lot near the doggie salon for the main event.
The Mini Board of Pain
Easy to follow, not so easy to execute. Do the exercises in sequence, that’s all. All are single count unless otherwise noted.

M-Bop
1. Burpees – 25
2. Calf raises – 50
3. Ski abs – 25 @2-count
4. Merkins – 25
5. LS Squats – 25
>> Run a lap of the parking lot (~1/3 mile loop)
6. LBC – 50
7. CDD – 25
8. American Hammers – 25 @2-ct
9. Mac-tar-jai’s – 25 @2-count
10. Jump squats – 25
>> Run lap of the parking lot
11. Mountain climbers – 25 @2-ct
12. Shoulder raises / OH claps – 50
13. Mary Catherines – 25 @2-ct
14. Hello Dolly! – 25 @ 4-ct
15. Wide-arm merkins – 25
>> Run lap of parking lot
>> Repeat

Everyone got in one complete round. A couple bat-flippers almost got 2 complete rounds, the rest got up to #6 thru #9. Great push! Good mumblechatter until the 2nd round of burpees hit. HA!!

Back to COT.

Announcements, P&P:
* READ YOUR NEWSLETTER, GET INVOLVED!!
* Praises for Lutefisk’s concerns for his heart not being as serious as it could have been
* Prayers for those involved in the Christmas parade tragedy in Wisconsin
* Prayers for those traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday
* Prayers for those that the holiday season brings sadness, remembrance of loss, and other burdens. Reach out to those you know are in those situations and bring them cheer as well as a shoulder to lean on. #NoOYO
* Prayers for health & healing, both physically, emotionally, and spiritually

Thanks for the opportunity to lead. Happy Thanksgiving. God bless.
– NASA

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21-Gun Salute for The Veterans

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Great morning!! A little chill and NO rain!!
No FNGs. A solid group of 5 Caballeros!! Disclaimer was disclaimed.  Off we went.

Rain around the parking lot for warmup. Approx 500m. Circled up for warmups. 15-25 each of the following:
* SSH
* Windmill
* MNCs
* Produce/cherry/weed/strawberry pickers
* IWs

Then started the main event. A 21-gun salute:
* Run a loop (approx 500m) – the dang track out back was locked so we improvised, then when back at the start do….
* 21 Merkins
* 21 Hillbilly Squats – go down to a LSS, then on the way up transition to a hillybilly walker.
* 21 LBCs
* 21 MCs (2 ct)
* 21 American hammers (2 ct)
* Rinse and repeat

There were a few injured PAX present so most walked the lap, myself and Kielbasa ran it all and got in at least 5 rounds. The others got in 3 rounds plus extra exercises. Wonderful mumblechatter with this group! It’s been a while since I’ve seen my homie Kielbasa so it was great catching up and hearing about how his life has been.

Back to the COT.

Announcements: A LOT of opportunities to get involved. Read the newsletter and be intentional!

Prayers for health and healing for many; for Drop’s friend Kevin who is a veteran dealing with demons and struggles; for Keilbasa’s wife (praise) for all her work and help while they move into the next chapter of his business life; for all our veterans; for JD’s 2.0’s dealing with teen angst; for NASA’s wife and her health.

Special thanks to our veterans for everything. It takes a special person to sign on the dotted line and commit to the military life, not knowing what you are going to get, where you are going to go, what are you going to do, and whether or not you are going to come out of it alive – all to help liberate the oppressed, provide for those who cannot provide for themselves, defeat evil and tyranny, and help foster freedom in its many forms. They are doing these things all while not really knowing who they are doing it for, other than it is someone in need. It is the ultimate action or display of putting others ahead of yourself, living 3rd, and not expecting anything in return. Many cannot do this to the magnitude done by military members, as well as first responders. I have a 13 year old son who, if he has his way, will become a USMC soldier one day (it’s about 5-9 years away, pending if he goes to college). As a father this makes me as scared as it makes me proud, but when someone is so strongly driven by those deep beliefs, you are doing the world a disfavor by being selfish and trying to hold them back. When you see that in people, it is God in them shining through. God bless them all.

Thanks for the opportunity to lead. God bless.
– NASA

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Clydesdales: Training like a Boss!

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24 PAX arrived for a pre Charlotte Marathon run.
The disclaimer was given but no FNGs this day

The route was simple but flexible so PAX could push as hard as desired

we crossed over to Kingsley and down to back traffic circle ⭕️

we did laps between the circles which have slight hills on both ends

some PAX took the full around the block of Kingsley as an option as well

Of 24 PAX 11 were respectable

was great mumble chatter and some encouragement by running in close proximity of each other

thanks Greenwave for the opportunity 👏🏻💥👍🏻

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F3 Dads 2021 Session 1

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45 PAX gathered up at the Calhoun St parking lot

BIG circle up on the green space for some warmups. All in cadence,
– SHH
– Imperial Walker
– Hillbilly Walker
– Squat
– Merkin (Skeeter wanted to call this in cadence, but got nervous in the center of the circle. We’ve gotta give our kids a chance to fail.)
– Played: Rock, Paper, Scissors, Burpee
– Just like Rock, Paper, Scissors
except the loser has to do a burpee for every person in their family group that beats them. i.e., if you’ve got 3 kids they all throw paper and you throw rock, then you do 3 burpees.

Line up behind one side of the cones
– Dad vs. Kids race: stipulation Dads have to bear crawl.
Loser did 10 burpees counted by the kids
Lots of form critiquing
– Dad vs. Kids race part 2: stipulation Dads have to run backwards (Nur)
Loser does 5 burpees
– Dads vs. Kids race part 3: stipulation Kids bear crawl, Dads lunge walk
Loser does 5 burpees
– Dads vs. Kids race part 4: stipulation Kids run backwards, Dads run forwards….Finally!
– Dads load up your kids and carry them across the finish line

Sprint over to the hill (there were two guys doing a weight workout…did somebody EH them? Also, there was a dad up at the top of the hill with his daughter. Did somebody EH them?)

Load up and carry the kids up the hill
kids do 5 merkins at the top
Mosey Down

3-leg bear crawl up
mosey down
3-leg bear crawl (other leg) up
mosey down

Mosey over to the tumbling mat. Kids can make their dad run up the hill by doing a trick on the mat.

COT and popsicles

I got the red/white/blue ones thinking they’d be more popular. But the kids love the little freezer pops. Duly noted!

FNGs:
Donahue
Flipper
Laces
Strider
Monarch
Mongoose
Chase
Bolt (the younger)

Prayers:
– of gratitude at the opportunity to be a father
– to be worth of the responsibilities laid in front of us
– for our children to grow up wise and strong with hearts to know the will of the Lord

COT:
Part 1 – https://twitter.com/jisenhour/status/1401204326165581831
Part 2 – https://twitter.com/jisenhour/status/1401203462696849409

—
Band Camp dismissed

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