Embrace the low point…now get up.

It’s Minnow Pond. It’s a 3mi minimum with a few push-ups as we now like to say.
Jekyll asked the question. I answered in the affirmative.
The day before, marketing for competing regional AO’s began and man, it was hot.
The weather was great and I’m hoping these other 15 PAX would’ve still posted in the 35deg rain. But…time will tell. Remember, durability and stories are best formed in adverse conditions.

There you have it, the setup is complete.
0500…A few pre-runners. Remember when guys did that at Minnow Pond? Isn’t the intent to push yourself?
0514 Pledge of Allegiance
0515 Disclaimer for the 16 of us

As a group, run to the FMCOG parking lot at the corner of Withers &  Academy.
Warmup consisting of windmills, SSH & Burpees

The plan…Run each leg then 10 Merkins, 10ea leg Jumping Lunges, 20 American Hammers in the parking lot upon the return.
Leg 1: Run up to Tom Hall & back.
Leg 2: Run up to Banks & back.
Leg 3: Run up to Meacham & back.
Leg 4: Run to Main St & back.

All were able to complete this at least 1 time and some completed it twice for a total distance of 3-4mi.
Run it back to COT for some final closing exercises.

Announcements:
Great Harlan’s Heroes fundraising update from Jekyll. Stay tuned for the next opportunity.
Yeti is coming next weekend. Partner up or do the full thing.

Hey Jekyll. Thanks for the nod.

Maximus

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Bushwood Board of Bother

Six men joined YHC for a “Bushwood Board of Bother” on this cool Wednesday morning. Here’s what we did:

The Thang

  • Short Mosey
  • 10 SSHs (IC)
  • 10 Imperial Walkers (IC)
  • 10 Windmills (IC)

BoB Round 1

  • 50 Squats
  • 40 Big Boy Situps
  • 30 Ranger Merkins
  • 20 Maktar Jais
  • 10 Burpees
  • Run

Round 2

  • 3 Minute Plank
  • 30 Second Rest
  • 2 Minute Plank
  • 30 Second Rest
  • 1 Minute Plank
  • Run

Round 3

  • 50 SSHs
  • 40 Flutters
  • 30 Overhead Claps
  • 20 Seal Jacks
  • 10 Diamond Merkins
  • Run

Round 4

  • 50 LBCs
  • 40 American Hammers
  • 30 Alternating Shoulder Taps
  • 20 Carolina Dry Docks
  • 10 Merkins
  • Run

Round 5

  • 50 Little Baby Arm Circles
  • 40 Mountain Climbers
  • 30 Freddie Mercurys
  • 20 Bomb Jacks
  • 10 Burpees
  • Run

Stretching

  • Butterfly
  • Left Leg Out
  • Right Leg Out
  • Left Leg Back
  • Right Leg Back
  • 10 Burpees
  • Run

Total mileage: 1.5 miles

NMM

It as an honor to share the Gloom with you men. Thank you for the opportunity, L-Train. I shared this morning that my wife spent the last seven days in the hospital for severe inflammation associated with her Crohn’s Disease. As such, I was at the hospital for the majority of the days. Had it not been for friends, family, and loved ones (including many F3 brothers), it would have been difficult to cope with the extra responsibilities of being both mom and dad. Every day, a new meal was waiting for me when I got home. It was one less thing I had to worry about. It reminded me that its okay to accept an outstretched hand. Don’t think of it as charity, instead, think of it as someone extending their love for you. There will be times you will be down, that’s when your brother is there to pick you up. There will be times when you will be up, that’s when you lift up a brother. Don’t be too proud to accept the love and care from others. And when you have the chance to return the favor, do it.

Aye!
Italian Job

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Finding Cindy

The cars really poured in this morning….

25 PAX Present

Changed my plans a bit….Modify as necessary, right?

Warm-up
SSH in cadence….had to part the waters for River Rat’s arrival
Burpees in cadence. I think we hit 18
Imperial Walkers in cadence 15ish

Brisk Mosey to the Church of God

COP
SSH
Hillbilly Walkers
Some Yoga
Mountain Climbers
Slow Count Merkins (always a crowd pleaser)
A few burpees in cadence

Mosey through all the brick stairs at the Church of God
Plank it up in First Baptist Parking Lot
Some More Yoga (squats)

Thang:
Bear Crawl with additive Merkins at each parking line
1-2-3-4-5-6 (total 21)
distance – a long way to bear crawl
Al Gore
Cossack Squats

Brisk Mosey up to the Rug factory

COP:
More Yoga? Yep
33 Monkey Humpers in cadence (nobody liked this)
Some burpees in cadence

Brisk Mosey to Sisk Memorial Parking Lot to find Cinder Blocks
(There’s a reason it’s called Block Party)
Thang:- divided into groups of 3
– Three Stations: Manmakers, plank, run to bottom of Massey hill and back
Had time for everyone to do one rotation (probably 15-20ish manmakers)

7 Additional Burpees in cadence
11 Bomb Jacks

Mosey with the blocks back to COT

NMM:

Quote for the day from Thoreau’s Journal August 5 1891 ““The question is not what you look at, but what you see.”

A word on today’s naming: the Q takes responsibility for the outcome. That was me today. On naming an FNG, I went with “Dude Wipes” as a suggestion thrown out. Not the worst name, but was not right for this FNG.

It didn’t feel right. I did a poor job reading his body language. I should have vetoed it. Not my best moment as Q. We’ll rename this FNG.

When we’re on Q, we are charged to take responsibility. In this moment, I accepted responsibility for the outcome of the naming. In the future, I’ll take responsibility fearlessly when convicted. Even (especially?) when that conviction appears as a still small voice. If that means going against the flow of the PAX, so be it. After all, that’s a leader’s job: influencing movement towards advantage. Sometimes we gotta row upstream. I should have rowed harder today, and that’s on nobody but me.

Besides, none of the PAX wanted to do that many burpees or monkey humpers anyway. So if I go with a name they’re not happy with, it’s just more of the same from the 1st F side of the morning.

Welcome – unnamed FNG, It’ll be good to post with you again soon.
Welcome – Barrel Age, I think you brought out a lot of PAX to support you today!

Prayers for the kids, teachers, and parents of the FMSD as they plan for a return to school 5 days a week at all levels.


Band Camp Dismissed

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average age 50.9 yrs, Kevin Bacon would be proud

The elder statesman ran around today at Footloose
The old guys were on hand for a Manilow mall walk

10 seasoned veterans took to the streets and parking lots at Footloose for a Barry Manilow beatdown!

No last minute modifications needed, all attendees perfectly capable of taking anything I could dish out.

The thang:
mosey to the back of the church and circle up, 10-15 reps of each, in this order:
imperial walker, LBC, LS squat, shoulder tap, hill billy walker, freddie mercury, windmill, dying cockroach, jump squat, travolta
walk over to the wall for the unveiling of “on the rail”, 10 reps in cadence

mosey the long way around the block to the lower church lot, partner up. one snake the stairs, one donkey kicks, switch, 2nd round, one snake the stairs, one plank jacks
line-up on on end of the lot, Jonah Hill going the other way

mosey toward the “big” hill, but since that is what everyone was expecting, took a left and circled the church once before stopping at the bottom of the hill. partner up, one run the hill, the others choose between LBCs and BB sit-ups, switch, 2nd round, one run the hill, at the bottom of the hill alternate between 5 LBCs and 5 hand release merkins.

walk across the street to the other lot, line up across the church side. karaoke L to the other side, 10 LBCs, back, 10 LBCs, karaoke R, 10 LBCs, the same back, 10 LBCs, powerskip across, 10 LBCs, and back, 10 LBCs, 50% across, 10 LBCs, 75% back, 10 LBCs, all you got across, 10 LBCs, all you got back, 10 LBCs.

5 minutes left, so we mosey in the exact opposite direction of COT, around a bigish block and back to the church sign by COT. On the grass for 11 makhtar n’ diayes, in cadence.

announcements, prayers around the horn, and Assassin took us out.

Thanks for the opportunity Boss Hogg.

Looks like we made it,
Barry Manilow

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80s Rock Block at The Ballroom

5 men took a trip down memory lane at The Ballroom this morning for an 80s music-themed beatdown. Here’s what we did.

The Thang

  • 10 Low Slow Squats (IC)
  • 10 Imperial Walkers (IC)
  • 10 Seal Claps (IC)

Mosey to front of school

Perform the first exercise until you hear the keyword. At the keyword, you perform the second exercise, then back to the first.

Song 1 – “Who Can it Be Now” – Men at Work

  • Exercise 1 – Plank, exercise 2 – Plank Jack every time you hear “Who can it be” (13 Plank Jacks)
  • Mosey around the lot

Song 2 – “Your Love” – The Outfield

  • Moroccan Night Clubs, Overhead claps when you hear “Your Love” (21 Overhead Claps)
  • Mosey around the lot

Song 3 – “Jessie’s Girl” – Rick Springfield

  • American Hammers, Big Boy Situps when you hear “Jessie” (28 Big Boys)
  • Mosey around the lot

Song 4 – “867-5309/Jenny” – Tommy Tutone

  • SSHs, Burpees each time you hear “867-5309” (24 Burpees)
  • Mosey around the lot

Song 5 – “You Spin Me Right Round” – Dead or Alive

  • People’s Chair, Calf Raises on every “Spin me” (10 Calf Raises)
  • Mosey around the lot

Song 6 – “Take on Me” – A-Ha

  • Flutters, Freddies every “Take on Me” (16 Freddies)

Song 7 – “Down Under” – Men at Work

  • Dip position up, Dip position down on every “Down Under” (3 Dips)

Song 8 – “Another One Bites The Dust” – Queen

  • Hold People’s Chair, Knee Tar Jais on every “Bites the dust” (18 Knee Tar Jais)

Song 9 – “Roxanne” – The Police

  • Mountain Climbers, Merkins on every “Roxanne” (26 Merkins)

NMM

Thank you, Drop Thrill for the opportunity to lead this morning. Today’s workout was built to burn out one body part at a time. We didn’t cover much ground, but if you’re not sore later today, I’d be surprised.

As a reminder, F3 open to ALL men. We welcome men of all races, faiths, political views, income levels, sizes, ages, abilities, & sexual orientation. We respect differences even when we don’t understand them and cast no judgment. Our willingness to get better unites us. All means ALL!

Let’s continue to give away what was first given to us. All men need an outlet like this and friends like our brothers. F3 is a game changer. Let’s keep the ball rolling. I’m convinced we can change the world, one man at a time.

Aye!

Italian Job

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Broke loose at Footloose

Footloose = Hill options. You don’t think so? I disagree.
28 degrees on this crisp Thursday morning in our once Mill town for 9 of us to converge at Footiest of all Looses…yeah, it doesn’t work well for this one. Anyways

Disclaimer and look we even have Crop Duster with us…yeah, he’s definitely lost.

Run to Minnow Pond AO
SSH / Butt Kickers

5 Burpees & 10 Merkins

Run up the hill to the parking lot on the right.
15 Squats & 20 Peter Parkers

Run down the hill and back up
25 Merkins & 30 LBCs

Run down the hill and over to the FM COG lot (the really nice lot)
25 Bobby Hurley’s / 20 Flutters I/C

Run up the adjacent hill and back down
15 Mountain Climbers I/C & 10 CDD I/C

Run up the adjacent hill and back down
5 Burpees

To the lot across the street, the other really nice one, for a ladder of sorts
1 Squat Jump on one end and 5 Burpees on the other with running in between
2 Squat Jumps & 4 Burpees
3 Squat Jumps & 3 Burpees
4 Squat Jumps & 2 Burpees
5 Squat Jumps & 1 Burpee

Back to COT

Thank You for entertaining me.
SYITG
Maximus

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Make it happen

21 men tackled day five of the new year at Block Party. Here’s what we did.

Warm up

  • 10 Low Slow Squats (IC)
  • 10 Hillbilly Walkers (IC)
  • 10 Moroccan Night Clubs (IC)

The Thang

The route today was .5 miles (left on Main St., left of Clebourne St., left at Founders, left on White St.).

Round 1 – Take a Lap

  • 10 Burpees
  • 20 Merkins
  • 30 LBCs
  • 40 Squats
  • 50 Calf Raises
  • 1 Lap

Round 2

  • 10 Wide Arm Merkins
  • 20 Lunges
  • 30 Flutters
  • 40 Overhead Claps
  • 50 SSHs
  • 2 Laps

Round 3

  • 10 Diamond Merkins
  • 20 Jump Squats
  • 30 Crunchy Frogs
  • 40 Alternating Shoulder Taps
  • 50 MNCs
  • 3 Laps

Total distance: 3.5 miles.

NMM

I was encouraged this morning to see so many men shunning the fartsack for a chance to better themselves physically. We covered some ground, but kept close enough that no one ran alone. I enjoyed the heck out of this morning. Today’s mumblechatter reminded me of how important the 2nd F is. Fitness without fellowship is a workout group. Fellowship and friendship takes us to the next level and makes us better men. And men need other men to keep accelerating.

I recently read, “You can’t get wet reading about the ocean.” I found it appropriate for the first week of the year as people begin making resolutions. This is the time of year people make resolutions for a “new year and a new you.” They make promises to get in shape, to make more money, to read more, or basically become a better version of themselves. However, come mid-February, the gyms are empty, the books haven’t been cracked, and work status quo and malaise has settled in.

Resolutions fail because change requires effort. Change takes a dream, willpower, consistency, and guard rails. It’s gradual. It’s difficult. But it’s worth it!

You must take action if you want improvement. Take the first step even if it feels strange or others say its stupid. Growth can only happen if you move forward. So dream it, want it, do it, do it again, and have someone to keep you accountable. Positive habits require consistent effort. Make it happen and have friends to keep you in line. Then bask in the glory in accomplishing your goals.

Aye!

Italian Job

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Ballroom – Last workout for 2020

We had 5 at the Ballroom for a end of year wrap up beat down.  A slight delay due to a mother nature call, brought us into an immediate warmup as we waited for Drop to get situated.  Then we took off for a quick mosey to our first stop to complete the warm-up.  We did a few SSH, Wind ills, imperial walkers, Moroccan night clubs and a couple of other exercises.  Mosey number 2 for the main event.

We started with 3 minutes of merkins – 10, Mtn. Climbers – 15 and 20 shoulder taps.  Keep rotating through until 3 minutes is up.  at the end we did a burpee stack starting with 1,2,3 and so on.  After 3 minutes lap around the parking lot. Next round 10 squats, 15 monkey humpers, 20 calf raises (arms are tired) then nurring around the lot.  Round 3 10-BB Situps, 16-American hammers, 20 flutters. Lap around the lot.  Round 4 10-SSH, 15-overhead claps, 20- Moroccan nightclubs. nurring around the lot.  Short mosey over to the benches for round 5. 10-derkins, 15 dips and 20 step ups. Run to bottom of lot for a few minutes of wall sits.

We had a few short stories to talk about what 2020 looked like and if 2021 is a repeat what would we change.  U-Haul also mentioned the article that Anchorman posted to forget New Year’s resolutions and conduct a past year review instead.  Check it out here 

Thanks drop for the opportunity to lead.

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Returning to the dance floor

Yeah buddy, it’s back on at the Ballroom as I had the opportunity to Q the 9 of us this morning. The weather was right and the campus was well lit; another perfect morning.

Hot Cakes rolled in with an FNG, welcome “Cubbie” to the brotherhood. The rest of us welcomed Destiny back  to the gloom and proceeded to listen to him complain, or at least talk about his skill to do as much. It’s all in love. We moved on to the disclaimer…check.

Mosey behind PKMS to the drop off loop and circle up:
SSH, Merkins, Squats, Windmills, Moroccan Night Clubs

Partner up for DORA while one partner would run to the bridge and back:
100 Merkins
200 Mountain Climbers (single count)
300 LBCs

Back in a circle:
60 second plank then Shoulder Taps I/C
60 second Al Gore with Overhead Claps then Squats I/C
60 second 6″ leg holds then Flutter Kicks I/C

Nur the drop off loop followed by a run of the same loop.

Mosey to the other side of the bridge.
Peter Parkers / Grave Diggers / Dips / Grave Diggers

Indian Run back to COT but we did Butt Kickers as we jogged.
A few PAX-led ab exercises upon arrival to COT.

Drop Thrill – Thanks bud.
Cubbie – Welcome.

SYITG
Maximus

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