Tag: Shady

EMOM to close out AKA at Golden Coral

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We had 19 at Golden Coral to close out AKA. I was honored that Lutefisk gave me the opportunity to close out AKA and I did not want to disappoint. So here it is:

We started with a 1 mile journey around Golden Coral stopping every 1/4 mile for 15 merkins. (Crowd pleaser).

We finished up at the fire station for a quick warm-up before we got to the thang. I dont remember completely but it was quick. I think it included some windmills and weed pullers.

Then we got to the THANG:

I planned a little EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute). Each Pax had 1 minute to complete 20 burpees, then 1 minute to complete 20 crunchy frogs then 1 to get down the hill and back before we started over. We did this rotation until 15 minutes were up. The goal was to finish as many of the reps as you could or push yourself to whatever number was achievable in the 1 minute.

With enough time remaining, we started another EMOM, switching the burpees and crunchy frogs for jump squats and CDDs.

With only 2 minutes to spare we ran back to COT.

Thanks to Lutefisk for the opportunity to lead and to all the Pax for putting up with my craziness.

Until next time, back to the hunt…

 

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A Q of Ice and Fire

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Firstly, there are no spoilers contained in the backblast. YHC had been thinking about doing a GOT themed Q for a while. When I was offered to Q Crows Nest within 12 hours of a new episode dropping, I knew that winter had come.

14 men showed up and were disclaimed. Before we moseyed, the first game was explained.

Where are my Dragons?!

PAX were told that there were 3 toy dragons (dinosaurs if we are being honest) hidden around the AO. If any man found a dragon they were to let the whole group know and everyone would stop what they were doing and complete 20 Flying Dragons [flying squirrels] OYO. If all 3 dragons were not found with 5 mins left in the workout all the PAX would have a penalty – winter had arrived early and we would all have to do rounds of Climate Change. After this was all explained, we moseyed. Before the warm up began, Peg found the first dragon. So 20 Flying Dragons.

Wildfire Warmup

Lord Tyrion Leaps [SSH], Braavosi Night Clubs [MNC], White Walkers [imperial walkers], Gendry’s Hammer [American hammers], Benjin Starks [ranger merkins], The Hound [downward dog]

The Kingsroad

The Kingsroad connects the capital of the 7 Kingdoms, Kings Landing, all the way North to The Wall. It actually starts at Storms End, but whatever. PAX received a raven that white walkers were marching for the Wall and they needed to journey up the Kingsroad with reinforcements, or really bad stuff would happen. The Wall was on the opposite side of a parking lot from Kings Landing. PAX had to Lieutenant Bran (he don’t got no legs) there. At each pillar they passed they had to do 5 Iron Borns (Carolina dry docks AKA Pike pushups).

Once at the Wall, we needed to defend it. This entailed several rounds of Wall sits with PAX taking turns going beyond the Wall to do abyss merkins. Fortunately, for the realms of men, the White Walkers were defeated by the valiant efforts of the PAX. Flux also found the second dragon – so 20 more flying dragons. We then had to return to Kinds Landing. But as we had already found 2 dragons by this point we did not need to Lieutenant Bran – instead we did Welsh Dragons back, which was much shorter as the crow flies… though not necessarily less painful. Check the exicon; these ones are tough on the shoulders.

The Nobel Houses of Westeros

Stations were set up, each with the sigil, words, and name of a house of Westeros. There was also a corresponding exercise for each house. The lexicon came in real handy with this one. Complete station 1, run a lap. Complete station 1 again, then 2, and then run a lap. 1, 2, and 3, then run a lap… you get the idea. Here were the stations:

  1. House Greyjoy – 3 Kraken Burpees
  2. House Baratheon – 20 Leaping Stags (power skips)
  3. House Stark – 10 Dire Wolves (Werewolves)
  4. House Lannister – 20 Lion Kings
  5. House Frey – 20 Oblique Bridges (10 each side)
  6. House Martel – 30 Sun Gods
  7. House Targaryen – 20 Flying Dragons
  8. House Arryn – 3 Tony Hawk Burpees

We didn’t make it through all the houses before time ran out, but enough to get the sweat going. YHC also conveniently found the last dragon – sparing the PAX from global warming session, as we really didn’t have time for that anyway. I may work that into a future Q. We all moseyed back to COT, dragons in hand.

This was the most fun I have had creating a workout yet. Thank you to all the PAX who came out and endured a bit of nerdy fun, especially those who were up late watching GOT last night. And thanks to Iced Tea for the opportunity to lead.

Valar Dohaeris,

Homebrew

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A cat, a cow and a 7 minute mile

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Things Funhouse and Fishsticks did Friday morning.

We began with a 20 minute broga warm-up with a solid lead from Basso …. errrrr …. Sasquatch.

The other thang:

I trot along the avenue
I never thought I’d meet a turn like you
Meet nine turns like you

With crazy 90 degree turns and blind corners
The massive number of turns confused me through
They confused me through

And I ran
I ran so many turns
I just ran
I ran both left and right
I couldn’t find my way

A turn appears in front of you
I wish the route was explained better by you
Just simply a turn or two

And I ran
I ran so many turns
I just ran
I ran both left and right
I couldn’t find my way

Looks like we made it,

Barry Manilow

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Q2 2019 PFT @ The Coop!

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2019 quarterly PFT at the Coop was on schedule for day 21 of Ass Kickin’ April!  17 PAX came out to see progress that has been made since Q1 of 2019.  We had 8 repeats and 9 new comers.

The Thang

Warm up – Lap, COP with SSH, Squats, IW, Moroccan Night Clubs,  6 count burpees. Mosey to Pull Up bars.

PFT – 1 minute: Pull Up, Big Boy Sit Ups, Merkins.  The 1 mile run.  We did this.  Here is the output.

2019-Q1 2019-Q2
Name Pull Ups Sit Ups Push Ups 1 Mile Run Pull Ups Sit Ups Push Ups 1 Mile Run
FunHouse 5 45 37 6:40 6 41 45 6:04
Sk8orDie 5 39 37 DNP
DarkHelmet 22 42 64 7:21 26 44 63 7:10
Kaiser 15 22 61 7:38
SugarBug 3 29 36 8:41
Esso 12 38 43 8:25 14 42 53 7:28
Sasquatch 24 54 64 DNP
ChickenHawk 25 43 60 7:37
Wegmans 1 26 24 8:54
Husky 13 45 52 7:34
PunchList 12 39 33 6:48 17 46 48 6:33
DirtyHarry 5 50 50 7:28 12 53 61 DNP
Youts 18 44 51 8:49 26 48 64 8:34
Slash 8 26 31 8:45 9 27 44 7:42
Xray 3 12 25 9:15
Chunck 2 32 20 8:32
Tinsel 22 38 36 8:43 25 43 45 DNP
DD 18 25 54 6:35
Nasa 14 42 41 7:12
Harry Carey 12 32 37 5:58
Geronimo 23 43 40 6:45
Shady 37 44 44 7:03
Hardwood 19 26 51 9:17
FishSticks 11 56 52 6:22
Barry Manilow Present

FunHouseNaked Moleskin:  Looking at the 8 repeat PAX, all got BETTER!  Imagine that.  Continue to take the DRP, you get better.  Either if is all running, Bootcamping, Rucking, etc.  Keep posting and you get better! I have data and a spreadsheet to prove it! #WesaelShakerDolphin?

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Beep beep I’m a jeep, clank clank I’m a tank

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17 strong at The Armory. The weather was great and the iron was aplenty.

Warm up

  • SSH 25 I.C.
  • Windmill 10 I.C.
  • Leg stretches
  • Merkins 10 I.C.
  • Mountain Climbers (foot all the way up to hands) 10 I.C.
  • Moroccan Night Club 15 I.C.
  • Imperial Walker 15 I.C.
  • Hillbilly Walker 15 I.C.
  • Mosey over to the middle of the parking lot

The Thang

  • 10 Man Makers
  • 10 Turkish getups (5 each arm)
  • Split into Teams Alpha and Bravo
  • 1st timing mechanism: mosey with bell while other team does exercise
      1. High pulls
      2. Curls
      3. Triceps
  • 2nd timing mechanism: bear crawl drag bell
      1. V ups skull crusher
      2. Thrusters
      3. Calf raises
  • 3rd timing mechanism: “Beep beep I’m a Jeep, clank clank I’m a tank” (“Jeep” is a duck walk with bell close to chest. “Tank” is a duck walk holding the bell out in front.
      1. Flutter presses
      2. Dead lift
      3. Around the world

As always, I appreciate the opportunity to lead and associate with such a great group of men. Good work today from everyone.

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6 years, God only knows where I might have been….

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6 years ago YHC rang the bell for the first time with a handful of rag tag HIM’s. There were 3 workouts, total, in The Fort. A lot has changed!  YHC was blessed enough to be able to come to Block Party and Q on a day that has changed my life.  32 other PAX joined YHC in the gloom for some fun for Day 20 for Ass Kickn’ April Y2!

The Thang:

Long loop around WEP

COP

SSH X 50, Squats X 25, IW X 20, Mountain Climbers X 25, Plank Jacks X 25, Slow Sumo Squats X 25, 6 count Burpees w/ hand clap X 10, SSH X 10 – Mosey to playground

DORA 1-2-3

Partner up, 100 Merkins, 200 Squats, 300 LBCs. Go.

Huddle Up

Got the PAX together to briefly talk about what F3 has done for me.  I had initially thought that F3 would always be a physical challenge, and it is, but I would never have guessed how much the 2nd and 3rd F’s would come into play.  Having 32 other men show up at 0515 to work out under my lead, shows exactly what F3 is all about.  Supporting your F3 brother celebrate a special, life changing day by doing burpees and dodging fire ants.  The 1st F is the magnet, always pulling you in.  The 2nd F is the glue, keeping you connected and active.  The 3rd F is the dynamite, serving others, putting yourself 3rd and sharing this crazy thing F3 to all men around you. Off to the hill for Jacob’s Ladder.

Jacob’s Ladder – 8’s – 1 Burpee at top and 7 Bomb Jacks at Bottom. Add, subtract, flippy flop, you know the drill.

Off to COT, but lets do some more while we count down to 0600.  30 seconds of Mountain Climbers, Plank, burpees….. Saved by the Bell. Done.

Great Tuesday morning.  So humbled and blessed with the HUGE turnout this morning.  I couldn’t be more excited about being a part of F3!

FunHouse

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Philly Inspired Psy-Ops CSPAN at the Coop

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34 was the count at the coop and it was a great morning at the Coop with the temperatures near perfect and a special guest visit by Grand-Tan, CSPAN himself.  It was great to catch up with a #HIM and for his presence in the PAX.  But you can’t have  Grand-Tan return without a little engagement in the routine.  CSPAN honored us with his slightly angry, Philly version of a warm up.  The good news is that the PAX was angry at him and not me.
Prayers for Shady and his spill on the sprint back to COT and subsequent trip to the MD.  Grateful for Dirty Harry and his field ops specialty and coolness under pressure.  The highlight of the morning was watching guys step ups and do their part when another brother was in need.  That my friends is F3!
Message: Be Still
  • Where does your mind go in the stillness?
  • Regrets for the past, fears of the future, how many of us were thankful for the moment, how often do we use stillness in the moment to experience God’s voice and direction … I don’t do being still well because my mind constantly has chatter.
  • Be Still- observe the mind – become conscious to what is going on in your mind – results in your ability to be present and to own the thoughts in your mind
Warm up/ COP – CSPAN  maybe I will just summarize it at as a Nascar like (right turns though) sprints with up/downs with flutters, and more flutters and a few more flutters and then some flutters.  I think that covers it.
Mosey to band parking lot:
Suicide Sprints: 10/20/30
  • 50% sprint
  • Karaoke
  • Side shuffle
  • Full length full speed
  • Power Skips back
Rugby Sprints to the 50 and walk it back
  • SSH
  • Merkins
  • Mule Kicks
  • Flying Squirrels
Every 5 to the 50
  • Bear crawl 5 yards then 5 CCD increments sprint to the end
  • Burpee Broad jumps 5 yards then 5 merkins
Wall sits with burpees
2 minutes of MARY
Prayers for Shady’s recovery and quick return. Prayers for Bailey (CSPAN’s daughter) and the birth of their son today at 12:30. Many unspoken prayers known and unknown are put at the foot of the cross and we ask that the Lord tends to them according to his Will.
Aye!
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The Hive: Kettlebells, rain, tabata. What could go wrong?

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0505 show up to the hive for prep. Layout cones and other various gear needed.
0510 see cars and trucks and more cars and trucks pulling into parking lot.
0514 Disclaimer and see another truck pull in (its Stang, we start to mosey for warm ups.)
0515 Warmups of various types.
0522 Start a Tabata that has to called out by Q due to speaker not working. ended up being great. I love mumble chatter and it was rolling good this moist morning.
8 stations- 2-3 PAX per station they went as follows.
Goblet Squats
Figure 8s
Shoulder presses with rucksack
Jump Rope
Alternating bicep curls
American Hammers
1 arm KB swings
Alternating hand on KB merkins
0600- Mosey with gear back to COT. The rain really started to pour down.
Prayers and Praises.
AkA- if you don’t know you better ask somebody.
Q Source
prayers for marriages and kids.

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Tabata Time at the Quagmire

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Monday morning and the start of a new business week.  It was finally warm, 64 degrees… and with that warmth comes humidity!  I haven’t been to Quagmire in too long, that standard excuse about passing other AOs to get to another one.  But being invited by Jedi to Q had me up early and ready to go!  It was a welcome sight to see our Weasel Shaker and his merry men show up for ass-kickin’ April as an added bonus.  I’m sure they did not enjoy themselves today.  More coming at the Poopdeck Thursday!

With 17 guys ready to start I gave the disclaimer.  Great to see Meltdown and The Admiral up at it early… (two FNGs from last week!) We started to run…and run…and run.

So we stopped all the way over on the other end of Rivergate, close to the Trulent banking center. We did a circle lap half way to our destination to gather the group back together and not let them pull too far apart.  There were a few PAX begging for it to stop.  Maybe they shouldn’t have pre-ran today?  (You know who you are) But we got to run a few circle laps while the 6 made it in for COP.

COP

IWs – Windmills – Merkins – SSHs – Peter Parkers – Some broga in between some of those.

Evolution #1

Had to grab my speaker that I’d hidden in a bush. Informed the guys we would be doing 10 minutes of Tabata with 20 seconds on 10 seconds off.  Each of these exercises would be done 4 times in a row.

1.  Lunges

2. Ranger Merkins

3. Bombjacks

4. Flutters

5. Burpees

I played some loud rough music to keep the blood flowing during this session.  It was much harder than this write-up sounds.  After we finished, I asked a couple guys to give us an “Apache 10 count”.  Kenyan just brought this back from Rock Hill to his Q at the Deep on Saturday.  The PAX giving the 10 count shares some stuff about himself. Family, who EH’d, how long doing F3, etc.  I really liked that idea and Funhouse, Bones, and Cornhole  got to share.

Mosey to Evolution #2

Long run back behind Home Depot

We sat on the wall while each end would run to the long hall, sprint down it and return.  Then the next PAX 2×2 would go. That took longer than I thought so people’s chair was painful.

Next BTTW 30 count

People Chair with the ends doing 5 jump squats

20 Mike Tyson’s OYO on the wall

BTTW 30 count

People’s chair with 5 Merkins

Only 5 minutes left, moseyed back to COT.

Had 2 minutes to spare some AB Lab to finish the morning.

Announcements: Read your newsletter and check twitter/slack.

Prayers for families and my son who swallowed  a part of a toothpick Sunday that got stuck in his throat.  Hoping there was no more damage internally.  As of Monday night he seems better.

An honor to lead

~Royale

 

 

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Building blocks which start with grains of sand

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As I drove to the Yard for what was looking to be a beautiful morning, I started to think about what my message for the day would be since I didn’t plan for that portion of the workout…which is very normal.  I quickly became distracted, as I typically do as well, only to find I had showed up at the AO with no message plan…to be continued.

Standing and waiting for the PAX, up strolls Magnum – fearless leader of the AO. Soon to be followed by MASH and then Weezer (although YHC had noticed Twister’s car but no Twister). YHC commented that although the Yard is a moderate workout site, the plan was to step out of the comfort zone today and push yourself just a bit which the workout would accommodate of course. Quick disclaimer and off we mosey’d with some butt kickers and high knees. We circled up and did the following:

  • SSH x25, 2 burpees
  • Low slow squat x10, 2 burpees
  • CDD x20, 2 burpees
  • Plank jacks x10, 2 burpees
  • Cherry pickers x9, 2 burpees
  • Overhead claps x25, 2 burpees
  • Extra shoulder stretching, downward dog and honeymooner to wrap up

The Thang!

Didn’t go far as YHC explained the progression workout getting ready to be unleashed.  Here’s how that went down…  After each of the below items, we were going to run down the hill that exits from the school from the main front doors, then backwards run up the hill (quadzilla style), then run the rest of the way back to where the exercises would be performed.

Once the original 4 finished the first 10 bombjacks, we were joined by Twister and Spartacus who had returned from their 3.2 mile pre-ruck – perfect timing!

  • 10 bomb jacks, then run, then come back and wait for the 6 before the next exercise
  • 20 step ups (10 each leg), then the 10 bomb jacks, then the running and waiting for 6
  • 30 dips, then 20 above, then 10 above, run…you get the point
  • 45 (because 40 didn’t make sense) calf raises – 15 out, regular, in; then 30, 20, 10…
  • 50 SSH, then 45, 30….

Now that the PAX had a nice base sweat going, YHC decided it was time for a short “10 count” via the message portion of the program.  As YHC was running up and down the hill, I noticed all the ant hills and how those little guys were working together to build their homes.  Similar to how we as PAX and HIM structure our lives and communities – grain by grain, brick by brick.  We have to start somewhere and if that’s a grain vs. a brick, it’s still momentum and growth.  We need to rely on whetstones for growth (spoiler alert for soon to follow QSource) as well as shieldlocks.  We can’t do this alone and shouldn’t have to do it alone – just like the little ants, they have their own PAX for support and foundational building.  Last I checked, none of us have this figured out so who better to lean on than your fellow brothers!  One step at a time, one grain at a time….sometimes one “close your eyes” leap!

Next station stop was over by the basketball hoops where we got to sharpen our merkin skills.  After each set of merkins, we ran down to the last basketball hoop and back.

  • 15 regular merkins
  • 15 wide arm
  • 15 diamond
  • 15 decline
  • 15 ranger
  • 15 incline

That’s 90 total these PAX crushed in a matter of minutes.  This left us about 4-5 minutes of MARY where we went around the horn for each PAX to call and count their own exercise.  Off to COT after MARY where we counted off, name-o-rama, and announcements.  Prayers for the PAX parents, friends and 2.0s.  5 of the 6 of us were able to make it over for QSource for further discussion on Whetstone!  Great work and always a pleasure to lead and be part of the early morning gloom (even though it was nice and sunny!).

Shady

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