F3 Knoxville

Author: Pele

Serenity Now!

THE SCENE: Low 90s… again…

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER  Check!  Still not a professional.  Shame spiral…

WARM-O-RAMA:

– 25 SSH (4ct, IC), 20 Moroccan Nightclubs (4 ct, IC), 15 Windmills (4 ct, IC), 10 Imperial Squats (4 ct, IC), 5 PCMBs (12ct, OYO)

THA-THANG:

  • Mosey down Roadshow Run to close to the base of Everest, in a shady spot. EVEREST PYRAMID :
    • Do the exercise, then run 1/3 way up Everest 5 times. Exercises will be the following (all single count)
      • 20 Iron Mikes
      • 20 Iron Mikes, 20 Mountain Climbers
      • 20 Iron Mikes, 20 Mountain Climbers, 20 Merkins
      • 20 Mountain Climbers, 20 Merkins
      • 20 Merkins
  • MOSEY to Intersection of Trail and perimeter road (all 4-ct, IC).
    • 20 American Hammers
    • 20 Flutter Kicks
    • 20 Bicycle Kicks
  • MOSEY to stop sign at northeast corner of Admin building drive.
    • 20 American Hammers
    • 20 Flutter Kicks
    • 20 Bicycle Kicks
  • DORAS: Partner 1 Bernie Sanders to end of Guard Rail, then runs to tree, 3 Burpees for extra credit, then runs back. Partner does the following:
    • 100 Big Boy sit-ups
    • 100 Bobby Hurleys
    • 100 Merkins

MARY:
No time.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
8 Strong.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Ronald Niebuhr: Niebuhr was one of America’s leading public intellectuals for several decades of the 20th century and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964. Graduated from Elmhurst College, which was in the town I grew up in in Illinois and where my dad taught for 35 years.  He was a public theologian; he wrote and spoke frequently about the intersection of religion, politics, and public policy.  He was also one of the founders of the theory of Christian realism, which had three biblical presumptions: 1) the sinfulness of humanity, 2) the freedom of humanity, and 3) the validity and seriousness of the Great Commandment, which was a combination of two Bible verses that expressed the requirements to Love Thy Lord With All Thy Heart, AND, Love Thy Neighbor As Thyself. These form the core of the Christian lifestyle.  He also believed in the importance of balance of power and political responsibility.

Niebuhr believed that the perfection of the Kingdom of God cannot be realized on earth because of a corrupt society and the innate sins of man. Human perfectibility is an illusion. How can there be heaven on earth when there is so much corruption, poverty, etc.?  This was not a man who wore rose tinted glasses.  He saw the flaws and sins of humans both politically and in society, and he realized that although we should always do our best to contribute to solutions, that the imperfections of humanity would never allow paradise during our mortal lives. He is credited with writing the Serenity Prayer, which has always connected with me.

SERENITY PRAYER

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for several PAX and their family members who are going through challenging times.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
None.

Hot as Blazes

THE SCENE: Upper 90s… soul-witheringly hot.  Felt like an ant under a magnifying glass.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Check
WARM-O-RAMA:

-20 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence

– 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct), in cadence

– 20 BBS

– 10 Baby Arm Circles Forward, Backward (in cadence)

THA-THANG:

Mosey to intersection of road in front of Asylum and Lyons View entrance road.

  • AIKEN LEGS: 20 squats, 20 Bobby Hurleys (instead of box jumps), 20 lunges (2-ct), 20 split jacks (2-ct)
  • PAULA ABDULS ALONG RUNNING PATH :
    • Run two lights, Bernie backwards one, do 5 merkins. Keep going to base of Everest.
  • EVEREST:
    • 20 BBS, then run up to the base of the Summit
  • TABATA WORKOUT:
    • 6 x 20 seconds Carolina Dry Docks * (10 second break between all sets)
    • 6 x 20 seconds American Hammers
    • 6 x 20 seconds Peter Parkers*
    • 6 x 20 seconds BBS
    • 6 x 20 seconds Mountain Climbers**
    • (We did stargazers in here somewhere because the Q was gassed…)

* = run up small slope to the north of the workout area, **= run all the way up Summit

Mosey to AO.

MARY:
No time
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
9 strong.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
I recently attended a workout where another Q was talking about how there’s always someone struggling worse than you are, and it can help you if you make it your goal to lift them up and help them out, and raise them up.  I tore my ACL in soccer my Junior year of college, and was in the dumps for months.  The rehab work was grueling, I was uncertain I would be able to play at the level I was accustomed to again for my final year of college, and my course work was particularly challenging that semester.  I decided to go to Louisiana for a Habitat for Humanity effort over spring break after I heard about it through some classmates.  We built gardens for the Chitimatcha Indian Tribe down there on their lands outside of New Orleans, and although they appreciated our help in terms of the physical labor, they were so grateful just to have some people show up with some energy and positive spirit to be with them.  The tribe is very poor, and had very high alcoholism and suicide rates, but the effect of having a bunch of college kids from Wisconsin travel several thousand miles during their spring break to give them a hand and share some fellowship seemed to have an incredible effect on them.  It had an incredible effect on me, as well, being with these wonderful people, seeing how challenging their lives are, but seeing what generous and friendly souls they had in spite of their humble situation.  When I returned from the trip, all the self-pity and darkness that was brewing and I felt more than renewed to face my own path going forward.
MOLESKIN:
Good luck to Nature Boy as he starts his new semester at UT this week.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Trucking to the Pound, Sept. 14.  Order shirts this week!!

A Lesson in Humility

THE SCENE: High 80s, more humid than the past few days, light breeze and some clouds made it almost bearable
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Check.
WARM-O-RAMA:
The initial plan of 40 burpees was scratched by the PAX’s generosity in donating to a certain cause.

20 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence, 10 Copperhead lunges/ 10 Copperhead squats/ 10 Steve Earles/ 10 Copperhead Merkins (all 4-ct, IC), 10 Windmills

THA-THANG:

Mosey to Stop sign at northeast corner of circle drive, 20 Rocky Balboas on the curb (4-ct).  Mosey to CMU pile

  • Battle buddy up.  Grab CMU, 1 per pair
    • Partner does modified suicide (HOP to first cone, run back, BEAR CRAWL to second cone, run back, BERNIE SANDERS to third cone, run back), while partner does the following (additive between partners) with CMU:
      • 100 of each: SQUATS, ROWS, CURLS, OVERHEAD PRESS, TRICEPS PRESS

Mosey to base of Cardiac

  • Cardiac PYRAMID :
    • Run to first turn of Cardiac and back
      • 10 Copperhead Squats
      • 10 Copperhead Squats, 10 Mountain Climbers (2-ct)
      • 10 Copperhead Squats, 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Shoulder Taps (2-ct)
      • 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Shoulder Taps
      • 10 Shoulder Taps
    • Lunges until 6 catches up.
    • Run up Cardiac, at each turn do 5 Burpees. At Top, do 5 Burpees and 20 bench dips.

Mosey to where path intersects parking lot:

  • 20 BBS/20 LBCs/20 American Hammers (2-ct) (OYO)

Mosey to tree/shaded area at stop sign where we did the Rocky Balboas

  • 20 BBS/20 LBCs/20 American Hammers (2-ct) (OYO)

Mosey to AO.

MARY:
No time for good ol’ Mary.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
15 strong, including Gobbler (untagged) and FNG Deuce.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

I’ve always been a bit of a perfectionist, but particularly when it comes to sports.  Everyone says “I like to win” or the reverse, “I hate losing”, but I tend to take that to another level.  It’s gotten a bit better as I’ve gotten older, but I still have an incredibly hard time moving on when I lose or fail at something competitive.  I was playing in Steam’s kickball charity tournament last week, and we lost a tight game that I felt we could have won if I had just sold out and dove for a ball in the outfield and made the catch, or gotten a “hit” when I was up with two outs and the bases loaded.  It bothered me the rest of the day and all night.  Had a hard time sleeping.  Now, this was not the Super Bowl, the World Series, or an important match in any way, shape or form… This was a CHARITY. KICKBALL. TOURNAMENT., but I still thought I let the team down.  When I was in college, I seriously considered going to a sports psychologist, because if my team lost at anything, whether it was soccer, basketball, or even if it was just playing darts at the bar, I felt it was my fault, and would go into a deep, intense funk.  And when this happens, I try to tell myself, “It’s just a game”, but that never works for me.  Almost nothing does.

The only thing that helps is if I take a deep breath, I consider how lucky and fortunate I am to have the gifts that God has given to me in my life, and to consider how %^&*$!! ARROGANT it is to get mad when things don’t go my way.  We’re human.  We’re flawed.  We fail. Grow up and deal with it.

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed.  I’ve failed over and over again in my life.  And that is why I succeed.” Michael Jordan

Philippians 2:3-10 – (Writings from the apostle Paul, who is asking his readers to turn the focus from themselves to others.  Humbling, self-sacrificing lives leads to exaltation from God).

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death– even death on a cross! 9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth

Paul frequently addressed Jesus as divine.  Paul is pointing out that Jesus could have pulled out the “God Card” and demanded that every person grovel at his feet, but instead of treating others as his servants, he himself becomes a servant to the people.  He lived among us, suffered our mortal pains, came to this world in a humble way, and left it suffering a horrible, humiliating death on the cross. We have no right to wallow in self pity when we fail, or when we fall short in how we perform.  We try our best, we give every effort to succeed, but when we fail, we must accept it with grace, learn from it, and move on.  I will continue to try to take this lesson to heart.

MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Third F this Saturday, with the convergence at Big Ball at 7:00 AM and 3rd F afterwards at 8:30 AM.

Uva Uvam Viviendo Varia Fit

THE SCENE: Warm but not the complete toaster oven of recent workouts.  Mid 80s, partly sunny, slight breeze.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Check

WARM-O-RAMA:
Motivators, 7 count decreasing, cherry pickers x10 4-Ct, Mosey to curb at intersection NE of admin building, 25 calf raises, 25 step ups

THA-THANG:

Mosey to trail at the top of the Tail of the Dragon

  • ROUTE 66 Burpees (note to self… never do this exercise again with Burpees!)

Mosey to big oval parking lot south of the Ball fields

  • NO MERCY MILE (ended up being a little under 1/2 of a mile)
    • Near end: Bear Crawl around turn
    • Run to ½ way point. 25 Merkins. Run to curve
    • Far End: Lunges around turn
    • Sprint to ½ way point. 25 Squats. Run to Curve.
    • Rinse and Repeat. (only got 1/2 way around before we had to get a move on)

Mosey to bottom of Baby Cardiac.

  • Hill Suicides
    • Run up to ½ way point (where the shade stopped) and back 3 times.
    • 25 flutter kicks (2-ct)
    • Run up to ½ way point and two times, then get to the top and do 25 LBCs

Mosey to stop sign at intersection of circle drive where we did the calf raises, 20 American Hammers, 4-ct IC

MARY:
20 heel touches on 6.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 strong (Gobbler not tagged)

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

UVA UVAM VIVIENDO VARIA FIT (inscription on the Sign of the Hat Creek Cattle Company in the book Lonesome Dove; part 2 of the LD Word Post)

The inscription at the bottom of the sign of the Hat Creek Cattle Company, a fictional business run by ex-Texas Rangers Gus and Call in the book Lonesome Dove, is mangled Latin that Gus (a decorated ex-Ranger and all around fun dude, but who isn’t quite as smart as he would like to believe, or like others to believe) tacked on there on a whim (and probably to make others think he was a scholarly fella) that loosely translates to A Grape changes color (ripens) when it sees another grape. We are changed by the lives of those around us. Toxic people can cause us to wither and rot.  Gus and Call, in the book, are complete opposites in personality, but deep down they love and respect each other, and complement each other to the point that together they overcome many life-threatening challenges during the great cattle drive described in the book.  Look to surround yourself with people who will help you ripen!  There’s a theory that your personality is shaped by the 5 people you spend the most time with, so pick them wisely!

  • Proverbs 12:26 The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.
  • Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. (Who knew that one of F3’s slogans was immortalized at the bottom of a sign in one of the Great American Novels??)

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Hooker’s friend, who passed away recently, leaving a grieving family behind.  Thankful that Jinxy was able to show up again with us in the Fake Gloom and crush the workout in spite of a recent health scare.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
None

Be a Sheep, Not a Goat

THE SCENE: Sunny and give-me-a-breeze-because-it’s-90-degrees-oh please oh please Hot, around 90 degrees
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER  Check.  I may not have clarified I’m not a professional. But I am not.
WARM-O-RAMA:

30 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence, 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct), in cadence, 20 Imperial Walkers (4-ct), in Cadence, 10 Baby arm circles forward/backward, Little of This and That, 10 plank jacks (4-ct) in cadence (had to add these on waiting for Hooker to dress himself… insert eye roll here)

THA-THANG:

Mosey to random shady area south of Admin Building before Chapel

  • Mucho Chesto #1: 10 x Merkin / 10 x Wide Merkin / 10 x Diamonds / 10 Stagger Merkin Left / 10 Stagger Merkin Right.

Mosey to Chapel

  • CHAPEL 7’s
    • Part 1: Mountain Climbers (4-ct)/Bench Dips
    • Part 2: Froggie Squat Jumps/Decline Merkins

Mosey to big tree outside of chapel that had a sort of circular shade pattern.

  • Catch Me if You Can!
    • Partner up. One partner Burpee Broad Jumps around perimeter of shade.  Other partner does 10 LBCs and then GORILLA RUNS to catch up.  Then partners switch. 3 minutes.  Rinse and repeat, except with Lunges and Bear Crawls.

Mosey to CMU pile.

  • DORAS
    • Use same partners as before. One partner DUCK WALKS ½ way then sprints to end of parking lot, does 3 merkins, then sprints and switches.
      • 100 curls (Q pulled up lame with a tight calf here.  Dang!!)
      • 100 overhead press (RIP to the CMU that Tank dropped.  We all pitched in on the punishment burpees)
      • 100 triceps (didn’t have time for these last two)
      • 100 squats

Mosey to start of Dragon Tail

  • Mucho Chesto #2, 1/2 reps: 5 x Merkin / 5 x Wide Merkin / 5 x Diamonds / 5 Stagger Merkin Left /5 Stagger Merkin Right.Mosey to monument up the Dragon’s tail
      • 20 American Hammers

Mosey to AO

MARY:
No Time
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 HIMs, J-Lo not tagged
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Certain current events in the news have been disturbing to me, and I felt the urge to recite this Bible verse that contains some sentiments that I feel we need to be reminded of collectively as a society.

Matthew 25 verses 1-13, Parable of the Sheep and Goats

“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?’

“The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

“Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’

“Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for several PAX who have family members who are going through health issues, and praise for some news of recovery for several as well.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Fourth of July F3/FiA parade news (check Cap’n Crunch’s email) and Goliath at the Gorge mud run/obstacle course near Johnson City in late October.  F3 Knoxville is coordinating with other F3 groups and the organizers to get an F3 discout, arrange some fellowship options, and perhaps volunteer.