Fitness. Fellowship. Faith.
THE SCENE: It was a real humdinger
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
THA-THANG:
Mosey to home base. ascending Ladder. Do 1 station, run back to start, do 2 stations, run back to start, etc.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM: yelp for help
THE SCENE: Wet on ground, windy, but the rained stopped right as we were beginning the workout. Temperature about 60 degrees.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
Bernie Sanders around the parking lot, 20 Plank Jacks, 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Rockettes, 10 Twisties, 10 Dive Bombers, 10 Cherry Pickers.
THA-THANG:
Mosey to the pavilion to do 20 Bench Dips. Then divide up into teams of two. Mosey to the trailer behind my car in the parking lot across the street from the AO parking lot. Each team grabs two bricks out of my trailer. Mosey back to the west end of the AO parking lot. We will will be doing Doras. While one partner on a team of two runs to the other end of the parking lot and does 10 Rocky Balboas (both legs = 1) and runs back, the other partner works on the exercises listed below. Then partners switch off. Here are the exercises:
Mosey back to the trailer to put the bricks away. Bernie Sanders one time around the parking lot.
Mosey to the AO parking lot again. We will be doing a Kraken. We will be doing the exercises at each of the six cones set up in the parking lot. When finished with the exercise at one cone, each man should do a full circle of all cones before going to the next cone. Here are the exercises:
Mosey back to the parking lot across the street with the trailer. We will be running up the Dragon, stopping at every other light post to do 10 Merkins. When men reach the parking lot at the end of the Dragon they will run to the street and then go down Mini-Cardiac to the parking lot with the trailer. They will then Bernie Sanders around the parking lot.
Mosey to the parking lot near the nice restroom. We will go from one curb to the others in the following manner: Hop 15 times, Bear Crawl for 30 paces, then Bernie Sanders to the curb. We will then go back to the other curb in the following manner: Do 25 El Capitan’s, Bear Crawl for 25 paces, then Bernie Sanders to the curb.
Mosey to the Playground. We will do 20 American Hammers.
Mosey to the AO.
MARY:
25 Hello Dollies (4 count), 25 Flutter Kicks (4 Count). Then we will do a minute of stretching.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
9 Men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
I am not a University of Miami Hurricanes fan. But, I do like their basketball team’s coach, 73-year-old Jim Larranaga. It wasn’t until recently that I knew his name. When I watched Miami win games in last year’s March Madness and this year’s March Madness, I just called him the “Old Man.” I have since learned that he is an amazing coach who has won all kinds of awards coaching for different colleges. He was the coach of that 11th seeded George Mason team who got to the Final Four in 2006.
Now he has the Miami Hurricanes in the Final Four and his team will be playing against Connecticut today. I saw the Old Man interviewed on the basketball court amidst the hoopla after Miami beat number 1 seeded Houston to get to the Elite 8 this year. One of his players, Nijel Pack, was asked to be interviewed after the coach. What did the Old Man do before he went off to the locker room? He leaned over and kissed Nijel on the side of his head. I love seeing that kind of affection between coach and player. Later, in the locker room, the Old Man was seen dancing with his team, all of the players laughing and hooting at their 73-year-old coach with obvious love as he was doing the old man shimmy. It was a funny and heart-warming thing to observe.
A major reason I love F3 so much is that we also have that heart-warming affection amongst us. One of our new members, Voltage, joined our brotherhood less than two weeks ago. I talked to him after the workout. He has lived in Knoxville a number of years and, being from another country, has been a bit lonely. He has been looking for a group of friends that he can be a part of. I told him he has found it with F3.
Gents, I don’t want to embarrass you, but a reason why we come to F3 here in Knoxville is to get the kind of affection from other men that is similar to that kiss the the Old Man laid upon the head of Nijel Pack. How does that affection reach us? In all kinds of ways. It’s as simple as bros yelling out “Hey Pusher” or “Hey Drum Major” when they show up for the morning workout. It’s Crawdad teasing me about having dope in my veins and you guys persistently mentioning I must have my stimulator with me when I am somehow able to keep up with you on the mosey. It’s the ribbing Swimmies gets every time he shows up late for a workout. It’s us getting on High-Heels for getting through 25 rounds of whatever exercise in ten seconds. It’s whoever is on Q making sure we do Dive Bombers when Choir Boy is around or doing Cherry Pickers because we know that Crawdad hates them. It’s us groaning at Pluto’s puns. It’s us knowing that Waffle House is going to wear those crazy yellow mittens in the winter or that Pele is going to leave his circular sweat of integrity around his feet at the end of a summer workout. It’s giving Jinxy hell when the employees at Panera Bread screw up another one of his orders. It laughing at Lebowski with his crazy robe and Matlock leaving those hilarious posts on Slack. We are a team, a band of brothers, dropping those idiotic displays of affection on one another. I thank God for it. Now, where did I leave that stimulator.?
MOLESKIN:
Prayers for the people of Nashville and those impacted by the shooting at the school. Prayers to those in Arkansas impacted by the tornadoes last night. Prayers for safety Pusher’s youngest son who just got his drivers license. Also, prayers for Pusher and his wife as it can be stressful to see one’s child go off driving alone for the first time.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Shovel Flag making at I-Beam’s house today. Haw Ridge coming in two weeks. We need to start working on making obstacles for Hardship Hill which will be on Memorial Day.
THE SCENE: 58 degrees and recovering from the storms the night before
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
10 reps each of: SSH, tempo squats, LBAC (forward/backward), tempo merkins, TN rockin chairs, Moroccan night clubs, mountain climbers, OH claps, WMH, Imperial Walkers, end with projectovators.
THA-THANG:
Mosey to middle light pole in parking lot (short mosey).
MARY:
Shoulder Mary for 4 minutes: Chattanooga Cherry Pickers, Seal Claps, Drummers, and held Sampson for 1 minute 15 seconds
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
9 PAX including 1 FNG that was later named “Spare Key”
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Text to meditate on as we move into the Easter season: John 19:30 “When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished.” Then bowing his head, he gave up his spirit.”
Jesus was given direction to complete from his father. He made sure that he accomplished his work before dying. We, following his example, as HIMs should strive to complete our tasks in the same way. Whether in our home life, our jobs, our personal walk, or in the community. High impact men strive to finish what they start.
MOLESKIN:
Prayer requests for those impacted by the storms, Bobbit’s friend Jamie, those on DL or DR.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Discussed Q schedule over the next week. Invited HIMS to join Hardship Hill team. Discussed Shield Lock Alpha group and when Bravo will start (after Easter). Named FNG and got that pic.
THE SCENE: Beautiful spring day, sunny, little breeze, low 70s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Done adequately
WARM-O-RAMA:
Bolt 45s, Tempo Squats, Motivators, El Capitans, LBAC forward and backward, Grady Corns
THA-THANG:
MOSEY to bottom of Pickett’s…
Run PICKETT’S CHARGE, Bernie-ing the slopes and running on the flat parts.
Mosey to center of colosseum. Do Mucho Chesto, then Run to 12 o’clock position, do Aiken Legs. R&R.
Aiken Legs: 20 Squats, 20 Squat Jumps, 20 Lunges (10 each leg), 20 Split Jacks (10 each leg forward)
MUCHO CHESTO: 10 x Merkin / 10 x Wide Merkin / 10 x Diamonds / 10 Stagger Merkin Left / 10 Stagger Merkin Right
Mosey to field below Overlook. Cones laid out in a rectangle pattern.
FIELD OF PAIN:
Mosey about 1/2 way to road, then do 7s on small hill. Flutter Kicks and Bobby Hurleys.
MARY:
Flutter kicks and Homer/Marge
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 strong.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Today’s Word is taken from John Chapter 11, which is a story that’s probably familiar to many of you, as it describes Jesus’ raising of Lazarus from the dead. It builds on Steam’s WORD about Expectations that he gave last week, which also referred to a passage that included the sisters Mary and Martha. In John Chapter 11, Jesus travels to Bethany to visit Mary and Martha after their brother Lazarus died. THREE TIMES the sisters ask “Why? Why did my brother have to die? If you had been there, he would still be alive.” Expectations. That question of “If I had mattered to you, this wouldn’t have happened” is a question I think we’ve all asked ourselves, and certainly for those friends and family of those killed in yet the latest mass shooting event just down the road in Nashville, that has affected some of our F3 brothers.
But I want to focus on one specific part of the passage in John 11. It contains the answer to a great Trivia Question When confronted with the reality of the situation, what did Jesus do? Jesus wept. Our God is deeply moved and troubled when his Children suffer, and when we grieve. We have a feeling and empathizing God.
Dr. William Sloane Coffin was a famous Presbyterian minister from Boston and Chaplain for Yale for a number of years, who lost his son in a car accident a few decades ago. He gave a sermon just 10 days later. (How does someone DO that??) Dr. Coffin had the same questions about his son’s death that we all would have, that Mary and Martha had. Where were you God? But he said in that sermon,.
He said, “For some reason, nothing so infuriates me as the incapacity of seemingly intelligent heads that God doesn’t go around this world with His finger on triggers, His fist around knives, His hands on steering wheels. the one thing no one should say to someone dealing with tragedy is “I know it was the will of God”. Never do we know enough to say it is the will of God. When my son died, my own consolation is that it is NOT the will of God that he died, it is that God’s Heart was the first of all of our hearts to break.” As he closed his sermon, he said “As the grief that once seemed unbearable now turns to bearable sorrow, The truths in Biblical passages are beginning to once again take hold. ‘In this world you shall have tribulations, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world; My light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Weeping may endure in the night, but joy cometh in the morning’. When my son beat me to the grave, it was not because God WILLED it. It was because for him, the Dawn had come.”
This is the key lesson of John. What God wills is Life out of Death. What did Jesus do in the presence of Mary and Martha when told the news about Lazarus? Jesus wept. This is the compassionate nature of God. God doesn’t just see from far away our pains and sorrows. He is WITH us in our sorrow.
MOLESKIN:
Prayers for those who were affected by the Nashville school shooting earlier in the week. Prayers for Title 9 as he looks for other career opportunities.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
FORGE! growth week-end, end of September. Haw Ridge and Hardship Hill coming up!
THE SCENE: upper 40s and dry at JUCO. Nice!
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
15 SSH, 15 Mountain climbers, 10 tempo merkins, 15 Moroccan night club, 15 Imperial walkers, 10 tempo squats
THA-THANG:
Mosey to the CMU pile for the starting point of our AMRAP style workout. At each point along the defined loop, perform the designated exercise as summarized below.
AMRAP!
MARY:
LBCs, gas pumpers, 6″ LBCs, Merkin ring of fire
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
8 worked hard this morning!
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
The recent events in the Nashville school are on everyone’s minds. It makes us worry about the possibility of it happening to our families. Worry can overtake our lives and it is another tactic of Satan to draw our focus away from God. Jesus provided some of the most comforting words regarding anxiety. “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” – Matthew 6:25-34 NASB1995
This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be cautious, of course. However, we can do our best to not dwell them either.
MOLESKIN:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Escape from Haw Ridge is coming up soon!