Abscess – Page 18 – F3 Knoxville

This One’s for Jinxy

May 13, 2020 Pele One comment

THE SCENE: Sunny, slight breeze, mid 60s… not bad. Not bad at all.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

My BACKBLAST disclaimer is that I’m writing this for Mr. Jinxy, who was crying about doing one. “I don’t know how to do it… the line spacing is all messed up… do I need to do it? Wah wah wah…” So I’m just doing it for him this time. THIS time.

I think he got through the welcome and disclaimer without too many screw ups. I was Q2 for the beatdown, due to having more than 10 people show up (#covidsucks), and was frantically scanning the workout he printed out and handed me, oh, five whole minutes before starting. Gave me PLENTY of time to try to figure out what the <radio edit> he had in mind.

WARM-O-RAMA:
We did some warm up stuff. I recall SSH, Cherry Pickers, Tempo Squats, BACs… again, I was trying to kind of stretch and decipher his workout at the same time.
THA-THANG:
Mosey down Roadshow Run. Nickle/Dime/Quarters along the perimeter trail (run 1 light, do 5 reps of exercise, then 2 lights do 10 reps, then 5 lights, do 25 reps). Exercises: American Hammers, Burpees, Merkins, CDDs, Bobby Hurley’s, BBSs.

Mosey to Field of Dreams. Bernie up the hill at the side of the field 3 times, doing 20x jump squats, deep squats, star jumps.

Four corners around Field of Dreams. Run one long side, Bernie the other. Bear Crawl on the short sides. At the corners to 10x BBS, Flutter Kicks, Hello Dolly’s, Elbow to Hand Planks.

Mosey to the bench on the hill near the Admin Building. This was a long uphill mosey, and the suck factor was pretty high. Brick almost lost it, but he held on like a champ. Abscess: “I would NEVER do this all by myself.” I heartily agree.

MARY:
Capain Thors, Leg Lifts, maybe one other thing? I was kind of making stuff up at this point. Jinxy’s group was late (sooo typical), so it was just us doing the Mary.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
15 Strong, including two FNGs (one of whom was Pluto’s 2.0), who we named Utah and Crank Bait.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Jinxy had a bad day and told us all about it. We were super sympathetic. He said something really awesome about getting joy out of setbacks. I’m getting a #&%^-ton of joy out of the setback of having to write his backblast. That’s for DANG sure.
MOLESKIN:
Impressed with the strength of Brick’s stomach, but was a bit disappointed about not witnessing merlot spillage. Nice to see a good crowd out in the Fake Gloom.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
None

The Shamrock Road

May 11, 2020 Mermaid

THE SCENE: Cool, low 40’s and clear
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER It’s been so long I got the order wrong on F3, as a result we all did 5 burpees.
WARM-O-RAMA:

The Aforementioned 5 Burpees
Motivators from 5
Cherry Pickers (5)
Baby Arm Circles Forward (10)
Baby Arm Circles Backward (10)
Overhead Claps (10)
Moroccan Night Club (10)

THA-THANG:

We broke the group of 20 into 5 smaller groups, and spread out to 5 stations that were marked around campus.

Station 1- The Shamrock Road
Perform 1 Burpee at every Shamrock that is painted on the ground (total 34)

Station 2 – Mosey to the circular wall with a statue
At the wall do 5 rounds of 20 dips followed by 20 Merkins

Station 3 – Mosey to the covered walkway at the Church
Perform 20 lunges followed by a 30 second wall squat
Perform 18 lunges followed by a 30 second wall squat
Perform 16 lunges followed by a 30 second wall squat
Perform 14 lunges followed by a 30 second wall squat
Perform 12 lunges followed by a 30 second wall squat
Mosey to Station 4 near Fox Lonas

Station 4 – “Detention Hill”
Perform 20 calf raises at the top of the hill, run to the bottom and do 20 squats, then ran back up the hill.
Repeat x 5

Station 5 – A/O Home of the Shovel Flag
20 BBS followed by 20 Merkins
20 LBC’s followed by 20 Merkins
20 Hello Dollies followed by 20 Merkins
20 Flutter Kicks followed by 20 Merkins
20 Box Cutters followed by 20 Merkins

Run to station 1 and repeat as time allows. Every completed each station 1 time and at least began to repeat their “1st” station.

MARY:
Included in station 5 of the workout. Although Judge led us in seemingly endless pickle pounders until the last PAX returned to the A/O.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Add a tag for Half Sheet, 20 in attendance today.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Abscess spoke about growth of F3, Asulym, Juco, and how it spawned into Shamrock through the leadership of Booster & Judge Judy. Mermaid spoke briefly about the origin of Shamrock after the Shovel Flag was passed to him. St. Patrick is a Saint recognized by the Catholic Church. He was a missionary to Ireland, and as legend has it, he used the Shamrock and it’s three leaves to teach the Irish people about the trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). F3 also has three branches (Fitness, Fellowship, & Faith). I like the symbolism of the Shamrock, and it is a reminder to us, as it is found all over the campus.
MOLESKIN:
Cheet Sheet’s Daughter
Mailbox’s coworker Steve and his battle with cancer
Gump & Spotter’s Mom and her battle with cancer
Pool Boy’s parents are both having surgery this week
The world, as we continue to deal with the ripple effects of Covid 19.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
N/A

Optimism and Faith

May 8, 2020 Pele

THE SCENE: Just about perfect. 60s and mostly sunny, light breeze
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome to F3, Fitness, Fellowship and Faith. F3 is a free workout program designed to improve fitness, share some camaraderie, and foster male leadership in the community. I’m Pele and I will be your Q today. I am not a professional, and I do not know your fitness level or injury history. Some additional COVID-19 considerations: keep your distance between you and other members of the PAX and any other folks that we pass during moseys, etc. to 6-10 feet. We will be splitting up into groups smaller than 10 if necessary. We need to set good examples and be good neighbors out here at this public park, especially with so many folks out and about. Please push yourself, but modify the workout as necessary to avoid making any existing injuries worse. The goal is to get better together!

WARM-O-RAMA:

MOTIVATORS, 7-ct, decreasing / 10 CHERRY PICKERS (4-CT, IC) / 10 WINDMILLS (4-CT, IC) / 10 BACs forward and backward (4-CT, IC)

THA-THANG:
We split up into 2 groups, as we had more than 9 folks. Mr. Jinxy was Q2 and took my workout and did something similar with his group.

A) MOSEY to Stop Sign at northeast corner of circle drive.

TOTEM POLE: We will do a Totem Pole, starting with all 10 exercises and eliminating one exercise each round, starting at the top. So for the first round, do all ten, then run up to the big tree on the left. Then the second round, start at 9 and do the rest, etc. The exercise numbers (the numbers are also the reps) are:

10 Burpees

9 Mountain climbers (4-ct)

8 BBS

7 Hello Dollies (4-ct)

6 Carolina Dry Docks

5 Merkins

4 Bobby Hurleys

3 Iron Mikes (4-ct)

2 Pinto Twists (4-ct)

1 Imperial Squat Walkers (4-ct)

B) MOSEY to the hill off the path on the Tail of the Dragon.

PYRAMID: We will do the first set of exercises, then run up and down the hill. Then do the second set of exercises, run the hill, etc.:

20 Tempo Squats
20 Tempo Squats, 20 Star Jumps
20 Tempo Squats, 20 Star Jumps, 20 Diamond Merkins
20 Star Jumps, 20 Diamond Merkins
20 Diamond Merkins

(This was modified in my group due to time and public presence at the park to doing 5x BBS, CDDs, and Tempo squats, running up a hill, then rinse and repeat with 10x reps, rinse and repeat with 15x reps)

C) MOSEY to the CMU Pile. 3 sets of 20 reps (3×20) of each exercise, one at a time, 10 second rest in between: 1. Overhead Press, 2. Triceps, 3. Curls, 4. Rows, 5, Chest Press, 6. BBS w/CMU

(This was modified in my group due to time and public presence at the park to moseying to the rock pile by the new Coliseum area and doing overhead press, curls, and rows with two rocks, and American Hammers with one rock)

MARY:
20 flutter kicks 4-ct, and plank stretches and holds until Jinxy’s group returned.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 Strong!
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Optimism and Faith and the Corona pandemic

One definition of FAITH is the assurance of the things you hope for, and the conviction of things that are not apparent. Over the past few weeks, months (??) we have been asked to make sacrifices. Sacrifices in our movements, how we interact, even how we worship as we deal with this pandemic. But there is comfort in the knowledge of shared sacrifice and that you are not alone… we are in this all together, both collectively as a community, and individually with our Faith in our God.

In a letter to some protestors during the Civil Rights Era, Dr. Martin Luther King said (and I’m paraphrasing a bit): “You have again proven that there is nothing more majestic and sublime than the determined courage of individuals willing to suffer and sacrifice for improving the situation of others. You have discovered the meaning of the Cross.” …Referring to going through pain and sacrifice for the benefit of others.

Through the sacrifices we have been asked to make, I think that we to some extent have discovered the meaning of the Cross during these challenging times as well. We have FAITH that the reality of our current challenges are temporary, and that God is with is during our path to better days ahead. I know many people are frustrated and angry that some of their freedoms are being limited, but we have to have faith in our medical community, science advisors, our elected leaders (who are hopefully wise enough to listen to the scientists and make decisions that are best for our communities), and of course, our God.

OPTIMISM is born of the human spirit, and its strength is the strength of the spirits of individuals. Over time, Optimism can be broken down and chipped away. Faith is the conviction that God is working in this imperfect world to bring about something marvelous. Faith does not leave us, and provides a buttress against fear when optimism starts to fade. We don’t need to be discouraged because God is with us, out of sight sometimes, often mysterious. But God will never leave us, and Faith is the conviction that He is there with us, and will bring us a brighter tomorrow. I bid you all to be optimistic during these challenging times. And when that optimism begins to crumble—and it will for all of us, if it hasn’t already—take comfort in your Faith. We WILL get through this. And after the storm, comes the rainbow.

MOLESKIN:
Great to have Manilow and Hands join us! Praise for Manilow’s new job and raise! Prayers for Lillydipper and his wife, and for those affected by the pandemic.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
We need more Qs to step up at the Asylum PM! Please let one of the senior members of the PAX know if you would like some help or to do a Co-Q.

The Return to the Gloom

May 4, 2020 Steam

THE SCENE: Thought it was gonna rain – it didn’t. 60s and feeling good. Ruckers finishing up, men gathering up and catching up at the top parking lot used for Asylum Saturday Qs because the normal morning A) lot and parking lot were taped off.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

In full disclosure – there was a lot of rust needed to be shaken off by the Q this morning so the disclaimer was basically non-existent…..caught it when we finished, so that’s what counts right?……..

Welcomed the men BACK to F3: Fitness – Fellowship – Faith

- Dang it’s good to be back

This is going to look a little different than we’re probably used to – but we’re going to adapt and make it work.

No FNGs

WARM-O-RAMA:

SSH: 10×4 IC

Rockette: 10×4 IC

Imperial Walker: 10×4 IC

Merkins: 10×4 IC

Cherry-Picker: 7×4 IC

3 burpees on your own

THA-THANG:

Split the PAX into 2 groups of 7 – 1 with Steam and the other with Charmin for 2 different workout locations to be safe. Workouts/exercises written in chalk for both teams

10 for 10 + 4 Corners + Pyramid 10 for 10

[ 10 for 10 ]

- 10 light-posts from top parking lot going down to normal AO parking lot
- Every light-post = 10 reps of an exercise
  - Merkins
  - Squats
  - Dry Docks
  - LBCs
  - Imperial Walkers
  - Plank-Jacks
  - Burpees
  - American Hammers
  - SSHs
  - Iron Mikes

[ 4 Corners ]

- 4 corners of normal AO parking lot
- C1 = 25 incline merkins
- C2 = 25 squats
- C3 = 25 line-hops
- C4 = 25 merkins

[ Pyramid 10 for 10 ]

- Going back up the same way we came down except:
  - Every light = # of reps that the light is + the previous light’s exercises and reps
    - For light 1 = 1 SSH
    - For light 2 = 1 SSH + 2 Plank Jacks
    - For light 3 = 1 SSH + 2 Plank Jacks + 3 Burpees
    - So and so forth until you get back to the top and end with 10 merkins (start point)

( Both teams get 30 seconds to breathe and recover —> switch missions/workout locations)

Ping Pong + Fab 5 Crosswalk

- Parking lot just to the left of the Saturday Morning AO parking lot

[ Ping Pong ]

- Cash-In = 25 SSHs (1 count)
- Run to 1st light post in the small parking lot
  - 25 incline merkins on curb
- Duck Walk to 2nd light post in the small parking lot
  - 25 squats (1 count)
- Bernie Sanders to 3rd lightpost in the small parking lot
  - 25 dips on the curb
- Bear Crawl to 4th light post in the small parking lot
  - 25 flutter kicks (4 count)

[ The Fab 5 ]

5 cross-walk lines:
- 1st = 10 merkins
- 2nd = 20 squats
- 3rd = 30 Dry Docks
- 4th = 40 flutter kicks (2 count)
- 5th = 50 SSHs (1 count)
Run to the middle of the parking lot
- 5 merkins — straight into 5 dry docks — straight back into 5 merkins — straight into 5 dry docks
Cash-Out: 25 SSHs (4 count)

(both groups finish about the same time and recover in the starting parking lot)

2 teams of 7 split up – 1 team in 1 corner of the lot and the other in the opposite corner of the lot
2 teams take turn calling out/leading an exercise for 25 reps either on a 1 count or 4 count — then sprinting to the next corner = around the world
1 around the world later — Q calls to circle up – time to end strong
- 10×4 flutter kicks
- 15×4 SSHs

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

Did the count off/name-o-rama from an extended distance

14 PAX – No FNGs

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

“Entertain the idea that there’s a possibility that what you’re going through is not about you.”

MOLESKIN:

Luke 22:31-32

“”Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.””

We have been shaken up, we are being shaken up, and we will continue to be shaken up by an enemy who seeks to exhaust us. The devil knows he can’t win, he can’t destroy us or our faith, but he can work tirelessly to exhaust us in our faith, our relationships, our work, our calling and our purpose. But in the process of being shaken up and sifted – we start to let go of things, start to let things fall off that maybe we didn’t realize were on us – start to become more refined and attuned to being men after God’s own heart.

Entertain the fact that there’s a possibility of what you’re going through is not about you. What if you’re going through this (fill in the bank of something you’re going through) so that you can gain and renew your strength and in turn help someone else through something. Maybe what you’re going through right now has nothing to do with you, but everything to do with how it’s shaping and refining you to further step into kingdom roles as a HIM.

Don’t run or try to fight being shaken by the enemy! Embrace it as a way to test and strengthen yourselves and your faith as HIM so that when the time comes – your strength will be divinely utilized for someone else.

- “….and when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
- As He renews your strength and faith and guides you through life – don’t let it just become stagnant —> internalize and externalize that to strengthen a brother/sister/those around you. Sounds pretty similar to “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” IT’S TRUE.

Last thing: As you walk through whatever you’re walking through and go through whatever you’re going through, entertaining the idea that this may have nothing to do with you, also entertain the idea that you, as a High Impact Man, are walking/going through this for a purpose – for such a time as this.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

F3 Dad’s Camp coming up later this year – reach out to Gibbler for more info
F3 Hike coming up on Saturday, May 16th – look at the event in the main F3 GroupMe – reach out to Steam or Abscess for more info
F3 Morristown Launch is BACK ON: Saturday, June 6 – more info to come
Prayer Requests
- Those who are out of a job and/or looking for a job
- Lillydipper and his family
- BlueBird’s son – interview today
- Pac Man’s sister/family – walking through the loss of a loved one
- Health & Safety of our region and families

Rats and Kings

March 11, 2020 Pele

THE SCENE: The rain gods couldn’t figure out what to do. Intermittent sprinkles, damp, but pretty darn mild! (~60 degrees)
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome, FNG Shawn, who is a friend of Goober!

WARM-O-RAMA:

20 SSH (4-ct), in cadence
11 Cherry Pickers (4-ct), in cadence
High knees 30 sec, butt kickers 30 sec, in place.
10 Steve Earls (4-ct), in cadence
10 Windmills (4-ct), in cadence
Little of this and that

THA-THANG:

MOSEY up Baby Cardiac and veer right towards Cardiac. Going down Cardiac do Reverse Indian Run. First in line Bernie Sanders’ back to end of line and yells GO, signaling next PAX to Bernie. Continue to intersection with trail.

Do “47s” (made up exercise name based on my age. I’m old… ) up the serpentine trail to the road.

- Run 4 lights, then do 7 reps of the following 4 exercises: Big Boy Situps (the pavement was very wet… sorry/not sorry), Carolina Dry Docks, Mountain Climbers, and Bobby Hurleys

MOSEY to Pavillion by northern ball fields. More 47s.

- 7 reps of bench pullups, dips, jump-ups, and decline merkins. RINSE AND REPEAT FOUR TIMES. The first two sets of reps the Q called on the PAX to lead the cadence. The second two reps were at your own pace.

MOSEY to parking lot where morning group meets.

CENTURY CLUB: Do 25 reps of four exercises consecutively, without stopping. Every time you finish a corner, run up baby cardiac and move on to the next corner (counter clockwise) and do the next set of exercises. One of the trips up the hill (PAX choice; most decided to get it out of the way first) must be a Bernie Sanders.

CORNER 1:
- 25 x MERKINS/CAROLINA DRY DOCKS/DIVE BOMBERS/SHOULDER TAPS (4-ct)
CORNER 2:
- 25 x BBS/AMERICAN HAMMER (4-ct)/LBCs/DEAD BUG (4-ct)
CORNER 3 (CMUs):
- 25 x OVERHEAD PRESS/CURLS/ROWS/SQUATS
CORNER 4
- 25 x ROCKY BALBOA (4-ct)/LUNGES/FROGGIE JUMPS/STAR JUMPS

When finished, run to center of parking lot and do 100 SSHs.

(Spoiler alert… we didn’t finish. Most PAX got through 3 of the 4 corners. Q called Recover, then we wrapped up the workout with a final run up baby cardiac together.)
MARY:
No time, and we were too out of breath to call out an exercise anyway.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 strong, including one FNG, Shawn, who we named Saguaro based on the fact that he hails from Arizona. FUN FACT! “Saguaro” can be pronounced with a hard or silent/soft “g”! Who knew?? Goober. Goober knew.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

As discussed in the book Wild at Heart by John Eldridge, Jesus gave us a simple test for taking the measure of something, when he says in MATTHEW Chapter 7 when he’s warning his disciples about false prophets. He says, “They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”

I wanted to build on Lillydipper’s Word a few weeks ago about spreading seeds. What fruit will you bear on this earth? I’m not talking specifically about children, although they are included in this concept, but what will your legacy be? Will it spread and multiply? Will it be good?

I’m a biologist and ecologist by training, so I started thinking about seeds. What kind of seeds are we talking about here? There are two reproductive strategies commonly found in nature that are known as R and K Strategists.

- R Strategists (“Rodents”): Organisms that are “R” strategists produce many seeds (plants) or offspring (animals). They don’t invest much in their creation, they just fling them out in the world and hope that a few survive (e.g., milkweed, dandelion; rats). Good luck my weak little babies and seeds! Adios! See you on the other side!
- K Strategists (“Kings”): Organisms that are “K” strategists produce fewer seeds or offspring that are of higher quality, i.e., more resources are invested in a smaller number in the hopes of improving the survival rate to adulthood. Plants that are K strategists have seeds with protective coatings and nutrients to help the seed establish and survive (e.g., oaks), while animals produce more complex and better developed offspring, and also spend energy and resources protecting them and nurturing them when they’re young and vulnerable (e.g., whales, humans).

I believe we can try to be BOTH when we “spread our seeds”. We obviously can’t follow up and develop strong relationships with each and every person we give a smile to or hold the door for throughout the course of our lives. But these acts of kindness can spread in the world. And to ensure that the seeds closest to us grow and flourish, we CAN and SHOULD invest more into the seeds of kindness will that we sow with those we are close to, our friends, family, F3 brothers, etc. The more we invest, the more likely those efforts will be to bear fruit. Good fruit. Not bad, ugly, prickly fruit. Like those weird things you see in the grocery store with spikes on them. Who eats that??

MOLESKIN:
Congrats to Hooker on the birth of his daughter! Very happy for the proud grandparents, Pinto and Mr. Jinxy. Prayers that she remains healthy and gains strength (there is an interesting synergy here with the seed/fruit topic in the Word…). Prayers for some long-time employees that Sparkler had to lay off this week due to economic downturns. Appreciation to our FNG, Shawn “Saguaro”, who powered through a tough workout all the way to the end. Merlot was disgorged. :-/

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Board meeting to discuss Hardship Hill obstacle construction immediately after the workout (the fact that there will be beer there is purely coincidental). Hardship Hill is May 2. F3 Convergence at JUCO is March 28, with breakfast and third F to follow. Wesley House food drive ends this Wednesday.