F3 Knoxville

As Long As…

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Pele (Jon Lindberg)
PAX: Steam, Lilydipper, Brick, CRISPR, Pusher, Tenderfoot, Rooney (Carl Whipple), Abscess, Dain Bramage (Will Olson), High Heels (Henry Ritchie), Title IX (Christian Prescott), Crash Dummy, Pele (Jon Lindberg), MD Hammer, Switchhitter (Tony)
FNGs: None
COUNT: 16
WARMUP: -20 SSSH (4-ct IC)
– 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct IC)
– 10 Steve Earles (4-ct IC)
-10 Bonnie Blairs (4-ct IC)
-10 BAC forward and backward (4-ct IC)

THE THANG: Mosey up Baby Cardiac, AIKEN LEGS: 20 squats, 20 jump squats. 20 Lunges. 20 SSH left foot up, 20 SSH right foot up
Mosey to top of Cardiac. CARDIAC PYRAMID
– Run down to 1st curve, 10 Merkins, 10 BBS, 10 Squats, run back
– Run down to 2nd curve, 20 Merkins, BBS, Squats, run back
– Run to bottom, 30 Merkins, BBS, Squats
– Run up to 2nd curve, 20 Merkins, BBS, Squats, back to bottom
– Run up to 1st curve, 10 Merkins, BBS, Squats, and back.
Mosey to intersection of paths, 15 Imperial Walkers
Mosey to New pavilion.
– 20 Step ups
– 20 incline Merkins
– 20 Bench Pull ups
– 20 Isometric Squats

Mosey to Main Pavilion, Get Rocks! Go to Parking Lot curb.
– PARTNER UP. 1 partner runs up baby Cardiac, does 5 Star Jumps, run back . Partner 2 do 1 exercise while partner running up, other while he’s returning)
Round 1: CURLS/TRICEPS
Round 2: OVERHEAD PRESS/ AROUND THE WORLD
Mosey to AO

MARY: American Hammers, Tempo Squats, stretching.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Ruck Events!
COT:We talked about the trust-based contract between a Q and the PAX and it’s similar between the PAX and F3… the “As long as” phrase. I will continue to follow you “As long as” that trust isn’t breached. F3 has a special formula, a secret sauce, and whatever it is, it works, so my approach is “Don’t try to fix it!” Maintain the strategy of growth, but make sure that the fundamental aspects remain unchanged (This is the Weasel Shaker in me coming out…); free of charge, open to all men, welcoming and encouraging, etc. etc. It has had a huge impact just like it is in my life, and in many others’ lives. Aye!

Heavy Day Battle for the Ghost Flag at the Equalizer

THE SCENE: Gloomy, but not too humid
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER: Done and done 
WARM-O-RAMA:

Basic Blindside-y warmup things: SSH, LBAC each way, This, That, tempo squats
THA-THANG:
Sometimes things change. Because it was a heavy day, the Q was expecting a lower number in attendance. What he forgot was that the Ghost Flag was in attendance… so we had visitors.

Quick Mosey to Picnic Table near the Tennis Courts and partner up. Each group will draw a card from the deck, multiply the number of the card by 10 (all face cards are “10” and Aces are “15). Each group is in charge of completing that number of reps of each exercise represented by card suit. Jokers are automatically 25 squats with either the 40# or 60# sandbag on shoulders.

  • Spades: Lunges and Imperial Squat Walkers
  • Clubs: Merkins and 2 count Shoulder Taps
  • Diamonds: BBS and American Hammers
  • Hearts: Flutter Kicks and Hello Dollys

After all the cards were taken, each group were asked to “give up” their highest, lowest, and one other card of their choosing back to the pile.

Once time was called, all of the Shamrock & Asylum PM combined their cards into piles and played a game of WAR. After one round, Shamrock ended with 23 cards and Asylum PM ended with 6. Each group did that # of burpees. Equalizer guys joined in to help.

Asylum PM grabbed the Ghost Flag having 5 guys at the workout!

MARY:
Not Enough Time.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
15 HIMs, 0 FNGs, and a certain number of Ruckers (unknown to the Q)
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
“Only the guy who isn’t rowing can rock the boat.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
F3 in the Nude –> Saturday, July 29th
Ghost Flag –> Taken by ASYLUM PM

Gladiator Bear

THE SCENE: Beautiful morning with the BSIA.  60 degrees, sunny, low humidity.  Aahhhhh….
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Performed adequately.
WARM-O-RAMA:

-Motivators (5-count, descending)

– 10 Rockettes (4-ct, IC)

– 10 Tempo Merkins (4-ct, IC)

– BAC forward and backward (4-ct, IC)

– Bolt 45s

– 10 Cherry Pickers (4-ct, IC)

– Little of this and that

THA-THANG:

MOSEY up Baby Everest to trail that leads to Lyons View entrance

Nickel/Dime Quarters!

Run 1 light do 5 reps, run 2 lights do 10 reps, run 5 lights do 25 reps.  Stop at base of Everest.  Exercises:

  1. MTN CLIMBERS (4-ct)     2. MERKINS  3.  FROGGY JUMPS

BASE OF EVEREST:

BERNIE up Everest until you hit failure.  When you do, do the Failure Ritual of Shame: 20 Merkins/20 Big Boys/20 Squats.  Run up the Summit to the road.  LBCs until the 6 catches up.

MOSEY to Small “Dora” parking lot.

5/10/15s: Get a battle buddy, while one BB jogs back and forth in the bullpen, the other runs up to the stop sign to do two exercises 5x.  Switch off.  Next time 10x, then 15x.   3 Rounds:

ROUND 1:  PETER PARKERS/BOTTLE OPENERS (both 2-ct)

ROUND 2: BIG BOY SITUPS/GAS PUMPS

ROUND 3: BOBBY HURLEYS/IMPERIAL WALKERS (2-ct) (We didn’t finish the “15” round of this last one)

MOSEY TO FIELD BELOW:

ULTIMATE FRISBEE! Divide into two teams.  Rules:

  • Frisbee hits the ground, team that drops it does 2 Deconstructed Burpees. The other team CANNOT START until those are done.
  • Score a touchdown, Scoring team does 5 CHEERLEADERS while losing team does 5 DECONSTRUCTED BURPEES and runs to the other side to receive kickoff
  • WINNER of contest gets a 20 second WALK MOSEY Head start back to the AO. When losers catch them, AYG back to the AO.

MARY:
American Hammers, Hommer/Marge
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
14 Strong + a poochie (Tank)
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

I’ve watched two very different shows recently that highlighted some of the same key attributes of leadership that I’d like to talk about today a little bit.  I’ve never considered myself a particularly strong leader, more of a leader by example, but I’ve been trying to improve my leadership skills here and there, and by seeing examples of how it can be done helps give me some pointers.

The first example is a show called BEAR, about a chef who has absolutely climbed the ladder globally, and was working at one of the best restaurants in the world when his brother dies, leaving him a run down Italian beef joint in downtown Chicago that is nearly bankrupt.  All the other workers there are blue-collar types who have worked there for years, and even though he’s “family”, they think of him as a snob, an outsider, and a disruptor.  The way he leads the group to try to get the restaurant back on its feet is impressive, and I wanted to mention a few things specifically.

  • Right off the bat he calls everyone “Chef” as a sign of respect. Everyone is in the same boat, everyone equal.
  • He observes and sees each worker’s strengths and gives them the freedom to pursue their passions within the confines of the restaurant. One guy really loves baking and making desserts, and he allows him to pursue that passion.
  • He does the dirty work. Literally. He’s on his hands and knees scrubbing the floor after everyone else has gone home.

Then there’s a scene in the movie Gladiator, when Russell Crowe’s character, who is an ex-commander of the Roman army that has been wrongfully imprisoned and trapped in the world of the gladiators, is released into the Colosseum in Rome with other criminals to be slaughtered for entertainment by a much better-armed group of gladiators.  His leadership qualities immediately kick in.

  • Before the battle begins, he asks who else has served in the military. A few nod, and he asks for their help.  Makes them feel important.
  • Right before combat, he tells his group to stick together and cooperate. It will give them a better chance to survive.
  • He is one of the first to engage the enemy group. He organizes and inspires his fellow gladiators and they end up winning the battle.

Some commonalities between the two scenarios.

  1. Give others belief in themselves and their unique abilities. Find out what makes them tick, what their skills and passions are, and recognize and encourage them.
  2. Lead from the front. When it’s time to get your hands dirty, be the first to stick them deep in the mud.
  3. When it’s crunch time, whether during a crisis in the kitchen or if you find yourself in a life and death battle in a gladiator arena, step up. Give others confidence.

MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Asylum cleanup next Saturday 9 am!

Snow-No

THE SCENE: Cloudy, right at freezing, was supposed to be snowing, but just a light drizzle/sleet/winter mix that did change to snow during the last 15 minutes of the workout.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER  Check.

WARM-O-RAMA:

-15 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence – Run across parking lot and back

– 8 Abe Vigodas (4-ct), in cadence – Bernie across and back

– 15 Grady Corns (4-ct), in cadence – Super Mario across and back

– 15 Tempo Squats (4-ct), in cadence

THA-THANG:

MOSEY up the Dragon’s tail to stop sign past the Rock.

  • 20 Imperial Squat walkers, 4-ct, IC

Partner UP!

  • Partner 1 Bernie’s to guard rail, runs to tree, 5 Jump Squats, run back
  • Partner 2 Alternates between 10 Deconstructed Burpees (doing all components of the Burpee separately) and 10 Froggy Jumps
  • R&R

Snowgazers: Catch 5 SNOWFLAKES ON YOUR TONGUE!  (this didn’t work out, seeing as there was no snow…)

MOSEY to Overlook/Coliseum:

  • SMEAR THE Q!
    • Get in a line, take a shot at hitting the Q with a Snowball. Everyone gets three tries.  Hit = 10 ct stargazer.  Miss = 5 Deconstructed burpees.  A hit to the face or groin = 10 Real burpees for all of us.  Do SSH while you wait your turn.  (again, had to modify this since there was no snow.  PAX picked 3 numbers between 1 and 10, another PAX secretly selected the number, if the number was picked, it was a HIT, otherwise a miss.)

Mosey to Roundabout. (RIGHT when we got here it started to snow… Arrrgh)

5/10/15s.  Partner 1 runs to curb and does 5x of 2 exercises, trades off with partner.  R&R with 10 x.  R&R with 15 x.  Partner not doing exercises is doing a slow mosey in the bullpen.

ROUND 1 Exercises: PLANK JACKS AND PETER PARKERS

ROUND 2 Exercises:  SMURF JACKS AND BOBBY HURLEYS

Mosey to AO.
MARY:
No time
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
9 strong
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Aristotle had a theory that men take on a particular quality by engaging in a particular behavior.  You’ve probably all heard the expression “You are what you eat.”  This might be altered to “You are what you do… over and over and over again.”

Aristotle: Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting a particular way… you become just by performing just actions, temperate by performing temperate actions, brave by performing brave actions

I’ve mentioned before that I’m not big on New Year’s Resolutions.  First of all, they set you up for failure, and then comes the wave of guilt if you don’t reach that goal.  Second, they’re temporary.  You may achieve whatever goal you set out to do, whether it’s to lose 10 pounds, abstain from alcohol for a month, save enough money to purchase a new couch, or whatever, but then what happens?  You go right back to your old ways.

A better approach might be to take a page out of Aristotle’s book and focus on Behavior rather than Goals.  By changing Behavior, you establish patterns that pay off with results and are more long term.  You become what you do.  Instead of setting a goal of losing 10 pounds, try to reduce your sugar and carb intake.  Instead of stopping alcohol cold turkey, use the “I’ll have one later” approach to delay the number of drinks you have.  Instead of saving for a new TV or couch, which, once paid off, may result in you going back to spending more than you need to, set up small automatic transfers of your pay check into a savings account.  And as HIMs, don’t think to yourself, “Gee, I’ll try to be more of a HIM this month”.  Instead, integrate acts of character, leadership, and positive encouragement to those around you on a regular basis.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Jetlag’s family and Jinxy’s family as they go through some health issues, prayers for Curveball’s parents who were not answering the phone recently, prayers for Abacus’ mom
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Triple birthday Hot Toddy Q this Saturday!

These Are the Days

THE SCENE: Windy, windy, windy, temp about 66 degrees.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 second squat, 10 Mountain Climbers, 20 second squat, 10 Cherry Pickers, 30 second squat, 5 Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward as well as 5 Wide Arm Circles Forward and Backward, 60 second squat.
THA-THANG:
We will split into two groups.  Group 1 start in the pavilion while Group 2 will start on the Playground.  We will do 10 Picnic Table Pullups and 10 Incline Merkins at the picnic tables.  We will do 10 Bench Jumps and 10 Decline Merkins on the benches.  After each man does the exercises he should run to his right side of the pavilion do the next set of exercises at the next spot.  Rinse and repeat 3 times.

Mosey to the bottom of mini cardiac.  We will Bernie Sanders to Park Sign then run to the crosswalk.

Mosey to the stop sign where the road goes to the admin bldg.  We will circle up to do 20 Hello Dollies.

Mosey to the parking lot that is below the Coliseum.  Men will split into teams of two and will do Doras.  While partner one runs up stairs, across the coliseum area to the end of the parking lot, and back to the spot we are gathered at, partner two does the exercises.  Partners then switch.  Here are the exercises:

  • 150 Jump Squats
  • 150 Iron Mikes (both feet = 1)
  • 150 Bicycle Kicks (4 ct)
  • 150 Flutter Kicks (4 ct)

Mosey to roadway that semicircles by the soccer fields.  We will run around the semi-circle doing two burpees after every ten stakes in the grass.  Men finishing first will alternate between Merkins and Big-Boy Sit-ups.

Mosey to the large parking lot is near what used to be the southern ball fields.

We will do suicides to each light post and then the end of the parking lot.  Each time a man comes back to the curb he should do 20 Baby Crunches.

Mosey to the AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
21 men with one FNG, Darrell Roberts, whom we dubbed “Hochuli.”  We were also blessed to have Trunk and Submarine visit us as they are usually at the Truck Stop on Saturday mornings.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Ask guys who are in their 60s like me.  Life is short.  We need to accept the glory and beauty of what God has given us here.  Man, we need to savor these days, bless them, hold them in our hearts.  The time is now.  Why wait until we are in retirement or on our deathbeds to enjoy God’s gift to us.  The other day, I was listening to one of my favorite songs by Van Morrison, one that you might not have heard as it isn’t as famous as some of his others.  It captures the idea of our needing to cherish our time here on earth while thinking of our savior who has blessed us with the gift of life.

“These Are The Days” by Van Morrison

These are the days of the endless summer
These are the days, the time is now
There is no past, there’s only future
There’s only here, there’s only now
Oh your smiling face, your gracious presence
The fires of spring are kindling bright
Oh the radiant heart and the song of glory
Crying freedom in the night
These are the days by the sparkling river
His timely grace and our treasured find
This is the love of the one magician
Turned the water into wine
These are days of the endless dancing and the
Long walks on the summer night
These are the days of the true romancing
When I’m holding you oh, so tight
These are the days by the sparkling river
His timely grace and our treasured find
This is the love of the one great magician
Turned water into wine
These are the days now that we must savor
And we must enjoy as we can
These are the days that will last forever
You’ve got to hold them in your heart.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Cheatsheet as the new parenting plan that will be made for he and the mother of Cheatsheet’s daughter, Willow.  Prayers for all those impacted by the tornados that swept through Kentucky last night.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Christmas Party!  Also, great job by F3 men in helping with Christmas projects to help others in our community.