F3 Knoxville

Leaders Eat Last

THE SCENE: 92 and full of sunshine
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

15x Side Straddle Hops, 10x Imperial Walkers, 5x Cherry Pickers, A little bit of this, little bit of that, 10x Rockettes

THA-THANG:

Four Corners

CORNER ONE:  Round 1: 25X CMU Curls, Round 2: 25X CMU Bench Press, Round 3: 20x of Both

CORNER TWO:  Round 1: 20X Freddy Mercury’s (4-count), Round 2: 20X Rocky Balboas, Round 3: 10x of Both

CORNER THREE:  Round 1: 25X CMU Good Mornings, Round 2: 25X CMU Rows, Round 3: 20x of Both

CORNER FOUR:  Round 1: 20X Box Cutters, Round 2: 20X LBCs, Round 3: 10x of Both

With COVID rules, we can’t share CMUs.  So…you get to take it with you.

Mosey to the winding hill. At light pole #1, 10x incline Big Boys, at light pole #2, 10x decline Merkins, alternate to the top, rinse and repeat

Mosey towards the AO. 10x bear crawl, 10x lunges, rise and repeat, empty the tank sprint to the bat box.

MARY:

Freddy Mercury’s,H ello Dollies, American Hammers, Plank

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Obviously the world has a lot of things going on these days.  A lot of bad things.  A lot of the things people want to see changed.  But, a lot of people want to just snap their fingers and have it all fixed. They want to go to bed one night in a world full of problems, then wake up the next morning with all those problems solved.

This got me thinking about leading during troubled times and one of my favorite books, “Leaders Eat Last”, by Simon Sinek.  In his book he writes:

“Good leadership is like exercise.  We do not see any improvement to our bodies with day-to-day comparisons.  In fact, if we only compare the way our bodies look on a given day to how it looked on the previous day we would think our efforts had been wasted.  It’s only when we compare pictures of ourselves over a period of weeks or months that we can see a stark difference.  The impact of leadership is best judged over time.”

This resonates with me right now.  Because right now the world needs SUSTAINED leadership.  Not quick fix leadership.  Not a few leaders focusing on the next news cycle.  Not a few leaders saying, “Look what I did”   Right now we need millions of leaders.  Leaders who are more concerned with making an impact than they are with making headlines.  Leaders who are focused on making a difference and improving the lives of our fellow human beings.

Sometimes we all want to see a more immediate impact from our efforts.  But, sometimes that’s just not the timeline the world is on.  More often than not we’re part of the timeline where we’re pushing a giant boulder up a mountain.  It’s actually rare to be the one who pushes it over the top.  With it being unlikely that we will get any recognition for our efforts it becomes imperative to remember why we are pushing that boulder up that mountain.

And, to remember that when results come slowly that we cannot give up.  That our efforts have not been wasted.  And, that our leadership is best judged over time.  We have to remember why we are serving as leaders.  We have to remember it’s all to make the world a better place for our fellow human beings.

“Leadership is not a license to do less.  It’s a responsibility to do more.  Leadership takes work.  It takes time and energy.  The effects are not always easily measured and they are not always immediate.  But, leadership is always a commitment to human beings.”  ~ Simon Sinek

MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
GROW School / Q101 at AsylumPM Thursday.  CSAUP on Saturday.  Title9’s last post before leaving to Oregon will be July 21st.  We plan to set an AsylumPM attendance record for him.

Hill Flutter Pumps

✔ THE SCENE:   75 degrees and clear.. Pretty darn nice!

✔ F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER: Non-pro, free, f3, scale, trolley, covid, cell phone.

✔ WARM-O-RAMA:

  • SSH + Burpees
  • Tempo Flutters
  • Tempo Gas Pumps
  • Flutter Pumps – Adding a gas pump on the fourth count of a flutter kick
  • Cherry Pickers
  • Merkin Hand motions ( diamond, regular, wide, alter left, alter right)
  • High Knees + Burpees
  • 5 different merkins of the day ( diamond, regular, wide, alter left, alter right)

The Thang:  Hill Flutter Pumps

For each hill (8 of them) do 4 rounds of :

At bottom of hill

  1. Diamond Merkin
  2. Merkin
  3. Wide Merkin
  4. Left Arm Alter Merkin
  5. Right Arm Alter Merkin
  6. Diamond Merkin
  7. Merkin
  8. Wide Merkin
  9. Left Arm Alter Merkin
  10. Right Arm Alter Merkin
  11. Run to top of hill
  12. 10 Flutter Pumps at top of hill. (3 single flutter kicks + 1 gas pump)

@ These Hills:

  1. Next to AO
  2. Next to All Saints entrance
  3. South Cedar Bluff Elementary Entrance
  4. North Cedar Bluff Elementary Playground
  5. At the cross
  6. Soccer field fence
  7. At Football field sign
  8. South football field sign

We ran out of time at hill four and had to high tail it back home.

MARY: no time.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

In this time of covid I’ve been skipping church and missing worship.  After church I watch the sermons but fast foreword through worship. This is not good. God caught my heart with some awesome songs by Jeremy Camp over the weekend and it brought me to worship quickly.  I miss worship greatly and once I started to worship it really lifted my heart.  I encourage you my brothers to not forsake worship.. Your heart needs it.  During our workout today I brought around a little speaker and played some rockin worship. I hope it inspired you to press on through the tough times. There are some awesome Christian artists out there today producing great songs. I highly recommend  Jeremy Camp, Sanctus Real, Zach Williams, Unspoken, David Crowder, Austin French, Toby Mac, Big Daddy Weave.  Those were the artists of the playlist we listened to while working out. Then at the end I handed out the lyrics of “Indestructible Soul” by Jeremy Camp.

My flesh may fail me, but my future is secure. These lies may break me down, But one thing is for sure. I will fight again, Find the fire again, For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.  I give it all away, ‘Cause these worldly things will not be the end of me
I know my soul is indestructible
When I’m standing in Your love My fear, it turns to dust
I’ve got this hope, and it’s unbreakable
No power strong enough, Nothing can overcome
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul
I’m walking in the truth that life is in Your hands, Knowing You go before me helps me understand. That You’re my defense, What can stand against.
I know the darkness has no chance. How You lift me up. Keep my eyes above, And now I’m running free.
I know my soul is indestructible
When I’m standing in Your love, My fear, it turns to dust
I’ve got this hope, and it’s unbreakable
No power strong enough, Nothing can overcome
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul
There’s no fire, there’s no pain That can take my peace away. There’s no wall I can’t climb, When it’s You that leads the way. There’s no fire, there’s no pain That can take my peace away There’s no wall I can’t climb When it’s You that leads the way
My soul is indestructible
When I’m standing in Your love My fear, it turns to dust
I know my soul is indestructible
When I’m standing in Your love My fear, it turns to dust
I’ve got this hope, and it’s unbreakable
No power strong enough Nothing can overcome
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul
My indestructible soul

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Pom Pom and GiJane for Wednesday.  Welcome FNG “West Coast”!!

The Lord Is In This Place Although We May Not Know It

THE SCENE: Thunderstorms initially but clearing after we got started
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

We met at Northern Ball Fields Pavilion instead of Admin Bldg parking lot due to the initial thunderstorm.  We started with:  20 Side-Straddle Hops, 10 Pinto Twists, 10 Picnic Table Pull-ups, 10 Bench Dips, 10 Tempo Merkins, 10 Cherry Pickers, Arm Swings, Little of This and That
THA-THANG:
Mosey to parking lot with islands in it that is south of northern ball fields.  Stop to do 20 American Hammers.  Mosey to CMU Pile.  Each man grabs one CMU.  There will be cones placed in the CMU Pile parking lot and the shady parking lot directly across the street.  We will make the circuit of cones four times.  These are the exercises at each cone:

  • Cone 1:  (with CMUs) 1. 25 Overhead Presses  2. 25 Curls  3. 25 Squats  4. 25 Rows  (Bernie to Cone 2 )
  • Cone 2:  1. 20 Curb Jumps  2. 10 Burpees  3. 20 Squat Jumps  4. 20 Bobby Hurleys  (Run to Cone 3)
  • Cone 3:  1. 20 Hello Dollies (4 ct)  2. 20 Flutter Kicks (4 ct)  3. 20 Box Cutters  4. 20 Bicycle Kicks (4 ct) (Bear Crawl to Cone 4)
  • Cone 4:  1. 20 Iron Mikes (both legs = 1) 2. 20 Mountain Climbers (both legs = 1)  3. 10 Burpees 4. 20 Plank Jacks (High Knees to Cone 5)
  • Cone 5:  1. 10 Hand Release Merkins 2. 20 Merkins 3. 20 Big Boys 4. 15 Shoulder Taps (both shoulders = 1) (Lunge to Cone 6.)
  • Cone 6. 1. 10 Burpees.  40 Baby Crunches.  3. 20 Diamond Merkins.  4. 20 Carolina Dry Docks.  (Butt Kick to Cone 7).
  • Cone 7:  1. Run to top of Mini Cardiac (to the crosswalk) and then run back to Cone 1.  2, 3 and 4.  Same as above.

Go back to CMUs that are at Cone 1.  Do the following exercises with CMUs, running to curb at other side of parking lot and back after each exercise:

  • 25 Overhead Presses
  • 25 Curls
  • 25 Squats
  • 25 Rows

Replace CMUs.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
We had 13 men with no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Examining What We Take For Granted

In our lives we need to take a close look, more often than what we usually do, at the things we take for granted.  This Coronavirus Epidemic has been a reminder to me, and I know it has to you as well, of things that we take for granted.  Hugging our friends.  Standing together for a picture.  For me, going to Coffeeteria with my buddies.  Watching Current sporting events on television.  Going to a good old crowded restaurant, even if you have to wait to be seated. Feeling the jostle and enthusiasm of sitting with fans at a sporting event.  Going to a live music concert.  For some of us, staying in a hotel.  Going up to greet a neighbor without having to stand a social distance away from them.  Dropping your kids off at school without worrying about what the school will look like, how your children will keep their masks on, whether they may be exposed to Covid-19, or whether school might have to close again.  Finding what you want at a grocery store.  Helping out an old man or lady without scaring them because you might expose them to “you know what.”  The fact is, we are blessed with so much that we rarely take a close look at.  It sometimes takes awful events, tragedy or pandemics to make us truly see.  I know Pinto always loved coming to F3 workouts but I guarantee he thinks on it more poignantly because he is suffering Multiple Myeloma.  I know Filter will yearn for F3 now that he tore his Achilles.  I know Thunderstruck has always loved his mother but I think now of how he relishes the days with her knowing she has cancer.  My wife’s breast cancer has certainly brought home the idea of how much she means to me.

Even in this difficult year of 2020 we can look to see the ways we are blessed.  In those awful days in late March and April when I couldn’t work out with you guys, it sure helped me to just sit on my porch and watch the birds.  To see the flowering trees and bushes.  We may not be able to go to movie theaters or watch live sporting events but we can certainly spend meaningful time with our families.  The mountain, the stars, the cool breeze on a hot summer day, the blue sky, the smell or rain, the wandering animals, even the tiny little crawling insects are still there for us to observe or experience.  I encourage you to just take some time now and then to be thankful for it.  And, thank our Lord for it.  He is still there, he is still Majestic, even in 2020.
MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Crispr’s father who just had total knee replacement surgery; for Thunderstruck’s mom as she continues with chemotherapy and for Lillydipper’s wife as she continues with chemotherapy.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
We will have Q101 at Asylum PM on Thursday, June 16.  Don’t forget CSAUP at Dog Pound on June 18.

#2ForTuesday

THE SCENE: Insert info about the weather, etc.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness/Fellowship/Faith
  • My name is Steam and I’m honored to be your Q this evening. And welcome to #2ForTuesday
  • ANy FNGs?
  • Couple things before we begin:
    • I’m not a professional
    • You’re here on your own volition – aka you’re here on purpose.
    • I don’t know any injuries you may or may not have – so if you need to modify anything we do this evening feel free to do it, but push yourself and the men around you! They deserve it and so do you.
    • I do have water and medical gear in my pack just so everypone is aware – and I will have my phone on me for the duration of the Q.
    • If at any point in time you feel dizzy or overheated – let someone know immediately. We’re gonna watch each other’s 6 and push each other, but safety is #1.
    • And I know that this point has been driven in time and time again – but if you’re not hydrating before you come out here and try and do an intense workout, ideally the day before at the latest, there’s potential that you’re going to be a liability and risk to no other’s safety. So hydrate. This heat doesn’t mess around.


WARM-O-RAMA:

 

  • SSH: 20 x 4 IC
    • #2FT
  • Squat: 15 x 4 IC
    • #2FT
  • Imperial Walker: 10 x 4 IC
    • #2FT
  • Man-Maker: 5 x 4 IC
    • #2FT
  • 10 Motivators (All on a 4 count – except the final count/hops)
    • (1) SSH
    • (2) Half SSH
    • (3) Legs only SSH
    • (4) Hops (1 count)
    • Finished at 2 – killer

THA-THANG:

(mosey to CMU pile)

—Lightpost trail by Pickett’s Charge—

  • Every lightpost for 8 total lightposts = 1 Man-Maker
  • When you get done with your 8th Man-Maker – execute Plank-Ups on a 4 count
  • #2FT –> back up the hill for 8 lightposts – do the same thing

(mosey to CMU pile down the hill)

—CMU Pile—

  • Grab a CMU each
  • Quarter Pounder
    • 25 Curls
      • Sprint to the flag by the pavilion = 1 burpee
      • sprint back
  • 25 chest presses
    • sprint to the flag by the pavilion = 1 burpee
    • sprint back
  • 25 swings
    • sprint to the flag by the pavilion = 1 burpee
    • sprint back
  • 25 1-handed merkins (rotate hands)
    • sprint to the flag by the pavilion = 1 burpee
    • sprint back
  • PAX executes 25 x 4 flutter kicks (x2 for #2FT)
  • PAX executes 10 SSHs on a 4 count

(mosey across the street to Pickett’s Charge hill)

  • 2 lines going all the way up the hill – American Indian run style.

 

  • At the very top – PAX is halted and reminded of “No Man Left Behind – No Man Left the Same” — 10 up/down merkins
  • Mosey back to the AO

MARY:

6 Minutes in Heaven

  • SSH
  • Imperial Walkers
  • Final 4 minutes = work on recovering/breathing/stretching techniques

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

25 PAX

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

 

  • “Expiration Dates”
    • This is something I want to share because this is a lesson I’ve learned before – I’ve just mislabled it. But I’m going through it right now again and have been able to use discernment to better understand what’s really happening.
    • When you think of an expiration date, let’s say on something in your fridge for example – it’s a prophecy of what’s to come. On this date – this will no longer be in your best interest or be good for you to consume. They’re pretty self explanatory right?
    • The reason for the expiration date is so that it can be removed so something else can take it’s place. Not just anything else – but something that’s good, something that is new and fresh. If I keep milk that’s past it’s expiration date in my fridge, it’s only existing to take up space in my fridge, instead of being replaced with something that’s more lifegiving. And you know what happens when you keep something that’s past it’s expiration date in your fridge? It starts to spread an aroma or an unpleasant smell – thus making the fridge and anyone who opens the fridge that much more aware that something expired is still being housed.
    • But what happens when things don’t have a nice, printed out expiration date right on the front? What do you do then?
    • There are things in life that will become expired without you even knowing it. There are things in your life that will have an expiration date that at the time of purchase you never thought would have an expiration date. But the producer and supplier did.
    • And that’s a hard thing to acknowledge sometimes – when there’s something in your life that’s past it’s expiration date and you can tell. How can you tell? Because of it’s aroma and the way it is affecting other things in your metaphorical fridge (your life). These could be things that are good! These could be things that you don’t want to have an expiration date and you’re looking up at the producer asking why did this have to expire?
    • Because the producer knows something else is coming. The producer knows that sometimes things that we wanted to keep in our fridge had an expiration date from the very beginning and just because they were in our fridge at one point doesn’t mean they were designed to stay there forever.
    • Let me back this up with what I think being a responsible fridge owner that seeks wisdom and discernment looks like – or as we refer to – High Impact Men
    • 1 Corinthians 13:11 — “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.”
    • It’s hard to recognize some things in your life might have an expiration date. It is. I’ve been there. I’m there right now. But until you remove what has become expired, it’s gonna be really hard for the producer to take you higher.

Perspective

THE SCENE: Foggy, temps in high 60’s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Jump Squats, Around the World Each Hand, 10 Cherry Pickers, 10 Windmills, Michael Phelps

THA-THANG:
Mosey to Southern Ball Fields Parking Lot.  We will circle the parking lot twice, stopping at each cone to perform exercise and moving to the next cone by the method designated on the cone:

  • Cone 1:  20 Bobby Hurleys.  Butt Kick to Cone 2.
  • Cone 2:  20 Hello Dollies (4 ct). Sprint to Cone 3
  • Cone 3:  20 Iron Mikes (both legs = 1).  Bear Crawl to Cone 4.
  • Cone 4:  20 Merkins.  Bernie to Cone 5.
  • Cone 5:  20 Big Boy Sit-ups.  High Knees to Cone 6.
  • Cone 6:  20 Star Jumps.  Grapevine Left to Cone 7.
  • Cone 7:  20 Flutter Kicks (4 ct).  Hop to Cone 8.
  • Cone 8:  20 Carolina Dry Docks.  Grapevine Right to Cone 1.

Mosey toward the Northshore Entrance to park.  We will stop at shaded area by apt buildings.  20 American Hammers.  10 Tempo Merkins.

Mosey to stop sign at southeastern corner of Admin Bldg.  30 second gander at scenery.  Mosey to Bat House.  We will do High Mountain Roundabout which will be the following:

  • 10 Hand Release Merkins by Bat House.  Then run down initial steps of Roadshow Run to grassy field below.
  • 20 Diamond Merkins.  Then run to grove of trees just below summit of Mt. Everest.
  • 10 Burpees.  Then run uphill to summit of Mt. Everest.
  • 20 Boy Boy Sit-ups.
  • Rinse and Repeat above.

Next, we will run down Roadshow Run to Perimeter Trail. From there we will head on trail toward Lyons Bend.  At perimeter trail we will head east and across road that goes to entrance way at Lyons Bend.  We will cross the roadway and stop to do 20 American Hammers.

We will then head on trail east and south to lower area parking lot.  We will head that way by doing 14’s, lunging for one light and then sprinting for four until we reach parking lot.

Next, head back to AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
16 men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
2020 has certainly been a difficult year and citizens in our country are a bit on edge right now.  You see it in the arguments between citizens on how serious a threat the Coronavirus truly is and whether we should be opening businesses at this time.  You see it in the protests going on related to the recent killings of black men by police.  Whether you support or are against opening up during the Coronavirus, whether you tend to look favorably upon the protests or are more prone to see the destruction caused by rioters, it is easy to judge that “other side”.  In some of our BOMs, however, we have been asking ourselves whether this is what God wants us to do.  Should we angrily judge someone whose ideas are different than ours or should we try to love them and make the attempt to understand their perspective?

We can learn to love even our worst enemies if we can learn to truly put ourselves in their shoes, openly hear their stories, and do so in a non-judging way.  And I think that is what we are needing more of at this time when politicians and even newspapers and news stations make quick judgments and fail to view the perspective of the other side.

When I spoke in my last BOM, I did not have time to talk about a story that I had actually included in the written Back Blast. The story is about White Fang.  White Fang is the name of a novel written by Jack London.  Some of you may have read it.  In the novel, White Fang is a vicious dog, one that will strike you and tear you apart.  He is a dog to avoid because his look and actions spell D-A-N-G-E-R and H-A-R-M.  Why is he like this?  Part of the reason is his genetics.  He is part wolf and wolves can certainly be savage.  The bigger reason, however, it that he has been taken advantage of by humans his entire life.  He has been beaten by others for use as a work and sled dog and has been unfairly used by men in betting games where White Fang fights with other dogs.  A guy named Weedon Scott meets White Fang for the first time after one of these fights where White Fang is almost killed.  He takes pity on the dog and takes him away from it’s current owner who has used him in the dog fights.  He feeds the dog and nurtures him back to life.  The dog doesn’t trust him but Weedon certainly can understand why, given what the dog has gone through.  Weedon slowly, slowly gets closer to the dog, trying to develop a bond with him.  At one point he goes too quickly and is viciously bitten.  But, Weedon doesn’t give up on the dog.  He takes the dogs perspective, realizing that he had tried to quickly to pet the dog when the dog feared him and didn’t trust him.  He continues to feed the dog, continues to use cooing language and weeks later touches the dog again.  White Fang growls a low growl.  He both doesn’t like the touch but also likes it.  This touch thing is different and for some reason it feels good.  Over time the man and dog form a wonderful bond. Those of you who love dogs know what that bond can be like.  Weedon Scott is long longer seen as a threat – he is seen as a Love God by White Fang.  This once vicious dog is so strongly bonded to Weedon that he will do anything for him.  And, at the end of the book he saves both Weedon Scott and his family from their own harm and possible deaths.

As HIMs, we can learn to patient and loving.  We can learn to take the perspective of others, even when we don’t agree with their opinions.  We can learn to love our enemy as Jesus would want us to do.  In so doing, we may form bonds we never thought we could have and even change the lives of those former enemies for the better.

MOLESKIN:

Praise for Choir Boy’s wife that, although she is having lymph node issues, her Ultra Sound looked good.  Prayers for the wife of Rainbow’s wive’s grandmother who is at her last days of life.  Prayers for Rainbow’s friend whose wife died.  Prayers for Lillydipper’s wife, Jan, who is undergoing chemotherapy treatment at this time for breast cancer.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Q101 is occurring this morning at Bomb Shelter