F3 Knoxville

Holiness is Not a Trait. It is a Result

THE SCENE: The weather outside is the weather. 

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER: Did this very well.

WARM-O-RAMA:

Blindside warm-upy things (I do the same warm-up every time I Q, pay attention). 

THA-THANG:

Tennis Courts: Each court has a different routine. Both are explained and PAX chooses where to begin. When one is finished, complete the other one. Repeat each routine 5 times. 

  • Routine 1: 
    • 5 Burpees to start 
    • Shuffle along baseline right to left
    • Sprint diagonally to net shuffle along net right to left sprint diagonally to far baseline
    • 5 Burpees 
    • Retrace steps, shuffling left to right this time
    • 5 Burpees at the start
  • Routine 2: 
    • 10 Merkins at the first corner
    • Lunge down baseline
    • Sprint to the opposite baseline along the sideline 
    • 20 LBCs at baseline
    • Lunge to net
    • Bear Crawl to the middle of the net
    • 10 Squats
    • Bear Crawl back to the sideline
    • Walk back to start

Tennis Court Kraken: Grab a CMU. Kraken consists of completing an exercise, taking a lap around the outside of the fence, passing your previous station, and going to the next. All exercises are 20 reps. 

Stations:

  • Merkins
  • 4 ct. Flutter Kicks 
  • OH Press
  • 4 ct. Hello Dolly
  • Squats 
  • Calf Raises
  • LBCs
  • Imperial Walkers 

MARY:

Back and forth between Squat and Merkin Ring of Fire 

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

20 HIMs; 1 FNG (Squeakers); 5 PreRuckers; 1 PreRunner; Several Kotters

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Holiness isn’t a trait. It is a result.

Friends of God

THE SCENE: Windy, temp in high sixties.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Mountain Climbers, 8 Twisties, 5 Burpees, 10 Windmills, 10 Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward.

THA-THANG:

Mosey to beginning of the Dragon Tail.  We will do Route 66 up the Dragon Tail with Squat Jumps as the exercise.  Those getting to the top first circle back to the six and go up with them.

Mosey on perimeter trail to the stop sign by the road that goes to Admin Bldg.  We will do 20 Hello Dollies and 15 Merkins.

Mosey on perimeter trail until it gets close to Lyons Bend.  We will do 20 American Hammers and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to bottom of Mt Everest.  We will do 20 Flutter Kicks and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to the Utility Bldg.  We will do 20 Bicycle Kicks and 15 Merkins.

Mosey up the road from Northshore Gate until we hit parking lot on left.  We will do 20 Box Cutters and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to Parking Lot by Apartments.  We will do 20 Hello Dollies and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to roadway that goes by Outdoor Chapel.  We will do 20 Bench Dips at curb and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to parking lot that goes by new restrooms.  We will do 20 American Hammers and 15 Merkins.

Mosey to parking lot by entrance to ball parks.  We will do 20 Flutter Kicks and 15 Merkins.

Next, we will sprint from one curb in the parking lot to the other and back, doing 3 burpees at each curb.  We will Bernie Sanders from one curb to the other and back, doing 3 burpees at each curb.  We will rinse and repeat above.

Mosey to AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
17 men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Some of you may have heard of a signer called Nightbirde.  Her actual name is Jane Marczewski.  At age 30 she has survived very difficult stints of cancer.  The first time she was diagnosed in 2017, she was told she would live for only 3 to 6 months.  She was cancer free after treatment but the cancer came back in 2018.  At that time, her husband of five years left her.  Through painful treatment she became cancer free again in July of 2020.  She went on to perform her own song, “It’s OK” in the 16th Season of America’s Got Talent in 2021.  Her song, “It’s OK” went to number one on I Tunes and number two on You Tube. Before the quarterfinals of American’s Got Talent, she announced she had cancer again and had to withdrawal.

Something that has been both surprising and inspirational about this 30-year-old woman is her faith in God through the torment and continuing battles with cancer.  Her relationship with God is certainly not a simple and sweet one.  But it has been very personal, and God wants us to have that same personal relationship with him.  She says:

“I am God’s downstairs neighbor, banging on the ceiling with a broomstick. I show up at His door every day. Sometimes with songs, sometimes with curses. Sometimes apologies, gifts, questions, demands. Sometimes I use my key under the mat to let myself in. Other times, I sulk outside until He opens the door to me Himself,” she continued. “I have called Him a cheat and a liar, and I meant it. I have told Him I wanted to die, and I meant it. Tears have become the only prayer I know. Prayers roll over my nostrils and drip down my forearms. They fall to the ground as I reach for Him. These are the prayers I repeat night and day; sunrise, sunset.”

Nightbirde proclaims that her relationship with God has grown through the process. She states:

“Call me bitter if you want to—that’s fair. Count me among the angry, the cynical, the offended, the hardened. But count me also among the friends of God. For I have seen Him in rare form. I have felt His exhale, laid in His shadow, squinted to read the message He wrote for me in the grout {of the bathroom floor}.

As for the name she chose to go by as a singer, Jane Marczewski says, “I want to be the bird that sings in anticipation of the good things that I trust are coming.”

Gents, let us take courage from the words of this small 30-year-old woman who weighs less than 100 pounds.  Let us count ourselves among the friends of God.
MOLESKIN:
Prayers for safe travels for Pusher and family to San Francisco on Thursday; for Corona Weight and his family as he will have over 180 days of travel with his job in 2022; for Rooney’s church family; for Swimmies and his family as they move to new home this week; and, for Jinxy and his family as his daughter, Carli, and his son-in-law, Hooker, are going to have another baby.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Asylum workout on Saturday will be at 8:30 am instead of 7:00 am.  Polar Bear Plunge will be at noon at fork in river near Townsend.

Cat’s in the Cradle

THE SCENE: Beautiful! Around 80 degrees, very low humidity. Aaaaaah!

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Check

WARM-O-RAMA:

– 15 Split Jacks L, 15 Split Jacks R (4ct, IC)

– 15 Moroccan Nightclub (4 ct, IC)

–  10 Rockettes (4 ct, IC)

–  10 Cherry Pickers (4 ct, IC)

–  10 Tempo Merkins (4 ct, IC)

THA-THANG:

Mosey to bottom of Everest.  We learned, to our astonishment, that the Great Pyramids are actually not in Egypt, they’re at the bottom of the great Mount Everest!  Who knew???

  • EVEREST PYRAMID:
    • Do the exercise, then run ~1/3 way up Everest 5 times. Exercises will be the following (all single count)
      • 20 Merkins
      • 20 Merkins, 20 Iron Mikes
      • 20 Merkins, 20 Iron Mikes, 20 Bottle Openers
      • 20 Iron Mikes, 20 Bottle Openers
      • 20 Bottle Openers
  • MOSEY to Intersection of Trail and Road (all 4-ct, IC). AB BLASTER!
    • 20 flutter kicks (10 Wide)
    • 20 American Hammers
    • 15 Box Cutters
  • MOSEY to stop sign at northeast corner of Admin building drive.
  • DORAS: Partner 1 Bernie Sanders to end of Guard Rail, then runs to tree, then runs back. Each partner does 3 Burpees during the hand-off. Partner 2 does the exercises, then switch:
    • 100 Big Boy sit-ups
    • 100 Bobby Hurleys
    • 100 Merkins
    • 50 PCMBs (modified to 25 due to time)

AYG to guardrail, Bernie back to Stop Sign, then AYG to bat cave/AO.

MARY:
Homer/Marge.

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

I heard the song Cat’s in the Cradle the other day.  It’s an incredible song, beautiful, yet sad.  Written by Harry Chapin in 1974, it tells the story of a young boy growing up who’s dad never seems to find the time to spend quality moments with his son.  As the son grows up, as he says in the song, “I’m going to be like you, dad.”  Which at face value sounds like a compliment, but really he’s saying that as he gets older, he will be as ambivalent about spending time with his dad as his dad was to him.  And this comes to pass.  The dad, as he gets older and more frail, wants to spend time with his son, but his son finds excuses of his own, and avoids him.

When I was young, it was actually the reverse for me.  I took my parents for granted, was caught up in my own little world with my friends and activities, and in spite of having loving, caring parents that wanted to be a part of my life, I sort of ignored them, or only interacted with them on a serious level when I wanted something… my allowance, permission to hang out with my friends, etc..  As I got older that changed, and I wanted to spend more time with them and get to know them as people.  Unfortunately, they passed away before I could fulfill that desire.

I wasn’t a great son in that regard.  I’m trying to learn from my mistakes and be a better son to our Heavenly Father.  The temptation is to run to him when we need something… protection, money, salvation, whatever.  But part of the message of the song is that relationships aren’t built on the times when you NEED each other, they’re built on the times when there’s a mutual give and take.  So I’ve tried to be conscientious about really trying to share with God, and not just run to Him when I need something. And God is not like that father in the song.  He ALWAYS has time for us, for hearing us, comforting us, and providing for us.  That’s not how it should work.  In life with kids and parents, or in your spiritual life, with you and your Heavenly Father.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for a friend of Drum Major that is struggling with addiction issues, for Corona Weight’s brother who is doing well and continues to walk the line, and for Sparkler’s friend who’s battle with ALS is coming to an end.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Hardship Hill Oct 2.  Join the Asylum PM team, or make your own!  It’s a great day for a great cause.  We will be needing help building the obstacles in the coming weeks.

 

Sham-Rocks (CMUs) and Sham-logs

THE SCENE: The Shamrock, perfect weather. Good humidity to get the sweat going
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

warmup stuff
THA-THANG:

Divide up into teams of 3.

One team member  carries a big  log, smaller log, heavy CMU or a regular CMU to cone. Switching carriers at each cone. Teammates not carrying the item run ahead to the next cone and do the exercise associated with each item.

  • Big log- burpees
  • Smaller log- squat jumps
  • Heavy CMU- Merkins
  • Regular CMU- lunges

once you reach the end, go back the way you came.

depending on time I’m probably going to make stuff up after this. But it won’t be easy.(update: no time for anything but a cone clean up run)

MARY:
You know the drill. Stuff that makes your beer belly hurt.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

12 including one FNG “Utah” (FBI agent)

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
What does Endure mean? What does Enduring mean? What is Hardship Hill and Operation Enduring Warrior? We answered those questions and more this morning.
MOLESKIN:

Apparently the workout is sneaky. It starts off a little slow but gets you in the boo boo by the end……unless you started with the big log and burpees.

Did you know that Boo Boo is also Yogi Bear’s side kick? He is a forever-loyal buddy, always willing to join in Yogi Bear’s exploits and schemes to pilfer the next basket of treats from unsuspecting Jellystone Park visitors. Most importantly, Boo Boo serves as Yogi Bear’s conscience, constantly reminding him of the danger or consequences of their actions.

Yogi Bear is a loyal older brother figure to Boo Boo and accepts him unconditionally, regardless of how much Boo Boo complains or worries. “The Ranger isn’t going to like this, Yogi” is one of his trademark expressions. Boo Boo’s loyalty and concern for authority – and being the cute “straight man” to Yogi Bear the comedian – is what makes him so endearing.

boo boo is also what some parents call an injury to their children. “Did you get a Boo Boo on your knee Billy? No mom, my leg was torn off at the knee by that mountain lion over there. I don’t think that qualifies as a boo boo…but thanks for noticing mom.

boo boo. It’s also what a stuttering ghost says.
Well enough about boo boo, let’s talk about you. How have you been?

hello?….so you’re not going to say anything? Fine then. Don’t say I didn’t try.
I’ll give you another chance. Would you like to join the “I read Tank’s BB club? It’s very exclusive. Today, all you need to do is put a gorilla emoji, no comment just an emoji on the slack post. And just like that you are in.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
HHOCR and Wesley House workouts

Planting Shade Trees

THE SCENE: 68 but pretty humid…it was great!
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • Reach for the stars
  • Let it hang
  • Cherry Pickers (IC) 4 CT X 10
  • Baby Arm Circles Forward (IC) 4CT X 10 & Michael Phelps
  • Baby Arm Circles Backward (IC) 4CT X 10 & Michael Phelps
  • Tempo Squats (IC) 4 CT X 10
  • Tempo Merkins (IC) 4ct X 10
  • Mosey

THA-THANG:

DORAs – one works, one runs

  • Diamond Merkins X 100
  • Big Boy Situps X 100
  • Bobby Hurleys (aka Chris Loftons) X 100
  • Carolina Dry Docks X 150
  • American Hammers X 150
  • Lunges X 150
  • Merkins X 200
  • Hello Dollies X 200
  • Squats X 200
  • Calf Raises (Toe Merkins) X 250
  • Flutterkicks X 250
  • Wide Merkins X 250

MARY:

Part of the Q

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

!8 men w/ 1 big dog; Titan joined us as well

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Dennis Swanberg, The Swan as he is known across the country is a former preacher turned Christian comedian and motivational speaker.  He spoke to us and some donors at KARM not long ago.  He weaved in humor and scripture seamlessly.  He was truly amazing.

He spoke about his immigrant great-grandparents who had to make their way in this vast, new land called America by the sweat of their brow.  And, considering that they settled in Texas, they sweat A LOT.

One day, when his great-grandfather was still a very young man, a neighboring farmer saw him out in front of the family home, meticulously burying dozens of acorns.  The farmer approached the grandfather, laughing, and asked, “what in the WORLD are you doing?”

“I’m planting shade trees,” the grandfather quietly replied as he continued dropping seeds into the warm soil.

“Shade trees?” the farmer exclaimed, “Don’t you know it will take YEARS before these things are big enough to provide any shade? You’ll be long gone before then!” he stated smugly.  The grandfather continued planting–determined.

“I’m not planting them for me,” he said patiently, “I’m planting them for my grandchildren.”

The lesson was about how his grandfather planted shade trees for his property that he never got to sit under. Swan’s father and future generations got to get blessings from those shade trees.

Donors of KARM are planting shade trees for poor, homeless, addicted, mentally challenged.

Judge Judy is planting shade trees mentoring that kid whose father is in jail.  Others are volunteering at the Wesley House planting shade trees.

Volunteer soccer, baseball and softball coaches are planting shade trees by teaching the game, character, teamwork.

Preachers, Sunday School Teachers, youth sponsors all planted shade trees over us in hopes that someday we’d figure it out and live out what they taught us.

The best shade trees you’ll ever plant…Are the ones you’ll never sit under!
None of us are self-made. We’re all sitting under “shade trees” that were planted by our forefathers, by our families, and by our friends. Now, it’s your turn to leave a meaningful legacy by planting your own shade trees for others to sit under.

Not everyone can be a legend, but everyone can leave a legacy.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

  • Sign Up To Q/VQ
  • Saturday is Off The Chain CSAUP at the Dog Pound
  • Get ready for the Iron Pax Challenge