F3 Knoxville

Tag: Dung Beetle

The Lord is My Strength and Song

THE SCENE: Cloudy and cool, low 40s, but thankfully no rain!
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Check


WARM-O-RAMA:

– Motivators (5-ct, descending) (was going to do 7-ct, but Steam guessed the exercise, so doing only 5 was the reward)

– 10 Windmills (4-ct, IC)

– 15 Steve Earls (4-ct, IC)

– 20 Moroccan Nightclub (4-ct, IC)

– Little of this and that

THA-THANG:

MOSEY to Pavilion

-20 Bench Dips, 20 Bench Pull-ups, 20 Bench Step Ups, RINSE AND REPEAT.

MOSEY to Circus Maximus

CANDY CANE:

  • Run to four cones laid out in a “Candy Cane” pattern. Do 10 Reps of the exercise at the cone, then return to start, and run to next cone, etc.  Rabbits sweep the six.  Exercises:
    • Hand-release Merkins
    • Box Cutters
    • Iron Mikes (2-ct) (Q called an audible and we only did every other cone for this one. Stopped at far cone, did 10 reps of Iron Mikes at every cone on the way back)

Mosey to Base of Cardiac

CARDIAC SUICIDES (Modified):

Run to first curve, do 20x Plank Jacks/Peter Parkers/Mountain Climbers, run to second curve, again do 20 of each exercise, run back to first curve, and then all the way to the top and do our last set of 20 of each exercise.

MOSEY to AO

MARY:
High Heels led some LBCs, then Q had the PAX do 30 second static leg raises, 20x Hello Dollies (4-ct, IC), and Homer/Marge to finish it off.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
13 strong, including one FNG, whom we named TMI

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

FAITH AND JAZZ: My church has recently brought in a small band to showcase in their streaming services, and last Sunday they played a variety of jazzy tunes, perhaps in part to celebrate Valentine’s Day.  Over the years, I’ve never been a big fan of jazz music.  Jazz can be kind of frustrating to those of us who like our music to be a little more structured.  A typical jazz tune tends to lack that structure, and it can go off into unexpected directions, some of which you might appreciate, some of which you might not, like when there’s a jarring interruption by a trumpet, or the crash of a symbol that shakes you up.  At times when I listen to jazz I feel a bit bewildered, like when the musicians all go off on a 10 minute segue on some random riff.  Why are they doing that?  Can’t they just stick to a melody and go from there?  It seems chaotic and unplanned.

Another thing that frustrates me with jazz is that it tends not to have a definite end.  Most songs seem to just ramble on for a while and then suddenly wrap up at a random part of the tune.  This can be somewhat unsatisfying for those of us who just want to read the “cliff notes” version of music and be told the answer to what it’s all about.  All the meanderings and lack of a satisfying conclusion can be irritating if you’re not really tuned into it.

But I’ve come to appreciate jazz more over the years if you listen carefully, with patience, and let yourself become immersed in it, something magical happens.  All the pieces and disparate parts that seemed confusing at the time ultimately pay off as the players create a beautiful whole from the various individual pieces, almost like a quilt.  And the more you invest in it, the more you give yourself in to it, the more rewarding it can be.  There IS a structure to it, there IS a pattern.  You just have to have the awareness and patience to tap into it and recognize it.

To me, that’s kind of like spirituality.  We have to have faith that the song God is weaving in our lives will ultimately take us to a place of peace and beauty, even if at times it seems meandering and strange, even dark and frightening.  Jazz players will tell you that one of the most important aspects of being a jazz musician is listening to what is going on around you, and tapping into that energy so that you’re in harmony with it, not fighting against it.  So it is with being a spiritual person.  The more carefully we listen to the song of faith that courses through us and the more we let ourselves be pulled into its melody, the more we are able to recognize the beautiful tapestry that the Lord is creating for each one of us.

As it is written in Exodus:

“The Lord is my strength and song,

And He has become my salvation;

This is my God, and I will praise Him;

My father’s God, and I will extol Him.”

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Boogaloo and his family as they cope with the loss of a family member to COVID.  Prayers for the folks without power and water in Texas.  Prayers for TMI that his dentist appointment won’t be difficult or painful.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
New Maryville AO opening on March 6, 7:00 am.  Details to be announced.

I did not die

THE SCENE: Clear and cold, high twenties.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

20 Side Straddle-Hops, 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Windmills, 10 Tempo Squats, Michael Phelps, Little of This and That

THA-THANG:

Mosey to flat field area where we have Brolympics.  We will do a Pyramid with the following exercises.  We will do each exercise for 30 seconds:

  • Burpees
  • Jump Squats
  • Imperial Walkers

We then run to the Caribbean.  We will run past four islands and lunge to one island, then repeat that sequence until we have circled the Caribbean.  We will rinse and repeat but Bernie instead of run and backward lunge instead of lunge.

Mosey to parking lot with CMUs.  Each man grabs a CMU.  We will do a Pyramid with 25 each of the following exercises:

  • Overhead Presses
  • Curls
  • Plank Jacks with hands on CMU

Mosey to Caribbean again.  We will rinse and repeat what we previously did but with running, bear crawls, Bernies, and backwards lunges.

Return to parking lot and grab same CMU.  We will do 25 each of the following exercises

  • Rows
  • Chest Pushes

Put up CMUs.  Mosey back to AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
18 men with one of them a Flying EH FNG whom we named Black Box.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

The following poem was written by Mary Elizabeth Frye, a housewife who lived in Baltimore, Maryland.  In a moment of inspiration, she wrote it on the back of a brown paper bag.  She wrote it for a friend who had lost her mother.  The religious significance of the poem will be obvious.  Word spread about the poem and it was later published in newspapers.  It became a famous poem but for many years, people didn’t even know who the author was.  Mary Elizabeth Frye was not a poet in the vocational sense of the word.  She never published any poetry.  Yet, her poem has been read at countless funerals and public ceremonies throughout the years.

Do not stand at my grave and weep
by Mary Elizabeth Frye in 1932

Do not stand at my grave and weep:
I am not there; I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sun on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight.
I am the soft starshine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry:
I am not there; I did not die.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for:  two of Rooney’s students who lost a father to Covid; for those who have no homes/residences that are in the path of the cold wave that has run through the United States; for a friend of Swimmies who has Stage IV cancer and a tumor near his spine that has led to paralysis from the waist down; for a person in California that Drum Major has worked with who lost his life – for that man’s family; and, a prayer of praise for Ice Man who has found out he will have a baby boy.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Launch of AO in Maryville on Saturday, March 6 at 7 am.  See Slack for details.

Grainger County Christmas Story

THE SCENE: Clear skies, temps in high 20’s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

Run around the parking lot to get warm; 20 Side-Straddle Hops; 10 Burpees; 10 Cherry Pickers; 10 Rockettes; 7 Wide Arm Circles Forward and Backward
THA-THANG:
Mosey to start of the Dragon Tail.  We will run up dragon tail stopping at every other light to do 10 of the following exercises (one exercise for each run up).  After reaching the top, run on trail to road, back down to lower parking lot, and back to the start of the Dragon Tail to do the next exercise.  Here are the exercises:

  • Iron Mikes (both legs = 1)
  • Big Boy Sit-ups
  • Jump Squats
  • Merkins

Mosey to stop sign that is on the northeastern corner of the admin bldg.  We will be moving in a route with signs giving the directions for exercises along the way and where we go next.  The signs will be numbered and by cones.

  • Cone 1:  Do 10 Burpees.  Then bear crawl on sidewalk heading south to Cone 2.
  • Cone 2:  Do 15 Dive Bombers.  Then lunge on sidewalk south to Cone 3.
  • Cone 3:  Do 10 Shoulder Taps (both shoulders = 1).  Then run to Cone 4 at porch of Admin Bldg.
  • Cone 4:  Do 20 Calf Raises on stairs and 20 Hello Dollies (4 ct.) on porch. Then run south on trail and back north on trail to Cone 5.
  • Cone 5:  Run down steps to parking lot below Coliseum.  Then run south up parking lot, around to southern end of Coliseum and north to Cone 6 which is by marble bench area of Coliseum.
  • Cone 6:  Do 20 Bench Dips.  Then run to Cone 7.
  • Cone 7:  Do 40 Baby Crunches.  Then run to Cone 8 which is on street near to the admin stop sign where we started.
  • Cone 8:  Do 20 Carolina Dry Docks.
  • Rinse and Repeat.

As a group we will take a 30 second gander at Beautiful Eastern TN below us.  Then we will mosey to parking lot with CMUs.

Each man grabs a CMU and teams up with a brother.  We will do Doras. While one man runs to pavilion and does 10 Picnic Table Pull-ups, the other does the exercises with the CMU.  Then partners switch. Each team will do the following exercises:

  • 100 Overhead Presses
  • 100 Curls
  • 100 Rows
  • 100 Squats

Put CMUs back and mosey to start of mini-cardiac.  Bernie up mini-cardiac to park sign, then sprint the rest of the way to the AO.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
28 men with one FNG:  John Case.  He is now named Lamont.  He is the father of member Mickey.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
In my work as a therapist I heard a mighty fine Christmas story from one of my patients and decided to share it to you here in February.  My patient lives in a mountainous area in Grainger County, Tennessee.  Some of you may have heard of Grainger County tomatoes.  Most are grown in the valley of the county but some areas of the county can be pretty rugged.  Here’s a little demographic news for you in regards to Grainger County.  It is 94% white, 3.3% Hispanic, and probably less than 1% Black.  If you are a black man, you may not want to get stuck alone in Grainger County.  The patient I am talking about is a middle-aged white woman and she would tell you that.

She also told me about an African-American truck driver who was driving on a winding highway through the area she lived in on Christmas Eve.  As you may recall, Christmas Eve is the day we got that snow that gave us all a White Christmas.  The highway the man was driving on was curvy and slick.  Unfortunately, his 18 wheeler went off the side of the road and landed in a deep ditch.  There was no way to get that truck out easily.  It was going to take more than one large wrecker truck to get the truck out.  It being Christmas, that would take well over 24 hours.

The truck had valuable cargo and the driver was required to stay with his truck until it could be towed.  So this African-American truck driver was stuck on Christmas Eve miles from his home – in one of the most rugged areas of “redneck country”.  In Grainger County, if you aren’t driving a pickup truck with a gun rack inside your back window, “you probably ain’t from around these parts.”  The necessary clothing for a man is a pair of jeans with a can of snuff in your back pocket.

News can spread pretty fast in a rural county and the news of the sidelined truck came to my patient quickly.  She was frankly worried about this African-American truckdriver stuck in her neck of the woods.  She was concerned someone might try to start some trouble with him.  She wanted to go out to his truck to check on him but was worried about doing so until her husband got home.  He did later that day and they went out to the area where the truck was located.

What they found was a number of “neighbors” already congregated by the truck.  They also found these same “redneck” neighbors had brought the African-American truckdriver some hot dinner, hot coffee, and baked goods to snack on through the evening.  People from all over were coming to make the driver feel as comfortable as he could.  They even brought blankets but he had those in his cabin which he was able to keep warm through keeping the engine on.  They offered for him to come to their homes but he had to stay with his truck.  By the next morning the driver had hot breakfast and gifts of goodies and Christmas cards.  When the truck was finally pulled out of the ditch, the driver went home with more hot food and goodies that were brought to him at lunch and dinner time on Christmas Day.

My patient went to sleep on Christmas night feeling wonderful about the residents of Grainger County.  Whatever their beliefs and prejudices’, they had made an African-American stranger feel blessed and welcome.  It was a Christmas that I am sure he will never forget.  And, my patient, who has had a difficult year, sang “Joy to the World” a little louder on Christmas day.  The air smelled mighty fresh in Grainger County and the stars shone brighter for the rest of 2020.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for the disenfranchised; for caregivers who are taking care of others and that they would have patience in that difficult task; for Ribbed and his wife, Sarah, after the surgery to remove the tumor by her spine; for Abacus’ mother who will need surgery on her leg; for those in F3 who have lost loved ones this year.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Reward at Coffeeteria!

Two For Tuesday: Buy One Get One Half Off

[ The Scene ]

  • 60s?! 60s.

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness-Fellowship-Faith
  • Name is Steam and I’m honored to be your Q this evening
  • Couple of things before we kickoff
    • I’m not a professional
    • You’re here on your own volition
    • You know your body better than anyone else so if you need to modify anything we do this evening feel free to do so but push yourselves and the men around you!
      • They deserve it and so do you
  • FNGs?
    • Trent Keeler

Two For Tuesday: Buy 1 Get 1 Half Off

[ Warm o Rama ]

  • SSH: 20×4
    • SSH: 10×4
  • Baby Arm Circles: 10×4 (F)
    • Baby Arm Circles: 5×4 (B)
  • Shoulder Tap: 10×4 (F)
    • Shoulder Tap: 5×4 (B)
  • Merkin: 10×4
    • Opened-Arm Merkin: 5×4
  • Squat: 10×4
    • Squat: 5×4

[ The Thang ]

(American Indian Run with 🇺🇸 out front to parking lot next to small playground)

(1) The Mini-Pav Shuffle (Sprint)

  • Toe the line on the curb
  • 2 Main POCs: Curb and Pavilion on opposite end
  • Rinse and Repeat this 3x — each time with a different theme
    • 1 = Upper
    • 2 = Core
    • 3 = Lower
  • Between each round we will regroup here BUT if you get done with your round and there are others still out there – go finish with them
  • Everything on a 1 count
  • 1 = Each light post on the way: 20 merkins
    • Pav: 20 incline/decline merkins
      • On the way back: 10 merkins
  • 2 = Each light post on the way: 20 90 degree leg ups
    • Pav: 20 BBSs
      • On the way back: 10 90 degree leg ups
  • 3 = Each light post on the way: 20 squats
    • Pav: 20 squats (led by SpeedFlash!)
      • On the way back: 10squats

(Mosey up Picket’s charge — past Hallam Rock — to AO – American Indian Style 🇺🇸 out front)

[ Mary ]

ATMs

Light stretching

[ COT ]

  • # off
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs
  • BOM

“Memento Mori” = Remember that you must die.

It’s how we live that defines us as men.

The legacy we leave is based on how we lived, not how we died.

So then the question must be asked “How are you living (and impacting) while there’s still God-given breath in your lungs?”

“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,” (Colossians‬ ‭3:23‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

CMSaturday

[ The Scene ]

  • High 20s
  • Sunny
  • Ruckers and PAX unite

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness/Fellowship/Faith
  • My name is Steam and I’m stoked to be your Q this morning
  • FNGs?
  • Couple of things before we begin:
    • Not a professional
    • You’re here on your own volition
    • You know your body better than anyone so if you need to modify anything we do this morning feel free to do so
      • BUT push yourself and the men around you
      • They deserve it and so do you
  • COVID precautions

[ Warm o Rama ]

  • Shoulder-tap: 15×4 IC
  • Baby Arm Circles: 15×4 IC (back)
    • Little bit of this: R arm over
    • Little bit of that: L arm over
  • Cherry-Picker: 10×4 IC
  • Windmill: 10×4 IC
    • Little bit of this: R arm back
    • Little bit of that: L arm back
  • Merkin: 5×4 IC
  • Squat: 5×4 IC
    • Little bit of this: Michael Phelps
    • Little bit of that: torso twist

[ The Thang ]

(1) Quarter Pounder

(Mosey to CMU pile via the Dragon — all the way to the street/past the morning AO lot)

  • Every light: 25 reps (1count) broken into these ingredients
    • 5 Merkins
    • 5 Squats
    • 5 BBS getups
    • 5 SSHs
    • 5 mountain climbers
  • All together
    • 6 was recovered an all PAX completed 2 rounds together before heading to the CMU pile

(2) CMU Pile

  • Everyone get a CMU
  • Toe the line facing the play ground — CMUs in front
  • Bear Craw CMU drags
  • Every 5 drags = 10 BBS with CMU on feet
  • All the way to the other side of the parking lot

(Mosey with CMUs to The Island — parking lot below Pav)

(3) 100s

  • Bottom of The Island:
    • 25 curls (1 count)
    • 25 deadlifts (1 count)

(Mosey around to the top of Island with CMU on 1 shoulder)

  • Top of The Island:
    • 25 CMU chest presses (1 count)
    • 25 CMU lunges (knee to CMU) (1 count)

(Mosey with CMUs to the big tree outside the middle of the parking lot close to the river)

(3) CMU OffRoading

  • PAX walked with CMUs and circled up in field below baseball fields
  • Core Xs + one handed CMU merkins

(Carry CMUs to Picnic Table 1)

  • Flutter kicks: 10×4 w/CMU overhead

(Carry CMUs to picnic table 2)

  • American Hammers: 10×4

(Carry CMUs to picnic table 3)

  • LBCs: 10×4

PAX carry CMUs back to CMU pile

The Final Push

  • Pax get into lines of 4 facing up the hill to the AO/top of Cardiac
  • Teams of 4 sprint up to the AO and knock out ATMs as a team

Once all teams are done with ATMs — Core 4 (4 core Xs for the final 4 minutes – 60 seconds each

    • Flutter Kicks
    • BBSs
    • LBCs
    • American Hammers

[ COT ]

  • # off — 24
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs — GooGoo joined us from F3 Chattanooga
  • BOM

Michael Jordan Quotes — January 23rd

(1) – “You can practice shooting 8 hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise.”

    • Pursue excellence in the basics, fundamentals

(2) – “I want to be the bridge to the next generation.”

  • High Impact Men and Women build bridges
    • We were created to build and strengthen things
    • Plant. Grow. Serve.
      • Plant something, grow it into something bigger than yourself, and serve it well.
  • High Impact Men and Women leave their legacy for the next generation
    • This is not contingent on if you have kids
  • High Impact Men and Women connect and help others get from point A to point B
    • This is not always a physical locationn

(3) – “Winning isn’t always championships.”

  • Learn how to discern a win this year.
  • Quit mis-labeling victories and wins because they don’t look what you thought they would/what you’re told they should look like