F3 Knoxville

Tag: Lebowski

Swimming Is Back

F3 Q: 10.1.22

Asylum AO: 7am – 8am 

[ The Scene ] 

  • Chilly
  • Precipitation: 5%

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness – Fellowship – Faith 
  • My name is Steam and I’ll be your Q this morning 
  • A few things before we begin: 
    • I’m not a professional 
    • You’re here on your own belief 
    • You know your injuries if you have any so if you need to modify anything we do today feel free to do so, but push yourselves and the men around you. They deserve it and so do you. 
  • FNGs? — No

[ Warm o Rama ] 

  • SSH: 10×4 IC 
    • Run to the Pav + execute 1 pull-up + come back 
  • Hand Release Army Merkin: 10×4
    • Run to the Pav + execute 2 pull-up + come back 
  • Mountain Climber: 10×4
    • Run to the Pav + execute 3 pull-up + come back 
  • Squat: 10×4
    • Run to the Pav + execute 4 pull-up + come back 
  • Imperial Walker: 10×4 
    • Run to the Pav + execute 4 pull-up + come back 

[ The Thang ] 

(Mosey to The Island)

1 — Ping Pong Pyramid (Up)

  • The ends of the island are going to be our points of contact 
  • Start here with 5 reps of the X on the #1 cone
  • Run to the other end of the island and execute 10 reps of the X on the cone with #2 on it 
  • Same thing for the #3 cone here, #4 cone down there, and finishing up with the #5 cone down here. 
  • When you’re done, flutter kicks down here.

2 — Ping Pong Pyramid (Down)

  • Same thing, but we’ll start with 25 reps here and work our way back down to 5 reps, ending here. 
  • Look at the bottom of the cones for the next 5 Xs 
  • Done? Flutter kicks. 

(Mosey around to the roundabout on the left side of the Coliseum) 

3 — Stop at the 3-way stop sign 

  • 25 merkins (down/up)
  • 25 Carolina Dry Docks (down/up)
  • 25 mountain climbers

4 — American Indian Dips Movement 

  • Men lined up around the roundabout, holding the dip position
  • The 6 man executed 5 dips and then ran to the front
  • Go all the way around the roundabout

5 — Bear Crawl Karaoke

  • On both sides of the curb, men side bear-crawled all the way back up and around 

6 — In the middle of the Coliseum

  • Core 4
    • 25 Squats (1ct)
      • Run straight up to the top
    • 25 LBCs (1ct)
      • Run straight down to the lookout
    • 25 Imperial Walkers (1ct)
      • Run straight up to the top 
    • 25 Plank Jacks (1ct)
      • Run back to the center 

(Mosey back to the flag)

[ Mary ] 

  • SWS – Stretching With Steam (On the curb)
    • Karaoke down/back
    • Rockettes halfway down -> mosey // rinse and repeat back
    • High knees halfway down -> mosey // rinse and repeat back
    • Toe touches halfway down – mosey // rinse and repeat back
    • Circle up and fight stretching

[ COT ]

  • # off — 13
  • Name o Rama 
    • Pele
    • Mr. Jinxy
    • Convoy
    • Swimmies
    • Snitch
    • High Heels
    • Lebowski
    • Rainbow
    • Lillydipper
    • Choir Boy
    • Matlock
    • Qbert
  • FNGs
  • BOM

“The Ministry of Presence”

I saw a video on Instagram this week, of someone in Hollywood talking about the ministry of presence. I thought this was strange, because for this certain actor, Shia Lebouf (the movie Holes, Transformers), this seemed kind of out of character for him, to talk about the ministry of presence. He went on to share that during a particular difficult time in his life, as he was recovering from addiction and brokenness, there was an event where family members and friends could come on-site to this rehab facility to celebrate the progress Shia had been making. No one showed up. No one from his family showed up, none of his friends showed up, his manager didn’t show up, no one. I mean this is Shia Lebouf, a famous Hollywood actor! And yet no one showed up. Think of how alone he must have felt, on a day that is reserved for family, friends, and loved ones to show up and show support and encouragement, to have absolutely no one show up. Talk about a let down.

Except.

Except one of his actor colleagues, who was working on a movie of her own. Shia went on to say that this colleague of his was crazy busy with production for her own movie, and out of all the people in the world that could have showed up, she would be the last one to expect because of how slammed her schedule was. But she showed up anyway. Not family, sort of a friend, but more of an acting colleague. As Shia began to break down into tears sharing this story, he mentioned that he had nothing to offer her as a colleague, because he was going through his own stuff with recovery. “Just her presence. The ministry of presence. Sometimes that’s all you need to offer a person. Just to be present.” As Shia shared this in the video (which I won’t share here because of some of the strong language in the video, but it can be found online), you see tears just rolling down his face. To have one person just show up for a small increment of time, and just sit with him, in the middle of his stuff, made the world of difference.

Sometimes all that someone needs is your presence. Not a motivational/inspirational catch phrase or quote, not money, not judgement, but simply, your presence. In an article I read entitled “The Ministry of Presence: Meaning and Importance,” the author shares some of the story of Job, and his three friends who sought him out after hearing about the troubles that had come upon him. Job 2:11-13 really paints a great picture of what this looks like:

“Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him. And when they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him. And they raised their voices and wept, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their own heads toward heaven. And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights , and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great.”

I wonder if I am or would be the kind of friend that Bil, Shu, and Zo were. Surely these were their nicknames as well. 7 days and 7 nights with no talking?! These are some friends who know how to sit and offer their presence fully. Here’s what I do far too often when Megan or someone close to me is going through something really tough or challenging: I am quick to reframe it into a positive somehow, or to see the positive side, offer up an encouraging/inspirational word or phrase, or even better, rack my brain for 3-4 Bible verses that would directly apply to this situation. Are these bad things? No, not necessarily. But just like Shia explained in the video, and like we read in Job, sometimes the best thing you can offer someone is your presence. The ministry of presence can far surpass any words you might be able to share, or comforting wisdom you might be able to rattle off.

Wanna take this further? Good, me too. Look at Matthew 18:20.

“For when two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” Or in the Message version: “And when two or three of you are gathered together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there.”

When you offer someone your presence, as a Christ follower you’re not sitting with them alone! God is right there with you, as you sit with them in their stuff. It’s not you alone who comforts them with the ministry of presence, but Christ that lives in you that does this. Through you offering your presence to them, freely, and without attachment or terms and conditions (sound familiar?), it is Christ inside of you that’s right there in that moment. That’s what God did and does for us, and that’s an opportunity we have for others as well. You all have done this so well for and with me over the years. Your presence is powerful. For that, I will forever be grateful.

A little TPQ for you going into a new week: How can you offer someone the ministry of presence this week? Loved one, friend, co-worker? Pray and ask where God might lead you to offer your presence, because He’s right there with you.

The Peoples’ Q

Right at the top your Q wants you to know that this entire workout was conceived, planned, workshopped, peer reviewed, revised, enhanced, approved by legal, focus grouped, and finally today was delivered to you, the PAX of Asylum.

Perfect fall morning.

Everybody is welcome and everything is disclaimed. Choir Boy is in private practice now, so if you want to sue somebody you can hire him.

Our warmup today included Motivators, stretching, Rockettes, and Rocky Balboas for Rainbow who we missed by just a couple of minutes.

We did some nickel-dime-quarter in honor of its inventor and our own Bionic Man Lilydipper. In trying to avoid bothering an innocent bystander, we ended up getting in her way even more, which is what Gibbler likes to call a Q Fail. Mentioning his name when he didn’t even show up is another Q Fail.

The PAX makes certain demands, and Base Camp to Space Camp is one of them. When the PAX speaks, the Q listens, so into a hornet’s nest we ran. Snitch took one for the team and is presumably on the couch right now in a Benadryl coma.

What’s a trip to the Cloud without some Jack Webb you ask? We don’t know.

Crawdad wasn’t there in person or in spirit, but we did curse him under our breath with a couple of trips up Cardiac.

Convoy couldn’t be stopped all morning and he led us back down to the AO.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
The academic side of F3 is one of the least often talked about, but it does provide valuable insight, and in the case of a recent study we learned about the major difference between AM and PM guys, according to family and friends. We did our best to remedy the inequality. We did it for the families!

God Our Father

THE SCENE: Thunderstorms, temps in high 70s and muggy.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
We started out under the Pavilion because it was raining like crazy with lightening and thunder.

25 Side-Straddle Hops, 10 Mountain Climbers, 10m Cherry Pickers, 10 Twisties, 10 Little Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward, Little of This and That

THE THANG:

Run around the Pavilion 5 times.

Next, we did a Ladder with 30 seconds each of the following exercises, going up ladder than down while cutting first exercise out etc. so that by the end we did each exercise for five periods of 30 seconds.

  • Burpees
  • Bench Dips
  • Decline Merkins off Benches
  • Iron Mikes
  • American Hammers

Lunge around Pavilion one time.  Next, we did 30 second Al Gore with backs to wall.

Run around pavilion 4 times.

Elevens starting with 10 Picnic Table Pull-ups and 1 Bench Step-up.

With the rain subsiding we moseyed to the parking lot just north of the Pavilion.  We ran to the four corners doing the following exercises.  After the exercises we ran all the way around the parking lot one time.

  • Corner 1, 10 Smurf Jacks
  • Corner 2, 10 Star Jumps
  • Corner 3, 10 Bobby Hurleys
  • Corner 4, 10 Squat Jumps

Mosey back to Pavilion to do 20 Bench Step-ups.

Mosey back to the same parking lot.  We circles the parking lot again, stopping at each corner to do the following exercises, then running all the way around the parking lot when finished:

  • Corner 1, 20 Hello Dollies
  • Corner 2, 20 Big Boy Sit-ups
  • Corner 3, 20 Flutter Kicks
  • Corner 4, 20 Bicycle Kicks

Next we went to the curb on the eastern side of the parking lot.  We did the following types of runs the eastern curb to the western curb:

  • Half speed sprint to western curb.
  • Bernie Sanders to the eastern curb.
  • Karaoke Right to the western curb.
  • Karaoke Left to the eastern curb.
  • Butt kick run to the western curb.
  • High knees run to the eastern curb.
  • Sprint to the western curb.
  • Sprint to the eastern curb.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Eight men, no FNGs.  Mr. Jinxy joined us for the BOM and went to Coffeeteria with us.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
God Is Our Parent

Romans 8: 38-39 says, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

1 John 4:16: “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”

In the Bible we are told to call God “our father.”  We are also taught that there is no greater love than that of God for us.  We are His children.  When I take time to dwell upon that, it gives me great comfort.  Because those of us who are fathers know how incredible our love is for our children.

I found that out after my oldest child, Faith, was born.  I remember going to work the few weeks after she was born and sometimes hearing babies cry in the clinic I worked at.  I had heard similar cries before Faith was born.  But those same types of cries now stirred up something in me, as if I was hearing her cry and needed to comfort her by instinct.

As parents we ache for our children.  My son, Bennett, played on the freshman basketball team at West High School.  He was a good player but found himself sitting on the bench in most games.  I remember the tears on the rides home from the games, his frustration and anger at not being able to play for even a few minutes in a game.  I ached for him, I hurt for him, I felt tears myself on those long rides home.  I remember Faith going through a time of depression in high school, worrying about her, hoping that each day she would just be ok.  She was such a hard working and efficient student yet would get so down on herself.

And I recall such happy times as well, moments when I felt so overjoyed and proud of my children.  I remember Faith having the primary role in a musical at Bearden Middle School and the ovation she got from the audience.  I took a walk that night by myself, dreams of Faith performing on Broadway in my head.  I remember Bennett winning the Geography Bee at Bearden Elementary School.  My son Bennett, shockingly winning over these other smart kids who seemed to always get the accolades.  I recall Jan and I going to Starbuck later that morning, just to share a cup of coffee and giggle with pride.

Those little moments as parents when we ache, when we hurt, when we laugh, when we bask in the happiness of the actions of our children may seem so small to someone else.  But it is so huge for us as parents.  If Jan and I can have that kind of love for our children, how great must God’s love be for us.  Think of God watching your own hurts, your own victories.  Think of Him hurting for you.  Think of him shouting for joy with your own victories.  Is that really possible?  If God is all powerful, if God is our creator, if God is Love, then the answer is yes.  Think of that when you go through the rest of your day.  Think of that when you go to sleep to night.  God, your loving father, is with you.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Mr. Jinxy and his wife as they come to an important real estate decision regarding his wife’s business operation.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Service opportunity at the Cerebral Palsy Center on Saturday, August 6.

Man Glitter in a Box

THE SCENE: Cooler, but still oppressive. 73 degrees, lots of humidity and no wind.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER: Yes, all the things
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH, Tempo Merkins, Cherry Pickers, Windmills, TN Rockin’ Chair, Rocky Balboa’s with Karaoke
THA-THANG:

  • 10 Spider Merkins, run up Baby Everest, 3 Man Makers at the summit
  • Route 66 with Merkins on the way up and Squats on the way down
  • Run up Pickett’s Charge with Burpees at each plateau
  • DORAs at the Overlook with 6 Stations
    • Round 1
      1. Calf Raises
      2. Boxcutters
      3. Step-Ups
      4. Big Boys
      5. Merkins
      6. Lt. Dans
    • Round 2
      1. Carolina Dry Docks
      2. Imperial Squat Walkers
      3. Derkins
      4. X-Factors
      5. Sumo Squats
      6. Hello Dollys

MARY:
Tha-Thang was enough. No time for Mary.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
23 HIMs, including several from Big Ball who came to visit. Also Doublewide’s 2.0 Newton was part of our crew.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Matthew 5:9 and excerpts from Mark Richt’s book “Make the Call”. Learning to think outside the box to work on sharing God’s love with others, but seeking a way to be real with others using compassion & unique approaches.
MOLESKIN:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Cleanup Service Opportunity, details forthcoming from Rainbow. Crab Legs invited everyone to a Poker Night charity event at Shults Brau for CCAHT (August 18th at 6:00pm).

Carry the Football

F3 Q: 6.25.22

AO: Asylum

7am – 8am

[ The Scene ]

  • muggy
  • 80s
  • BSIA

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness – Fellowship – Faith
  • My name is Steam and I’ll be your Q this morning
  • A few things before we begin:
    • I’m not a professional
    • You’re here on your own belief
    • You know your injuries if you have any so if you need to modify anything we do today feel free to do so, but push yourselves and the men around you. They deserve it and so do you.
  • FNGs?

[ Warm o Rama ]

  1. SSH: 25×4

(Take a lap around the lot)

  1. Merkin: 25×4

(Side shuffle around the lot)

  1. Squat: 25×4

(Take a lap around the lot)

  1. Plank Jack: 25×4

(Side shuffle around the lot)

  1. Mountain Climber: 25×4

(Take a lap around the lot)

[ The Thang ]

(Mosey to the playground – short)

[1] Upper

  • 3 stations, 3 rounds
  • (1) Playground
    • 25 Incline Merkins (1ct)
    • 25 SSH (1ct)
  • (2) Pavilion
    • 25 Dips (1ct)
    • 25 SSH (1ct)
  • (3) Between 2 Fields
    • 25 Carolina Dry Docks (1ct)
    • 25 SSH (1ct)
  • Complete station 1
    • Run and complete station 2
    • Run back to station 2
  • Complete station 1 + 2
    • Run to station 3
    • Run back to station 1
  • Complete all 3 stations, but add 25 reps each station = 50 reps at each station

— 10 count or something —

(Mosey to Cardiac Hill – medium)

[2] Lower

  • 3 stations
  • Base
    • Squats: 25 (1ct)
    • 25 mountain climbers (1ct)
  • Middle Curve
    • Lunges: 25 (1ct)
    • 25 mountain climbers (1ct)
  • Top (Benches)
    • 25 Apollo Onos (1ct)
    • 25 mountain climbers (1ct)
  • Stay at the top when done: Al Gore
  • Once everyone is at the top, execute all together:
    • 25 squats (1ct)
    • 25 iron mikes (1ct)
    • 25 squat jacks (1ct)

— 10 count or something —

(Mosey to the Amphitheater – Long)

(American Indian Run)

[3] Core

  • 3 stations
  • Middle
    • 25 up + outs (1ct)
    • 25 LLBCs (1ct)
  • Right
    • 25 cockroaches (1ct)
    • 25 LLBCs (1ct)
  • Left
    • 25 mountain-climber cross overs (1ct)
    • 25 LLBCs (1ct)
  • Complete the middle, and then both the left and right stations
  • Recover in the middle when done: Flutter Kicks

— 10 count —

[4] Put It All Together

  • 3 stations (triangle)
  • Everything is 10 reps on a 1 count
  • We’ll do these together in cadence
  • Top (1ct) — GO HERE 2ND
    • 10 incline merkins
    • 10 dips
    • 10 dry docks
  • Left (1ct) — GO HERE 1ST
    • 10 squats
    • 10 lunges
    • 10 Apollo Onos
  • Right (1ct) — GO HERE 3RD
    • 10 up + outs
    • 10 cockroaches
    • 10 mountain-climber crossovers

— 10 count or something —

(Mosey back to AO)

[ Mary ]

  • SWS

[ COT ]

  • # off — 10
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs — 1
    • Tyke Hillmer
    • F3 Name: Fumble
  • BOM

I had a word prepared for this morning but last night and going into this morning, I felt like this was put on my heart to share instead.

For the past 60 minutes, we carried a football around, but didn’t really use it much, except for tossing it around during 10 counts and on the mosey a bit. We didn’t use it, but we carried it. And in fact, even though it’s really not that heavy, over the period of 60 minutes. It became a little more tough to carry, after doing merkins, and squats and all kinds of exercises.

And don’t we do the same thing in real life? We carry around these “footballs” through life that we don’t use all the time but that we’re carrying around. “Footballs” like old wounds, past trauma, addictions, and whatever else you’re carrying that may have gotten heavier over time.

So why carry around a football and pass it around to others so they can help carry it over the course of the workout?

“Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

— Galations 6:2

TPQs (Thought Provoking Questions)

  1. What “footballs” are you carrying around that you need to let go of?
  2. Who can you invite in to help carry your football and release it?
  3. How can you help people around you release their grip on their football?