F3 Knoxville

Tag: Lulu (Greg Huddy)

You Can’t Take That Away From Me

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AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Lilydipper
PAX: Lulu (Greg Huddy), F3 Pluto ( Hugh Nystrom), Crawdad (Robbi Dickens), Swimmies (Nathan Chesney), Pele (Jon Lindberg), Cart Girl (John Sadler) (Chatt, TN), Brick, Veggie (Rylen Huddy), Jumbo(Carter Dickens), Choir Boy, Pusher, Mr Jinxy, Snap Glove (Sean Selos), Beaker (Manny Selos)
FNGs: 2 Snap Glove (Sean Selos), Beaker (Manny Selos)
COUNT: 15
WARMUP: Run Around the Parking Lot, 20 Side-Straddle Hops, Curly Stomps, 10 Imperial Walkers, 10 Windmills, 10 Tempo Merkins, 10 Tempo Squats, 5 Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward, 5 Pterodactyls Forward and Backward.

THE THANG: Mosey up Mini Cardiac and to the benches by the trail before going downhill. From this point we will do the following: Do 20 Bench Lifts, run to first curve, do 20 Hello Dollies and run back; Do 20 Bench Lifts, run to second curve, do 20 Hello Dollies and run back; Do 20 Bench Lifts, run to 3rd curve, do 20 Hello Dollies and run back. The Clydesdales will sweep rabbits to 3rd curve after they finish the 3rd set of Bench Lifts.
Next, we will continue south on trail and do Nickel, Dime, Quarters. We will do these past the dock area. Once past the dock area we will mosey on the trail until it curves west. We will then resume with the nickel dime quarters until we reach pavilion that is near muscle beach. Here are the exercises:
Merkins
–
Jump Squats
–
Freddie Mercuries
–
Mosey to Muscle Beach. Each man chooses two different exercise machines to do 25 reps with. After finishing, do Baby Crunches until all men have finished.
Mosey to parking lot by the soccer fields. We will go clockwise around the parking lot twice. The first time around we will sprint to one crosswalk, then walk to the next, continuing that pattern around the circle. The second time around we will Bernie Sanders to one crosswalk, then walk to the next, continuing the pattern around the circle.
Mosey to the Bidet. We will run clockwise around the inner circle, stopping at the benches to do 20 Decline Merkins. After arriving back down, those finishing first do Baby Crunches until the six arrives.
Mosey to the Caribean. We will go to the west end. From there we will sprint to the east end but stop at every island to do 2 Burpees.
Mosey toward AO parking lot but stop to get CMU weight rock by the entryway. We will do 25 Overhead Presses.
Mosey to AO.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Polar Bear Plunge on January 1, Smokies Convergence on January 4, Hot Toddy Triple Q at Asylum on January 11.

COT:
Prayers
Prayers for our brother, Sparkler, as he will be getting treatment for Prostate Cancer. Prayers for people traveling at Christmas like Crawdad and Jumbo who head toward Texas today. Prayers for those who are lamenting or suffering this Christmas. Prayers for us that we may be HIMs, keep an eye out for those who are suffering, and be an encouraging spirit for them.
Message

They Can’t Take That Away from Me
2024 was a year of loss and destruction for many people out in East Tennessee and Western North Carolina due to the almost unimaginable flooding and disaster caused by Hurricane Helene. It was horrific to see people losing their homes, their cars, their furnishings, and much of the belongings that they had saved for a lifetime.
As I approach retirement, I couldn’t help but think, “What if that was me?” Jan and I have saved part of our earnings each year through our working years, putting it in good ol IRAs. As we approach retirement we feel that we have enough savings to get by on. But what if that savings were to go away? What if our economy goes downhill and our stock market plummets? What if we lose our assets and home through some unforeseen disaster? Events like Hurricane Helene show us just how possible that can be.
There is a song that has come to my mind quite a few times related to all this. Some of you guys may know that song by Ira and George Gershwin called “They Can’t Take That Away From Me.”
Some of the lines go like this”
The way you wear your hat
The way you sip your tea
The memory of all that
No, no, they can’t take that away from me
The way your smile just beams
The way you sing off-key
The way you haunt my dreams
No, no, they can’t take that away from me.

Those are all things that money can’t buy. I guess that’s why the song has stuck in my mind. If I lost all my assets, what would I have? How about you guys? If you lost your possessions, what would you have? For me, I would still have the love of my wife and children. I would still be able go to my church and see my church family. As for tithing’s, 10% of nothing is nothing, so that would be fine! I would still get to see you brothers in F3. This incredible bond and experience we have is Free 99, baby! And, I would still have my Lord above. In fact, if they were to take everything I have and lay my head down in a guillotine, I might be shaking in my boots and crying my eyes out but I would still have my Lord above.

I encourage you to think about and ponder what “THEY”, that ubiquitous word for disaster in scenarios like we are talking about, can’t take away from you. As for me, I would hope I could survive disasters knowing that there are some things that money can’t buy, some things worth so much more than money or even earthly existence, some things they cannot take away from me.

Clark Higgins Debut

AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Crawdad (Robbi Dickens)
PAX: Crawdad (Robbi Dickens), High Heels (Henry Ritchie), lebowski, Lulu (Greg Huddy), Snitch (Cory Beilharz ), Swimmies (Nathan Chesney), Veggie (Rylen Huddy), Waffle House (Brady Greene), Suds,
FNGs: None
COUNT: 10
Wafflehouse led the PAX in a warmup of Shoulder Blasters and some other classics then took us to the main event!

The Main Event (Stone in hand)
– 20, 25, 30 count circuit of
– Curls (then overhead presses, shoulder raises), Box Jumps (or step ups), Picnic table pull ups, and dips.
– A diagonal dash up a Pickett’s Charge
– Completed by some shenanigans at the Coliseum before turning it over to Crawdad for the back half,

The Yoga Studio
– nuf said

A trip down Everest (lunges at the bottom) and back up the Summit to the Space Station.

We recovered during our mosey back to the AO where we finished with:
– 15 yard dashes
– ATMs

Crawdad closed it out with a basic message: be where your feet are. Be present and content during the holidays.

Rucksgiving ‘24

AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Steam , Mermaid
PAX: Jumbo(Carter Dickens), Unibráu (Nick Robinson), Snitch (Cory Beilharz ), Lulu (Greg Huddy), Pusher, FixerUpper, Otis, Honeydew, Veggie (Rylen Huddy), The Situation, Spellcheck, Pele (Jon Lindberg), High Heels, F3 Pluto ( Hugh Nystrom), Crawdad (Robbi Dickens), Choir Boy, 1 downrange PAX from GA
FNGs: None
COUNT: 20
WARMUP
– SSH: 20×4
– Airplane Merkin: 10×4
– Rockette: 10×4
– Baby Arm Circles: 10×4 F
– Baby Arm Circles: 10×4 B
– Willie Mays Hayes: 6

THE THANG
Head to the BP

—BP (Big Pavilion) PT—
– 10×4 stair case incline merkins
– 1/2 — hands down to the lower level
– 3 — incline merkin down position
– 4 — incline merkin up position
– Next rep starts – going up instead
– 20×4 squat bench touches
– 20 step-ups

Head to the base of Cardiac Hill

—Man-Maker Pyramid—
– All together in cadence
– 2 man-makers at the base
– 4 man-makers at the 1st turn
– 6 man-makers at the 2nd turn
– 8 man-makers at the top

Mosey/walk back down to the base of Cardiac + come back up
– 10 merkins and LBCs

Turn it over to Mermaid at 7:30 at the top of Cardiac

Up/downs on Baby Cardiac
– Plank + Bear Crawl American Indian run style
– Al Gore + Lunge

Dora’s
– 100 squats
– 50 merkins
– 25 burpees
– Battle Buddy runs down Baby Cardiac and back

Ruck/Rock Xs in the Big Pavilion
– 12 curls + 1 burpee
– 12 chest presses + burpee
– 12 bent over rows + 1 burpee
– 12 chin-ups + 1 burpee

MARY
– Stretching w/Mermaid
– Race up Baby Cardiac
– Down + backs in the parking lot

ANNOUNCEMENTS
– Check the announcements channel for the weekly Send Me newsletter and all upcoming events

COT
Give It Away

One of the first things you see on the f3nation.com website right at the very top are the words “GIVE IT AWAY.”
– Clicking or tapping on it takes you to F3 Nation’s 2024 Year End Giving campaign, where you can see the F3 Cardinal video – which is incredibly moving.
– You’ll also see sections underneath it titled “The Why” and “The How”

“The Why”
– 66 million obese men in the USA
– 39,000 male suicides annually
– Infinite Sad Clowns

“The How”
– Numbers and info on current and new investments into F3 around the globe

And then it says this:

“F3 NATION’S MISSION AND IMPACT THROUGH GENEROSITY. WHEN YOU GIVE you are giving it away IN HONOR OF THE BROTHER who gave it to you and IN HONOR OF THE BROTHER who’ll you’ll likely never meet. DO IT FOR YOUR BROTHERS!!”
And that brings me to Rucksgiving
– This GORUCK challenge that, in my mind, incorporates all 3 Fs – Fitness, Fellowship, and Faith.
– We just worked hard – thanks for pushing yourself and the men around you
– We spent time in fellowship together, with people we care about and are part of our sphere of influence
– To whatever level of faith you may or may not have – when you were reading through the Rucksgiving event info I shared, something inside you clicked off and said subconsciously said “it’s not about me.” Faith and belief that you’re not just living for yourself and you felt led and guided to give it away.

Why? That’s what High Impact Men do.

Just like on the F3 Nation website where it says “in honor of the brother who you’ll likely never meet,” — we will likely never meet the children who our generosity is going towards from this event.

But they will feel our generosity and willingness to live out of the “it’s not about me” mindset because we had the courage to act out in faith and believe that a fun and challenging ruck event on a ridiculously cold morning could potentially make a difference in their life.

God is a generous and good God, and any and all outpouring of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control from us is because of the work He is continually doing within us.

“Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God that he has given you.”
‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭16‬:‭17‬ ‭ESV‬‬
bible.com/bible/59/deu.16.17.ESV

Thank you for participating in this year’s Rucksgiving! Because of this, we will get to bless multiple kids on Christmas through Angel Tree this year.

For the Stats

AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Choir Boy , Crawdad (Robbi Dickens)
PAX: Snaggletooth (Elijah Tafao), Honeydew, Farley, Pac-man, Wanderer, Butterknife, Choir Boy, Crawdad (Robbi Dickens), Dain Bramage (Will Olson), lebowski, Lulu (Greg Huddy), Mermaid, Mr Jinxy, Pele (Jon Lindberg), Pusher, Snitch (Cory Beilharz ), Steam, Swimmies (Nathan Chesney), Veggie (Rylen Huddy), Waffle House (Brady Greene), Right Said from Nashville and Chum Bucket from Illinois
FNGs: None
COUNT: 22
Stuff was done. See post by Crawdad above :point_up_2: because apparently Crawdad has not learned how to do a formal backblast in slack. First half by me, and the second have by Crawdad, who delivered two messages in the COT:

1. You can’t change your life without changing something that you do everyday.
2. If you come out and enjoy the BSIA, then you should be Qing 1-2 times per year, at a minimum.

Convergence next week, or, as Crawdad called it, a “Brovergence.” Crawdad will be there as a “Brovirgin.” I will not be there because my kids have a swim meet. Enjoy and don’t get hurt. It should help that the sun will be up at 7:00 since it is after the time change.

Gratitude

AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Lilydipper
PAX: F3 Pluto ( Hugh Nystrom), Brick, High Heels, Veggie (Rylen Huddy), Proton, Swimmies (Nathan Chesney), Waffle House (Brady Greene), Dain Bramage (Will Olson), Cap’n Crunch (Ted Ancelet), Pele (Jon Lindberg), lebowski, Pusher, Lulu (Greg Huddy), Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Back Flow
FNGs: None
COUNT: 16
WARMUP: 20 Side Straddle Hops, 5 Burpees, 10 Imperial Walkers, 4 Burpees, 10 Windmills, 3 Burpees, 7 Twistees, 2 Burpees, 10 Tennessee Rocking Chairs, 1 Burpee, 5 Pterodactyls Forward and 5 Backward

THE THANG: Mosey to the Caribbean. We will do a Candy Cane run stopping at every other island to do 15 Merkins. Those finishing first sweep everyone back.
Mosey to the Bidet. We will run clockwise on the inner circle to the benches on top. We will stop to do 10 Incline Merkins and 10 Decline Merkins. Then we will run clockwise back to the bottom where men will do Baby Crunches until the six arrives.
Mosey to Muscle Beach. Each man will do 25 reps of two different exercise machines.
Mosey to parking lot above soccer fields. We will so suicides to crosswalks. Each time a man comes back he is to do 15 Baby Crunches then run to the next crosswalk.
Mosey on the walkway to the baseball fields and stop about halfway to the large pavilion by the baseball fields. We will do 20 Hello Dollies.
Mosey to the pavilion. We will stop by picnic tables in the pavilion. There, will break into teams of two men each for Doras. While one partner does exercises the other runs around the pavilion. Then team members switch places. This pattern continues until all exercises are completed by the team. Here are the exercises:
100 Bench Step Ups
–
100 Bench Dips
–
100 Picnic Table Pull-ups.
–
Next, we will mosey toward the road leading to the Admin Bldg. We will stop at the rounded garden at the fork where Admin Bldg road hits the Main Park road. We will do 15 Rocky Balboas.
Next, we will run past the lower parking area below the Admin Bldg and to the closest rock pile. Break into teams of two for Doras again. Each team grabs a CMU size rock. Go back to lower parking lot. While one partner runs upstairs, then south to the cul-de-sac and then back down to parking lot the other partner does exercises with rock. Then partners switch places. Here are the exercises each team will do with rocks:
100 Overhead Presses
–
100 Curls
–
100 Rows
–
Place rocks back and run up to Coliseum. We will take a 30 second gander at the Best Sunrise in America.
Mosey to Haslam’s Rock. We will do 15 Tempo Squats.
Mosey down to the dragon tail and back to the AO. We will line up on curb and Bernie Sanders to other curb in parking lot. We will then sprint back to the starting curb.
Gather in circle at AO.

MARY: Stretches.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Brolympics November 16 at Asylum

COT: Prayers
Prayers for all those impacted by the two recent hurricanes. Prayers for Ms. Jan who we often see at the Asylum. She has cancer and is most likely in her last year of living – she is a woman of faith who will be sitting by God in the future.
Message
My message is a reading of the following poem by Carrie Newcomer from her book entitled A Permeable Life: Poems and Essays. The poem speaks for itself and is my entire message.

Three Gratitudes

Every night before I go to sleep
I say out loud
Three things that I’m grateful for,
All the significant, insignificant
Extraordinary, ordinary stuff of my life.
It’s a small practice and humble,
And yet, I find I sleep better
Holding what lightens and softens my life
Ever so briefly at the end of the day.
Sunlight, and blueberries,
Good dogs and wool socks,
A fine rain,
A good friend,
Fresh basil and wild phlox,
My father’s good health,
My daughter’s new job,
The song that always makes me cry,
Always at the same part,
No matter how many times I hear it.
Decent coffee at the airport,
And your quiet breathing,
The stories you told me,
The frost patterns on the windows,
English horns and banjos,
Wood Thrush and June bugs,
The smooth glassy calm of the morning pond,
An old coat,
A new poem,
My library card,
And that my car keeps running
Despite all the miles.
And after three things,
More often than not,
I get on a roll and I just keep on going,
I keep naming and listing,
Until I lie grinning,
Blankets pulled up to my chin,
Awash with wonder
At the sweetness of it all.