F3 Knoxville

A yellow jacket is predatory social wasp of the genera Vespula and Dolichovespula

Four hours and seventeen minutes ago our F3 brothers brought forth upon this county park, a Saturday Q, conceived on an index card the previous night, and dedicated to the proposition that sweating ourselves down to a lower weight class is not just for high school wrestlers.

We became engaged in a great natural war, testing whether that Saturday pax, or any pax that goes to Area 51 by the back way can long endure. We were met on a great battle-field of that war. I have come to dedicate a portion of this backblast, as a final resting place for those who there gave their lower calves, and their miserable waspy stingers, that that pax might continue on to meet Jack Webb. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But in a larger sense, we can not kill all the wasps – we can not drink enough diphenhydramine – we can not send Abcess out there with a can of RAID like we did at the Space Ship.  The brave men and wasps, and their stingers and calves who struggled there, have consecrated it, far beyond our poor power to add or detract. Google will little note, nor long direct internet traffic to what we say here, but Scoreboard will probably never forget the new words he heard yelled by Pele. It is for us the sore and sweaty, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought there have thus far so nobly advanced. From these honored wasps and calves we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that this pax, under Lilydipper, shall drink a bunch of Benadryl. And that Saturday Nap of the pax, by the pax, and for the pax, shall happen this afternoon.

 

Birthday Q

THE SCENE: Dry and hot 89F weather.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome to F3, Fitness, Fellowship and Faith. F3 is a free workout program designed to improve fitness, share some camaraderie, and foster male leadership in the community. I’m Jetlag and I will be your Q today.  I am not a professional, and I do not know your fitness level or injury history.  Please push yourself, but modify the workout as necessary to avoid making any existing injuries worse.  The goal is to get better together!


WARM-O-RAMA:

Raise the roof
Grady corns
Tempo Squats

Imperial walkers

Tempo Merkins

Plank Jacks

THA-THANG:

Mosey to bottom of Everest

11 no touch merkins

11 dry docks

11 high knees 4ct

Workout 1:

11 forward lunges

11 burpees

11 bear crawls 2ct

11 side straddle hops at the top

Mosey to bowl:

Workout 2:

Squat jump shots on top 11x

Mountain climbers on the bottom 11x 4ct

Burpee Indian Run up to AO: 2 burpees everytime a person reach in front of you.

Ultimate Basketball: ultimate frisbee rules using basketball. 2 burpees every turnover

MARY:
NA.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
19 HIMs.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Age will always just be a number. Don’t let your age define what you can or cannot do. And don’t let it be a base measure of success. All of us are unique and take different paths. Success is relative and should not be compared.

“The greatness of a man is not how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.” – Bob Marley

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Drum Major’s daughter as she prepares for an acl surgery; Corona weight’s brother has been sober for 3 months now and have been away from trouble.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Steam and Guppy in partnership with heart and soul church will be serving Girls Inc. by painting, cleaning, landscaping, donating and more on August 12 in Oak Ridge.

Seeing Beyond

THE SCENE: Partly cloudy, but lots o’ sunshine, hot, 92 degrees.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome to F3, Fitness, Fellowship and Faith. F3 is a free workout program designed to improve fitness, share some camaraderie, and foster male leadership in the community.  I’m Pele and I will be your Q today.  I am not a professional, and I do not know your fitness level or injury history.  Please push yourself, but modify the workout as necessary to avoid making any existing injuries worse.  The goal is to get better together!


WARM-O-RAMA:

-20 Side Straddle Hops (4-ct), in cadence

– 10 Hillbilly Squats (4-ct), in cadence. (Q is a knucklehead, and screwed up the motion and cadence for this, resulting in a mulligan)

– 10  Windmills (4-ct), in cadence

– 10 LBCs forward and backward (4-ct), in cadence

Little of this and that

THA-THANG:

AMRAPS Galore! Mosey to Stop Sign to northeast of admin building.  Do 30 seconds of the following 4 exercises.  Rinse and Repeat.

  • Plank Jacks
  • Peter Parkers
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Merkins

Mosey to ROCK pile.  Get a ROCK.  Do 30 seconds of the following exercises.  Rinse and repeat.

  1. Overhead Press
  2. Curls
  3. Rows
  4. Squats

Mosey to Parking lot by Area 51.  Do 30 seconds of the following 4 exercises.  Rinse and Repeat.

  1. Froggie Jumps
  2. Lunges
  3. Bobby Hurleys
  4. Smurf Jacks
  5. We may have done one more leg exercise here?… Q was getting delirious from the heat

PAULA ABDULS in same parking lot.  Burpee Broad Jumps for 2 cones, then El Capitan back 1. I’m not sure High Heels ever figured this pattern out… :))

MOSEY to shaded tree by stop sign south of Admin building. Do 30 seconds of the following 4 exercises.  No Rinse and Repeat due to time.

  1. Big Boy Situps
  2. American Hammers
  3. E2K Left Side
  4. E2K Right Side

MOSEY to Stop Sign to the southwest of admin building.  Finish with CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (Partner 1: BERNIE SANDERS, Partner 2: 5 STAR JUMPS, then sprint to catch up) to AO.

MARY:
Didn’t have time for ol’ Mary.

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

A few years ago there was a video going around the internet.  Viewers were shown a group of people on a basketball court.  Half are in black shirts, half in white shirts.  The viewers were asked to count how many times someone in a white shirt passes to another in a white shirt.  When the video is over, they threw out numbers as guesses.  Then they’re asked, “So… who saw the gorilla on the court?”  There was actually a gorilla in the video that walked into the circle, stood there for a few seconds twirled around, then walked away.  70-85% say they didn’t even see it.  We are trained to see what we are asked to see.  We are clouded by our preconceived notions, expectations, biases, etc.  We don’t see something that’s right in front of us because we aren’t EXPECTING it.  We explain it away.  This happens even more readily in today’s age of science, sophistication and knowledge we tend not to believe in magic, or miracles in the literal sense.  So how do we expand our vision, revisit and put our pre-conceived notions aside so that we can see the miracle of God?  The difference between Biblical Truth and Fact.  The Bible is the Truth.  Some people would argue that some of the FACTS described in it are a bit debatable, but in the end, the Truth is what matters.  For example, whether or not Jonah was swallowed by a great sea creature is immaterial.  But the story has TRUTH.  French have a word, BRECOLLAGE (sp?), which means seeing what is in front of you, but also seeing beyond it. We need to remind ourselves to see not only what is obvious, and also the “beyond”, the workings of God in our everyday lives.  The key to witnessing God in our daily lives is not to demand to see burning bushes or columns of fire, or water bodies dividing in two.  It is to see BEYOND the obvious.  The buddy that calls you right at the moment you need to hear a friendly voice.  The neighbor who brings you dinner when you or someone in your family is sick.  The brothers in F3 who pray for a favorable outcome, like the wonderful turnaround with Corona Weight’s brother.  Are these coincidences?  Are they just random happenings?  Look Beyond.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for those suffering from COVID, prayers for the Philippines and the people there
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
CSAUP coming up a week from this Saturday, Snack Drive, Hardship Hill, Iron Pax… busy month for F3!

Lifetime Brotherhood

THE SCENE: Sunny with a weather of 85F and a little breeze.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome to F3, Fitness, Fellowship and Faith. F3 is a free workout program designed to improve fitness, share some camaraderie, and foster male leadership in the community. I’m Jetlag and I will be your Q today.  I am not a professional, and I do not know your fitness level or injury history.  Please push yourself, but modify the workout as necessary to avoid making any existing injuries worse.  The goal is to get better together!

WARM-O-RAMA

  1. Brady corns
  2. Windmill
  3. Plank jacks 4ct
  4. Mountain climbers 4ct
  5. CMU – Increment: 5x squat – curl – overhead – tricep

THA-THANG:

Workout 1: CMU
Murder Bunny or bear crawl

Each cone: 10 merkins x 10 frog jumps
Then run to playground: 10 box jumps x 10 tricep dips

Workout 2: CMU 2x

Per corner:
Back: 20rows x 20deadlifts
Chest: 20merkins x 20shoulder taps
Shoulder: 20shoulder press x 20sumo squats (wide squats)
Arms: 20biceps x 20triceps

Mosey to Picketts Charge

Workout 3: 1st hill 4
1. Mountain climbers 4ct in cadence
2. Shoulder tapos 4ct on top

2nd hill 4x bearcrawl up
1. Prisoner getups 4ct
2. Toe taps 4ct

Workout 4: Colosseum 3 base

1st base: 10 side straddle hops – run around. 2nd base: 10 side straddle hops – run around 3rd base: 10 ssh – run around

Mosey back to AO.

MARY:
Wagon wheel the six

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
26 HIMs in attendance. Mickey not tagged.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
As may not all of you know, Me and my family are only visiting the US, supposedly for a few weeks for the holiday last year until Philippines declared another hard lockdown in January. Ever since then, we thought of staying here for a bit longer until we get the vaccine, and until the covid cases subside – which did not up until now. The past 8 months has been nothing short of amazing not just for me, but for my family as well. I get to spend a lot of time with parents again, them spending time with their grandchild and it feels so great to be home again with them.

Back tracking, when we first got here, my wife and I were really paranoid because of the pandemic, because of how bad the situation is where we came from. We’re scared for our child of getting sick so we always had our guards up against the virus. I met a bunch of guys working out at 5:30am under a drizzling, 35F weather. It was dark, winter, cold and awfully at the peak of the pandemic. It was my second day here in Knoxville and rest assured still jet-lag from our 27-hour flight (thus, the name, Jetlag). We worked out and it felt horrible, I’m not going to lie. But it amazes me how everyone stays for a while after the workout to say a few words, to say a little prayer for the others and for the community. Every workout is different, and I get to learn more about the community, more about what F3 means and how they make their impact in the society. And of course, these men became my brothers. These men lift each other up; cheer and pray for each other when one is down.

I have never seen anything like it. They welcomed me, a visitor, from a foreign country, in the middle of the pandemic, like I’m one of their own.

I absolutely love them, my brothers for life. And I will be forever grateful to them, for making me a better man, better partner, better son, better father – a HIM. And I’m truly honored to be part of this lifetime brotherhood.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Drum Major’s daughter, Hunter, who tore her acl; for Lily’s recovery from the hip surgery; Doubtfire’s grandmother-in-law’s recovery, who recently suffered a heart attack;

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
CSAUP at Dog Pound is moved to August 21.

Do It Anyway

THE SCENE: Not too bad, all things considered… low 80s, light breeze, mostly cloudy at first, switching over to mostly sunny which made it a bit toastier.

F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Welcome to F3, Fitness, Fellowship and Faith. F3 is a free workout program designed to improve fitness, share some camaraderie, and foster male leadership in the community.  I’m Pele and I will be your Q today.  I am not a professional, and I do not know your fitness level or injury history.  Please push yourself, but modify the workout as necessary to avoid making any existing injuries worse.  The goal is to get better together!


WARM-O-RAMA:

-20 SSH, 4-ct, IC

-5 Burpees for Abscess, who has a mental derangement that causes him to actually LIKE Burpees

– 10 Windmills, 4-ct IC

– 15 Grady Corns , 4-ct IC

– Little of this, then that

– Hamstring stretches, right leg over left, touch toes, reverse

– 10 Tempo Merkins, 4-ct, IC

THA-THANG:

MOSEY to the soccer field below the Coliseum:

BATTLE BUDDY AB KRAKEN with 6 cones.  Do 20 REPS of the exercise (4-ct when applicable), then run around circle PLUS ONE cone, etc., until you reach the last cone.  When finished, go to the middle and alternate 10 merkins and 20 squats until 6 finishes.

  • EXERCISES: Flutter Dollies, LBCs, Big Boy Situps, Bicycle Kicks, American Hammers, Dead Bug

MOSEY to the little parking lot just above the soccer field.  Get a BATTLE BUDDY for THREE BY FIVES.  One partner will be in the “bullpen” slowly running back and forth, while the other partner runs to stop sign and does two exercises, then runs back.  Start with 5 reps of both exercises and increase by 5, i.e., first trip do 5x, then 10x, then 15x.  Three sets of exercises:

  1. Peter Parkers (2-ct) / Half-Burpees
  2. Star Jumps / Iron Mikes
  3. Decline Merkins / Dive Bombers

AYG back to AO, cresting at least 2 of the small hills in the amphitheater on the way back.

MARY:
Plank holds, 5 more burpees for Abscess. Uggh.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 HIMs, No FNGs, one doggy
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

One of the things I’ve been struggling with the past year or two is how to maintain my efforts to be a man of character and integrity when it seems like no one else is playing by the same rules, or setting the same standards for themselves.  There comes a point where it’s easy to shrug and say, “Why bother?” and a temptation to sacrifice your principles in any variety of situations.  I am by no means perfect, but I get frustrated when I see ignorance, or selfishness, or an acceptance and propagation of falsehoods that are passed along purely for self-gain.  I get furious when I see hypocrisy, prejudice, and self-righteousness masquerading as patriotism or religious zeal.  And sometimes when I feel like I’m at my breaking point, I remember one of favorite poems, Do It Anyway, by Mother Teresa.  It goes like this:

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

You see in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Pusher’s co-worker’s family, the family of Jetlag’s friend in the Philippines who died of a heart attack, and other PAX members struggling with loss or are healing from injuries.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
CSAUP date change, now 3rd Sat. in August; Saturday AM will likely move to parking lot where PM group meets during winter.