F3 Knoxville

On the Road Again by Erector Nelson

THE SCENE: The prettiest darn spring morning we have had yet this year. 50, clear.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER – CHECK
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • High Knees
  • Tempo Squats
  • Arm circles
  • Tempo Merkins
  • Cherry Pickers
  • Michael Felps

THA-THANG:
A heavy workout on the move. We did 10 reps  unless otherwise noted.

  • Parallel bars – inverse rows, 15 merkins
  • Pool wall – wall-ups
  • Playground – pull-ups
  • Amphitheater – Box jumps and bear crawl up the hill
  • Mosey to the recruiting center and pick up a CMU
  • On the way to the Movie Theater:
    • Heavy Freddies, Overhead Press, Goblet Squats
  • At the Movie Theater, do the reps and run up the stairs
    • Thrusters
    • American Hammers x20
    • Curls x20
    • Lunges x20
  • On the way to Badger Ave
    • Blockees x5 for ORPD
    • Heavy LBCs
  • At Badger Ave, do the reps, Bernie to the Light, Sprint Back
    • Rows x20
    • Kettle Swings x20
    • Curls in Al Gore x20
  • On the way back to the Recruiting Center
    • Heavy Flutters
    • Derkins
    • Heavy Sumo Squats
    • Prison cell merkin blockees
  • Drop off the CMUs and Mosey to the Memorial
  • At the Memorial, Dive Bombers
  • Back to the Flag, just in time

MARY:
No time
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

In general, people overestimate what they can get done in a short time and underestimate what they can get done over a long time.

It is a good discipline to set aside dedicated time each day for prayer. But I have encountered a pitfall that can come with it.

I have to be careful not to try and cram in everything I need to pray about. There is a part of me that just wants to get it done. But it should never be done.

The times when I have felt the most peaceful, the most content, have been times when it felt natural to turn my attention upward at the first sign of trouble.

One 5 minute chunk a day can isolate your relationship much like 1 hour a week. But if you talk to someone for 30 seconds 10 times a day, they must be with you wherever you go.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every evil.
MOLESKIN:
Some good discussion
ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Project Deck of Pain Part 2: Isolated? No! Relationships in Spades!

THE SCENE: Low 30’s but dry so good to go.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER – Administered + COVID
WARM-O-RAMA:

Moroccan Night Club x 15 IC (for Erector!)
Forward Lunges x 5 ea, Reverse Lunges x 5 ea OYO
Tempo Squats x 10 IC
Tempo Merkins x 10 IC
Tennessee Rocking Chair x 10 IC

THA-THANG:
This is Part 2. Part 1 here: Soldiering Through the Project Deck of Pain

The following Spades were not done last time but we did them this time:

Location Suit Card Description Card Amt Modified Amt
Shovel Flag Spades 2 1 lap entire shovel flag parking lot 1 1
Shovel Flag Spades 3 Dips on the curb 15 5
Shovel Flag Spades 4 Bear crawl in parking lot Q’s distance Q’s distance
Shovel Flag Spades 6 Tempo squats 10 10
Shovel Flag Spades 8 Jumping Spider 10 5
Shovel Flag Spades 9 Heels to Heaven IC 20 10
Shovel Flag Spades J Stationary Lunges 10 ea leg 5 each leg
Shovel Flag Spades Q Al Gore 30 sec hold x 2 30 sec hold x 1
Shovel Flag Spades A Single Leg Calf Raise 15 ea leg 7 ea leg

From there we did the following “randomly” pulled exercises (these aren’t in order but my cards got off so I’ve just put them in a filtered list from all exercises below):

Location Suit Card Description Card Amt
Shovel Flag Spades 5 Moroccan night club (if Erector is present he must lead it IC and must be 15 reps) 15
Shovel Flag Spades Q Al Gore 30 sec hold x 2
Amphitheatre Diamonds 6 Box Jumps on low theatre wall 15
Amphitheatre Diamonds 7 Flying Squirrel 10
Amphitheatre Diamonds J Iron Mike / Bonnie Blair (ea leg) 7
Amphitheatre Diamonds Q Reach for the Sky / Let it Hang 30 sec each
Amphitheatre Diamonds K Pickle Pointer IC 20
Friendship Bell Hearts 4 Reverse Crab around bell 1
Friendship Bell Hearts 9 Leg Lifts 20
Friendship Bell Hearts A Alternating Leg single leg calf raises (single count) 40

 

MARY:
Mary-go-round (aka Rotating Dealer’s Choice) – making a normal MARY circle for Dealer’s Choice, going around the circle each PAX calls out a 4-count IC exercise . After going around, the Q or one PAX doing one of the exercises as it rotates does 10 IC reps of the exercise on the Q’s lead. PAX does the exercise the PAX to his right did. After a 3-5 sec confirmation, the Q calls out the the cadence and the PAX again do 10. Repeat for a chosen length of time or at the end during normal “MARY” part of the workout. If PAX complete all exercises in the full circle, go back to the left instead. (I made this up a few weeks ago and submitted it but it’s not on the Exicon yet)

Exercises in today’s Mary-Go-Round included the Pickle Pointer, Basilisk, LBC, Stargazer (everyone was a fan of 15 seconds of rest in!), Leg Lifts (or Heels to Heaven… the Q might have gotten these confused today!), BBS, & more!

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMAPAX in Spades today!

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Because of life circumstances and COVID, I haven’t attended church in person since March 2020. Lord willing, that will change on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021. There are many factors that have gone into me staying away to care for those around me, but I want to write this to encourage those who are like me with what God has taught me and worked in me while absent.

1. God has not forgotten me and He hasn’t forgotten you.
It would be easy to get fatigued and feel like I’m not being faithful, making a difference, or really growing. I feel like I’m in no man’s land, simply riding the bench while everyone else gets to play the game of fellowship and worship each week. But we know that’s not true. Each person and especially those not present in person has a role to play in our church. God has called every member of the body to work and serve its purpose. He makes it clear in 1 Corinthians 12:21-23 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty,
 
Do not fear – you and I are not forgotten.
 
2. God has been working while you were ‘away’ both in you and in others.
In many ways, relationships cannot help being had in person. There are various methods of communication – email, letters, endless Zoom meetings for work and with family- but these are not exactly the same. We feel it with the drain from being in front of a screen longer than any of us knows we want to be. Even those of us who are technophiles (previously loving technology a little too much) want to join in with the technophobes (that computer is ‘of the devil’ as Bobby Bouche’s mother would say) and take a break from the endless virtual communication we get. So, for those who you haven’t seen and those who haven’t seen you for a year or so, remember that you have changed and so have they. Lord willing, you’ve both become more Christ-like and the best version of you. But if you have stumbled, if that person has not followed as straight-and-narrow of a path as you or I may think they should have, there is grace for that as well. When you see someone after not seeing that person for some time, go into it with the thought “God how can I love the 2021 (person’s name)?” Colossians 4:6 reminds us how those conversations are to be ” 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”
 
God will give you the words, just listen to what the Spirit says in that moment and not your flesh is saying. Trust Him with your relationships.
 
3. Remember true community starts and ends with fellowship with God.
Jesus condescended from perfect communion with the Father and Spirit. We do not yet have that fellowship, and it is God’s good gift to use by giving us other people who are made in His image, giving them value and dignity and making them capable of relationship. This is God’s design, but as with all things, you and I need to realize that fellowship is to point us to God. Our church family should be one of the dearest groups of people and especially many individuals there can be so edifying and encouraging to us as friends, brothers, sisters, fathers, and mothers. When we gather 2 or more, God is manifestly with us. But there is no replacing time with God and communion with the Lord. Are you following the example of Mary (Luke 10:38-42), sitting at Jesus’ feet? Are you slowing down, carving time out of your “busy schedule” to make time for what trutly matters? Or have you let the feeling of isolation pull you away from making time to intentionally get alone with Jesus every day (as Jesus Himself did with the Father in the GLOOM in Mark 1:35)
 
This last point has been of particular relevance to me in the preceding few months. I’ve been lonely and anxious, struggling with seeking other things to soothe my flesh rather than pressing into the Spirit.
 
All of these are a call to press into God and not let the things and people of this world be what take the cake for you. Appropriately desire community with others, trust God to work in those relationships, and seek God first and most.
 
Proverbs 18:1Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire;
    he breaks out against all sound judgment.
Press into relationships, especially the one with your Creator!
MOLESKIN:
Glad to have Baby Boomer visit us!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Shamrock F3 Shirt Deadline is 3/13/2021

Familiarity Breeds….

THE SCENE:   35 and clear
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER:  Administered
WARM-O-RAMA:

SSH
Moroccan Nightclub
Cherry Picker
Abe Vigoda
Tempo Squat
Mountain Climber
Merkins

THA THANG:

Mosey to the library parking lot.

Five Lines 50’ apart.  Starting at Line 1, perform the exercise, then rifle carry to the next Line.  Repeat to the end.

Line 1:  Curl press
Line 2:  CMU Swings
Line 3:  Goblet Squat
Line 4:  Alpos
Line 5:  Thrusters

Round 1:  10 reps
Round 2:  15 reps

 

Pyramid Partner Run

P1:  Bernie back, sprint forward
P2: Exercise

  • 50        Burpee Jumpovers
  • 100      Sumo deadlifts
  • 150      Al Gore Curls
  • 200      Heavy LBCs
  • 150      Single-Arm Rows
  • 100      Overhead Squats
  • 50        Blockees

CMUs on the Benches;

  • CMU pullovers x 20
  • CMU plank rows L x 10
  • CMU step-ups L x 10
  • CMU plank rows R x 10
  • CMU step-ups R x 10

MARY:

  • Heavy freddy
  • Heavy Dolly
  • Heel taps
  • Mosey back with a jail break 

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

8 men, including Colonel from Johnson City and FNG Blind Date

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Romans 12:9 (NLT), “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.”

Last week, I ran across a poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox.  I don’t remember when or why, but I had tucked it into some notes that I keep – and while I was looking through those, I rediscovered the poem, “Those Who Love Us Best”.

It came at the perfect time.  It was a day before I left for Missouri to visit my parents for the weekend.  This poem reminded me of something my mother said to me when I was 16 – and was a self-absorbed, arrogant, ignorant, punk, idiot kid.  I don’t remember exactly what prompted by mother’s rebuke, but I do remember the discussion vividly – where I was sitting in the living room, the look on her face, my dog laying near my feet…  She says to me, “You treat everyone in the world better than you treat me…”.  She was spot-on.  She had me dead to rights.  She was absolutely right, and I knew that I was absolutely in the wrong.

Here is the poem that reminded me of that rebuke from more than 20 years ago

Those Who Love Us Best

There’s one sad truth in life I’ve found

While journeying east and west –

The only folks we really wound

Are those we love the best.

We flatter those we scarcely know,

We please the fleeting guest,

And deal full many a thoughtless blow

To those who love us best.

– Ella Wheeler Wilcox

 

Why do we sometimes say things to our loved ones that we wouldn’t think about saying to a stranger?  Why is it that the tone of our voice can be sharper and the volume of our praise be softer?

You’ve heard the old adage “familiarity breeds contempt”… but when it comes to our closest loved ones, that should be nonsense!  When it comes to our family, our goal should be “Familiarity breeds intimacy.  Familiarity breeds comfort.  Familiarity breeds security, unguardedness, relief, and joy”. 

Let’s work in that direction.  Here are some tips;

  1. Watch your tone of voice. It is amazing the tone people use with loved ones, but wouldn’t think of using with co-workers or friends.
  2. Laugh.  Replace your irritation with laughter, and ask yourself, “Is it really worth getting angry?”
  3. Model what you would like to see happen in your family.
  4. Show gratitude every day.
  5. Give more than you take.
  6. Learn to become a better listener.
  7. Smile at your family members when they walk into the room
  8. Tell your family members you love them every day

MOLESKIN:

Prayers for Colonel, Repeat’s sister, Biohack’s family

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Update on prayer

THE SCENE: mid 30s and clear
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

15 SSH, 15 Mountain climbers, 10 tempo Merkins, 15 Imperial walkers, 10 tempo squats, 15 Moroccan night club
THA-THANG:
Mosey to the highschool main entrance. Do 11s starting with 10 wall-ups beside the bottom of the stairs and 1 diamond merkins over near the garage doors.

Line up single file and begin the Bataan Death March. PAX in the back drops and does 3 burpees and then sprints to the front of the line. As the sprinter passes the PAX in the back, that PAX drops for the burpees. Repeat.

We took the long way around to the playground. 10 pull-ups at the playground, 20 derkins at the amphitheater, 20 2-ct flutter kicks, and 10 prison cell merkin burpees at the top of the hill. AMRAP

MARY:
15 Freddie Mercury, protractor
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
8 including Colonel from Johnson City
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
So, at the first of the year, YHC stated that I was going to start to take a few minutes to start my day in prayer. I am sad to report that I have failed miserably. I may have gotten a couple of days at the beginning, but that was it. At JUCO, Spotter has been issuing a monthly challenge. His choice for March: 10 straight minutes of prayer and meditation. Before beginning, I thought “how am I going to fill 10 minutes”? Sad right? You know what? It was super easy! I just started talking to God about all the things on my mind and before I knew it, 10 minutes were gone. Here is my challenge: participate in this monthly challenge. What a way to build our relationship with the Father!
MOLESKIN:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The Bronson 02/23/2021

THE SCENE: mid-30s cold but great day to get out
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER administered with covid warning as well
WARM-O-RAMA:

    •    Side straddle hops (IC) 4ct
    •    Imperial squakers (IC) 4ct
    •    Tennessee rocking chair
    •    Cherry pickers
    •    Stretch on your own 30 seconds

THA-THANG:

Two lines to the peace bell.
  • At the peace bell we did 7s with derkins and dips

mosey to K25 hill.

Modified Charles Bronson: place 5 cones.  perform exercise below at cone 1, run to cone 2 and do a hill sprint, run to cone 3 and do a hill sprint, bear crawl from cone 4 to 5. mosey back to cone and perform next exercise – rinse and repeat.
  • 50 SSH
  • 50 Merkins
  • 50 Burpees
  • 50 LBC’s, rinse/repeat.
  • 50 American Hammers
  • 50 squats

MARY:
Only 2 minutes for this, we did dealers choice

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Momento Mori, a note from Stoic philosophy to remember that will die. how does that change the way you want to shape you day…

MOLESKIN:
none
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
none