F3 Knoxville

Tag: Snaggletooth

Shovelflag Handoff at The Project

THE SCENE:  68 and clear – perfect.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER:  Administered
WARM-O-RAMA:

RFTS/LIH
Willy Mays Hays
Seal squats
Down/up dog
Mountain climbers
Merkins

Mosey to the Friendship Bell
10 lateral box jumps
20 dips
30 derkins

THA THANG:

Dirty MacDeuce
1. 12 Flutter kicks (4 count)
2. 12 Shoulder taps (4 count)
3. 12 Hello dollys
Run a lap.
Repeat x 4

Mosey to K-25 Hill
11s – Burpees and Freddy Mercury (4 count)

Long Bernie up the road

MARY:

Mosey back to the Friendship Bell

Mucho Chesto

Freddy Mercury IC

Another Mucho Chesto

Another Freddy Mercury IC

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

Me and 22 of the best men I know

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

We showed honor to Erector and acknowledged that The Project exists today because he and others (Rocket, Chaco, Snaggletooth, Samaritan) launched it in February 2019.  What a positive difference it has made in my life – and in the lives of many other men in the Oak Ridge area.  T-Claps, brothers!  Erector led for a while, then Snaggletooth, and it was my joy and honor to lead for a season, and today it was a privilege to pass the flag to a man whom I esteem so highly.

The mission of F3 is to plant, grow, and serve small workout groups of men for the invigoration of male community leadership.  Fitness is not the endgame or the goal.  Your virtuous leadership – in your family, in your work, at your church, in this community – that is the goal of F3.

What makes a man a Leader?  What enables a man to do what a Leader does?

What F3 says it takes to be an effective leader are these four capabilities;

  • Vision – the ability to recognize Advantage and the Movement required to achieve it
  • Articulation – the act of describing his Vision to others
  • Persuasion – the initiation of first Movement
  • Exhortation – A leader is ready to use Exhortation to incentivize his followers

But an Effective Leader is not necessarily a Virtuous Leader. For that, F3 says he must also possess the Leadership Virtues.

  • Candor: graciously telling the hard truth and demanding to hear it from others
  • Commitment: unwavering loyalty to the Group and unflinching determination to accomplish its Mission
  • Consistency: to be unchanging in nature, standard, or effect over time
  • Contentment: stability of emotion engendered by the Consistent pursuit of Joy rather than Happiness
  • Courage: setting aside fear to turn hardship into grace

To Lead Right a person must be both an Effective and Virtuous Leader

We could have a BOM on each one of those capabilities and virtues separately – but I wanted to cover the whole F3 leadership model this morning as an introduction for the man who is accepting the shovelflag.  That dude is the whole package.  He possesses every one of these capabilities and I’ve seen each of the virtues reflected in his life.  Mathlete is going to be an outstanding leader of this group – and I look forward to following his lead and am excited to see where we go!

MOLESKIN:

If he had been there, Baby Chest would have loved the double Mucho Chesto.

Mucho gracias to our visitors from JUCO, Shamrock, and Equalizer – awesome to see you guys!

PRAYERS / ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Prayers for Ribbed’s wife’s healing, for Boy George’s wife’s interview today, for an unnamed F3 brother.

Heavy Pyramid Scheme

THE SCENE: Low 70s, but feeling cooler. Still gloomy as all get out.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • High knees
  • Projectivators
  • Tempo squats
  • LBACs
  • Michael Felps
  • Tempo Merkins
  • Newton’s cradle

THA-THANG:

  • Pool Wall – 10 Wallpees
  • Play ground – 10 pull ups
  • Mosey to recruiting center, Grab a block, two if available
  • 10 of each exercise, move two parking spots between each, return to start and repeat with 20, then 30 reps.
  • 1 minute plank
  • Lunging no cmu
    • Squats
    • Merkins
    • LBCs
  • 1 minute plank
  • Cusack with one cmu
    • Heavy squats
    • Curls
    • OHP
  • 1 minute plank
  • Farmer carry two cmus
    • Stacked squats
    • Elevated, deep Merkins
    • Double bent over rows
  • RTF

MARY:
One more minute of plank.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

On Tuesday, Skewer was playing music from Mega Man, and it reminded me of a cool story that I wanted to share. The first Mega Man game was released in 1987 and was universally considered a failure. It sold poorly, it reviewed with mild enthusiasm, and if you have ever played it, you know that this was because it was just not that good. Interesting elements, but nothing came together, generally poorly executed. Consequently, Capcom had not planned to make a sequel, but the director convinced the company to allow them to make the game as long as it didn’t interfere with their other work, i.e. on their own time. So a small team of passionate creators went to work, and one year later released Mega Man 2, which remains the highest selling game in the franchise. This quote sums it up: “So we, of our own accord, got together, spent our own time, we worked really, really hard, you know, just 20-hour days to complete this, because we were making something we wanted to make. Probably in all my years of actually being in a video game company, that was the best time of my working at Capcom, because we were actually working toward a goal, we were laying it all on the line, we were doing what we wanted to do. And it really showed in the game, because it’s a game, once again, that we put all our time and effort and love, so to speak, into it, designing it.”

To me, this is a great story that expresses the power of a small group of people working with passion and commitment on a project. The idea that you need a massive organization with massive funding to accomplish great things seems to be deeply engrained in our cultural psyche, in spite of the niche creator culture that thrives online. So I think it is a good reminder of the power that a Team can possess, unified in purpose, with members freed to lead in their areas of expertise. Big organizations with design teams and bureaucracy can only produce the milk-toast junk that occupies 95% of the modern market, relying on people’s addiction to novelty just to break even.

Real success, resulting from innovation, comes out of a Team. And as Mr. Inafune points out above, it’s the best environment to work in.

MOLESKIN:
Awesome to see Snaggletooth out again, even if he had to jet early.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Family workout Sept. 3rd. Flag handoff Aug 23rd. Iron Pax Challenge in September – Get Ready.

Meeting God on the Mountain

THE SCENE: overcast
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

SSH – Tempo Squat – Tempo Merk – Mtn Climbers – LBAC fwd/bwd – Burpees – Cherry Pickers – Stretches

THA-THANG:

  1. Parking Lot (NW Corner along Rec Ctr)
  • 10 merkins – mosey to end of parking lot – 10 Bobby Hurleys
  • Rinse and Repeat – 5x
  • 1 minute plank
  • Mosey to Playground

2. Playground

  • Begin with 4 Pull-ups
  • 15 Merkins + 5 Pull-ups (5 rounds)
  • 1 minute plank
  • Mosey to Friendship Bell

3. Friendship Bell

  • 20 Merkins
  • 1 Minute Plank
  • Mosey to K-25

4. K-2(5) (OUR HIGHEST PEAK!)

  • 10 Merkins at Bottom
  • Sprint up hill
  • 10 BBS at Top
  • Rinse-Repeat x5
  • 2 Minute Plank
  • Mosey to Shovel Flag

MARY:
No Time

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10STRONG

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

I shared with the guys a story from our family trip to Scotland. We spent almost all of our time in the Highlands with some hiking along the Great Glen Way, seeing the lochs and castles and the most beautiful, rugged green hills and grey skies. While anyone can see the sights and enjoy the beauty, many people have shared that there’s a feeling Scotland has. I felt it.

I experienced the thinness of the veil between heaven and earth. In the far north, Loch Broom opens up to the North Sea, and hides a small village called Ullapool. It is shielded from the North wind by the hills that surround it. On our only morning there, I woke up early to walk up the hills, to be alone. I wanted to ask God how we’ll make it through the season of change in our family’s life. As the hill climbed above the town, above the tree line, above any sign of humanity, I heard God.

More accurately, I sensed something so faint that I was surprised at how tiny and ephemeral it was. I imagined I would reach the top and cry out into the wild solitude . But it felt wrong to yell – I could only whisper. Through my ragged breath and the incessant North wind, I felt a message from God, like a memory. It was like a large library with hundreds of shelves, with thousands of books, and millions of pages – with one page lit up. It was the image of Jesus being baptized, with the Holy Spirit descending on Him, and the Father speaking over Him: “This is my Beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.”

On a lonely, achingly-beautiful and lonely mountain, I met God. I am exhorted once again to fix my eyes on Jesus in this difficult season, and because I am in Christ, I receive the Spirit upon me and the Father speaking those very words over me as well. “You are my beloved son with whom I am well pleased.”

Like my namesake, the prophet Elijah, I met God on the mountain. Not in the wind, not in the fire or the earthquake, but in a still, small voice in the hills above Ullapool.

MOLESKIN:
We praised God for an answered prayer and prayed for a continued concern for Tuba’s family.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Family Q with Pool Party; service opportunities – details in Slack.

Crit Fishin’ – Give thought to your steps

THE SCENE: Stormy, low 70’s, fantastic lightning show with a drizzle
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • Projectivators
  • Windmills
  • Hairy Rockettes
  • Tempo squats
  • Fence Steppers
  • Tempo merkins
  • Newton’s cradle

THA-THANG:
Went out back of the Senior Center for shelter from the lightning and got straight to work. Two teams, each with 12d20 and 5 cards of work.

Rules

  • Flip a card and complete it by performing the listed exercises. Each time a player completes a set, run a die to the cup. A card is complete when:
    • Every exercise has been performed
    • Every player has performed at least one set
    • All the dice are in the cup
  • Once the card is complete, grab the cup and roll all the dice into the box
    • For each 1, all players do five burpees
    • For each 20, bag the die – it is no longer required to complete a card.
    • Flip a new card and complete it as above.
  • A team wins when all their dice are bagged
  • When you finish all cards, go through them again, bottom to top with half the reps.

Every 4 minutes, when the horn sounds, stop what you are doing and hold a plank for 77 seconds.

Cards:

  • Heavy Squats (30)
  • OHP (25)
  • Good Mornings (25)
  • Lunges (10/side)
  • Curls (30)

 

  • Burpee Jumpovers (6)
  • One arm Rows (10/side)
  • Heavy Freddies (30 4-ct)
  • OHP (25)
  • Kettlebell Swings (25)

 

  • Crossover Merkins (8/side)
  • Blockees (6)
  • Kettlebell Swings (25)
  • Tricep Extensions (30)
  • Heavy LBCs (30)

 

  • Blockees (6)
  • OHP (25)
  • Curls (30)
  • Lunges (10/side)
  • Kettlebell swings (25)

 

  • Derkins (20)
  • Two arm rows (30)
  • OHP (25)
  • Kettle swings (25)
  • Good mornings (25)

MARY:
No time.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Proverbs 14:15 – The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.

This verse has been speaking to me all week, and I think it has a pointed message for our time and place. Is it safe to say that we all struggle to regulate our intake of information? Worse yet, how do we process that information and integrate it into the way we understand the world? The first part of this verse points to a problem we all face. Being simple, we simply believe things we hear or read or see. Now, it’s obviously impossible to challenge every single bit of information we take in, but we know that sources like media and hearsay demand our scrutiny. This faculty, however, is fatiguing, and when we fail to limit our intake, eventually we will fall into undiscerning consumption. I think the second part of this verse offers us a powerful tool to help in this predicament.

If you are prudent, where is your attention directed? To your steps. One of the toughest things to deal with is the expectation we feel placed upon us to have a rock solid position on seriously tough moral questions. For example, today, individuals are expected to take a side on the legal nuances of abortion and gun control, the scientific validity of potential anthropogenic effects on the earth’s temperature, and the morality and wisdom of foreign interventions by our nation. Any one of these topics could occupy a person’s attention for a lifetime without reaching a clear and decisive position, but we feel a social pressure to take a hard line based on the random assortment of personal opinions and online articles that we happen to have encountered. This is a trap, and our proverb gives us a better approach. Don’t give your attention to solving the divine mystery, instead focus on the places where your actual or figurative feet have to step. Take that wad of information and ask some simple questions. “How would this affect what I do? How does that action align with my integrated world view?”

In my experience, this simplifies many problems. I don’t need to understand climate science to see that it is better to be a careful steward of the resources under my control. I don’t need to be a doctor to know that I need to practice sexual integrity and care for the vulnerable around me. I don’t need to be a lawyer to know that handling firearms must be done with a serious mind for the risks. Now, from time to time, each of us may encounter a moment when a particular topic becomes more real, and a hard decision will need to be made. But solving a real problem with real people is a much different process than the esoteric hypothesizing that is required to try and solve the problem in advance. With prayer and discernment, you can do your best to make the decision and then lean on God’s grace to make up the difference. Unlike the hypothetical, it has a beginning and an end. By reducing the problem to the real, often people who may disagree about the hypothetical find themselves aligned on many points.
MOLESKIN:
I think we made it through 6 or 7 cards, to have a reasonable chance of getting all 12 dice, you probably need to complete 50…

Have to try this one again when we can run laps instead of planking.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Aug. 6 family workout @ 8am, also work day at cerebral palsy center in knoxville. Pool party at Borg’s to follow family workout. Equalizer is doing a family workout July 30th.

Striving to Rest

THE SCENE: 73 and beautiful
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
10 SSH, 7 Tempo Squats, 7 Tempo merkins, 10 Mountain Climber, Projectivator, 5 Burpees, 5 Cherry Pickers, Stretch

THA-THANG:

Heavy Stations – 2 ROUNDS

Round 1
CMU Thrusters
CMU Lunges
CMU Tricep Extension
Tire Flips
Heavy Ball Throw Down
Pull-ups

CMU Squats
TIMER: Bear Crawl down and back

Round 2
CMU Kettleswing
CMU Curls
Heavy Ball Throw Up
CMU Single-leg Squat
CMU Single-arm Row
Sledge Hammer Swings on Tire
Pull-up
TIMER: Bernies down to end and back

MARY:
PAX Choice

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
10 STRONG

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
For a couple years now, God has been trying to teach me to slow down and be with Him, and learn how to listen to His voice. When I resigned from my position, I thought I would be able to slow and be better at hearing God, but I found I wrestled more with restlessness than while I was working.

I have been disappointed in this season of restlessness: I have not been able to still my soul, to listen for very long –  only in moments – and understand this season of my life.

Meditating on Psalm 23 has been very helpful, as well as using the Pause App from Wild at Heart. But my prayer, even as I prepare to be away on vacation, is found in Matthew 11:28-30, particularly in the Message translation.

Matt 11:28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (The Message)

MOLESKIN:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Shield Lock Group on Fridays 5am; July 2 Convergence @ JUCO; July 9 Family Q 9am; July 15-16 Shield Lock Backpacking Trip – see Slack for details