F3 Knoxville

Burpee Mile^2

THE SCENE: Hot…Humid…Miserable…Perfect for a beatdown
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER Done
WARM-O-RAMA:

10xCherry Pickers, 20xlbac forward/backwards, 5 Burpees OYO  Short and sweet
THA-THANG:
Mosey to the hill above the large SE parking lot for some 11’s with Star Jumps at the top of the hill and diamond merkins at the bottom.

Now that we’re nice and warmed up, we moseyed to the pond parking lot to start the burpee mile.

Burpee Mile:

Perform 12 burpees and run one lap around the pond. Repeat 4x

YHC failed to mention to the PAX that the pond loop is actually .44 miles. Total distance run is 1.76 miles with 48 burpees.

MARY:
Judge led somewhere around 1,000 flutter kicks while the six arrived from the final lap. Reverse indian run back to the shovel flag. The PAX formed two lines, first HIM in each line counts to five before dropping to the side for 5 merkins then popping up and joining the back of the line.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
23 HIMs met in the gloom to kick off the week at JUCO. We had two more FNGs today. Welcome Kevin Hanson (Sergeant Slaughter) and Woody Huguley (Bambi)!
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Even Jesus, being perfect in every way, faced rejection multiple times throughout his time on Earth. His reaction was always to continue soldiering on in the work of the Lord. We will all face rejection at some point in our lives. How we react to that rejection is what matters. Be like Christ and use rejection as a teaching moment and continue doing God’s work.

MOLESKIN:

There must be something in the water here at JUCO as we have grown our numbers exponentially in the last month. Let’s keep this ball rolling! Keep inviting FNGs to come out and get better. Reach out to those HIMs who have been absent and encourage them.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
A JUCO shirt order should be posted in the GroupMe soon. Shirts are only ordered in bulk, so if you want one, get on it.

Taking the Scenic Route

THE SCENE: 73°F, Clear sky with a bright moon
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

  • SSH x20 IC 4-count
  • Burpees x4 OYO
  • Imperial Walker x15 IC 4-count
  • Burpees x6 OYO
  • Imperial Squawkers x10 IC 4-count
  • Burpees x8 OYO

THA-THANG:
Mosey to the ORAU pond walkway (scenic route)
Run laps around the pond:
Before the lap, OYO

  1. Merkins x20
  2. Squats x20
  3. Shoulder Taps (4ct) x10
  4. Smurf Jacks x20
  5. Scorpion Dry Docks x20
  6. Burpees x10
  7. Mountain Climber 4ct x10
  8. Heels to Heaven x20
  9. Jump Squats x20
  10. Plank Jacks x20

Mosey to the Bell
11s- box jumps and derkins

Mosey back to SP

MARY:

  • Flutter Kicks x20 IC
  • American Hammer x20 IC

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
7- Rocket, Erector, Kick-flip, Samaritan, Chaco, Snaggletooth, Archie (QIC)

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
The struggle with Pride is real. It can cause us to react to others negatively because we are comparing ourselves. We are competing with those around us.
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” – Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life
“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”
‭‭Philippians 2:3 ESV‬‬
https://www.bible.com/59/php.2.3.esv

The Road Less Traveled

THE SCENE: Pretty Nice
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

SSH
Tempo Squats
4-count Merkins
Mt Climbers

THA-THANG:

Mosey to the Greenway Path (continuing the warmup with burpees, freddy mecurys, merkins, and squats). Start the running path doing 1 set of the following every 4 min
15 Burpees
30 Freddy Mecurys
45 Merkins
60 Squats
Leaders wagon wheeled after every set to get back to the 6, finish their reps, and start each new leg together
Continued to do 1 set of each of the above until we complete the nearly 2.5 miles course — ended up being 6 sets

MARY:

50 4-Count Flutter Kicks

30 4-Count Freddy Mecurys

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Eccl 3:9-11
Helping each other out and no one left behind

The Prayer for Protection

THE SCENE:  75 and humid.  Goose crap eeeevvvveerryyywhere.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER:  Administered 
WARM-O-RAMA:

Windmill – IC
Cherry Pickers – IC
Moroccan Nightclub – IC
Tempo Squats – IC

THA THANG:

Mosey to some grass…

  • Flutter kicks (4-count) 23 IC
  • Diamond Merkins 23 OYO
  • Pickle pointers (4-count) 23 IC
  • Werkins 23 OYO

Sprint to the pond, stopping at four parking lot islands to do 10 squats at each.

At the pond…  Cones spread out around the large jogging path (0.75 miles).  7 stations along the path.

Split into two teams.  Race around the circuit in opposite directions.

  1. Rosalita x 23
    Imperial Walkers x 23
    Guantanamo
  2. Hail Mary x 23
    Tempo Squats x 23
  3. Everest (run down to the pond, then lunge-squat-lunge-squat back up)
  4. Outlaw x 23 each way
    Up Straddle Hop x 23 (each leg)
  5. Scorpion Dry Dock x 23
    No Surrender x 23
  6. E2K x 23 (each side)
  7. Smurf Jacks x 23
    Squeaky Bed Dolly x 23

Mosey toward the shovelflag…stop to do 50 yards of crab walking.

MARY:
Ain’t nobody got time for that!

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA: 
22 HIMs and 2 FNGs!  Welcome Gelato and Dos Años!

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
The Empire of Japan unconditionally surrendered to the US on August 15, 1945.  Because of the time difference, it was announced in the US on August 14 – and we celebrate that victory today – V-J Day – the final chapter of a war that lasted nearly six years and involved more than 100 million people.  It was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by an estimated 65 million fatalities – the vast majority of which were civilians murdered in atrocities.  16 million Americans served in the Armed Forces during the War.  405,399 lost their lives – and nearly 700,000 others were wounded.

Try to imagine what it must have been like during that time.  Imagine yourself as a soldier in a trench, fighting day after day to gain miles of French territory back – or as a father waiting anxiously to hear from his sons who are away in the Pacific.  Imagine yourself preparing for a suicidal invasion of mainland Japan – and the ecstatic joy you experience on August 14, 1945 when you realize that the war is finally over.

James Freeman is a name worth knowing.  He was a minister and a poet – lived most of the 20th century – and is sometimes referred to as the “poet laureate to the moon” because his poems were twice brought to the moon (by Buzz Aldrin aboard Apollo 11, and by James Irwin on Apollo 15 – who left the poem on the moon).  James Freeman was commissioned to write a prayer for our nation during WWII.  A prayer for a nation that was experiencing anxiety and fear, but also joy and relief.  A prayer for the solider in battle – a prayer for the wife who lost her husband – and a prayer for the father whose son returns home safely.  A prayer to cover the full spectrum of emotions and experiences of our nation.

Interviewed years later, Freeman said that the 23rd Psalm was an inspiration for his prayer.

Psalm 23

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

This morning, we used Freeman’s 10 lines of poetry, inspired by the 23rd Psalm, in the way that it was intended to be used – as our prayer.  It was written to cover the full spectrum of emotions and experiences of a nation at war. Where does life have you right now?  Anxious, confused, worn out, joyful, grateful….?

I asked the HIMs to listen for one line – whichever one jumps out at you and describes where you are.  Cling to it and say it to yourself over and over throughout the day – make one of these lines of poetry your personal prayer throughout the day.  For example: If life is going well for you right now – you might cling to this line “The Joy of God uplifts me”.  If life has you worn down in the season that you are in, you might make this your prayer, “The Strength of God renews me.”.  10 lines – cling to one.

The Prayer for Protection, by James Freeman
“The Light of God surrounds me.
The Love of God enfolds me.
The Power of God protects me.
The Presence of God watches over me.
The Mind of God guides me.
The Life of God flows through me.
The Laws of God direct me.
The Power of God abides within me.
The Joy of God uplifts me.
The Strength of God renews me.
The Beauty of God inspires me.
Wherever I am, God is!”

Prayers for Judge Judy’s wife, Mandolin’s wife’s grandmother, Sty’s sister-in-law and her husband.

MOLESKIN:
T Claps for Archie for learning the exercises and knowing the planned route.  I couldn’t have done this Q without him!

I’d planned to do the pond circuit two times – we barely had time for one!  So good to have FNGs Gelato and Dos Años out there with us!  Glad to see the “new crop” showing up and pushing hard; Mandolin, Pool Boy, Nutmeg, Mermaid, Guardrail – you men are rockin’ it!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
None

Untitled Ambitious – Part Deux

THE SCENE: Extra hot and muggy.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:

So, our fearless leader, Erector, smartsacked this morning because he needed to take care of his health. I Q’d last week and, because I have no sense of timing, we had way too much workout for the time allotted. Some of the guys said, “Hey – we’ll just do the rest of it next week.” I’m like, “Sure, I can do that.” But I decide that I’ll let someone else sign up if they want and I’ll just save it for the next time I’m on Q. Come Sunday, Erector signs up since I didn’t sign up and no one else did either. But he’s been coming down with something and last night sends out a group-me to say that he may need to smartsack. Archie says, “We’ll just do the rest of Snaggletooth’s workout. But I’ll be ready just in case.” So here we are – Untitled Ambitious – Part Deux.

Warm-Up: SSH x15, Tempo Merkin x10, Moroccan Nightclub x15, 5 Burpees OYO, Mosey to Playground

THA-THANG:
1. Little bit of recap from last week: 10 Pull-ups @ Playground/10 Dips @ Parallel Bars – 2 Rounds/Hold Al Gore for 6. Mosey to East Parking Lot.

2. Burpee/Bear Crawl: 5 Burpees – Bear Crawl to 1st Grass Island – 10 Burpees – Bear Crawl to 2nd Grass Island – 15 Burpees – Bear Crawl Back to 1st Grass Island – 10 Burpees – Bear Crawl back to Startex – 5 Burpees. Hold Al Gore until 6. Mosey to West Parking Lot.

3. BEAST (Right out of Q101 Playbook, aptly named because it’s a beast of an exercise, and because it is 6 reps of 6 exercises, and 6 rounds: 666). Sprint to 1st grass island, 6 merkins, sprint to 2nd island, 6 merkins, sprint to far curb, 6 merkins, sprint back to 2nd island, 6 merkins, sprint back to 1st island, 6 merkins, sprint back to startex, 6 merkins. Rinse and repeat with LBC, Squats, Werkins, American Hammer, and Burpees. We completed the cycle of Werkins before time was called. PAX did an excellent job.

MARY:
Kickflip led our Mary exercises. He’s Qing tomorrow morning at JUCO with several new exercises and we were his guinea pigs. I will not steal his thunder by putting them here. Suffice it to say, these exercises will get you in places you would have thought F3 already got to, but haven’t…YET.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Here are the 5 CHAMPIONS (after our AO-Q, Erector/Jason Champion) of the Project this morning: Archie, Chaco, Kick-Flip, Rocket, and me, Snaggletooth.

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Kick-Flip has consistently shared insightful and challenging COT/BOM with his Q, particularly his recent Q on International Friend Day (NOT a friendly workout involving a “friend” – read as, CMU). A friend not only holds his friends’ feet to the fire, but he also “unbosoms his soul,” or shares his heart. It’s easy not to. More often than not, this is our MO as guys. But nothing risked, nothing gained. It’s better to risk sharing your heart with a friend who will encourage and pray for you. 

MOLESKIN:

I am blessed by the caliber of guys that I get to work out with in the mornings. F3 is one of the best things I’ve done in the last 20 years. I didn’t know how much I needed it, nor how much I would enjoy getting up before 5AM to exercise but I’m better – 20 years better – because of it. Faafetai, uso (Samoan for “Thanks brother”)

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Those who experienced The Convergence shared some take-aways from Saturday and links to pictures as well as Capt Crunch’s challenge. Also 2nd F Lunch @ Oak Ridge Salsarita.