Nothing Fancy, Just a Good Beat Down

24 Pax including sprung from their fartsacks to get better this morning. YHC was tapped by Nailpop to fill in for him since he couldn’t be there this morning. So, knowing that Nailpop would have had the Pax begging for mercy, YHC had to deliver a good beat down. Nothing fancy, just a good, non-stop workout that would leave only the sounds of crickets (literally only heard crickets) after only a few minutes.  An of course a few groans as well.

Weather: 66 and HOT!!

Disclaimer and Prayer

The Thang:

No mosey, just find a place on the concrete and let’s begin.
Flutterkicks x 30 IC
Heel Touches x 20 IC
BBSU x 10 OYO

Mosey to soccer field. Run one lap around field with some high knees mixed in.

Line up on end line.
SSH X 20 IC
Sprint to other end.
TTT x 20 IC
Sprint to other end.
Windmill x 20 IC
Sprint to other end.
Mountain Climbers x 20 IC
Sprint to other end.
LBAC x 10 forward and 10 backward IC
Sprint to other end.
Merkins x 20 OYO
Sprint to other end
Plankorama
Sprint to mid field – 5 burpees OYO then sprint to endline.

Line up on sideline for BLIMPS
All on your own:
5 Burpees
10 Lunges each leg
15 Imperial Walkers
20 Merkins
25 Plankjacks
30 Squats
Plank when finished.
Since we didn’t make it all the way across the field, Rinse & Repeat until you reach other side. Plank when finished.

Sprint to other end.

Line up on end line and split into 2 groups of 12. Each group lines up shoulder to shoulder. High plank in a line going to the length of the field. Last person bear crawls to the front of the line. When he gets there, the last person then bear crawls to the front. Keep going until we reach mid field. Each Pax bear crawled a minimum of 3 times.

Low plank in line. Last person duck walks to the front of the line. When he gets there, the last person crab walks to the front. Keep going until we reach end of field.

Team 1 got there faster so they got to pick an exercise. Merkins were picked. Next exercise is Merkin Suicides. Do 10 merkins OYO, sprint to mid field and do 10 merkins. Sprint back 10 merkins. Sprint to end 10 merkins, sprint back 10 merkins.

Rinse and repeat with BBSU replacing the merkins.

5 Minutes of Mary

Since Notebook has his VQ coming up in a week or so, YHC asked him to lead the first exercise. YHC figured he would pick something like LBC’s or the Russian Twist.  Nope, he selected body builders.  About half way through he yelled out “let’s go ladies”.  With that being said, I can’t wait to see what he brings to his VQ.  Or can I?  Once we completed 10 body builders, YHC kicked Notebook out of the circle.

Boat Canoe x 1 min

Return to shelter for Namorama

BOM

Moleskin:  The men of Shawshank continue to get better together.  This is an awesome group of men.  The number of regulars here continues to grow.  9 even showed up for some extra running beforehand.  On a personal note, it has been 1 year since YHC began F3.  If you had said a year ago that I would be leading these workouts I would have said your crazy.  I could barely make it through the first COP, let alone count out the exercises.  While on the verge of spilling merlot during the double applesauce, I remember thinking, “what the heck am I doing here?”  I couldn’t be more happy that I didn’t just give up like the many times I had before with gym memberships.

Just a bit of history – I moved to Lexington with my wife and two boys back in August 2012 as a job transfer.  We knew a total of zero (0) people in Lexington, actually in the state of SC.  We were both excited and nervous at the same time.  I didn’t have to learn a new job so that was one plus.  I work from home so I knew meeting people would be a challenge.  With two young boys (9 and 7 at that time) involved in sports, I knew I would meet people through their sports and their school.  And I did. As a 38 year old male, I used to think “how am I going to meet some guys to hang out with, watch games with, go have some beers with, etc.).  I think we can all agree that its not always fun when your stuck hanging out with her friend and her husband.  Sometimes you click, and most times you don’t.  I wanted my own friends to hang out with.  We did make some good friends in the apartment complex we were living in at the time.  But moving from a house in NY to an apartment in SC with no family and two young boys wasn’t easy.  We knew we would eventually move into a house but didn’t want to rush it since we didn’t know the area too well.  After about a year in the apartment I started to get a little depressed and wondered if moving here was a smart move.  I started to get lazier, eat more, and drink more.  I remember thinking that this is a problem but couldn’t stop.  I reached an all time high with my weight at 192 lbs.  That might not sound heavy to some, but at 5’7, that’s a big gut.

Ok, Enough of that.  Fast forward to Spring 2013 Dixie Youth Baseball season and enter Ken Doll and Scooper (at that time it was just Coach Travis and Coach Lee).  Our boys played on the same team through the spring and the following fall.  I remember Ken Doll starting his EH on me, and we all know how good he is at that.  He said, you should come to this group called F3.  Like so many before and after me, I made all the usual excuses – its so early, I’m out of shape, and its so far. There was no Lexington AO at that point.  So to drive 15-20 minutes at 5am was certainly out of the question.

Fast forward again to end of February 2014, Ken Doll said we are starting a group in Lexington at RBHS. Now my excuses lessened by 1.  I had no “its too far” excuse.  I took a look in the mirror and didn’t like the man standing before me so I decided to give it a shot.  I went out to what is now #Graveyard with over 50 other men that first Saturday in March.  Like I said earlier, I was miserable. But as I looked around I knew I wasn’t the only one.  What I liked the most that morning was the encouragement from the other Pax out there that day.  After the first or two week I was hooked.  I noticed a difference in how I felt both physically, mentally, and spiritually.

So as I continue this journey called life, I have seen more great things happen over the last year than in the many before it.  I have lost 25lbs, which a year ago I would have thought would be my best accomplishment, however, I have made more friends whom I can call brothers. I go to lunch almost every Friday with a group of these men, I lead a running AO (ha), and most importantly, I don’t just go to church on Sundays as a chore, but as a follower of Christ.  I truly do feel blessed to have F3 in my life.  It may sound cliche but it has been life-changing for me.  I know there are thousands of men in our communities who can benefit from F3.  So put on your EH hat and get them out into the Gloom.  Thank you to all my F3 brothers for your encouragement and support.  I hope I do the same for you.
– Meatball
(for those of you who don’t know how I got my F3 name, I moved here from NY and I am Italian – not cause I had a big gut)

Announcements:

• March 6: Crusade will meet at Krispy Kreme on 378 for the first donut run.  Easy out and back for 45 minutes followed by donuts and 2nd F.

• March 7: One Year Anniversary Convergence at Graveyard. While March 1 marks our 1-yr anniversary, we’ll celebrate on Saturday, 3/7. New goal: 175 pax! Get the EH machine rolling.

• April 11: Ultimate Challenge Mud Run. Registration is open. This is F3’s Super Bowl. DO NOT register on the mud run site. F3 will have a special link with which to register. YHC will be the F3 Mud Run QIC. Also, No Show has agreed to be our Mud Run Region Q.

• May 1: GORUCK Custom Light. Preblast here: http://f3nation.com/2015/01/07/preblast-goruck-custom-light/

Prayer Requests:

• Continued prayers for Walker and also his entire family.  Walker had a stomach bug earlier in the week and now the rest of the family has it.
• Prayers for a friend of Gravediggers family who is battling cancer.
• YHC’s wife trying to get over an infected tonsil.
• All unspoken prayer requests.