The morning started off with @sharkbait putting a last minute flying EH on FNG (@Maestro) seconds before disclaimer was given.
Q: Beach
Disclaimer Given
Warmup: Sidestraddle Hops x 50 IC; Imperial Walkers x 20 IC; Hillbillies x 20 IC; Cherry Pickers x 10 IC; Bat Wings x 20 IC
The Thang: 7 of Diamonds using corners of end zone and 50 yard line, plank until the 6 completes each exercise: Chilcutt Peter Parkers x 7 each corner; Bobby Hurleys x 14 each corner; LBCs x 21 (4 count) each corner; Squats x 28 each corner; Hand-Release Merkens x 21 each corner; Lunges x 14 (4 count) each corner; Absolutions x 7 each corner.
Circle up: Shoulder Press x 20 IC; Sidestraddle Hops x 35 IC; Big Boy Situps x 25 OYO; Calf Raises x 30 OYO
My bat senses told me that Cleveland Rocks was disappointed that he missed out on Bat Wings in warmups. So the last 2 minutes were delegated to Cleveland Rocks to lead us in Bat Wings IC. 🦇
With Turkey Season coming in and training events causing some PAX to absent themselves from today’s beatdown, YHC wasn’t sure anyone was going to show. Not to worry, 10 PAX won THAT FIRST BATTLE and posted for an ABSolute Saturday morning. I.e. we focused on the abs…a little bit. It went a lil’ something like this:
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH – 18 IC
Swartzjacks – 18 IC
Imperial Squat Walker – 18 IC (Squat didn’t work in public as well as it worked at home. Next time)
Cherry Picker – 17 IC
Windmill – 10 IC
Wheel of Merkin – 10 OYO Merkins each PAX, around the ring
Sealjacks – 40 IC (In honor of Hideous)
THE THANG:
Mosey around the circle, between the courthouse and the admin building, and around to the double steps on the S. Bedford St. side of admin building:
Abs Station #1: Admin Building steps
Gas Pumpers – All PAX do Gas Pumpers continuously until each PAX has run steps
Merkins – 2 mins., AMRAP
Mosey to armory…
Abs Station #2: National Guard Armory steps
LBC’s – 5 sets of 100, run to top step & back (500 total)
Big Boys – 2 mins., AMRAP …because Biddie requested them 😉
Mosey to School (side lot)…
Brief breather for the 3rdF:
Back on March 20th Spencer Lee won his 3rd individual National Championship as an NCAA wrestler for Iowa. Then in his after-match interview he dropped some crazy news on the college wrestling world. He’d been wrestling with a torn ACL! This was not the first time. He finished his high school career with the same injury sat out a portion of his first season at Iowa, before taking off his red-shirt and winning his first National title.
When questioned further after his March 20 win about why he would continue with such an injury, he said “Excuses are for F’n wussies!“
Fact is, there are times in sports and there are times in life when we might actually have a legitimate excuse to step away from competition, off the battlefield, or from something else. Spencer Lee had a legit excuse to withdraw from competition. Everybody would’ve understood if he had. And many would’ve said he should step aside. But he didn’t. Why? Well, yes, he wanted to win his 3rd NCAA individual title, but he also had an even greater goal in mind, a goal beyond himself: He wanted stay in the battle for his team to win the National Championship title. And they did!
A disclaimer: I’m not suggesting you and I continue with an injury that we may further aggravate or only cause worse injury if we keep going (like my foot). You know your own body, so be your own advocate. Just don’t make excuses. Not in competition. Not in family. Not in work. Not in battle. And to add the double negative… “Not nowhere!”
Of course, this mindset goes way beyond our workouts (a “mindset microcosm” of real life and facing hard things). So what I am suggesting is that you NOT take the easy road; that you not take the “out” even when everyone else expects it or okays it or even offers it. What I am suggesting is that you be stronger than your excuses. What I am suggesting, as Navy Seal, Marcus Luttrell put it, is that you, “Find an excuse to win.”
When we find an excuse to win, it will almost always be in direct proportion to the prize pursued (whatever that may be). But with that, we’ve got to stop thinking of ourselves alone. We’ve got to stop making excuses, and stop doing so for the betterment of our family, of those in our workplaces (on our teams), and for those in the communities in which we serve. Excuses serve YOU well (not really), but they almost never serve well those around you who may be part of some of the bigger picture stuff. We make excuses in daily life because we can. We make excuses because we’re able to get away with it with no accountability…we make excuses because we lose sight of our goals or THE [bigger picture] goal(s).
A few statements to be adopted by those who want to develop the mindset of being a HIM:
EXCUSES ARE FOR WUSSIES!
BE STRONGER THAN YOUR EXCUSES!
FIND AN EXCUSE TO WIN!
Whatever you commit to, make sure you carry that commitment to completion, to the end goal. Don’t make excuses and DFQ! Be it a workout, or a war; be it a wakeup or walk, a wrestling match on a mat or with a foe unseen–be a no-excuse warrior for your family, your friends, your team, your co-workers, yourself! Whatever it is, “Let your yes be yes, and your no be no.” (Jesus in Matthew 5:37) Excuses are for wussies!
Abs Station #3: Parking lot, the looooong lot…
Freddie Mercury – 5 sets of 50, run length of lot and back between sets (250 total)
LAST TRANSITION: Bearcrawl/Crawlbear back to start from far end of lot (canceled due to time)
Mosey back to AO to call it a day.
COT:
Number-Rama – 10 PAX
Name-O-Rama – a Happy Birthday to Woodstock, hit the big “4-2”
Announcements – Today is the day: Commit to the F3 Paintball outing (Sat. April 24 @ 3 pm). Commit today by getting your deposit of $25 to Jay Baxter (Quattro). Did YHC mention to do it today? Today it is then!
Prayers – Prayers lifted for PAX and families traveling home following Spring Break. Prayers for the Brown family and Cape students grieving the tragic loss of Maggie Brown and for other girls involved in the gator accident this past week.
ABSolutely honored to Q at the Aegis, it’s been awhile.
15 strong 💪 at Carmel High this morning. Gloom was nice. A little cool, over cast, perfect after the hot days that were hitting us hard during the week.
3 FNGs today including Never Mind who said he likes old rock (IE Music I grew up on.) I thought he was going to say bands from the early 60s when he said old rock. I guess time keeps on ticking into the future….
Disclaimer Given (a few times actually as we had a lot of stragglers today.)
Warm up SSH Prisoner squats (hands behind head) T pots Frogs
The thang Run a Lap – line up on goal line Bunny hop to 25, 10 merkins. Bunny hop back, 10 merkins. 6 times. First person calls it Bear Crawl walk to 25, 10 hello dollies 4 count. Crab walk back… 10 hello. 6 times. First calls it Crawl bear to 25, 10 gas pumps 4 count… First calls it
Run a Lap – line up on goal line
At goal line:
Run to 25 – 10 monkey humpers, at 50 – 10 groiners , at 25 – 10 Mike tysons & at goal line 10 Rowers – pick up the six… / plank… Reduce the above by 2 each time. Once at 0 do it 1 more time at reps of 10.
Run lap, 10 minutes of mary including: LBCs Hello Dollies Rosalitas SSH Run 2 laps or do 20 burpees – your choice
Dan lt to top of bridge 5 burpees Lt dan rest of way across bridge
Toy soldier set 50 lbc 25 e2k 15 big boys
25 derkins Backwards lunge to top of bridge Forward lunge back down
3rd F
==================================== But I say to you… Love your enemies! ====================================
Matthew 5:43-48 ESV “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. https://bible.com/bible/59/mat.5.43-48.ESV
Love your enemies!
50 urkins Side shuffle to top of bridge Side shuffle back down
31 reverse crunch Karaoke across bridge switching sides halfway
Mosey back to AO
25 Single leg hip thrust per leg 15 backwards big arm circles 25 split squats
Seven pax turned out, including guest Sunshine from out of town.
Warmup: Sidestraddle Hops, Imperial Walkers, Hillbillies, Copperhead Squats, Bat Wings. Some mumble chatter and facial anguish was observed during Bat Wings.
The Thang: Interactive workout inspired by the movie Bandersnatch. Pax determine what the workout will be. Mosey to the beach. Two lines drawn in the sand. Repeated sprints from one line to the other. Fastest pax to the other line determines the exercise and reps. Each time you are the fastest pax, you increase your sprint handicap by one burpee. Exercises chosen by pax were Bat Wings, Monkee Humpers, Copperhead Squats, Lunges, Chilcutt Peter Parkers, 1 minute Plank, Merkens, Bear Crawls, Nipplers, Burpees, Mike Tysons, Sidestraddle Hops, Don Quixotes, and Groiners. This may not be a complete list, as Q’s memory relies upon an aging brain. Mosey back to flag.
COT, Counterama, Namerama. Quote from Theodore Roosevelt was read. Announcements: DPR wins the month of March prize for posting to every workout in March (challenge and prize initiated and provided by Cleveland Rocks). The Murph Challenge is coming up, on Memorial Day.
LINE UP AT IN THE PARKING LOT, DO 30 MERKINS NEXT PAX LINE UP AND SPRINT TO THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE PARKING LOT WALK BACK. RINSE AND REPEAT 10 TIMES FOR A TOTAL OF 300 MERKINS.
F3 MESSAGE:
And it came to pass, when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples, saying, “Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Loose it and bring it here. And if anyone asks you, ‘Why are you loosing it? ’ thus you shall say to him, ‘Because the Lord has need of it.’ ” So those who were sent went their way and found it just as He had said to them. But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them, “Why are you loosing the colt?” And they said, “The Lord has need of him.” Then they brought him to Jesus. And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him. And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road. Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: “ ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord !’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”
Luke 19:29-40 NKJV
This is my question for you? Are you getting the donkey for Jesus? In other words are you listening to what the Lord asks of you, or does life bog you down and restrict you from serving the Lord. If we are doing what the Lord asks of us he will make the way for us, could you imagine what the owner of the donkey thought about this? Could you just give away your car? Obviously not, but because the disciples were doing what the Lord asked Jesus made the way for them. Men we have to put aside our busy lifestyle and simply just get the donkey.
11 strong 💪 this morning including FNG Stone Cold. Weather was amazing. The field this time was not frozen solid or even damp like in prior winter beatdowns. Spring is here and we are going to love it.
This was a new one for us. And one we could have done better at addressing. We had an FNG today leave mid-workout. We were doing laps on the track and no one was near him and he just left. Next time this happens one of us will try to catch up with the FNG to chat with them.
Disclaimer given.
Run Lap 10 Tea Pot 20 Moroccan Night Clubs 30 Seal Jacks 40 on you side – leg things… 20 each side 50 LBCs Run Lap
Bear crawl to center field & Circle up
In Cadence – Q starts – count goes to the right. Once you reach the end of your rope do a lap. Two ways to end it all: One person is left doing exercise or if the 3rd to last person returns from their lap (IE there are two left) it’s over. Call recover. Pax coming back can mumble chatter, cheer on other pax, plank, al gore… etc.
Hello Dolly Groiners Gorilla Humpers Wheel of Merkins Burpees
Run lap (or 2) – stop at wall for:
10 mike tysons
Line up on goal line – team up 1 pax lunges to 10 & back, other does 200 heal taps 1 pax lunges to 10 & back, other does 200 LBCs We started on this last one but ran our of time: 1 pax lunges to 10 & back, other does 400 SSH single count
12 HIM posted at the aegis for some fun cardio with a flying disc this morning with a fun filled game of ultimate frisbee after a warm up at the circle
The Thang consisted of a short mosey down to the Park beside the church for roughly a 35 minute game of ultimate frisbee. Followed by a mosey back to the circle. Should of been no contact but there was just a little contact made a few times I believe mostly by Quattro not because he was being rough but because he was so into the game. Lots of good cardio losing team had to do 10 burpees winning team only 5. Hopefully good times were had by all that were able to participate.
The Grit Mill was greeted by 8 PAX who won THAT FIRST BATTLE against the fartsack and posted for a ruck beatdown–tailored by YHC to limit being too mobile with hopes of bringing some recovery to an ankle feeling every bit of 53-yrs-old.
PAX included FNG Steve McDougall (n.k.a MacDaddy). As YHC was welcoming our FNG, he asked if YHC knew him or remembered him. He looked familiar but had to jog YHC’s memory. Amazing! Steve was the guy who came into my room when I was hospitalized with COVID19 back in December. Then, he put a new IV in my arm, we talked for awhile, YHC EH’d him (anywhere, anytime, baby!). But the most remarkable thing YHC remembers is that before Steve left my room, he knelt beside my bed, grabbed my hand, and prayed for my recovery. That’s a HIM right there! Since that week in mid-December Looney Tunes EH’d him as well. Sometimes it takes a few contacts with F3 HIM before guys will actually post. EH! EH! EH! Welcome to F3 MacDaddy! (So named because he’s carried several “Mac” nicknames, especially in the USMC, but now he’s got 5 children.)
Anyway, YHC created a ruck workout with some Grit (he hopes) but with limited mobility (travel), and here’s how it all went down:
Ruck Step Ups x 50 (sc) ☆ Suitcase carry around library (half/half)
Overhead Shoulder Press x 50 (sc) ☆ Lunge-walk 1/2 around library
Ruck Pull Side-to-side x 50, (due to time) FOLLOWED BY Ruck Merkins x 50
The following 3rdF was shared mid-workout:
UPDATED 3/24/21 for the Grit Mill
If you’ve been around F3 First State for any length if time, then you know I often share 3rd F messages based upon my personal military experiences. This one has 3 core components: A military experience, an F3 leadership principle, and a biblical text that most are at least familiar with.
Let’s start with the biblical text and work backwards. When I enlisted to join the PA Army National Guard (“Roll on!”), we were sent off to “pre-basic” right before we shipped out to Ft. Sill, OK (and other places) for regular Army Basic Training. On the first night of pre-basic, after lights-out, nobody knew what to say or if they should say anything at all! All of us troops just lay there in our “racks” in silence. I thought about it for what seemed like an eternity, but after only a minute or two, there in the darkness, I decided to say the Lord’s Prayer…OUT LOUD!
My fear was that nobody would join me. And we were all feeling a little scared —- I’d call it a fear of the unknown about what was ahead of us—completely unfamiliar territory—as we were entering a new phase of life, a part of which would be dominated by Drill Sergeants…doing what Drill Sergeants do!!! (We had drill sergeants in pre-basic there at Ft. Indiantown Gap.) So as I began to recite the Lord’s Prayer, imagine my surprise when everyone else in our barracks chimed in, and 40-some men recited the prayer together!! I think it settled all our hearts that first night.
I did it because my desire was to be a good witness. And I did it because I suspected everyone else lying there in the dark held the same fears I had (their joining in the prayer affirmed this reality). However I DID NOT do it to demonstrate leadership. Yet in doing so, I would say that I discovered leadership. I unknowingly began to discover a principle of leadership, a principle defined in F3 as Individual Initiative(I2). As our workouts are always PEER-LED Individual Initiative (I2) comes to the forefront. Here’s a summary of what we must all do as leaders to instill and grow Individual Initiative:
A leader must teach what he knows
A leader must make clear the mission
A leader must reward I2 whenever and wherever he sees it. “Leaders always get more of what they reward and less of what they punish.”
I couldn’t have defined it that night way back in Nov. 1989 when I found myself leading 40 other [YOUNG] men in the Lord’s Prayer, but in inadvertently taking the initiative, I BEGAN to discover this critical principle of leadership which also applies in many areas of life; it IS that which helps to define each of us as HIGH IMPACT Men: INDIVIDIAL INITIATIVE! It doesn’t matter whether an opportunity arises at home, in the workplace, or in the community in which you serve…Take the initiative and lead!
COT:
Number-Rama
Name-O-Rama – naming of FNG
Announcements: Rucking in Millsboro for Roving RuckF3st Friday, followed by Bible Study at the Country Kitchen
Prayers: For Beau’s family as they grieve the loss of this little boy; for Gavin and a miracle to heal his spine; for Woodstock facing some big stuff today (details to be shared later). For all of the men in the circle to be intentional with Individual initiative today.
Good times getting after it with rucks. Awesome to see some growth at the Milford, DE AO The Gri[s]t Mill. As always, humbled to Q, but even more humbled to have an FNG join us who cared for YHC when hospitalized with the Rona. Again, welcome to F3 MacDaddy.
Warmup: Sidestraddle Hops 4 count IC X 40 f/b Imperial Walkers 4 count IC X 20 f/b Hillbillies 4 count IC X 20 f/b Bat Wings 4 count IC X 20. Cleveland Rocks may or may not have hoped for longer holds. DPR expressed that we don’t do enough Bat Wings.
The Thang: Mosey to the baseball field. Run the bases backwards. Stop at each base for 7 Absolutions. Repeat with 14 Lunges. Repeat with 21 Hand-Release Merkens. Repeat with 28 Squats. Ran out of time. Mosey back.
Circle of trust. Counterama, Namerama, and announcements.
