Author: Rudy

  • 6.7.6 – tibialis anterior mountain – from Hokie

    At 0600 there wax No Q so I took it

    At 0630 We started with 6 Pax on a Glorious beautiful Sunday morning and we finished with 7 (I know it is hard to believe anyone would be late in this group 😜) and we finished with 6 at coffee (Mayham had to go pack for Hawaii). Thus 6.7.6…

    The Thang

    Start with tibialis anterior exercises and then climb a mountain of reps and finish with tibialis anterior exercises and Sunday mornings.

    For more info on tibialis anterior exercises search Knees over Toes on YouTube:

    Tibialis raise x 20
    45° calf raise x 20
    KOT calf raise x 20

    The Mountain

    1 Burpee
    10 Merkins

    1 Burpee
    10 Merkins
    25 Step-ups (2 is 1)

    1 Burpee
    10 Merkins
    25 Step-ups
    50 Reverse Lunges

    1 Burpee
    10 Merkins
    25 Step-ups
    50 Reverse Lunges
    75 Air Squats
    100 Sit-Ups

    1 Burpee
    10 Merkins
    25 Step-ups
    50 Reverse Lunges
    75 Air Squats
    100 Sit-Ups

    Mosey to back of NOMA

    Tibialis raise x 20
    45° calf raise x 20
    KOT calf raise x 20

    SUNDAY MORNINGS!

    Thanks for opportunity to lead

  • Crack a Cold One and Tip it on Back to ‘Merica – from Lil Cuz

    That’s right Merica, U S and A
    We invented mud tires, aluminum cans, and freedom
    I’m from Merica, how ’bout you?
    Got that right
    In 1776, Uncle Sam and this bald eagle found Lady Liberty and her rocky mountains
    They knocked boots and yelled Yee Yee
    And boom, there it was, just like that
    Merica was born

    I’m Earl Dibbles Jr and I approve this message
    Yee yee!

    Today we honored an American Legend, Earl Dibbles Jr., he’s a country boy. He wakes up, straps on his overalls and puts a good dip in. His heroes include Chuck Norris and Uncle Sam, and his hobbies include breakin’ out the cooler with a 12 pack and breakin’ line fishin’ on a creekside. YEE YEE!

    Old Fashioned Warm up with all the usuals and a little added request from the previous night’s group chat of Hillbilly Imperial Walkers. Your Welcome Yank! I hope I didn’t mess you up too much with my sporadic cadence counts.

    Thang 1: ‘Merica by Earl Dibbles Jr
    Hold Plank for duration with a slow burn Merkin for every ‘Merica. We would also do a Merkin for every “Yee Yee!” heard today.

    This was a slow burn to prepare the Pax for what was in store near the end of today’s beatdown. Everyone faired well with comedic stylings of Mr. Earl Dibbles Jr. himself paying respect to the #1 country in the whole universe. U, S of A baby! Back to Back Undefeated World War Champs!

    Thang 2: Mini IPC – Single Shot
    25 Curls for the Gurls,
    Farmer Carry Coupon across field
    25 Goblet Squats
    Farmer Carry Coupon back to Starting Point
    25 Overhead Press
    Farmer Carry Coupon across field
    25 Coupon LBC’s
    Farmer Carry back to starting point.

    This warmed the muscles of all Pax as they started to notice some signs behind us creating a little mumble chatter as to what they may be starting to recognize form last year.

    Thang 3: Workaholic by Earl Dibbles Jr.
    Hold squat at different levels (High, Mid and Low) changing level for every workin’, workaholic, and breakin’.

    After this song, YHC gave a little background on Mr. Earl Dibbles Jr, AKA Granger Smith. Granger and his wife lost their youngest son a few years back and Granger has spoken about the struggles he has dealt with this and being finally able to accept the loss of his youngest child. I cannot imagine what Granger was going through in this time and I prayed for him and prayed that I never experience this great loss. This also got me thinking about the hardest thing I have had to do in F3 since joining and of course IPC comes quickly to mind. I jumped into the middle of IPC at only my second beatdown and struggled very heavily through the entire thing. I accomplished it and still to this day I am not sure how. I’ve grown a lot since then, and so too has Granger Smith it seems. Recently, he has decided to end his music career to focus on ministry and aid other people struggling through losing a child. I cannot commend this man enough for wanting to share what God has done for him and his own healing and how he has been able to turn such a loss into a way to do God’s work here on Earth.

    Thang 4: IPC 2022 Week 4 Re-do
    Center Station of 5 Man-Makers to start and moving to each station to complete the exercise posted there and coming back to center for 5 man-makers between each station.
    1st Station: 15 Coupon Swings
    2nd Station: 10 We’re Not Worthies
    3rd Station: 20 Overhead Tricep Extensions
    4th Station: 15 Goblet Squats

    This was continued for the duration of the beatdown and lasted around 30 minutes.
    I am solidly impressed by the work the Pax put in today through this IPC re-do. All Pax took the challenge in stride, never blinked and got to work. Pouring sweat and pushing through the pain moving to the next station. I am looking forward to IPC this year and the work this group can put in to show the rest of F3 what the Thibodaux Pax are made of.

    6 Minutes of Mary, Potluck Style

    Moments to Note:
    Never Give Goose a chance to potluck Mary because Dr.W’s are coming, I promise.

    French Horn got to practice his cadence before his VQ and honestly he is already leaps and bounds better than Tana. Great Job!

    ANIMAL shirt bestowed to the Animal himself, Smooth Operator! What a beast this guy is! Always ready to work harder than anyone else around! Congrats brother!

    COT and Yankee Jeaux prayed us out. Looking forward to seeing the slo-mo video Yank! If you know, you know.

    SYITG,
    Lil’ Cuz
    YEE YEE!

  • Ta-Battle! OR Hog’s Breath’s Eye Glasses Match His Birthday Suit – from Bushwacker

    The idea was there, but planning and fleshing out said idea was left ‘til last minute. Assuming the best case scenario, QIC anticipated 7 PAX. Hog’s Breath was a HC because of a meeting, Russo was an HC because, well, it’s Russo. The rest? Eh. Anyhoo, the appropriate fleshing out involved a plethora of coupons and so it went…

    WARMORAMA

    Several exercises that provided dynamic stretching of muscles necessary to perform scheduled primary exercises of the planned beatdown were carried out, all IC x10.

    THANG

    Q set up ( with welcomed help from the TWO F3 brothers present) 6 stations to revolve around during a fun-filled Tabata, including Stretch Band for Curls, Jump Rope, Tire Flip, Battle Rope, 45lb Plate for Prisoner Carry, plus stairs. 20 minutes in, Hog’s Breath arrived like a nitrogen based explosive, hitting the ropes like he was propelling a Higgins boat in a storming by of the beaches of Pontachartrain! He claimed to be going over a presentation (possibly in just his reading glasses and socks?) when he realized the time and bolted. Meanwhile, YHC had an eclectic running playlist providing motivation, entertainment, and confusion? La la la la la di da

    MARY

    A series of exercises providing a physiological strain to core muscles were performed IC.

    You guys don’t know what you’re missing at Grandmother’s House. On site and in the area are opportunities for challenging and enjoyable beatdowns. It’s geographically well-located and long-standing. It just needs more HIM to make it worth the effort the few regulars put in, and for down-rangers to post. We all love this thing we have, our thing (la cosa nostra;) The more consistently we feed it the stronger it will grow. YHC’s time is dwindling, but F3 will always be my medicine!

    Humble thanks!

  • Old Reliable(s) – from Russo

    The beat up pair of sneakers you cut the grass in. The Dinner Party episode of the Office. The Lollapalooza ‘94 tee shirt with the hole under the arm. The first Karate Kid. 80s rock from Def Leppard. Anything by Led Zeppelin. Some things are just comfortable, reliable, and make you feel like all is right in the world.

    In my corner of the F3 Northshore world, reliable means a Splashpad Q, Pelican, an ongoing “feud” with the A1C that defines ISI, and weather that is continuing to turn more humid and getting close to “hot”. The weather that turns me into Jackson Pollock, where sweat beads down almost immediately and paints a dotted abstract picture on the ground when it falls. Art!

    Add in the reliable Deck of Death as a base, and one has all the makings of a classic beatdown.

    Warmup
    – SSHs
    – Grass grabbers
    – Cherry pickers
    – Self love
    – Arm circles
    – Seal jacks

    Thang

    Quick mosey of the block, directly into the deck of death. Rep count and exercise was based on suit and number. Deck was split into four groups below.

    Between groups we slalomed the columns or ran the block.

    Hearts – wide merkins
    Diamonds – Peter Parker’s
    Spades – 8 count body builders
    Clubs – merkins

    Hearts – burpees
    Diamonds – lunges (2 is 1)
    Spades – Monkey humpers
    Clubs – Big boy sit-ups

    Hearts – ballerina squats
    Diamonds – SMCs
    Spades – imperial squat walkers
    Clubs – Star jumps

    Hearts – leg raises
    Diamonds – V ups
    Spades – Gas pumps
    Clubs – Crunchy frogs

    Mary: 15 IC freak nastys and another brief mosey.

    COT, Name-o-Rama, and prayer closed us out. Reliable words that I’ve copied and pasted numerous times.

    In all seriousness, one of the most reliable things for me is to know there’s a group of men that will often meet to push each other hard, grumble about it constantly, hurt or ache for a bit, and then get up early to do it all again. Unless your Steve or TruCoat, we do it without a smile on our face while we’re in the midst of it. But there are reasons we do it, and for me, one of those is so that I can be more reliable, dependable, a strength to those around me, most importantly my family. I don’t always hit that mark, but that remains the goal, and without this group, that task is more difficult.

    Our church had a men’s dinner and short service after, and one of the notes our speaker reminded us of is that we are defined and shaped by the company we keep, and where we spend our time, talents, and money. Think limit the negative influences, accentuate the positive ones.

    That’s why I post, to surround myself with a group of like-minded individuals who have each other’s best interests. Well, that and because I am afraid Slackbot will come after me and not open the pod-bat bay doors should I ever need it.

    SYITG

  • You don’t skip leg day – from Jose10k

    YHC has been working out with his wife everyday since his return from the Caribbean. However, he did sleep in on Wednesday, which was leg day. Katie hasn’t let me forget that I skipped leg day, so here we go…

    Warm-ups: ssh, windmills, grass grabbers, self love, torso twists, arm circles, high knees, butt kicks

    Thang: 4 corners with a twist

    Cooper Head Squats at each corner, 15 count. Lt. Dan the long stretch, two lunges, 1 squat, 4 lunges, 2 squats, etc…

    Sumo Squats at each corner, 20 count. Lt. Dan the long stretch..

    Side lunges at each corner 25 count on each leg, Lt. Dan the long stretch.

    Great conversations with all, including our newest member of the A1C fight club, our very own Magnum PI (dark wing duck). Still, where is BBQ?

    Finished up, COT, Moby prayed us out. SYITG

  • Tennis Balls, Basketballs, and Duck Poop – from Goose

    YHC rolled in two minutes late to a patiently waiting threesome of Enron, Yankee Joe, and a Picadilly surprise (good to have you back in it, bro!). YJ had brought the requested basketball, and YHC had fished a few raggedy tennis balls from out of the ball bin in the garage for a TurboTax inspired thang at the Den.

    After warmups of the usuals, minus cherry-pickers cuz we weren’t gonna be using the shoulders (big surprise), YHC explained who TurboTax is (the previous leader of the Northshore PAX and crusher of cardio and legs) and shared that as an F3 noob a few years back, the team tennis ball relay was in just about 100% of all Turbo beatdowns. It stuck in the memory because it never failed to both stoke the competitive fire in a special way and suck the wind out YHC’s lungs in a special way. Basically, teams traverse a distance by throwing a tennis ball to one another ultimate frisbee style: the one with the ball can’t move but must throw it to a teammate further up the trail. Today, we partnered up, YHC with Dilly and Enron with YJ–the starting line was the lion, and the finish line was the lion after traversing up to the lake, around the whole track, and back.
    It didn’t take long for our hands to get used to catching the ball, and though there weren’t many drops, the ones that happened were the key to failure/success. When a ball was dropped, both partners had to complete 5 stationary lunges (2:1, knee all the way to the ground, in the duck poop) before continuing. YHC and Dilly employed the many short throws strategy, while Enron and YJ opted for the fewer long throws strategy. Though YHC and Dilly seemed to drop one or two more times, it was the last drop that mattered most. Enron and YJ stayed just ahead through the whole race, and YHC expected to have to utilize a long Hail Mary pass at the very end to squeak out a victory, but at the very end, Enron and YJ choked on the the emotional excitement of their impending win and dropped the ball allowing YHC and Dilly to pass them like a Ricky Bobby slingshot and grasp victory by the…tail. (You know, like a lion’s tail.) The losers’ penalty was 15 celebratory star jumps congratulating the tenacity and steadfastness of the winning team.

    Thang 2 was a partner Dora of 100 Big Boys, 200 Flutters (2:1), and 300 LBC’s. Partner 2 ran to the lake, nurred up the levee, and ran back to flapjack. Gotta keep bustin’ dem abs for when we rip off our shirts at the Firemen’s 5K for the finish line photo!

    Ended a little early so we could have plenty of time for the last thang: 2-on-1 fast break drill on the basketball court. With four PAX we had enough for two men on offense to try to head down the court and score against one man on defense while the remaining man stood under the opposite goal counting down from 10. If the two-man team either turned the ball over or couldn’t score within ten seconds, they incurred a 10 squat-jump penalty. Then, one of the men on offense stayed back while the defender joined the other, and it was 2-on-one going toward the other side. We continued rotating with one man left behind to count down from 10 and (most of the time) complete his quickly cumulating jump-squats.
    YHC expected the puddles to be a factor, but they weren’t. The fact that we all suck at basketball, however, was a major factor. (We could probably also blame about 5% of it on the dark, too.). Either way, it was a fun, challenging way to keep the heart rate high and the reflexes working for about 15 minutes before heading back to the flag.

    Announcements with some gratitude for answered prayers, and the Animal shirt was finally bequeathed to Yankee Joe out of a combination of pity and partner bias (just kidding–it’s always great to watch–and hear–YJ put his all into a routine, especially for a partner). Dilly prayed us out well, and we’re both looking forward to and dreading Saturday with Cuz.

    SYTIG,
    Goose

  • Good Time (although maybe too much) – from Charmin

    Today was a good time
    We picked up some we hadn’t seen in a little while
    And also picked up some along the way
    Also there were two runners
    The last ruckers arrived back after 50 minutes to much ‘adulation’.

  • Play it Again Sam – from Fast Tax

    Friday, April 21, 2023
    Sixteen PAX appeared from the gloom to end the week on a fun note with Game Day at the Uptowner.

    After dispensing with the disclaimer, while the injured went to the track to walk, the rest of us moseyed a ways to find some lit areas of the park…apparently someone at Pontiff is trying to save the planet, one dark field at a time. Nevertheless, we found a trickle of light by the gym and started our warmups.

    Warmups were a sprinkle of typical Fast Tax fare:
    Abe Vagodas
    Hairy Rockettes
    Nancy Kerrigans
    Swan Dives

    Lining up by the gym parking lot, first up for the pre-game festivities was Indian Rabbit Hop.
    Indian Rabbit Hop: PAX line up, face down in plank position, all facing left with 2-3 feet between PAX. Last man broad-jumps over the planking PAX to the head of the line, Indian Run style. We continued cycling through until YHC said stop.

    Next up was 50 ish yards of Welsh Dragons.
    While remaining in plank position, PAX bear crawls forward 5 yds, does 1 merkin, 1 plank jack, and tap the BACK of each shoulder 1 time. Repeat adding 1 rep to each exercise each 5 yds – bear crawl forward 5 yds, do 2 merkins, 2 plank jacks, 2 sets of back of shoulder taps… etc. We continued until we got to 8 reps each (I think), holding plank for rest of PAX to finish.

    Battle Frisburpee time!
    After a quick review of the rules, the game commenced.

    Team 1 (Skins): Fast Tax, Buxton, Architect, Mayhem, Wedding Planner, Bogey, and Pool Boy
    Team 2 (Shirts): Pilsbury, Logo, Boo-Boo, Bolt, Kuch, Mr. Rogers, Hand Grenada

    Skins clobbered Shirts 5-3

    Back to COT for count off, name o rama, announcements, intentions, & prayer.

    SYITG

  • Play it Again Sam – from Fast Tax

    Friday, April 21, 2023
    Sixteen PAX appeared from the gloom to end the week on a fun note with Game Day at the Uptowner.

    After dispensing with the disclaimer, while the injured went to the track to walk, the rest of us moseyed a ways to find some lit areas of the park…apparently someone at Pontiff is trying to save the planet, one dark field at a time. Nevertheless, we found a trickle of light by the gym and started our warmups.

    Warmups were a sprinkle of typical Fast Tax fare:
    Abe Vagodas
    Hairy Rockettes
    Nancy Kerrigans
    Swan Dives

    Lining up by the gym parking lot, first up for the pre-game festivities was Indian Rabbit Hop.
    Indian Rabbit Hop: PAX line up, face down in plank position, all facing left with 2-3 feet between PAX. Last man broad-jumps over the planking PAX to the head of the line, Indian Run style. We continued cycling through until YHC said stop.

    Next up was 50 ish yards of Welsh Dragons.
    While remaining in plank position, PAX bear crawls forward 5 yds, does 1 merkin, 1 plank jack, and tap the BACK of each shoulder 1 time. Repeat adding 1 rep to each exercise each 5 yds – bear crawl forward 5 yds, do 2 merkins, 2 plank jacks, 2 sets of back of shoulder taps… etc. We continued until we got to 8 reps each (I think), holding plank for rest of PAX to finish.

    Battle Frisburpee time!
    After a quick review of the rules, the game commenced.

    Team 1 (Skins): Fast Tax, Buxton, Architect, Mayhem, Wedding Planner, Bogey, and Pool Boy
    Team 2 (Shirts): Pilsbury, Logo, Boo-Boo, Bolt, Kuch, Mr. Rogers, Hand Grenada

    Skins clobbered Shirts 5-3

    Back to COT for count off, name o rama, announcements, intentions, & prayer.

    SYITG

  • Angry Whopper – from King Kong

    Today is my 45th birthday! I woke up earlier than normal so that I could drop off 5 coupons in front of Audubon Zoo. I wanted to mix in some weights for our workout.

    Warm-up exercises on the great lawn in front of Audubon Zoo:
    10 x Windmills
    10 x Grass Grabbers
    10 x Self Love
    10 x Forward Arm Circles
    10 x Hill Billies
    20 x SSHs
    15 x Imperial Walkers
    25 x SSHs

    After warm-up exercises, we moseyed to the statue in front of the Zoo. Divided into five groups of 5.

    Five stations – Station 1 (Curls x 20 is the count), Station 2 (Alternate Step-ups), Station 3 (LBCs), Station 4 (Leg Raises), Station 5 (wall sit with overhead claps). Rotate in clockwise. Once each group finished all 5 stations, rinse and repeat for Round 2. Somehow during the rotation, Whopper pulled a Hulk and broke one of coupons. After we finished the 2nd round, we formed 2 lines. People Ran to Magazine Street and back with the coupons.

    Back to the five stations except this time with different exercises.
    Station 1 (Overhead presses x 20), Station 2 (Declined shoulder taps), Station 3 (LBTs), Station 4 (V – ups), Station 5 (wall sit with seal claps). Rotate in clockwise. Once each group finished all 5 stations, rinse and repeat for Round 2.

    Quick mosey to the lawn in front of the zoo.
    1) 15 hand released merkins then sprinted to the other end of the field. 15 more merkins and sprinted back to where we started to finish with 15 more. Total = 45 reps.
    2.) same as 1) except we did squats instead of hand-released merkins.
    3). same as 1) except we did burpees instead of hand-released merkins.

    Arrived back at the flag at 6:16 a.m.

    I gave a shout out to Angie’s List for Eh’ing me 5.5 years ago because F3 has become a big part of my life and routine. I look forward waking up at 5 a.m. to meet up with the Pax. I am thankful and grateful for my health. I hope I have many more birthdays to celebrate with my family, friends and Pax. Never take my health for granted.

    SYITG

    Kong