F3 New Orleans

Author: Rudy

  • Beautiful Sunday Morning w/o JV – from King Kong

    I woke up to this beautiful Sunday morning to lead a Sweaty Bells beatdown. Low humidity at 51 degrees (no wind, calm, blue sky)…. what else can you ask for? No Jingle Vader sighting this morning. Must had a wild birthday night.

    Started off with the following warm-ups: Forward arm circles, backward arm circles, windmills, grassgrabbers, hill billies, and imperial walkers. We then ran a warm up lap from the statue to the stop sign and back.

    The Thang 1:
    Grabbed the sweaty bells and lunge walked from light post to light post. We stopped at every light post with exercises in between:

    1st – curls in slow cadence x 20
    2nd – squats to overhead presses x 10 OYO
    3rd – chest presses in cadence x 15
    4th – flutterkicks with bells in cadence x 20
    5th – curls with arms straight out in slow cadence x 10
    6th – manmakers x 10 OYO

    The Thang 2:
    Dora 1, 2, 3
    100 sweaty bell swings
    200 pulling sweaty bells from left to right and right to left in plank position
    300 flutter kicks

    The Thang 3:
    1- grabbed a bench and did 15 right leg step ups with the bell in cadence
    2 – 10 decline merkins OYO
    3 – 15 left leg step ups with the bell in cadence

    Finished off with a round of Mary with American Hammers with the bells x 10, Hello Dollies x 20, and Protractor with the bells.

    COT
    We have a FNG. Thank goodness Angie’s List wasn’t there because this could have gotten ugly. He’s a rugby player, and works as an announcer for the Nola Gold Rugby team part – time. And he was once a butt double for an actor for a movie set “Breacher”???? So we named him BUFFer. Get it?

    Always grateful to be out there with the PAX. Thank You for the opportunity to lead. SYITG.

    King Kong

  • PAX of 1 – from Mambi

    Pax of 1 had Fun. Wish you were there.

  • Am I My Brother’s Keeper? – from Goose

    YHC had an interesting idea that could either be a memorable challenge, chock full of valuable life lessons, or it would be a total cluster, and nothing in between. So, with a record 6 PAX gathered at The Stage in the gloom of a gorgeous morning, we commenced.

    Warmup: SSH, Windmills, Grass Grabbers (deviations from the norm, duly recognized, are always for a reason), Arm Circles, Cherry Pickers, Imperial Walkers, Self-Love

    When YHC requested the assistance of JBL, Paradox informed us that JBL was fartsacking (or “charging”); and this after multiple prompts over the past few weeks to take advantage of JBL: “He’s here for you. He’s always ready to provide deep, booming base, and consistent bluetooth connection. Take advantage of his presence and his audio prowess.” But, alas, the first test of “Am I my brother’s keeper?’ resulted in grave failure. So, the morning’s soundtrack was barely audible on the phone speaker and out of YHC’s control, so there’s no telling what the guys closest to it were subjected to.

    Thang: Total Dependency

    PAX lined up and were instructed to observe the exercise of the man to their right and repeat it. Each man was then responsible for completing and displaying that exercise and communicating the number of reps to the man to their left. YHC was first in line and basically took the PAX through an ascending ladder of exercises (listed below), so there was constant movement and constant need to communicate down the line what exercises came next. Each man could only speak to the man next to him, so one-on-one communication was key.

    At first, there was some confusion as to what each PAX was responsible for communicating. Enron almost let Paradox do 25 burpees instead of 25 mountain climbers because he assumed it was a sort of “telephone” type game where misunderstandings were not corrected, but passed on. (That may have been YHC’s fault for explaining the exercise as “sort of like ‘telephone’”.) But, as the beatdown continued, and reminders to “Take care of your brother!” were repeated, the PAX caught on.

    Exercises were done as an ascending ladder (starting with the first, then the first and second, then the first and second and third, etc.):
    5 Burpees
    10 Merkins
    15 Lunges (2:1)
    20 LBC’s
    25 Mountain Climbers
    30 Second plank (4-count to 30)
    35 American Hammers
    40 Side Straddle Hops
    45 Big Boy Situps
    50 Squats (ran out of time for these)

    After count-off and name-off, YHC explained the lessons learned:

    1. Pain and/or pride typically cause us to focus heavily on ourselves and forget about the men around us. But, here, if we were overly focused on our own rep count or just trying to finish, the man next to us would be completely lost. It required much focus on where he was in the series and when he needed what information to continue. This is immediately applicable to life as a married man and as a father. When we’re overly focused on ourselves, either out of self-pity or pride, the people who depend upon us are left in the dark.

    2. Faith is never truly internalized from an expert to a group. It can be understood intellectually, but for a man to take ownership, he must be accompanied intimately by another who’s in the same boat, who’s been down the same road, and who can give both direction and confidence that it’s doable, it’s real, and it’s worth the struggle. Without this one-on-one accompaniment, faith struggles to escape the world of ideas, and we struggle to escape our own doubts and questions.

    COT, excellent prayer, announcements about the clown car trip to the Northshore beatdown on April 23 (Zoorich Classic) and Percleator having to go back to being a weekend warrior (Nooo!).
    It’s such a privilege to be out there with you, fellas!
    SYITG,
    Goose

  • Fashion Show at The Gipper – from Einstein

    …with Moby showing up wearing Berkenstock Clogs instead of his trainers

    Warmup:
    all 20xIC: Toe Touch, Side Straddle Hops, Good Mornings, Shoulder Rolls, High Knees, Arm Circles,
    Butt Kicks, Hi Jack Hi Jills, Imperial Walkers, Neck Rolls, Smurf Jacks, Hillbillys, maybe some more…

    Thang:
    To the Justice Center parking ramp for backward lunges half way up then sprint the second half(x2), to the upper deck

    Then using the parking lot stripes; and the four corners for pit-stop exercises

    First round: one push-up, then get up, at each of the 25 stripes
    Second round: one squat then side-shuffle right for each parking space
    Third round: one squat then side-shuffle left for each parking space

    for the pit-stop at the four corners we did:
    20 diamond push-ups
    20 dirty dogs
    20 hip rolls
    20 bird wings (on your stomach with bird wing flap type motion)
    20 reverse pushups (on your stomach bringing shoulder blades back in pinching type move)
    20 crunchy frogs
    20 atomic sit-ups
    20 v-ups
    20 box cutters
    20 donkey kicks

    Mosey back to the flag, finishing up with a two minute elbow plank

    Moby…mumbling something about cognitive testing, promising to wear his ballet slippers next time?

    Count-o-rama

    Cowbell led us out with a prayer.

    Thanks guys. Always good to start the day with you chaps.

  • Sprints – from PVC

    Warm-o-rama 800 M

    The Thang-
    100m run 100m mosey
    100m…100m
    200m…100m
    200m…100m
    300m…100m
    300m…100m
    400m…100m
    400m…100m
    rinse and repeat

  • And, For The Next Round… – from Goose

    Spared once again from forecasted rain, four PAX gathered on another unexpectedly beautiful morning to top the hill and plant the flag at Lumen Christi. YHC had designed this particular beatdown around Paradiddle’s recent comment revealing a desire for more running (and probably less hill crawling). Alas, there was no Paradiddle, but his absence was honored by a beatdown filled with both running and hill crawling.

    Warmup: SSH, Slooooooww Vigodas (after yesterday’s lumberjack trauma), arm circles, cherry pickers, imperial walkers, self-love

    Thang 1: Sticky Ninjas

    YHC had a good time coming up with a new way to move the PAX up and down the hill. With fond memories of those little plastic ninjas with sticky hands and feet that you throw against the wall and watch them crawl/flip down, the PAX made their way down the hill via 180 crawling arcs with one hand or foot fixed in place. Right hand stays put while the rest of the body crawls down in an arc around it; then, left leg, then left hand, etc. Picture bear crawl or plank position, spinning slowly down the hill with one hand stuck in place until a full 180 arc is completed, then switch to the next foot, etc.
    Going down was kind of fun. Going up was a different kind of fun… Definitely keeping that one in the back pocket!

    Thang 2: Round and Round We Go:

    Round 1: While each PAX takes turns running alone around the big lake (about a quarter mile), the rest complete continuous sets of 7 jump squats, 7 merkins, 7 LBC’s. Once all PAX have run…

    Round 2: PAX run two at a time around the big lake, the rest completing continuous sets of 5 burpees, 10 plank jacks, 15 flutter kicks. Once all PAX have run…

    Round 3: Each PAX runs around the lake alone, and the rest complete continuous sets of 15 squats, 10 dying cockroaches, 5 Maktar’s (plank walks). Sent the last two together so we’d have time for the final event.

    Thang 3: Imperial Walker Dance

    For the Duration of “Baba O’Reilly” by The Who, PAX did Imperial Walkers in cadence with the rhythm (some PAX’s rhythm is better than others, especially toward the end). The song lasts exactly 5 minutes, which was enough time for an in-depth lesson on all things CSI from Cardinal. YHC had no idea that all three CSI series used Who songs for the them (Baba O’Reilly was CSI: New York). Cardinal’s favorite is CSI: Miami because the main character is his doppleganger, but with cooler sunglasses.

    COT and prayers for families. It was a great morning! Thanks for being out there, fellas, and for sticking with it!

    See You in the Gloom (SYITG),
    Goose

  • You got to roll me, and call me… – from Russo

    71 degrees, balmy, breezy greeted a pax of 5 this morning at Granny’s, but despite the warnings and threat, no rain!

    Warmup (10-20x all IC)
    – Seal jacks
    – High knees
    – Self love
    – Arm circles
    – Toe touches
    – Good mornings

    Thang

    Super simple this week, a block by block mosey around old Mandeville, stopping to confuse the cars that passed as to why 5 HIM were rolling dice in the middle of the street.

    10 reps of each exercise based on the number of the roll. A double roll? Double the reps to 20 (Rummel math!)

    Roll of 2 – Burpees
    3 – Monkey Humpers
    4 – Leg raises
    5 – Shoulder tap merkins
    6 – Big boy sit-ups
    7 – Hallelujah squats
    8 – 8 count body builders
    9 – SMCs
    10 – Groiners
    11 – Peter Parker merkins
    12 – Calf raises

    Back at Granny’s, we utilized the benches for 10 quick Freak Nastys IC and 10 step ups.

    COT, Name-o-Rama, Announcements, and Prayer closed us out.

    Things we learned:

    – Convergence / Manniversary is THIS Saturday on the lakefront. In my best “announcer for monster truck shows / pro wrestling cards” voice: BE THERE!!!!

    – The SLU / Ole Miss baseball game will continue to live on in infamy. YHC believes this is the 4th straight week we’ve worked it into mumblechatter.

    – I get how odds work. There are 6 ways to roll a 7 with two dice, and only one to roll Snake eyes or Box cars. But this PAX really, really loved rolling 7s. Don’t take us to a craps table. Hallelujah squats for all!

    Thanks, gents, for joining me and giving me an opportunity to lead such a fine group. Great work as always.

    🤛🏼💪🏼

  • I met a man named Lumber Jack Webb – from Paradox

    “Once I was sad for a PAX who must jog, until I met a PAX who had no log ”
    – Ancient Chinese Proverb

    YHC found inspiration deep in the hardwood bottoms of north La this weekend after a trip to visit parents. A recent storm dropped a fine red oak that needed processing for firewood. While assisting YHCs father in stacking logs the variety of exercises one can accomplish with logs overwhelmed the senses. The PAX need this and they don’t even know it! SUV space was cleared and a 5 hour drive back down south fueled numerous future uses for logarithmic progress. A few hours later….

    A thicker than usual bayou gloom hung over the stage as 5 PAX assembled at the Stage. Glances at the lumber ranged from quizzical (Goose) to pure disgust (Cardinal). Pleasantries were exchanged then we got down to business.

    WARM UP

    SSH, WM, IW, Arm Circles, High Knees, Butt Kicks – Mosey to Bumper Stop Sign to get the juices flowing.

    THANG 1

    YHC instructed everyone to grab a log and circle up . Gave a disclaimer about the lumber discovery and the associated symbolism of a trees strength.

    Song- “Strong Tower” by Kutless. Held Al Gore position during song with Log Jacks (SSH with logs presses) during Chorus.

    Next YHC introduced Lumber Jack Webb….Lets just say Abe Vigoda and Freddy Mercury check under their bed for Lumber Jack Webb. Started with 2 Log raises (OHP w/ logs) and 4 Log Twists (american hammers w/ logs) and advanced by 2/4 every set. Transport in between was via 10 x Log Swap Lunges (held log at chest, swap sides with every lunge). When we got to 16 Raises and 28 twists we descended by 2/4 and circled for home. Respect for Goose and Yankee Joe who selected particularly heavy lumber and kept mumble chatter to a low 7%. Solid effort here.

    THANG 2

    Mini log Dora 123

    1 man has log exercises while 1 man travels to benches and back with Log Tires (high knees while bringing log to same high knee side) and back with Log Flippers (flip log, follow, repeat)

    50 frog log squat presses

    100 Jane Fondas (log up and bring to high knee crunch position)

    150 Lumber Jacks (SSH with log raises)

    Just enough time for Log Mary- Big Boy sit ups with log lifts, Penguins, Log Gas Pumps (nice call Perc!) and Log Wife Pleasers were all completed.

    COT and Cardinal prayed us out.

    Some beatdowns look way better in the caffeine riddled brain of YHC but I think this one came to life as planned. Lumber Jack Webb is now a cajun folk hero and he will return when you least expect him….

    Great discussion post beatdown about not comparing the weight of our burdens with others and instead embracing the suck. A continued theme as we march closer to Holy Week- there is little growth without pain. Continued some excellent discussion about the example of St. Joseph as a family leader during challenging trials.

    Always a joy to lead you out there fellas.

    SYITG

  • Classic Skinny – from Bieber

    The Skinny: Warmup-SSH X 20 IC, Grassgrabbers X 10 IC, Windmill X 10 IC, Mountain Climbers X 20 IC, 10 Merkins OYO.

    The Thang:
    1) Indian Run to Row Bars for 4 Stations x 2 of (20 Merkins as the count, Bonnie Blairs, Big Boi Sit Ups, Rows)…Mosey to the Bridge
    2) Jack Webbs (1 merk: 2 shoulder press) 1-10…Jog Spring Jog to the Benches
    3) RL SU X 20, Incline Merks X 10 OYO, LL SU X 20, Decline Merks X 10 OYO, Dips X 20…Jog Spring Jog to the Mary Zone
    4) LBCs X 20, Freddie Mercury X 20, Dying Cockroach X 20, Lie There for 20 seconds and think about your week ahead and how you can tackle it to the best of your ability…Indian Run to Pull Up Bars
    5) Pull-Ups X 10 as the count, Squats, Merkins, Big Boi Sit ups…Mosey back to the Flag
    6) 5 Burpees OYO

    It was a good day, not much special sauce sprinkled in. We ran some, did some upper body, some lower body, some core, and shared a few laughs. Great way to start a Monday, now go finish it.

    Thanks