F3 New Orleans

Category: Backblasts

  • A View to a Kill–er Beatdown – from Bolt

    With a lukewarm Celsius energy drink in my cup holder, I scanned the sky for the remnants of a 600 year lunar event that was nowhere to be found, somewhat disappointed I didn’t venture outside at whatever I times I woke up during the window that surely was THE event. Nonetheless, I’d put my feet on the floor with a commitment to wake up early and do hard stuff, particularly since it was my Q. Surely the PAX I called out with @mentions would follow their guilt West to Kenna hoping the once-in-ten lifetimes celestial event would compel them to as well. Upon pulling up to the AO, my expectations slightly sank as I began to wonder if I’d have the fortitude of a Logo, who solo Q’d/PAX’d a mere two days before!? As I grumbled to myself about not wearing pants or a hat today given the malevolent wind, what should appear but a Mambi, the site Q, in his sheet metal cocoon offering me a warm respite as we awaited other PAX. Alas, 5:30 came and I gave the requisite disclaimer from the warm environs, urging us toward the elements to begin the Bolt 3M promise.

    Warmup: SSH x22, Abe SLOWgodas x10, arm circles forward/back, overhead/seal claps, chinooks forward/back, Moroccan night clubs all x15, self love x10, Toy Soldiers x20, raised arm squat holds x10

    Grab a coupon and waiter carry, switching arms half way-ish crossing the levy to the blustery-er side (that’s a word, right Hawg!?) with angry waves crashing the shoreline rocks. What might my lone compatriot think of this seemingly innocuous start to a beatdown? Were he here, Mahatma surely would be trying to contain his disdain and pursing his lips, lest he ask when either the cardio or the lactic acid would ramp up!? Alas, YHC explained the initial exercises would be a slow burn that primed the body for the second group of exercises. What’s that, you say!? You’ve never heard of those listed below? Would I describe them for you!? NEIN! Curiosity will bring you here for my next Q on 11/29 and I’ll gladly teach you the secret handshake—if you ask nicely…
    Supine spinal stretch
    Low lunge to half split
    90-90 stretch
    Thread the needle
    The real real:
    Kettlebell swings>Primal Walkout>Sit-up-to-punch combo>coupon thrusters AMRAP 45sec work/30 secs rest between exercises (rinse/repeat).
    Carry coupons home>COT
    While few in numbers, mighty in spirit; I’ll return to Q this AO merely for the epic sunrise; until we meet again…

  • O Boo Boo, Where Art Thou? – from Rev Sox

    O Boo Boo, Where Art Thou?
    YHC arrived to Q a workout with temps set at a chilly 52 with a stiff northerly breeze. He wanted no part of it. Apparently, neither did Boo Boo. He arrived at the Uptowner hoping against hope to find an empty meeting spot, so he could return home to the warmth of his domicile. Sadly, War Eagle and Amnesty were waiting at the flag ready and willing to carry around some rocks.

    As YHC slowly walked up the flag, Amnesty and War Eagle were discussing the unique privilege of working out in Amnesty’s presence since our brother has not been a regular at Pontiff as of late. Amnesty informed the Pax that Boo Boo convinced him to get out of bed and carry rocks in the cold, so he was looking forward to the arrival of Boo Boo to share in his misery. 5:30am arrived but Boo Boo did not.

    YHC delayed a minute for Boo Boo’s certain arrival and at the sight of headlights heading for the park, War Eagle declared, “It’s Boo Boo. This must be him.” No, It’s just Mahatma. Oh well, our Pax of 4 moseyed off to the rock pile for a standard Uptowner beatdown.

    Warm-Up
    Hillbillies – 29
    SSH – 20
    Shoulder taps – 20
    Arm circles – 20

    The Thang
    Grab a rock and make your way over to the pavilion so Amnesty can feel comfortable to start the workout.
    Right Leg Step-ups – 20
    Dips – 20
    Left Leg Step-ups – 20
    As the Pax finished the step-ups, there was a shout from one of the Pax members. “Someone is coming!” “He has a rock! says another” “It must be Boo Boo! says YHC” No, Boo Boo. It’s just Triple Shift with his standard large sized pebble.

    To the Pontiff Mountain for some 7s. Start with 6 manmakers on one side of the mountain, run to the other for 1 merkin. Run back for 5 manmakers… You know the rest.

    To the playground for some pull-ups. 5 pulls-ups, switch. 5 more pull-ups.

    To the football field for some Dora. Break into two groups. The Pax was an even number until Triple Shift arrived. Now there were 5 Pax. If only Boo Boo was here, the Pax would have been six and Boo Boo could have shared a rock with Triple Shift, so YHC wasn’t shamed when Triple Shift laughed at his form.
    100 shoulder press, 200 curls, 300 chest press

    The Conclusion
    Return the rocks and mosey back to the flag.
    Count-Off and Name-O-Rama
    “Look there is another F3 Pax running around the track! Is it Boo Boo?” No, it’s just Hawg.
    Intentions and Prayer.

    Please remember to pray for the 17 missionaries from Ohio who are currently be held hostage in Haiti. Thanks to those who are carrying turkeys to my church.
    -Rev Sox

  • Twas an Epic Battle – from Fast Tax

    ‘Twas an Epic Battle
    The morning dawned bright and clear at El Diablo as 10 PAX made their way to the flag, having made the wise choice to avoid the pot-hole ridden millennial Frisbee game Uptown. You could feel the wonder and anticipation permeating in the crisp November air as questions swirled in the minds of the PAX present; what did Fast Tax have in store for us? Would there be chocolate as promised? Did I leave the iron on?

    After a quick disclaimer, we moseyed to our usual warm-up area by the rocks accompanied by Fracsac’s and Bogie’s moaning about it being a sprint instead of a mosey.
    Just for Hokie, YHC modified his regimented game plan to begin with Hillbillies, for a reason that I can no longer remember…something to do with some team winning something…

    Remaining warmups consisted of:
    o Arm Circles (fwd and bwd)
    o Seal Claps
    o Skydiving Australian Snow Angels

    Right as warmups completed, we were joined by Stripes, (Fast Tax 2.0) having returned from deployment.

    Unwilling to jump right into the main event, YHC selected the Ascending Testicles to kick things off: 10 Merkins OYO at 15 degrees (hold for PAX), 10 Merkins at 45 degrees, and hold at 90 degrees (aka balls to the wall).

    The next exercise, the Bruce Lee, would test the bounds of the concentration or understanding of many of the PAX (apparently), since the difficulty evident in following directions was paramount.

    The Bruce Lee was supposed to consist of 3 sets of 15 reps of each the following: Hammer, Leg Lifts, Dying Cockroach, LBCs, Heel Touch, and Crunchy Frog, with a 30 sec rest b/t sets.

    However, with time and comprehension both limited, YHC wisely decided to push on to the next event, the Flip-Flop.

    The Flip-Flop is a 2-PAX team exercise that begins on a starting line with PAX 1 flipping a pallet end over end to a designated finish line while PAX 2 lunges to the same line holding a 35-40lb rock. PAX switch at the line and race back. Admittedly, YHC could have engineered more creative uses for the pallets (thanks to Hokie for the pallet loaner) but, I didn’t want to take too much time away from the main event.

    After returning rocks and pallets, we moseyed to the field for the big reveal…BATTLE FRISBURPEE.

    To the wonder and delight of those in attendance, YHC explained the concept and the rules.

    Battle Frisburpee – The Concept:
    A blend of ultimate Frisbee and dodgeball, with an emphasis on individual burpee punishment, played running the width of a football field as the length and the 5 and 20 yard lines as the left and right boundaries. Each sides goal began 5 yards in from the corresponding end. This equates to a field 160 yds from end to end, including a 5 yd end zone on each side, and a width of 15 yards (or more if more than 10 players).

    Battle Frisburpee – The Rules:
    To score, a PAX must catch the Frisbee in the opposing team’s end zone (duh).
    When a team scores, the entire opposing team must do 4 burpees.
    If the Frisbee is dropped, i.e. thrown but not caught, the last person it touches (usually the one throwing it or the one who muffed the catch) must immediately drop and do 4 burpees. The Frisbee is still “live” and is treated as a fumble, any nearby PAX from either team can pick it up and resume play.

    If the Frisbee goes out of bounds, the last person it touches (usually the one throwing it or whoever it hits on the way out) must immediately drop and do 4 burpees. The Frisbee is “dead” and is treated like a soccer ball that went out of bounds, i.e. the opposing team now stands at the spot it went out and immediately resumes play (without waiting for burpees to be completed).

    If either of the player’s feet or any part of the Frisbee itself crosses the boundary, it is deemed out of bounds (clarification provided for Frac’s sake).
    Each team must appoint a “Baller” to act as a goalie of sorts. The Baller stays in the end zone and can throw the dodgeball at any approaching opposing team member, whether they are holding a Frisbee or not. A player hit with the ball, must immediately drop the Frisbee, if carrying one, and do 4 burpees. The Frisbee is still “live” and can be picked up by anyone else.

    The Baller is the only one who can throw the ball at an opposing player and the Baller must throw only from the end zone.
    The player is only “hit” if the ball doesn’t touch the ground first.

    With that out of the way YHC will finish the tale…
    Team 1: Fast Tax, Stripes, Bolt, Shooter, and Triple Shift
    Team 2: Boo-Boo, Hokie, Bogie, Frac Sac, Hawg, and Rudy

    The battle was close and hard fought…not really. It was close for the first 2 points, then admittedly, Team 2 pulled ahead, clearly due to their height advantage over Team 1. After several close calls and numerous burpees, Team 2 walked away with bragging rights, with a final score of 4-1.

    With game over we headed to COT for name-o-rama, announcements, intentions, and prayer.
    Followed by Coffeteria at PJs.

    Thanks for the fellowship!
    SYITG

  • The Walls of (Chris) Jericho – from Steve

    Simple beatdown at the Marsh this past Monday, the ol’ Walls of Jericho. But these were not the insurmountable, Grundyesque walls of old (which featured bear crawls halfway up the Gipper garage, sprints, and other such nonsense). No, we opted for much shorter walls – Steve-size walls. And good thing, too, we didn’t want to scare away the FNG that JV brought out.

    Warmorama: IW’s, windmills, seal jacks, arm circles, cherry pickers, butt kicks, all around 15x IC.

    Then a short mosey over to the Treen Center to get cracking on those walls. Seven reps of seven exercises, followed by a lap around the building. Seven times. The exercises were:

    7 burpees
    7 sit-ups
    7 jump squats
    7 t merkins
    7 leg raises
    7 smks
    7 wide arm merkins

    Finished all 7 rounds and headed back to the court for one final set of each (OCD kicked in and I couldn’t leave the final count at 49 for each of these, had to bump it up to 50).

    COT and naming of our FNG, which was maybe the most painful naming in memory. But welcome, nonetheless, Wrestlemania™! It was great to have a new face out at the Marsh and we look forward to seeing you Saturday. And t-claps to JV for the EH. Thank you men for posting and getting me out there, it always feels good to start the week at the Marsh with you guys.

  • Face cards prevail, unfortunately not at the Casino.. – from Shooter

    7 PAX and a visitor to close at COT graced the YHC this Gloom for some card work..The face cards were a plenty, if only that could happen at the Blackjack table..

    Warmup
    15IC Toe Touches, Hillbillies, SSH, Air presses, Cherry pickers, Imperial walkers and Butt kicks..

    Thang
    Moseyed through Mandeville utilizing 2 bus stops, OLL overflow parking area and the corridor of Granny’s..
    Each stop instructions given for each suit with called exercises. First stop included jump stairs, freak nasties, Derkins and jump ups. Second stop sprints, calf raises, alternating merkins and American hammers. Third stop jump overs, Irkins, little Manny crunches and step ups. Returned to AO for the finale including Diamond Merkins, Burpees, Flutter kicks and a Joker at which YHC offered a called exercise of 25 LBCs by Hammer..

    Count, namorama, and COT with Wacker slipping in with flag and walkie-talkie in tow..

    Appreciate the post gentlemen and until the next Gloom 👊🏼💪🏼✌🏼!!!

  • Cards again! – from BBQ

    It was a beautiful and crisp morning on the top deck. Warm ups were self love, arm circles, cherry pickers , grass grabbers, imperial walkers, hill Billy’s, mountain climbers, inverted mountain climbers, and side straddle hops. We ran a light lap around the deck. A deck of cards came out. 4 exercises for each suit. They were jump squats, hand release Merkins, leg lifts and LBC’s. 2’s were 2 reps on low side and aces were 14 reps on the high side. LBC’s reps were doubled. The 2 jokers brought in a Einstein favorite, Starjacks. One Starjack every other line across the parking lot one way. We got thru the deck, 2 jokers and 4 additional cards. Nameorama and prayer to finish.

  • Recovery at The Renaissance – from Fracsac

    The Renaissance welcomed a visit from none other than Pauly D, our HIM that relocated to the barren wasteland of California. YHC needed a little recovery work from the recent GoRuck Tough completed less than 24 hours earlier. As YHC pulled up to the AO, he found Pauly D trembling from the 42 degrees temps and decided to put the recovery on the back burner, as this pax needed to warm up. Triple Shift showed up, and it was time to get started.

    After giving a brief disclaimer, Head to the steps of NOMA.

    Face the bacon for the warmup. Attend the Renaissance and you’ll understand….

    We did warmup stuff, then added in some chinook squats just for fun.

    The Thang

    Tabata!

    8 rounds of 30 seconds work and 15 seconds rest.

    Round 1 – Burpees (now Pauly D is warm)
    Run a lap around NOMA
    Round 2 – Plank Jacks – stay in plank during rest!
    Run a lap
    Round 3 – Step ups at the fountain
    Run a lap
    Round 4 – Big Boi Sit-ups
    Run to the back of NOMA for Sunday Mornings x 5
    Back to the VSF for a 1 minute plank

    COT

    Coffeteria followed with 💯 attendance plus a couple!

    SYITG

  • All Day Baby! – from Rudy

    5 PAX in the gloom for an early start to Friday am. Weather is delightful – just on the edge of crisp, dry air. Gonna be a good Friday, and a great weekend. Lets get started!

    Off to the railroad tracks first. YHC was introduced to the tracks recently, and promised to make it a regular part of workouts – because it emphasizes just how poor YHC’s balance is. Lets walk down the rails a bit. Again, YHC struggled mightily. After a few minutes, stop and catch up to Scantron and Mahatma, who appeared not to have much trouble with this. YHC says “10 Squats OYO” on the rails. After a few minutes, YHC calls it off after finally managing his first good form squat on the rail. Much much much work to do. Walk back to where we started on the rails again.

    Circle up for quick warmup, then grab a rock. We aren’t going anywhere, so go as big as you want. Mahatma showed us all up by going BIG. I mean – BIG. YHC grabbed one more rock in the middle.

    The THANG:

    1 PAX holds the extra rock up. All the way up. The rule: if the rock comes below eye level, its burpee time. What are we doing? 10 exercises, repeated 3 times. Each exercise is 45 seconds, 15 second rest. So we’ll be going for 30 mins. Shoulder press, Curls, Rows, Merkins for the arms. Squats and Lunges for the legs. Cockroaches, Flutters and BB Situps for our 6 packs. And some Mountain Climbers just for fun.

    Mahatma has the rock first while we Shoulder Press. And he screams out in glee: “All Day Baby!” That becomes the buzzword for the next 30 minutes. Whenever YHC is running out of steam with holding up the rock – someone yells “ALL DAY BABY!”. That’s the motivation that F3 provides. That extra encouragement to go a bit further than you thought you could.

    ALL DAY BABY!

    And yes, I think Scantron, Bogey and Mahatma COULD go all day with that rock. Boo Boo and Rudy were much more thankful and appreciative of the breaks.

    The gang made it through the 30 minutes. YHC grabs the rock for one last time and engages in a stare down: the other 4 hold Al Gore while YHC holds the rock. Surprisingly, Scantron taps out first. That earns those PAX 5 burpees. Return the rocks and lets head back.

    COT: Thanksgiving for all the blessings all of us have received. Lord, give us your grace to help me use your gifts, and forgive me as I fail each and every day. Groups like F3 give me the strength and encouragement to always start again after failures, and try to push further than I thought I could – physically, morally, intellectually, spiritually. Thank you all!

  • Day of remembrance – from Shooter

    6 PAX converge on this Veterans Day to get some before the daylight breaks the horizon..
    Brief warmup all to 11 SSH, Toe Touches, Butt kicks, Windmills, Squats and Merkins..

    Different route through Mandeville stopping along the way for reps of 11 Merkins, Squats, Crunchy frogs, Burpees..

    Returned back to use the barricades at the Scramble for curls, presses and shrugs…

    Appreciate you men posting and allowing me to lead!!

    Till the next Gloom 👊🏼👍🏼✌🏼!!!