Tag: Mahatma

  • Looking for Amnesty. Again. – from Rudy

    Also known as “Waiting for Amnesty” (for 6 years now).

    6 years ago, I got dragged out to Rock City by Heisenberg and Bogey. On that fateful day, Amnesty was supposed to be Q – and before I understood what “Lexicon” even meant, I started learning about the “Fartsack”. Since then, it has become an annual event to replay that first workout:

    Looking for Amnesty

    And today, 6 PAX joined YHC for “Looking for Amnesty, Part 6”.

    Disclaimer – YHC botched it again. “Dont push yourself, …. ” Rogaurou took that advice to heart, making sure to find an even smaller rock than normal. Hand Grenada used that as a reason to continue his never ending stream of Irish-envy smack talk. Oh, how YHC hopes that the Rebs face the Irish one day soon…

    Off to the railroad tracks first. Just a quick few minutes trying to squat and hold balance. YHC has made teeny barely discernable improvements. And so will continue using the rails even while Boo Boo seemed scared of the approaching train.

    The Thang: Quick warmup of an assortment of exercises. Then grab a rock and head to the “Flag Football field” (so it was called 6 years ago, and apparently never so referred to again since).

    Lieutenant Dan’s. Thanks to War Eagle for reminding me how this exercise works. 1 Lunge, 2 Squat. 2 Lunge, 4 Squat. Keep increasing by 1 Lunge/2 Squat until the fence is reached. YHC was last to the fence after getting up to 11 lunges. Scantron’s seemed to stride the entire length in about 5 steps.

    At the other end, some Mary while 2 PAX at a time ran off to get in some pull ups. LBCs, Flutters, Wife Pleasers, Cockroaches.

    Then time to head back down the field with Lt. Dan again. Most PAX started with 1/2, 2/4, etc.. Mahatma showed up the group by picking up where he left off. 12/24, 13/26, …

    At other end, knock out some lifts and calf raises, then rifle carry the rocks back to home and mosey back to the flag.

    COT: count off, name-o-rama, announcements. Intentions. Thanks for another great year, gentlement! See you next year for more Lt Dans.

  • 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

  • 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!

  • BETTER LATE THAN NEVER! – from Fast Tax

    Okay…so it’s been a few days since YHC Q’ed Rock City but a late backblast is better than no backblast.
    Twas the morning after All Hallows Eve as six brave souls ventured forth to work off their treats from the night before.

    After disclaimer, we headed near the rock pile for warmups.
    Warmups consisted of:
    o Grass Grabbers IC 10
    o Abe Vigodas X 12 IC
    o Happy Jacks X 4 Sets IC
    o Forward and Reverse Arm Circles
    o Swan Dives

    Sufficiently warmed, we headed to the rock pile, grabbed large rocks (most of us) and headed to the field.

    The first event was Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum – of course. We lined up and, trying not to hit each other and incur 20 burpees, we threw our rocks as far as we could, broad jumped then lunged the remaining distance to the rock. Rinse and repeat until we hit the fence.

    Next, we traversed to the track for a lap or two of Catch Me If You Can. Dragon walk was the third exercise beginning at the 50yd line and ending at the goalpost.

    Having dispensed with the preliminaries, it was time to head to the darkened tennis courts for the main event.

    Blind Man’s Dodgeball:
    The original setup, which I must admit was mostly taken from Rev Sox’s Q, went something like this:
    Two Pax were on opposite sides of a half-court with rest in between. When a Pax got hit, he would step off and do the exercise following the one the previous PAX did from the following list: 8 Pull-ups, 8 Burpees, 8 Bodybuilders, 8 BBS. Then he would return and take over as a ball thrower.

    Admittedly, the rules evolved somewhat as YHC learned that one half court was waaayyyy too small, but using half of two courts with throwers on each end was too boring due to it still being relatively dark and hard to see. The best configuration was keeping the throwers restricted to the green area of the court while rest of Pax had to stay on the red areas (partial credit to Rudy).

    At 6:15 it was back to the rock pile and a quick mosey to the flag for COT.
    Coffeteria at PJs followed.
    Thanks for the fellowship!
    SYITG

  • F3 Justice – from Kuch

    F3 Regional Court – View District

    In the View District Court of F3 New Orleans

    ————————————————————–
    F3 Nola,
    Petitioner,
    v.
    Jeffrey “Kuch” Green
    Respondent
    ———————————————————-

    Kenner (America’s City), USA

    Friday, Oct. 29th, 2021

    APPEARANCES:

    The Honorable Boudreaux T. Hawgcycle, III, Pontiff, F3 NOLA; on behalf of the Petitioner.
    Fracsac, The View, F3 NOLA; on behalf of the Petitioner.
    Jefferey “Kuch” Green; LVCCC, F3 NOLA; the Respondent.
    Mambi, Hokie, Mahatma, Bear, Kennah Bruh, War Eagle, Bolt, Triple Shift as witnesses

    DISCLAIMER AND WARM-UP
    (5:30 AM)

    PROCEEDINGS
    (5:35 AM)

    Judge Hawgcycle: We will hear the argument in case 21-003, F3 NOLA vs. Jeffery “Kuch” Green. Mr. Kuch, allegations have been brought forth that you are a slick talking, yoga posing, Bernie Sanders loving, no good, Yankee lawyer. These are serious allegations and will be discussed at length throughout this morning’s trial. In keeping with a tradition of the court we will open this session with 15 burpees on your own. Proceed.
    The courtroom does 15 burpees. Bailiff Fracsac ensures that burpees end with a clap, adhering to courtroom regulations.

    Judge Hawgcycle: I submit the first allegation against Mr. Kuch. It has been discovered that in early 2018, Mr. Kuch visited a Yankee website to look up exercise names. After visiting said website, he proceeded to name running up a levee backwards “The Bernie Sanders.” The court contends that Mr. Kuch had no authority in naming this exercise. Let the records show that as early as 2016 this exercise, commonly performed at the City Park District AO Okwata, had been referred to by the name “Quadraphilia,” by the good men of F3 NOLA. If it pleases the court (and it does) everyone will now participate in a round of Quadraphilia. By definition this exercise will last 4 minutes.

    The Court did a round of Quadraphilia

    Judge Hawgcycle: I submit the second allegation against Mr. Kuch. It appears Mr. Kuch has started a non-F3 workout with only F3 participants. This is the bi-weekly Broga workout occurring in the City Partk District of F3 NOLA. This is an unsanctioned workout, but because of the F3 only participation, it has caused a great deal of confusion in the greater community. Article I of the Core Principles is clearly broken. The workout is not free. Adherence to Article IV of the Core Principals is questionable at best. The workout is led by the same gentleman each time, Mark “Pretzel” Berger. Mr. Pretzel is an acquaintance of the Court and his F3ness is clearly in question. Now if it pleases the court (and it clearly does) I will lead the court in a round of F3 NOLA Style Yoga to provide an example of how one should properly pay for a beatdown….through pain.

    The Court did the following exercises:
    • Downward Dog Merkins x 20
    • Warrior I Bonnie Blairs x 5

    At this time the court yields the floor to the Respondent:

    MAY IT PLEASE THE COURT:

    Kuch: the charges against me are serious, and I apologize to this Honorable Court and the Metry contingent on hand for the following:

    • Any time one of your wives saw me in one of my super hot tank tops and accidentally called you Kuch during intimate conversations during the following week.
    • For all of those times you got home and didn’t have to throw your $100 pair of tennis shoes in the dryer or place them on the outside A/C unit.
    • For using the exicon in an attempt to bring more variety to workouts and to make them more interesting.
    • For giving you an opportunity to gain mobility and prevent injuries.
    • For giving you a safe place to wear your yoga pants.

    In my defense, I come before the Court with exercises I believe will please Sheriff Frac Sac.
    The thang: 9 minute ascending EMOM burpee pyramid starting at 6 burpees and going through 14. On the dark side of the levee with visibility low, appropriate tunes were selected: Metallica’s “One” on repeat throughout the 9 minutes. Mumblechatter ensued. T-claps to the 4 people who got every single burpee. It was dark, but I recall Triple Shift, Sheriff Frac, The Hon. Hawgcycle, and one more (maybe Mahatma?)

    I reserve the remainder of my time for rebuttal:

    THE MORE SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS

    Judge Hawgcycle: It is the understanding of this court that Mr. Kuch has manipulated dozens of men in the greater New Orleans area using aggressive, psychological techniques. Through his manipulation he has convinced them to leave their comfortable, yet joyless lives, and follow him in the Gloom of F3 NOLA. Mr. Kuch’s aggressive behavior does not stop there. He constantly terrorizes men, texting them each evening to pressure them into posting in the Gloom. He is known to arrive in their driveway, yanking them from the comforts of their home and taking them to that morning’s workout. There have been allegations that he has an organized a car pool ring, known only as the LVCC, that terrorizes the Lakeview Community every weekday morning. The court does not take these allegations lightly. If it pleases the court (and it obviously does) we will now participate in an exercise to prove how psychotic this man is. May I have a volunteer?

    Kennah-Bruh raised his hand

    6 cones(representing the men of this world) were set out about 10 yards apart along the bike path. Kennah-Bruh played the role of Kuch and it was his job to make sure each cone was standing. All other members of the court represented the Cares of the World and their job was to knock the cones down. After knocking a cone over, you run to the top of the levee, then you can come back and knock cones over again.

    We did this for about 4 minutes. Kennah-Bruh worked valiantly to keep the cones upright, but he was unable to do so. At this point Kennah-Bruh petitioned the court for assistance.

    Mambi joined Kennah-Bruh and over the next 3 minutes they worked together to keep the cones upright. They had better results, but many cones continued to be knocked down.

    Triple Shift petitioned the court to join Mambi and Kennah-Bruh. With three men monitoring 6 cones it was more difficult for the Cares of the World to knock cones down. It became clear by then end of the exercise that anything greater than a one-to-one ratio of Kuchs to cones would be optimal. The court rests upon the argument that this is the goal of Kuch, to create an army of men in Lakeview that are constantly protecting the well-being of others.

    IN MY FURTHER DEFENSE:

    I throw myself at the mercy of this Court and acknowledge the seriousness of the transgressions, especially the yoga. Who could have known when this all started that only months later, F3 men would be showing up to workouts in yoga pants and their newest Lululemon attire. I take no joy in the yoga-fying of f3 New Orleans, and again in my defense, I think most of the uptown guys already had a considerable amount of Lululemon athleticasual wear for all seasons. I suggest it could have been worse – I’ve never made a man wear Notre Dame shoes. I don’t get people’s feet wet when I Q. There is a lot respect for shoes in the LVCC. I’ve never asked a man to take a 12-hour stroll with a 30-pound backpack or run 100 miles through the damn woods. But still, in light of the charges against me, with my last act as champion of this AO, soon to deposed, I set my sights on one final goal.

    Now, some may say this goal is completely out of reach, like teaching the blind to see or the deaf to hear. I prefer to think of it as a “lifetime project,” something that we know will take many many eons to attain, but remains attainable, in theory at least, nonetheless. That goal: Bring a modicum of frisbee competency to Metry.

    The thang: Gather in a circle, 2 in the middle, guys in the circle pass the frisbee around, and everytime it hits the ground, 5 merks for everyone in the circle and 2 new people in the middle. There. Were. Many. Merkins. I lost count quickly. However, as time went on, we were able to string together some rallies, so I feel like we took an important step. We will see next time we all step on the field.

    In all seriousness, briefly: Thanks for having me fellas. Thanks for a truly unique and creative beatdown, Hawg. Thanks for the encouragement, and thanks for bearing with me for the stuff that did not work as well. Frisindian run…. Enjoyed spending some time with my Metry brothers. I will be back. Congrats to Hawg, truly a HIM.

    VERDICT:

    Court was adjourned around the flag of the United States of America. After instructions from the lead juror, Mr. Mambi, the jury quickly returned a unanimous guilty verdict on all counts. It is hereby proclaimed by this court that Mr. Kuch has been found guilty of being a slick talking, yoga posing, Bernie Sanders loving, Clown Car driving, Emotional Headlocking, Accountability Providing, Encouraging, High Impact Man and is hearby relieved of his duties as the Champion Q of F3 New Orleans and is sentenced to 6 months of Community Service in the Pontiff District teaching the most uncoordinated men in the F3 NOLA region the fundamentals of Frisbee.

  • Leadership Exemplified – from Hawgcycle

    Conditions: 72 degrees, 98% Humidity, Wind 2 mph from the SSE.

    Many times the Disclaimer is mumbled at the start of the workout, something like “I’m not a professional trainer, push yourself don’t hurt yourself, follow me.” But what makes for a good disclaimer? It’s really the Q’s first act of leadership in the workout. So it’s worth giving some thought to it and using it to set the tone. The bare minimum that you want to accomplish with the disclaimer is to attempt and disavow yourself from any liability if things go terribly wrong in the workout. Now, I am not a lawyer, and I am fairly certain that a no-good, unscrupulous, slick, Yankee lawyer like Kuch could easily side step our good intentions and find a way to use the law to his advantage, but at least you will have tried. So the basic starting point of the Disclaimer is to inform the Pax that:

    • You are not a professional trainer
    • They are all present on their own accord
    • They are responsible for their own well being
    • That the workout may involve times where caution must be exercised (strenuous physical activity, running in the dark, uneven ground, lifting heavy objects, etc.)
    • That they should modify the exercises at any point if they believe their safety is in Jeopardy and that they can seek your advice for such modifications if needed (all the while remembering that you are not a professional trainer and that it was your original direction that lead them to this place of peril in the first place).

    That’s the bare minimum, but a good Q will use the Disclaimer for much more. Our number one goal as Q is to make sure everyone makes it through the workout safely. In addition to the minimum disclaimer, give any specific safety advice needed at this point. For example, if it is a running workout, talk about busy intersections, making sure you are running against traffic, and not leaving anyone to run alone. Make sure someone in the group has a phone. Assign someone to watch out for the six if needed.

    If you want to go above and beyond, this is a good time to reinforce the mission and core principles of F3, especially if new guys are present. If you have planned an interactive workout, you can also take this time to forewarn the pax of questions you may ask during the workout, e.g., what is the mission of F3, what are the five core principles, why did you post this morning, etc…

    Not all disclaimers will be the same, but you know when you hear a good one. When they are really good, they become a topic of conversation. After I gave the disclaimer this morning, we ran to the rock pile. I could hear Rev Sox and Boo Boo discussing the merits of the disclaimer I had just given. They wondered aloud if the new leadership would meet this level of excellence. Personally, I believe they can, but please, don’t get too disappointed if it takes a while.

    Near the rock pile, we circled up for the warm-up. I led the group in 31 SSHs in honor of our playground’s namesake, followed by 15 Imperial Walkers. After that, we did a series of plank like exercises in succession (15 Peter Parkers, 15 Mountain Climbers, and 15 Parker Peters). Back on our feet, we closed it out with 15 grass grabbers and 10 Windmills.

    The Thang

    I spent months preparing for this Q. I read (and re-read) the book Primal Endurance by Mark Sisson. There is a great chapter in the book focused on Maximum Sustained Power. By taking some basic MSP concepts and adapting them to Rock City, I developed today’s workout. The basic principles were to find a heavy rock (mine was marked 52) and do the prescribed exercises at maximum speed. We would hopefully come close to our maximum power output in each set. We used a stack to form the basis of the workout and gave ourselves about 20 seconds to recover between sets. We gave our selves a two-minute recovery time between stacks starting with the 4th stack.

    This was the workout with approximate reps included. Some may have done more or less:

    • 5 Manmakers
    • 5 Manmakers, 10 Shoulder Presses
    • 5 Manmakers, 10 Shoulder Presses, 15 Squats
    • Recovery – Plank, Tree Pose each leg
    • 5 Manmakers, 10 Shoulder Presses, 15 Squats, 20 Curls
    • Recovery – Southern Gentleman, Yankee Aggressor, Karate Kid each leg
    • 5 Manmakers, 10 Shoulder Presses, 15 Squats, 20 Curls, 25 Rows
    • Recovery – Reverse Plank, Warrior III each leg
    • 5 Manmakers, 10 Shoulder Presses, 15 Squats, 20 Curls, 25 Rows, 30 Bench Presses
    • Recovery – 10 Nolan Ryans each side

    After this, we did some balance work. I listened to an hour-long podcast in preparation for this Q that discussed the value of unbalanced work and core stability. In an effort to build those intrinsic muscles responsible for so much of our balance and stability we performed the following:

    • Curls x 5 with one foot off the ground…flapjack
    • Shoulder presses x 5 with one foot off the ground…flapjack
    • Rows in Warrior III x 5….flapjack

    We finished with some Core work – 20 LBCs, 15 flutters, 10 side crunches each side.
    Then we headed back to the flag.

    NMM

    About 25 minutes into the workout, Bolt prostrated himself. Was he injured? Should I check on him? Possibly, but unlikely. It seemed more likely that he was new to the Islamic faith and it was time for his morning prayer. How did I know he was new to the faith? He was totally facing the wrong way, unless he was trying to face Mecca, TX. I politely paused the workout and offered that East was the other direction. Leadership exemplified

    At one point, a train stopped on the tracks. One of the young women, running in the park needed to get back across the tracks. As soon as Rudy saw this, he dropped his rock and ran toward her and the train to offer his assistance. He is a gentleman and a scholar…well, at least a gentleman. The young woman seemed to recognize him as he sprinted toward her yelling “Perv! Perv!” Did she confuse Paul with Perv? We will never know. Just as he arrived the train started back up, she yelled “God help me!” (which Bolt had already been praying for), threw herself under the train and disappeared.

    On the way back to the flag, I EH’d a dog walker. I told him we meet in the park everyday at 5:30. He said, “I know (pause…sigh) you all park in my yard.” I feel good that he will join us in the gloom.

    After the workout, I had to pay up on a bet to Hand Grenada for the Ole Miss – Arkansas game. One burpee for every point scored in the game. Arkansas lost the game 51-52. Hand Grenada made me yell “Hoddy Toddy” as I completed each burpee, otherwise he wouldn’t count them. I got to 53 burpees before I had to take a break. At that time, Hand Grenada yelled “No breaks! Start over!” I was too gassed to protest. Looking a lot like Paul Neman’s character in Cool Hand Luke, I wearily began the burpees over. Fortunately, for Cool Hand Hawg, Rudy and Mahatma jumped in to tell Hand Grenada that he was being unreasonable. They pleaded to him to show me mercy and that his demands were jeopardizing my safety. Hand Grenada explained that my mistake was made when I made the bet. If I was not willing to pay up, regardless of the physical harm I may undergo, I should have never made the bet. Rudy and Mahatma continued to grovel for my mercy until Hand Grenada exclaimed, “Weak…I have to go to work. Parten – I’ll see you at El Diablo.”

  • Dancing with the Devil at El Diablo – from Triple Shift

    Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
    Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
    If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
    But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.

    One of the main things I love about F3 is the brotherhood that gets forged when working out with another man. As you know, the immediate unknown of Covid-19 caused many to forego the gloom from a health perspective. Unfortunately, from my observation, many members have foregone the gloom from a habit perspective. Today, I wanted to incorporate a partner workout to bring back what I enjoyed the most about F3….shared suffering.

    Warmup
    Twelve other men joined me as we warmed up around the track doing butt kicks, high knees, side shuffles, and cariocas and then headed to the rock pile. We started with 31 SSH then 10 eight count squats, and 10 eight count merkins. After the warmup, I directed the PAX to get a heavy rock and head to the goal line on the football field.

    The Thang
    We partnered up for 25 Patty Cake Merkins, 25 BBSU, 10 Bulgarian Split Squats (Pax 1 is kneeling on the ground with one knee forward and one knee backward while Pax 2 props his back foot on Pax 1 front knee and performs the Split Squat), and finally the crowd pleaser of 10 Nordic Hamstring Curls.

    After we finished up those exercises, we performed the ‘Tortoise and the Hare B.O.M.B.S.’ on the football field. Pax 1 carries the heavy rock down the field to the other goal line while Pax 2 does 5 Burpees. After Pax 2 completes his five burpees, he runs and tags Pax 1 (who now does 5 burpees) to take the heavy rock and continues walking until he gets to the end of the field and then turns around to walk back. After the 5 Burpees, the next exercise is 10 Outlaws (think O Mary), 15 Merkins, 20 BBSU, and then 25 Squats until everyone finishes.

    Time is running short so we mosey back to the rock pile to circle up and perform 10 straight leg deadlifts (8 count). Head back to the starting point and finish up with 5 big boy sit ups then stand up without the use of your hands.

    Countoff, Namerama, and COT
    I thanked the PAX for allowing me to lead and I closed out with a prayer for God to provide healing and peace for all those struggling with disease and the difficult time we live in.

  • RevSox – the Prophet – from Rudy

    5:23am. That’s what time it was when YHC realized he had the Q. Just drove up to RockCity in the gloom. Getting out of the car, taking one last peek at the phone. Lo and Behold: calendar reminder that its my Q this am. Quick! Think! I’ve got one go-to Rock City exercise routine. A good time killer.

    Little did I know at this time that RevSox had predicted EXACTLY this Rudy workout at 3:40pm the day before. If YHC had paid attention to Slack, I would have known both that I had the Q and that I had better devise something new. But alas, RevSox apparently knows me too well. Better than I know myself, even.

    So 8 men (including Marlin again – maybe he’s becoming a regular!) welcomed the new week, and departed into the gloom for “The Usual”.

    Warm up at the Rock Pile with SSH, Stretching, some Peter Parkers, some Glute work till I got bored. Grab a rock, lets go.

    The Thang: 11s with Shoulder Presses and Curls mixed in. Not sure what this is? Either search my backblasts, or ask RevSox. He’ll tell you.

    Next: Core work. 2 PAX mosey off to pull-ups while the remaining PAX do an in-cadence core exercise. Flutters, Matahtma-X’s, Cockroaches and something else. Throw in some Wife Pleasers to work those glutes.

    Finally: Diver Down at the stairwell. Rows. “Diver Up” (Diver Down, but irkins, going up). More Rows. Then get them rocks back and get back to the flag.

    Wrap up around the virtual flag.

  • F3 NOLA Convergence 2021 (a.k.a.”Crew Change”) – Mothership 2021-10-16 – from Reluctant Yankee

    A fine morning, with a change in the weather providing a fitting backdrop for the changing of the guard on the F3 New Orleans Leadership Team.

    Kicked off at the flag zone with naming of the F3 NOLA Rookie of the Year and F3 NOLA Man of the Year. These went to Almonaster and Hokie Pokie, respectively. High praise and congratulations to both of these high-impact men for their efforts during the past year!

    Yankee then kicked things off on the Great Lawn with:
    Side Straddles Hops x27
    Hillbillies (in honor of Hawg’s prom) x 20
    OYO burpees x10
    Side Lunges x20
    Low Country Crabs x20
    Dying Cockroaches x20

    Moseyed to the track where Hawgcycle took over. Hawg brought the hurt with a modified Dirty Mac Deuce featuring:

    Larry Craigs x12
    Sumo Squats x12
    LBC x12

    Pax then partnered up. One pax sprinted 200 m around the tracks while the other moseyed across, then vice versa. Pax reassembled for announcement of the new SLT.

    It was time. Time to give a speech that would last generations, a speech commemorating the past 7 years, and one that would empower the incoming SLT for what was yet to come. Reluctant Yankee reached deep within his well of indisputable high octane expressions, and it was there and then he passed the torch of F3 Nola to Fracsac and Catfish, his great words of wisdom spreading across the field of F3 Nola men, leaders of this Fitness Fellowship and Faith thing we simply refer to as F3. Did anybody write down what he said?

    Fracsac circled the pax up on the field and did 5 SSH IC, followed by 10 burpees OYO. Many thought Shock and Awe was in the works, but nay, just an attention grabber. Next up was the mental challenge.

    6 SSH IC followed by 11 more in silence, all must end with the Q or a penalty would be handed out. The Pax passed with flying colors….but did they?

    4 corners on the track with 10 x 8 count body builders on 2 corners and 10 x burpees on the other 2. Circle back up for mental challenge again.

    This time there was a failure, with 10 x 8 count body builders as the penalty. The pax completed it the next go flawlessly.

    Pax had had enough mental abuse at this point, so there was much rejoicing when the workout was handed to Catfish. Catfish gently led things forward with:

    8-Counts x10
    Low Slow 8-Count Squats x20
    Bonnie Blairs x15
    Mosey back to the Great Lawn, with a quick stop at the baseball field behind Tad Gormley to do some Jack Webbs (up to 13, 11 got skipped). Continued the mosey back to the Great Lawn.

    At the Great Lawn, LBTs waiting x15 for the six. Frac then came back for a rousing round of Catalina Wine mixers (x15) for the finish.

    Back to flag for COT.

    Announcements: Roast on the Coast Starting Nov 5; GoRuck Tough NOLA the following weekend on NOV 12; Almonaster Qing a Christmas charity effort related to Operation Sweet Tooth (details to come)

    Delicious coffee and breakfast followed. Thanks to all who assisted with preparation for this.

    Thanks to all who attended and assisted with today’s convergence, and stay tuned for further announcements from the new leadership team!