F3 New Orleans

Tag: Russo

  • April Fool’s Workout: The Legend of Grundy and the Bucket of Doom – from Grundy

    This morning, the sun rose on an unsuspecting group of warriors, ready for another classic April Fool’s workout. Grundy, our fearless leader, arrived with Jose Russo Bushwacker Shooter, who may or may not be a real person but certainly sounded like a guy who meant business. We all chuckled, debating whether we should start with a solid 30 minutes of warm-ups or just dive into the rich history of pranks from workouts past. But no—Grundy was in no mood for jokes today. He had a bucket full of stones and a soul full of vengeance.

    The madness began immediately. One unlucky soul had to carry the Bucket of Doom all the way to the stage, where they were rewarded with 10 burpees—a true sign that life is unfair—before running it back to the group. Meanwhile, the rest of us embraced the suffering with burpees, because why not add to the chaos with a running cumulative total? Once the poor fool with the bucket survived, we transitioned to our next task: carrying the Block of Destiny up and down the stairs, a shuttle run from Hades itself.

    But wait—there’s more. We then formed a circle to partake in what can only be described as the most ridiculous exercise ever invented. Each of us paraded our blocks down the corridor with the grace of a newborn giraffe, before planking and sliding our coupon back like we were human curling stones.

    Then, things got weird. Dragons descended from the heavens. Fire-breathing lizards engaged in aerial combat. Grundy, now completely unhinged, lifted 400 blocks with a single pinky while cackling like a supervillain. Burpees and squats continued as monstrous creatures clashed in an epic battle of strength and agility.

    And just when it seemed like things couldn’t get any wilder…

    Oh wait. April Fool’s.

    But seriously, we’re all sore now.

    Come out to the A1C on April 11th for Moby’s Birthday Q. He’s turning 75!!

  • Lord of the Flies you say? – from Russo

    Conversations tend to get out of hand on occasion early in the morning. What starts with a simple “How was your weekend?” quickly turns into something greater, and in this instance at Granny’s, it was “Next thing you it’s a Lord of the Flies situation”. You have to be there to appreciate.

    Pax of 4 for the beatdown.

    Warmups (IC 10x)
    – SSHs
    – Torso twists
    – Self love
    – High knees
    – Grass grabbers
    – Imperial walkers

    Thang
    Ye olde tried and true deck of death, using the benches as changes of scenery:

    Spades – urkins
    Clubs – step ups
    Diamonds – freak nastys
    Hearts – BSSs

    Spades – Peter Parker’s
    Clubs – shoulder tap plank jacks (2 is 1)
    Diamonds – lunges (2 is 1)
    Hearts – leg raises

    Spades – Merkins
    Clubs – Monkey Humpers
    Diamonds – SMCs
    Hearts – American hammers

    Between the rounds, we slalomed the columns and did 2 calf raises up each are of the pilot house

    Mary was a one minute plank.

    We finished with COT, NOR, and quick prayer.
    Thanks to the three krewe men for joining.
    SYITG

  • This ain’t bedroom Yoga! – from Shooter

    With darkness all around and the glistening of a full moon for illumination 5 PAX embraced the Gloom at Grannies. Steve, Russo and YHC chatted it up until Jose10k appeared out of the darkness. Behold it’s a right on time Cowbell? Nope, it’s the Wacker of bushes hooded up as he grumbles his way to the circle.. Chatter quickly shifted to the adjustments of springing forward and how us 40 somethings sleep patterns range from dream Yoga, to it won’t be long until we will have separate rooms with our significant others. Which ever the case may be, today would be a bit of a throwback to our tunnel of love that is often forgotten.

    Brief warmup of torso twists, arm circles, Cherry pickers, grass grabbers, Abe vogodas and toe touches.. Some of the numbers IC varied with Chatter overtaking the counts.

    Moseyed to the tunnel and selected two boulders from the drainage area of sorts with an alternative rock that Steve graciously found.
    We partnered up
    P1 completed reps with coupon while P2 utilized the tunnel.

    First round
    Chest press(boulders) mosey down Carioca the flat and Mosey up. R/R back and F/J
    Second round
    Overhead press (rock) & 8 count bodybuilder
    Mosey down/lunge walk flat and reverse. F/J
    Third round
    Squats (rock) & Mountain climbers
    25% mosey down, 50% flat and 100% up. R/R F/J

    Once completed moseyed our return to the bus stop for 10IC bench jump overs, 10IC leg raises breaking plane on the benches, inspired by Russo’s handstand demonstration months back challenging Bird YHC used the columns for a balls to the wall hold rounded out with 5 donkey kickoffs.

    Returned to the circle for some Mary.
    ETKs, LBCs, penguins, plank, chill-cut plank and wife pleasers.

    Counted off, announced Wacker camp out 3/22 and upcoming Zoolander Marsh madness, Inferno and Zoorich classic..

    Appreciate the post and until the next Gloom 👍🏼👊🏼✌🏼!!!

  • Mardi Gras Madness: A Leg Day to Remember – from Jose10k

    Five brave (or foolish) souls decided that the best way to celebrate Mardi Gras morning was not with king cake and mimosas, but with a leg workout that left us questioning why we didn’t sleep in. With rucksacks strapped on—because why not add extra suffering?—we kicked off the festivities with a warm-up, complete with Mardi Gras music to trick our bodies into thinking this was fun.

    Then came the main event: sprinting (or some variation of fast waddling) up the stairs (Grundy led the pax as per the usual, he legit sprinted), looping around the lighthouse, and then executing a flawless Lieutenant Dan back to the start. Three glorious laps of this, because we believe in suffering together.

    Next, we moseyed over for step-ups—ten per leg—just in case our quads weren’t already on fire. Then it was off to the bus stop for a delightful mix of Irkins and Freak Nasties, because I honestly was making up shit as I walked. I was tired.

    With our legs now resembling overcooked spaghetti, we weaved our way through a slalom run, hit some calf raises up and down, and finished strong with 15 minutes of core work, ensuring that every inch of our bodies would hate us tomorrow. Jane Fondas (Steve’s version of them, on steriods). Wife pleasers with a long pause, followed by pulses as well. “It’s the best way to dry out the taint.”

    And just like that, the beatdown was over. It’s been awhile since I actually saw an end to a Granny Beatdown. It felt odd and awkward actually typing that last sentence. Russo prayed us out, and we stumbled off to see what parades (if any) were still rolling in the wind. Thanks for letting me lead, and if your legs still function tomorrow, come join the fun at the Gipper for round three.

  • Return of the Deck – from Russo

    Congrats to everyone knocking out RCR this year. Steve definitely held up his end, and with it the end of the month, my thought was to keep the running to a minimum. So mid-to-upper 40s this morning for a krewe of 3 for the return of the deck of death.

    Warmups (IC 10x)
    – SSHs
    – Self love
    – High knees
    – Toe touches
    – Imperial walkers
    – Arm circles

    Thang
    Ye olde tried and true deck of death, using the benches and stage as changes of scenery:

    Spades – urkins
    Clubs – step ups
    Diamonds – freak nastys
    Hearts – BSSs

    Spades – Peter Parker’s
    Clubs – shoulder tap plank jacks (2 is 1)
    Diamonds – lunges (2 is 1)
    Hearts – leg raises

    Spades – Merkins
    Clubs – Monkey Humpers
    Diamonds- SMCs
    Hearts – American hammers

    Before the deck, we made a loop, and between the rounds, we slalomed the columns.

    Mary (10x IC)

    Crunchy frogs
    Hello Dollie’s
    LBCs
    Flutter Kicks

    We finished with COT, NOR, and quick prayer.
    Thanks to the two krewe men for joining.
    SYITG

  • 2 to 22 too – from Russo

    Cool for some, not for others this morning as a dozen HIM took to the streets to make themselves stronger. Very basic this week as I’ve run out of creativity but not heart.

    Warmup IC 10x
    – SSHs
    – imperial walkers
    – Self love
    – arm circles
    – Good mornings
    – High knees
    – Torso twists

    Thang

    Given the date, I had to throw in the number 2. We would mosey around, stopping periodically for some combination of 2 burpees plus 22 of one or two exercises:
    Lunges
    Squats
    Monkey humpers
    Jump squats
    Merkins
    Wide merkins
    Shoulder taps
    Plank jacks
    Gas pumps
    American Hammers
    Crunchy Frogs
    Leg raises
    Flutter kicks
    SMCs
    Apollo Ohnos
    Freak Nastys
    Step ups
    Box jumps (though only 11)
    BSSs

    Midway through we made it to the Splashpad for two calf raises up each step and 2 rounds of slalom the columns.

    Back at the flag, it was 11 IC penguins, LBCs, flutter kicks and we closed with COT, NOR, A, and P.

    I enjoyed the camaraderie of each of you and thanks for joining.

    SYITG

  • Ugh, I guess we need to do something now – from Russo

    Since Pelican and I have been regulars on Friday mornings, the goal has been to move around some, discuss the world’s problems, throw out a conspiracy or two, and generally move around enough to feel ok about eating dessert later. On a scale of 1-10 on the pain train / difficulty scale, we keep it under 4. That’s the reality of the spashpad, and I’m ok with it. Buuuut, we ha a visitor this week: Grundy. He of the “I’m going to do a cake walk with multiple-IC 8 count movements.” Mr. “A 2 .5 hour beatdown is not that bad one you get past the 100 burpees and only have man makers left.”

    So needless to say, we needed to up our game to make sure it was somewhat worth getting up and driving over.

    No Valentines to speak of (regrettably). No candy hearts or flowers or chocolate. Pax of 3 this morning, mid 40 throughout. With doctor’s orders to keep the running to a minimum, we did just that with a Tabata at the stage and benches.

    Warmup (all 10x)
    – arm circles
    – Air presses
    – Grass grabbers
    – Imperial walkers
    – Self love

    Tabata (40 seconds on, 20 off) – alternating between benches and stage – 3 rounds at bench, 2 at the stage

    Benches
    Freak Nastys
    Step ups
    Bulgarian Split Squats
    Urkins

    Stage
    Merkins
    Flutter kicks
    Monkey humpers
    LBCs
    Plank jacks
    Squats
    Penguins
    Mountain climbers
    Lunges
    Gas pumps
    Cherry pickers
    Crunchy frogs
    Shoulder taps

    No Mary to speak of, but we did of course wrap with a circle, announcements, and prayer.

    Thank you gents for joining / reading. SYITG

  • The Mandela Effect? – from Russo

    The Mandela Effect: phenomenon where a large group of people misremember an event or share a memory of something that didn’t happen. It’s a social phenomenon that occurs when people have false memories of a person, place, or event.

    Want an example? People remember Nelson Mandela dying in prison. They may remember a cornucopia on the Fruit of the Loom logo (myself included). They swear Vader says “Luke, I am your father.” Mr. Moneybags (I think that’s the gent from Monopoly) doesn’t have a monocle?

    A more local example? The Treen Center. I swear I’ve left my keys on the bench more than once. Steve swears he remembers a Super 20-something led by me but my counting always stops at 10. We both swear we remember Shooter and Jose “scissoring” on the bench, but alas that was just a threat (proposition?).

    Jose and Steve were running around as I arrived, followed by both Coachella (not HogsBreath) and Grundy (also not HogsBreath).

    Lower 60s to start, slightly less humid, overall both “pleasant” and “sweat-inducing.”

    Warmup (all 10-20x IC)
    – Sealjacks
    – Grass grabbers
    – Arm circles
    – Imperial walkers
    – Self love
    – maybe some other stuff, I don’t remember because Jose distracted me with his average time per mile. Dude’s a full-on runner now, no doubt.

    Thang
    The Walls of Jericho
    (7 rounds of moseys around the Treen center, it of the Mandela effect) interspersed with seven reps of 7 exercises:
    – 7 merkins
    – 7 squats
    – 7 lunges
    – 7 Peter Parker’s
    – 7 SMCs
    – 7 shoulder tap plank jacks
    – 7 monkey humpers

    A mosey back to base where we wrap up with COT, NOR, Announcements, and Prayer.

    Great group this morning, and I’m glad to have been able to share the streets with you. SYITG

  • Foggy on the Escalator – from Russo

    I realize this may be late in at least one or two people’s eyes, but we can’t all be superstars.

    Warmup (10x IC)
    Seal jacks
    Grass grabbers
    SSHs
    Arm circles
    Torso twists
    Imperial walkers

    Thang

    I tried to make at least half of the beatdown mosey-related for the RCR folks, so we did just that: moseyed around old Mandeville, stopping on average every block or two to perform reps of 10 exercises in what I call an “Escalator”, or as Chewy rightly called it: “Sudoku”. Exercise 1 gets 10 reps, Exercise 2 gets 9 reps, down to one. Next round, Exercise 1 gets 1 rep, 2 gets 10, R&R until as Steve was first to chime each will get 55 reps for a total of 550 movements. Math!

    The exercises:
    Shoulder tap plank jacks
    Star jumps
    Merkins
    Burpees
    Jump squats
    Murder bunnies
    American hammers
    Crunchy frogs
    Donkey kicks
    Imperial squat walkers

    The weather: Foggy! As thick as I’ve seen this year (39 days in). This, humid so sweat was a plenty. Around 64 degrees to start, so within the 3.7 degree window that Quarterpipe will join us in.

    The music: Not Jose’s

    We timed it well enough that there was no Mary, so COT, NOR, announcements, and prayer closed us out.

    Coffee afterward, which is apparently a thing and I may or may not have needed a special engraved invitation for.

    Thank you all for joining and making the world a better place. SYITG

  • Self EH Strikes Again! – from Bushwacker

    QIC knows that Russo and Pelican have their sweetheart love-fest many a Friday at The Splashpad, usually with more mumblechatter than work and sticking to a narrow range of politically conspiratorial topics of conversation. But it happened that Wacker had plans to crash their party with a little Rinso Repeato!

    WARMORAMA

    X10 IC: SSH, etc, etc.

    THANG

    X10 IC:
    Merkins
    Squats (alt Slow Squats)
    Freak Nasties
    Alt Lunges

    10 laps up and down the stairs

    R&R

    MARY

    X10IC:
    Starting with Hammers, ending with 100 100s OYO with plenty in between

    COT

    Count/name, special intentions for Russo’s co-worker and Tank

    Great to see Pelican again, and always a pleasure to see the whimsical Russo. Until next time…SYITG