Tag: The Uptowner

  • Curls For The Girls

    Seven men got some loving with rocks on Friday at Pontiff…gotta get those guns and upper body honed for the summer.  No running involved so lot’s of time to hopefully build some muscle.  Here’s what we did:

    • IPW x25
    • Goofballs x20
    • AC x20
    • WM x20
    • Crab Cakes x20
    • LS Squat x20
    • 1 round of Crowd Pleasers (Merkin:Groiner, 1:1, 2:2, 3:3, 4:4, 5:5, 4:4, 3:3, 2:2, 1:1)

    Headed to the rock pile and grab something large for curling then circled up for Curls x12 IC

    Deposited large rock over outfield fence, grabbed a regular/medium rock, lifted overhead, and lined up for an Indian Lunge Walk to the field entrance.  From there we deposited med rock on baseline, then bear crawled to get large rock.

    Next up, everyone’s favorite, 11’s:

    • Side #1 – Curls w/large rock
    • Bear Crawl approx 10yds to…
    • Side #2 – Squat Press w/med rock
    • Backwards Bear Crawl Back

    Then time to break for some Mary:

    • Rosalita x25
    • Penguins x20
    • WWII Sit Ups x20
    • Chest Press w/large rock x20
    • Flutter Kick holding rock above chest x20
    • Russian Twist x20
    • Row ? x20?

    Just enough time left for one last upper body COP, this time rotating clockwise and using next rock in line.  YHC mentioned it never hurts to try some “strange”.  Seven rocks so seven quick rounds, all IC:

    • Curls x5
    • Curls x5
    • Curls x5
    • Shoulder Press x5
    • Shoulder Press x5
    • Curls x5
    • Curls x5

    Walked back to base, keeping rocks moving the whole time with more presses and curls.

    COT to cap things off.  Fine job men!

    Tool

     

     

     

  • 2 Flags, a Pax and a Rock

    YHC was once asked what he would do in the event he was the only Pax to post for a beat down?  We’ll have to wait and see was the answer.

    Triple Shift sent a call asking someone to stand in for him, as some neck pains were keeping him down.  With no post on the books this week, YHC jumped on it, creating two scenarios for a beat down at the Uptowner.  If an even number of Pax showed, they would partner up and execute the Stink BOMBS, modified from last time to make sure the Pax could get through it.  If an odd number posted, circuits would be the plan.  Either way, YHC had two flags and a pile of cones that was gonna make this beat down an Epic event!

    0530, two flags were planted, no need to set out the cones, mumble a disclaimer to myself, and then….

    Warmup

    SSH IC x 31
    IW IC x 20
    Arm Circles 10 fwd, 10 back
    Abe Vigoda IC x 10

    The Flags were partnered up, but YHC was all alone. To remedy this, time to grab a rock, a big one. Time for:

    Circuits

    Circuit #1
    Double Merkin Burpees x 10
    OH rock press x 10
    Merkins IC x 10
    WW2 Sit ups IC x 10
    Rock Curls IC x 10
    Rinse and Repeat

    Circuit #2
    Rock Rows IC x 10
    Rock Presses IC x 10
    Rock Squats IC x 10
    Rinse and Repeat

    YHC knows this is a non running AO, so the Pax was asked if anyone would be offended with a lap. No objections from the Pax, the Flags, or the Rock, so a one mile lap at a 9:30 pace it was.

    YHC didn’t want to leave the rock alone too long, so upon returning from the one lap, a once more of each circuit was completed, making a total of three each.

    Six minutes left, just enough time for Mary
    Flutter Kicks IC x 20
    Hello Dolly IC x 20
    LBC’s IC x 20
    Penguins IC x 20
    Crunchy Frog IC x 20

    Return the rock to its friends…..

    COT with the Flags

    Count off, Name-O-Rama, Announcements and a Prayer, Not sure if any actual words came out. YHC may have been picked up by the Jefferson Parish police for being a whack job if he took it too far…..
    YHC did say a prayer for Triple Shifts neck pain……

    NMM

    I guess YHC answered that question from another Pax after all……

    SYITG

  • R.E.D. Friday – Iron Ranger Tribute

    Welcome to another edition of R.E.D. Friday.  There were 6 partakers this day and half of us were sporting red.  #overachievers.  Speaking of overachieving, Triple Shift hauled in kettlebells of various poods for the workout.  No need to do our kettlebell swings with drainage rocks this morning.  #Thanks4ThePoods

    Warm-up

    SSH x 31; IW x 31; Abe Vigodas x 15; Low slow squats x 20; Good Mornings x 15; Tempo Merkins x 10

    The Thang – The Iron Ranger Hero WOD

    • 22 seconds of silence
    • 94 Kettlebell swings
    • 94 Merkins
    • 94 Big Boi Sit-ups
    • 22 Burpees
    • 400 meter run

    One round took most of the time.  A few guys finished early enough to start the KB swings.

    NMM

    This WOD was created to honor, Army Ranger SGT. Joshua Rodgers.  Born August 22, 1994, he died on April 27, 2017.

    The name “Iron Ranger” is from Josh’s high school football mascot, the Ironmen and his position as a Ranger in the US Army. The 94 reps represent his year of birth (1994). The 22 represent his high school football jersey number, his date of birth, and how old he was when he died.

    Josh was serving his third deployment in Afghanistan at age 22 when he was hit by small arms fire during a high stakes raid on the headquarters of Abdul Hasib, the leader of ISIS in Afghanistan.

    Pray for his family and our other brothers and sisters deployed around the world.

     

  • R.E.D Friday – The Collin Hero WOD

    Conditions:  Overcast and 61.

    Perfect morning to get some work in.  I showed up about 12 minutes early to find Hand Grenada had beaten me to the AO.  He helped me set up the “equipment” for today’s Hero WOD.  (Thanks to Triple Shift for the buckets of water he stashed by the pumps and thanks to Jefferson Parish for not removing said buckets).

    In all, 8 men posted this morning to pay tribute to our service men and women deployed around the world.  We were honored to have two Veterans with us – Mahatama and Kimchi.  Thank you for your service.

    Warm-up

    SSH x 31; Peter Parker x 31; Windmills x 15; Forward Arm Circles x 15; Morocan Night Club (sans squat) x 15; Backward Arm Circles x 15

    The Thang – Collin Hero WOD

    The goal is 6 rounds in 35 minutes.  Push yourself to do more than that.

    • 400 meter Rock Carry – Use a rock between 20 and 30 pounds
    • 12 Push Press – Use a rock between 40 and 60 pounds
    • 12 Box Jumps – Can be modified to step ups
    • 12 Sumo Deadlift Hi-Pulls – Use Bucket full of water

    Impressive performances all around.  Mahatma, the unofficial king of R.E.D Friday workouts, got in 8 rounds.  Kimchi and YHC got in 7, All others got in 6 more or less.

    • T-claps to Abacus for wearing Red to R.E.D. Friday.  The man gets it.
    • T-claps to HVAC for not only getting in some running before the workout, but timing his pre-thang run so that it ended exactly at 0530
    • T-claps to Hand Grenada for posting consistently since Walley EH’d him (and for not parking illegally).
    • T-claps to Kimchi for coming out on his day off – he’s worked 14 straight 12 hour days or 12 straight 14 hour days…I’m not sure, but either way it’s hard.
    • T-claps to Abacus, Two Yutes, and Rev Sox.  Their consistency and growth is impressive.
    • And T-claps to Mahatma for being a beast and pushing us all.  When I grow up I want to be like him.

    NMM

    Collin Thomas – Age 33 – Morehead, KY

    Navy Special Warfare Operator Chief Collin Trent Thomas, 33, of Morehead, Kentucky, assigned to a Navy SEAL team based out of Little Creek, Virginia, was fatally shot on August 18, 2010, during combat operations in Eastern Afghanistan.  He is survived by his fiance Sarah Saunders, his parents, Clay and Jean Thomas, and his sister Meghan Edwards.

    “Collin Thomas was a brave American patriot and an incredibly gifted Navy SEAL.  His tireless professionalism, inspiring passion for life, and humble demeanor made him a role model for all who knew him.”

     

     

  • Minute Merkins are Harder Than I Thought

    A Pax of 6 arrived at the Uptowner for a morning of exercise without running. The usual disclaimer and off we go. The plan for today was Tabata with 60 seconds of exercise, and 10 seconds of rest. As it turns out, 60 seconds of exercise is harder than I thought.

    Warm-up COP:
    SSH x 20 IC
    Imperial Walkers x 20 IC
    Peter Parkers x 20 IC
    Low Slow Squats x 20 IC
    Windmills x 10 IC
    Arm Circles 20 Forward, 20 Backward
    Mountain Climbers x 20 IC

    We mosey 20 feet for the first Tabata:
    Merkins for 60 seconds, focus on form
    WWII Sit Ups for 60 seconds
    Planks for 60 seconds
    Squats for 60 seconds
    3 rounds total

    Grab a rock, a big rock
    Chest press for 60 seconds. At this point, I conceded that 60 seconds is a long time. So we went back to In Cadence.
    Curls x 10 IC
    Rows x 10 IC
    Repeat for 3 rounds.

    Circle up for some Mary.
    LBC’s x 20 IC
    Flutter Kicks x 20 IC
    American Hammer x 20 IC
    Crunchy Frogs x 20 IC
    Dying Cockroach x 20 IC
    Box Cutters x 20 IC

    We returned our rocks, and had just enough time for more exercise with a smaller rock.
    Biceps curls into shoulder press x 20 IC.

    Final circle for count-off, name-o-rama, announcements, intentions, and a prayer. Thank you for letting me lead.

    Walleye

  • Oops, it’s me again.

    It’s been gloomy this week.  A good resbit before the Turkish steam bath that is soon to arrive.  QHC sees a lonely silhouette of a PAX ready to go.  It’s Hand-Grenada, our FNG from Monday gratis Walleye.  He’s nervously peering into the chasm for the pumping station into Pontiff.  It’s scary business.  But not nearly as scary as when QHC asked who’s today’s Q and was told he was!  Actually, that doesn’t frighten QHC any more.  I just hope my on-the-cuff DownPainMents aren’t too dull, whiskey-dick-ish (TClaps to Tool for the vocab drills) or repetitive.  So with an opportunity for a real Disclaimer (because a professional trainer would know he’s up), the PAX is off–for a distance of about twelve feet.

    COP1:

    • SSHs ICx20
    • Inchworm (gratis YSR at the Birdcage this week) ICx10
    • Moroccan Casbah (gratis The Rev from about a year ago or so) [squat while twisting arms] ICx20
    • Mountain Climbers ICx20

    The PAX gets two rocks: big and bigger for COP2:

    • Overhead press ICx20
    • Curls ICx20
    • Nape scratchers (tricep lifts) ICx20
    • Rows ICx20
    • Bench press on our 6s ICx20
    • Low slow squats ICx20

    Rinse and repeat, but with ICx15 (and regular squats instead of LSS); rinse and repeat again, but with ICx10 (again regular squats instead of LLS); then rinse and repeat again–kinda:

    • Overhead press ICx5 (but real slow, 20 count, for #5)
    • Curls ICx5
    • Nape scratchers ICxG (but real slow, 20 count, for #5)
    • Rows ICx5
    • Bench press ICx5 (hold last for 20 count)
    • Low slow squats (for a total of 25 LLS and 25 regular squats) ICx5

    Time for some relaxing at the wall:

    • People’s chair for a long-ass time, with overheads ICx10 and curls ICx10 and sitting some more
    • Rest oh so briefly
    • People’s chair again for not at long: overheads ICx10, curls ICx10, hold rock out 30 seconds.

    Mosey back (10 feet) for Circle of Mary:

    • Flutter kicks with rocks ICx20
    • LBTs ICx20
    • Hello Dollys with rocks ICx20
    • Penguins ICx20
    • Rosalitas with rocks ICx20
    • WWII situps ICx20
    • Russian twists with rocks ICx20
    • LCBs with rocks ICx20

    And it’s 6:15.  Countoff, Name-o-Rama, Shout Outs and closing prayer from HVAC.  Tclaps to Hand-Grenada for two posts in his first week.  Jingle Vader

  • Friday windup

    Hawg sent around a text the night before that there was no Q for the morning Post.  QHC stepped up to the plate two weeks ago and didn’t want to hog the honor, but wondered who would do so.  As YHC meandered over to the AO, he saw a familiar silhouette moseying his way: HVAC.  Just the two of us?  We’d split.  As we started, Abacus joined in, as Rudy lapped up a few times for his marathon training.  TClaps to anyone who runs or trains for marathons: those are not meant for normal humans.

    Anyway, HVAC started off with a bang–as usual.  I used to think Hawgcycle was the King of no pauses.  But then there was HVAC.  Keep us pushed to the max.  If I remember, the first COP was something like:

    • SSHs 20xIC
    • Windmills 20xIC
    • One-two-threes (touch toes, then hips and praise Jesus) 20xIC
    • Peter Parkers
    • Mountain Climbers
    • Bicycles (legs circling with hips high in the air)
    • Russian twists
    • Something else evil and fast
    • more Bicycles
    • Something else evil and fast
    • Evil yoga stretches: warriors, etc.

    Then a handoff to YHC, so we mosey to the nearby fence for a People’s Chair for about a minute OR SO.  Mosey to the rock pile to pick up rocks not SO big.

    • Overhead press 20xIC
    • Curls 20xIC
    • Tricep lifts behind the head 20xIC
    • Deadlifts 20xIC
    • Squats 20xIC

    Rinse and repeat with 15xIC, then with 10xIC and finally with 5xIC.  Mosey back to the fence with our rocks for some more People’s Chair.  About half of minute and then overhead presses 10xIC and then curls 10xIC and a short cool off for maybe another 15 seconds.  Mosey back for a Circle of Mary burdened:

    • Russian twists with rocks 20xIC
    • Flutter kicks with rocks 20xIC
    • Hello Dollys with rocks 20xIC
    • Penguins 20xIC
    • Slow, slow merkins 10xIC

    And as the PAX circled up for a countoff and name-o-rama, Rudy joined us with his sweaty self (no bleeding nipples yet; that was the next morning).  COT for all that is good.

    Jingle Vader

  • Friday is great day for DownPainMents

    Get after YHC, cuz he’s waiting too long to post back blasts and now can’t remember squat–other than it was achy.  So after a disclaimer, THE THANG.

    Warm up with some SSHs, Low Slow Squats, Slow Sun Gods, and surely someone on our faces.

    Then gets some rocks to mosey to the bleachers for:

    • Bench Presses 20xIC
    • Squats 20xIC
    • Dead Lifts 20xIC
    • Curls 20xIC

    Rinse and repeat with 15xIC, then 10xIC and finally 5xIC.

    Saunter to the fence for some people’s chair–some times with rocks, some times without.  Holding your rock out in front for more than a few seconds sux big time.

    Circle of Mary: lots of stuff with and without rocks.  [Putins with rocks is of course a favorite of YHC.]  Close out with 10 burpees.

    Countoff, Namorama and COT.  Thanks, JV

  • RED Friday Debuts at The Uptowner

    Low turnout at The Uptowner this morning.  YHC had let Triple Shift know that I would cover for him as he went to Wolfpack Mountain chasing celebrity and fame.  Where was the rest of the pax? Was it the unexpected rain, the empty promise of some TV time at Wolfpack Mountain, the confusing name and parking situation at The Uptowner, a really popular workout in another locale that Roots created (and 23 people attended on this chilly, rainy day)…I don’t know.

    Warmup – SSH x 31 (Shout out to the Park’s Namesake); Imperial Walkers x 25; Choppin’ Wood x 15

    The Thang

    The Wittman Hero WOD.  7 Rounds of

    • 15 Kettlebell swings (thanks to Little Rock)
    • 15 Power Cleans (thanks to Gibralter)
    • 15 box jumps (thanks to The Wall)

    That was it, I’m not sure if I ended on time or not.  We counted off, reminded myself of the announcements and prayed out loud.  Then, inspired by Worms, we took some pics.

    The interwebs say that 15:00 is a good time for the Wittman WOD.  What?!?  Liars.  It took me the whole friggin’ workout.  I blame it on the fact that I am not very strong or athletic.

    Moleskin

    Shoutout to F3 Greenwood, today was the first F3 NOLA RED Friday, a workout designed to remember everyone deployed, by completing a CrossFit Hero WOD.  Today’s workout was in honor of U.S. Army Sergeant Jeremiah Wittman, 26, of Darby, MT, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, based out of Fort Carson, CO, was killed on February 13, 2010 , when insurgents attacked his unit with a roadside bomb in Zhari province, Afghanistan.

    He is survived by his daughters Miah and Ariauna, wife Karyn, siblings Robert H., Charity, Jenell, and Natasha, father Robert, and mother Cynthia Church.

     

     

  • Bear Crawl and Bicep Bonanza

    A no-frills yet solid morning was enjoyed by five men at The Uptowner on Friday.  The Q slot was empty the day before so YHC hopped on it and threw together some ideas to bring the sweat.  The focus was stretching, core work, and showing some love to the biceps.  Here’s what we did:

    Windmill x15

    Arm Circle x20

    123 Ups (not sure of official name?) x20

    Lunge Hold x45sec ea side

    Stationary Inchworm x20

    Peter Parker x20

    Low Country Crab x20

    Low Slow Squat x20

    SSH x30

     

    Grab a rock and line up approx 15yds from the paved track.  Here we completed a grueling round of Elevens:

    Rock Curl at start x1-x10

    Backward Bear Crawl to track

    Merkins x10-x1

    Forward Bear Crawl

    This brought out some grunts and groans, as well as some signature JV breathing.  Glad to report that the PAX dug deep and made it happen with very little modifications.

    Regroup and circle up for a four minute “Rotisserie Chicken” plank routine, one of Marlin’s specials.

    Then on to some more rock bonding:

    Curl x20

    Row x20

    LS Squat x20

    Curl x10

    Row x15

    Curl x10

     

    Next up, a round of Mary:

    Crunch Block Press x20

    Hello Dolly x20

    Penguins x20 (stressed good form getting shoulders off ground and reaching to front of foot)

    maybe one more???

     

    Then, shoulder press rocks as we walk back to rock pile and gather around the flag for 2-3 minutes of stretching.  T-claps to Triple Shift, our kinesiology guru, for hoping in and leading on of the stretches.  COT to seal the deal.

     

    Always a great way to start the day.

    Tool