Author: Excel

9 HIMs and an FNG showed up at the Woodshed to embark on an eclectic 4-COP journey of exercises and coordination struggles. YHC came prepared with a bag of softballs and some pickleball equipment to spice up the action.

The morning began promptly with a mosey from the parking lot to the townhouses and back. Waramerama included SSHs, Cherry Pikers, Dead Man Hangs, and multiple stretches to prepare for the COPS.

COP 1: Coupon 11s across the parking lot. Overhead press on one end and curls on the other. Carry the coupons in the left hand going one way and the right hand on the next.

Cop 2: Chest pass shuffles. Harkening back to YHC coaching youth basketball, the PAX used softballs to toss between partners working from one end of the parking lot to the other. At each end, perform 5 mountain climbers + 3 for each time the ball was dropped.

Cop 3: Pickleball shifts. With paddles in hand, 5 members hit the ball to their left and then followed it to create constant motion. Partners crushed LBCs on the side until a full rotation was complete. Then switch. Continued for a 10-minute cycle.

Cop 4: Basketball weave. Again, the coach showed up to introduce a 3-man weave to the PAX. With limited coordination, the PAX successfully moved up and down the parking lot with merkins performed at each end.

Close with Alabama prom dates to finish the time block.

Names, numbers and the naming of an FNG followed. Welcome to the PAX Hometown!

A quick COT ended the morning as multiple HIMs had to depart for work.

In honor of Falcon, Jason Richards, The Woodshed accepted the challenge to join other PAX with a memorial beat down. Details from Cousin Eddy at STL-Meramac:

14 Side Straddle Hops (IC) – Jason was the 14th man in the PAX that morning. Done in cadence to remind us that we never walk through life alone.
26 Reps – Representing the 026, the final three digits of Fenton’s zip code and the reminder that We Are One. We Are a Community.

The beat down went like this:

14 SSHs to open the workout

4 rounds of each of the following exercises:

• 26 Flying Squirrels (or a close approximation)
• 26 American Hammers
• 26 Lunges
• 26 Curls with coupons
• One lap of the extended parking lot to approximate 400 meters
• 26 No Cheat Merkins

14 SSHs to end the workout

With 14 seconds left before time called, we spent it in a plank position.

Thanks to Cousin Eddy for sharing and to the 7 HIMs that joined YHC this morning.

COT

Counts and Names

Announcements:

• Boys of Summer coming – watch for sports-themed workouts
• Memorial Day convergence – likely at Dogpile, but watch for announcements

Prayers/Praises

• Herme’s son
• Rooney’s wife and son
• Wildcat
• Falcon’s family

Happy Birthday to Futon who officially turned the big 4-0 during COT.

10 HIMs showed up to be surprised by an 11th, the return of Teddy KGB. Teddy was instrumental in starting up the Woodshed, so it was great to have him back out. Restarting as a Q (ResQ), YHC chose to run the HIMs around and sprinkle in some coupons along the way.

After a mosey down the road, we began with SSH, Cherry Pickers, Dead Man Hang, some stretches and finished with Ukranian Soldiers.

Cop1: Run to the local school and conduct 4 corners, LOTN style with 15 of each

• LBCs
• Mountain Climbers in honor of Snookie returning from Montana
• Windshield Wipers
• Freddie Mercuries

After a 20 count, we returned to the flag

Cop2: Coupon work 11s

• Side 1 = Overhead lifts
• Side 2 = Curls
• Grocery carry in left hand going one way, right hand going the other (both hands if YHC needed to modify his own directions!)

Cop3: 2 rounds of Merkins and Chest Press with the coupons

Closed with 1 minute of SSH to complete the time

COT with numbers, names and announcements

• Saturday – 5K with Nancy Lopez to raise funds for his son’s illness
• 5/16 – watch for a backyard BBQ announcement

For a Rocky workout montage, 9 HIMs showed up at the Woodshed to prepare for Rocky’s foes with a spirited workout.

Warmerama included moseying down the streets of Philly (or Harpers Mill), SSHs, Don Quixotes, Cherry pickers, Leg and Hip stretchers.

Finding the best from Rocky’s movies, we undertook some clear and some confusing exercises. Duly noted by YHC…

All rounds included 1-minute AMRAP style exercises, some that paired with another HIM and then a full parking lot jog and back.

Round 1: Apollo Creed

• Clapping merkins – note to self, don’t start with these again …
• Full sit ups
• Leg raisers with partner push off

Round 2: Clubber Lang

• Back to back with partner for a coupon (medicine ball) pass, both directions
• Shadow box shuffle from side of parking lot to the other side and back
• Frog hop with a coupon

Round 3: Ivan Drago

• Foot-elevated merkins with a partner
• Dragon Flies – or at least our attempt at them by raising torso and legs into the air on a plane
• Bear crawl up and down the field hill

Round 4: Tommy “The Machine” Gunn

• Medicine ball (coupon) merkins, first with one hand elevated and then switch to the other
• Full sit ups with a torso twist (optionally, could have partner slap stomach per Rocky’s trainer. No one chose this option.)

Closed with a circle up and some more SSHs and LBCs to time.

Numbers and Names

Announcements included Rosie’s 12 days of Christmas. Prayers for multiple people seeking jobs + reminder about Rudy’s ministry opportunity. See 3rd-f channel for details. Encouragement for more Qs at Woodshed!

YHC also learned there is such a thing as SOP and it is not standard operating procedure. Will have to do the shorts-only next time (maybe).

With no one signed up to Q, YHC took a look for a random backblast and decided to copy the workout for a quick Q rather than running a hot potato. With a bevy of choices, one stood out and YHC presented it to 5 HIMs that showed up at the Woodshed this morning.

The thang went a little like this:

• Quick mosey around the parking lot to get the blood flowing
• Warmed up with Don Quixotes, Cherry Pickers, Ukranian Soldiers, and some stretching.
• Mosey to the school parking lot, avoiding ice along the way!

The COP featured 6 rounds of paired exercises with a :20 on, :10 off format. After 3 cycles for each round, the PAX took a jog around the bus loop and circled up for the next round.

Round 1

• LBCs
• Freddie Mercuries

Round 2

• Curb side calf raises
• Burpees

Round 3

• SSH
• Forearm Plank holds

Round 4

• Bench Tricep Dips
• Russian Twists

Round 5

• Crab walk
• Bear crawl

Mosey back to the flag to ensure timing…

Round 6

• X-factor sit ups
• Imperial Walkers

Closed with numbers, names and announcements

Prayers for Wildcat and family, Futon’s FIL and a rough year of family deaths, Excel’s job search, and encouragement for other PAX rejoining the Woodshed. Praise for movement on job search for Heist’s wife.

Look ma! There’s wood in that thar Woodshed!

That’s right, 4 HIMs from the Woodshed took last week as a challenge and showed up to join 5 other HIMs to take delight in the Nerd-based workout promised by YHC. With a little creativity and some learned Prompt Engineering studied while job searching, YHC let an older Llama2 model craft a workout that included warm ups, 2 COPS and some downtime. This ChatGPT-like venture allowed YHC to nerd out in the AI space while also crafting a sweat-inducing workout.

Warmarama took advantage of new lights down from the clubhouse to allow a short mosey to a cross-street where the PAX took part in Lllama2-based delicacies like SSH, Cherry Pickers, Arm Circles, Ukranian Soldiers, Torso Twists and some leg stretching. Moseying back to the parking lot introduced phase 2.

Llama2 then introduced COP1 which consisted of 3 rounds of sprint intervals the length of the parking lot and performing the following at subsequent ends:

• 10 Mountain Climbers
• 10 Freddie Mercuries
• 10 Leg Raisers with push from a partner
• 10 Plank Shoulder taps

A quick 20 count led to COP2 which was similar to COP1 except the sprint intervals ran the other direction for variety and consisted of:

• 10 Merkins
• 10 Wide Merkins
• 10 Diamond Merkins
• 10 Plank Shoulder Taps

Finishing with time left, the PAX enjoyed a solid ring of fire led by each of the 9. Llama2 did not account for this time, so looks like YHC’s prompting skills need some improvement.

COT included prayers for Excel’s 12:30pm interview on Thursday and praises for TeddyKGB joining St. Gabriel’s church with his wife and being able to now take communion.

With YHC out of town last week in Zion National Park, the Grand Canyon and other sites out west, he was inspired to remember them in COPs this morning. 7 HIMs took part in the grand journey as follows:

After individual stretching, a quick mosey from the parking lot and back led into warmerama with SSHs, Don Quixotes, Cherry Pickers, cross-over stretches and knees to chest on both sides. Another quick mosey into the neighborhood opened the morning.

COP1

Mosey through the neighborhood. In honor of the Grand Canyon, at each driveway, perform an exercise: odd numbered – 10 mountain climbers, even numbered – 10 Al Gores (because some of those trails in the canyon made YHC want to grab a tree for stability!). This cycled for a block that included 10 driveway stops.

Mosey back to the clubhouse for a 20 count

Bridge to COP2

YHC, being a musical nut, found “ABS is all you need” to be an enticing entry in the Exicon. Not being a Beatles fan and in true F3 fashion, YHC modified to use Je’Kob’s “Love Is All” for background music as the PAX held a crunch and did a full sit up each time LOVE was stated in the song (which is a lot!).

COP2

Pairing up and grabbing a team coupon, the PAX proceeded with 2 exercises to remember the fun time we were having and how grateful we were for the open skies of the Grand Canyon and a great view of the stars this morning. Partner 1 performed Heels to Heaven while Partner 2 executed what YHC called “Clock the Block” – a merkin followed by moving the coupon around his body to 3 o’clock, merkin, 6 o’clock, merkin, etc. The PAX did 2 rounds and then moved onto Bears and Blocks as we bear crawled with the coupons 15 yards in partnership.

Another bridge of “Love is All” and we still had a few minutes left so closed out with a ring of fire … until Murr wanted to do some crazy prison exercise and YHC called time!

Announcements: the Bridge this Saturday, upcoming chili cook off, upcoming daddy/daughter dance.

Prayers: Excel currently out of work and seeking a Data related role (analysis, modeling, ETL, etc).

7 HIMs showed up on a fantastic morning to take a musical journey from the 80s to present.

A month or so ago, YHC was introduced to rucking. Since my body does not like full workouts on a daily basis, rucking filled the need to keep active with less stress between workouts. YHC worked with a cheap backpack until that was no longer viable and then decided to commit to an actual RPC from GoRuck. The best thing about rucking (besides the exercise)? The music! 45-60 minutes of 80s music or something uplifting is magical first thing in the morning.

A favorite of YHC is a live album that just dropped from 80s legends Simple Minds – Live in the City of Diamonds. It’s got all the right music with all the right beats and tempo for a great ruck. To celebrate a band that has been making great music for 40+ years, the PAX danced their way through a Simple Minds themed workout.

2022 introduced us to a new album called Direction of the Heart. A great song from that album is called “Human Traffic”. It is about how we get into doing the same things over and over. In the spirit of breaking from that pattern, YHC decided this Q needed an infusion of some activities he had not seen yet.

To ensure we were “Alive and Kicking” to start the workout, we took a quick mosey out of the parking lot to check out the progress on town homes in Harpers Mill and returned for the Warmerama.

• 10X SSH
• 10X Abe Vigodas
• 10X Alabama Prom Dates
• 10X LBCs
• Leg Crossover Stretches – hold for 10 count on each side
• Knee to Chest Stretches – hold for 10 count on each side

COP 1 – Everyone grabbed a coupon

Also from Direction of the Heart is “First You Jump” which focuses on taking a leap of faith and then getting your wings. For many of us, that reflects how we came into F3. In recognition of this song, we dove into some jumping exercises.

Three Corners from the clubhouse intersection, carry coupon overhead or grocery style and perform exercise:

• Corner 1 – Playground end – Killer Roos (broad jump from one side of lot to the other)
• Corner 2 – Clubhouse Intersection – 10 Frog Jumps (coupon laid flat, hands on it and jump legs backwards)
• Corner 3 – Pool Entry end – Al Gore Hops (hug coupon and squat to jump)

Cycle 3 times

20 count

Put Coupons away. To avoid the muddy field, we stayed in the parking lot.

COP 2

The album “New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)” was the breakthrough for Simple Minds in 1982. It included the smashes “Promised You A Miracle”, “Glittering Prize” and the title track. In honor of New Gold Dream, the PAX got down by pairing up for exercises.

Each team member had to perform the following while the other member ran the parking lot and back. They then alternated until each team had reached the desired total.

• 81 – Triple Pump Squat Jumps – Calf raise, Squat, Half way up, Squat, Full Jump
• 82 – Larry Bird 3-point shootout – pick up ball, jump and shoot
• 83 – Man Makers – 3-position side straddle hop
• 84 – Merkins

To ensure that we could “See The Lights” we circled up under the street lights.

COT kicked off to ensure we all remembered “Don’t You (Forget About Me)”

• Announcements
  • Check out Nancy Lopez’s post about Kenya donations and provide accordingly as you can
  • 12/6 Daddy Daughter Dance, details to come
• Excel prayed with a specific callout by Heist for all those dealing with cancer and other illnesses. Spud Web shared about a colleague serving with him that lost an infant daughter so we prayed for them as well.

When you are usually the one who is lagging, how are you supposed to lead? I assume the easy answer is ‘by direction’, but with a seasoned group of 17 HIMs, it becomes much easier. For my VQ, I got lots of encouragement and help from those with more experience.

Crafting a workout set was the easy part. What do I hate about F3 because it challenges me and then I love it after the fact?

Abs, Running and Coupons. That’s a hateful trifecta. Yeah! Let’s make the PAX do that!

After a quick mosey out of the parking lot, we took a very dark road and realized that headlamps would serve us well in the future. Running to the cul-de-sac (mostly) and back got the juices flowing for the Warmarama.

• 15X SSH
• 15X Cherry Pickers
• 13X Imperial Walkers (because, why be repetitive)
• 10X Helicopters
• Something else .. I should have paid attention to what I was doing

COP 1

Jog to Elementary School bus loop

4 Corners, ABS workout

• Corner 1 – 12 LBCs
• Corner 2 – 12 Flutter Kicks
• Corner 3 – 12 Plank Crunches or Wipers
• Corner 4 – 12 Freddie Mercuries
• Early Finishers: Lt Dans

Jog Back to clubhouse

20 count

COP 2

It was going to be Bears and Blocks (with Coupons) on the field but an unexpected early morning ambush by the irrigation system made it a little messy to do. With a quick redirection to 11s using our coupons, we were still able to work those arms and chest.

• Direction 1 – Overhead
• Direction 2 – Curls

COP 3

With time ticking down, we did some Merkins and Squats using the coupons and then laid them to rest.

COT

• Count – 17
• Names
  • After short intro by FNG, the name Mater was chosen thanks to his work on trucks. It went into litigation and renaming since there appears to already be a Mater. New name Chief Zee assigned thanks to help from Pool Boy and Big Rig.
• Announcements
  • Check out Nancy Lopez’s post about Kenya donations and provide accordingly as you can
  • 9/20 7AM DOGPILE – F3RVA 11 Year
  • 9/26 8PM ALAMO – Ruck CSAUP (details coming this week)
  • 12/6 Daddy Daughter Dance, details to come
• Closing Prayer
  • Pray for many that have been physically ill and are healing
  • Pray for the family of Excel’s friend, Brian, who took his own life 10 days ago and for any others experiencing mental illness and struggles.