Author: Gregory Fenske

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Bomber – 01/19/18 – “Poe”

QIC: Princess Aurora

The PAX: Firefox, Bad Boy, T-Cell, Hi-Viz, En Fuego (LIFO), Bicentennial Man, Megatron, Vector, Porcelain

10 PAX hit up Bomber to help welcome the “warmth” back to Nashville.

The Thang:

Mosey up to and around the upper parking lot and back down to the playground for the COP. All exercises IC:

  • SSH
  • Squats
  • LBAC F
  • Chinooks
  • LBAC R
  • Merkins
  • Mountain Climbers

En Fuego coming in fuego after seeing blue lights this morning. Apparently they don’t put stop signs where you expect them these days. Thankfully, he dropped the F3 bomb on the officer, and she let him pass with a warning.

Mosey back over to the cars and to the bottom of the drive to explain the leg blaster circuit we were to perform. 20 Squats, 20 Lunges (10 ea), 20 Jump Lunges (10 ea), and 20 Jump Squats. Bernie Sanders up to the stop sign. 20 Clerkins. Run back and plank for six. Repeat for three more rounds, dropping reps by 5 each time to end with a Quarter Leg Blaster and 5 Clerkins.

Line up single file for a Prisoner Indian Run. Like a regular IR but with your hands laced behind your head the ENTIRE time. This sucked, but we managed. Normal IR back to the start point and hit the sidewalk for some Mary. Given that it was Edgar Allen Poe’s birthday, I already had the PAX mumbling “nevermore,” but we paid one last tribute with the following exercises IC:

  • Reverse Crunch x 30
  • American Hammer x 20
  • V-Ups x 15
  • E2K x 15 ea
  • Newton’s Cradle x 20

COT/BOM

Moleskine:

I think double digits are the new standard at Bomber, and soon, it’s only going to get warmer. Guess we gotta get through February, though. Glad to see Vector so regularly now as well.

Bullhorn:

Many events on the calendar. GoRuck Bataan, Rock’n’Roll Marathon, GoRuck Constellation, and many more. Look for the resurrection of the Nashville CSAUP come June. I mean it.

PA out.

 

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Westeros – 01/15/18 – “Half Blaster”

QIC: Princess Aurora

The PAX: Right Said, Crawfish, Porcelain

4 PAX got their Monday holiday off to a warm start at Westeros.

The Thang:

Long mosey over to the grassy area outside the gym, avoiding black ice along the way. COP, all IC (memory is a little foggy on these):

  • SSH
  • Lunges
  • LBAC F/R
  • Air Presses
  • Squats

Porcelain joins us just in time to wrap up the squats, and then we mosey over to the tennis court for some real fun. 6 rounds of 6 Burpees followed by 6 shuttle sprints to far court (each way is one rep).

Sufficiently warm, we mosey over to the playground to introduce the leg blaster, or half of it anyway. 10 Squats, 10 Lunges (5 ea), 10 Jump Lunges (5 ea), and 10 Jump Squats. Follow that up with 10 pull-ups and repeat, subtracting 2 pull-ups each round. YHC shocked the world when instead of 2 pull-ups for the last round, we upped it back to 10.

All wrapped with our back work, mosey over to find a good spot for Dora 1-2-3.  This was standard issue Dora with one exception: at the halfway point up and down the sidewalk, the runner had to do 5 Jump Squats.

Time was up somewhere in the middle of the last 50 reps for everybody, so we headed back to the launch point for COT/BOM.

Moleskine:

Great to have Right Said back in the mix. I know we might have had a few more numbers if not for the 5K4MLK, but I’m not going to complain.

Bullhorn:

F3 Nashville PAX Lookout! placed second in the race according to T-Cell. Safe to say he could’ve gotten first if he was more consistent with posting. Come back out if you’re reading this!

PA out.

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New Year’s Day Convergence – 01/01/18 – “Better Than Yesterday”

QIC: Princess Aurora

The PAX: Bagger Vance, D’Mish, Big Bang, Spicoli, Tortoise, Bartman, T-Cell, Porcelain, Bicentennial Man, Concrete, The Jeweler, Babe the Blue Ox (FNG), Braddock, Hambone, Blue Mule, Grisham, Edible Arrangement, Deep Dish, Numb Tucks, Braveheart, Frugal MacDoogal, Big Stick (LIFO), Cowboy, Hi-Viz, Hustler (LIFO), Pretty Plies (FNG), Ludwig Von Osh Kosh, Offshore, Venus, Private Sandman, Webelo (FNG), Black Widow, Funyuns, Leatherneck

35 brave souls (33 of which were on time) dove headlong into a crisp start to 2018. At 7 degrees with the wind giving us a real feel of -6, this is and will probably continue to be the coldest F3 Nashville workout on record.

THE THANG:

Started with a quick mosey down and back up the parking lot to give folks enough time to sign the standard FRA waiver, and then quickly headed over to the track, throwing in some side shuffles along the way. Circle up at the 50 for disclaimer and WOR, all exercises IC:

  • SSH x 20
  • SnL Squats x 18
  • WMH x 20
  • Imperial Walkers x 18

Count off 1 through 5 and line up in columns along goal line. Instructions are for PAX 1 to alternate Walk Duck and Backpedal every 10 yards through the 50 before sprinting to opposite end zone. Remaining PAX are to begin when PAX in front gets to 10 yard line and to SSH while waiting. RnR back across the field. That’s Round 1. Round 2 was the Simian Shuffle alternating left and right, and Round 3 was Duck Walk and Broad Jump Squats (Jump Squat immediately followed by Broad Jump) #crowdpleaser.

Next up was a modified mile run. PAX perform 20 Merkins and 18 Squat Jacks followed by a lap. Repeat x3 and plank and wait for six. Big Stick and Hustler decided it was a good time to show up somewhere around Lap 2, and we were glad to have them!

Count off 1 through 5 and line up in columns along the goal line again. This time, PAX 1 sprints the length of the field while remaining PAX cycle through 18 reps each of Carolina Dry Docks, WWI Sit-Ups, and Jump Lunges. Once PAX 1 crosses the opposite goal line, he signals to the next PAX to begin his sprint. Continue to complete the cycle until the last PAX crosses. In keeping with my mantra for this year of “Better Than Yesterday,” we decided to up the speed a bit. First round was completed in 2:40, so the goal was 2:30. After crushing that in 2:08 or something, we decided to take a crack at the two-minute barrier. 1:57!

Through with the huffing and puffing, we circled up for Mary.

  • LBCs x 18
  • Flutter Kicks x 18
  • Rosalitas x 18
  • Side Leg Raises L/R x 18
  • Plank x 18″ plus…

…to send us out, one at a time, each PAX performed 18 Merkins. Upon completion and moving counterclockwise, the next PAX began his reps. We were probably 10 PAX in when it was wisely decided that each PAX would go when the previous one got to 9.

All in! COT/BOM with Shout-out by Bagger.

MOLESKINE:

  • TClaps/Darwin Award to Big Bang for rocking short sleeves. That’s a lovely shade of red on your arms now.
  • Welcome FNGs Tyler Jones aka Babe the Blue Ox, Ben Weber aka Webelo, and David Gensheimer aka Pretty Plies. F3 is glad to have you, especially if you’re the kind of man who would make his first post in these conditions.
  • Big thanks to Frugal for offering up The Hill and more importantly for the coffeeteria.

BULLHORN:

  • Warpath with F3 Franklin begins at 0500 this Saturday. 300 minutes of fun!
  • Prayers for those who have lost loved ones this year. Reach out as you are able and take time to cherish your own loved ones.
  • Having the opportunity to lead the NYD workout for 4 years now has been amazing. Thank you all for going along with my shenanigans and cursing me (lovingly) under your breath. It’s truly a privilege, and I’ve enjoyed watching this thing continue to grow. Keep at it this year!
  • Go Tigers.

PA out.

 

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Stonewall – 12.16.17 – “Cowbois ‘n’ Indians”

QIC: Princess Aurora

The Pax: Hambone, Bagger Vance, Spider Bite, Foxtrot-Talks-A-Lot, T-Cell, Black Lung, Heister (Charlotte), Chum, Vegemite, Pop-A-Lock, Deep Dish, Crawfish, Skidmark, Bad Boy, Edible Arrangement

16 PAX took a trip back to elementary school at Stonewall this morning. True to the childish nature of the workout, the morning began with name-calling, making fun of my clothes, and picking on my outdated watch.

The Thang:

Resisting the urge to take my ball and go home, YHC tried to quiet the crowd with a brisk mosey down Clayton and over to the basketball court for warm-o-rama. All exercises IC:

  • SSH x 20
  • Merks x 10
  • Mountain Climbers x 10
  • LBAC F x 10 w/ 20-ct hold
  • LBAC R x 10 w/ 20-ct hold
  • SnL Squats x 15 (plus another 5 to make sure Foxtrot had a chance to download that mental image into his memory bank)

Mosey on over to the 440 Greenway and explain today’s main event: Cowbois and Indians. PAX divide into two teams. Team 1 performs prescribed rep count of the exercises below while Team 2 Indian Runs the loop. Teams flapjack, then RnR.

  • Clerkins
  • Overhead Squats
  • Werkins
  • Big Boy Sit-ups
  • Overhead Lunges
  • Imperial Walkers

Round 1: each exercise x 10; standard Indian Run

Round 2: each exercise x 15; Indian Run with last man dropping for one Burpee before sprinting to front

Round 3: each exercise x 20; standard Indian Run for two laps

It was close, but Team 2 proved victorious on the plains.

Mosey up Gale alternating backpedals and regular run between light poles and then splitting the last distance with walking lunges and a crowd pleasing Duck Walk.

Back at the Jungle Gym, PAX buddy up for some Pull-ups. P1 performs 10 pull-ups while P2 performs another exercise called by Q. Flapjack, RnR

  1. Pull-ups x 10/Tabletop Hold
  2. Pull-ups x 10/Crab Jacks
  3. Pull-ups x 10/Toe Touches

Trek over to the soccer field to meet the new kid at school, Jack Webb. Sadly, nobody liked Jack, and they cheered when he was expelled for smoking. With him out of the way, it was time for a game of Chinese Freeze Tag! For those of you who don’t remember, it’s like Freeze Tag, but you have to crawl through someone’s legs to unfreeze them. I do hope this actually pleased the crowd.

Short mosey back up toward the tennis court to find a sunny spot on the hill. Commence 9MOM. In no particular order:

  • J-Lo’s
  • Freddie Mercuries
  • American Hammers
  • Crunchy Frogs
  • Mariah Careys
  • Burpees
  • Shoulder Taps
  • Boxcutters
  • Flutter Kicks
  • WWII Sit-ups
  • 20-ct Plank IC
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Alphabet (A-F)
  • Hello Dollies
  • Manmakers to close it out

Back to the parking lot for COT/BOM

Moleskine:

Great to see so many faces new and old (to me anyway) at Stonewall this AM. It was a pleasure leading you today, and I promise to show a little more skin next time. #TClaps of the day go to Crawfish for his home plate slide to unfreeze me during tag. “Pain heals. Chicks dig scars. Glory lasts forever.”

Bullhorn:

See T-Cell’s Slack post in #f3-nashville-general about the Job Kemp Memorial Fund. In this season of giving, please consider contributing to honor the life of Job and impact the lives of others fighting similar battles. Frugal MacDoogal will be collecting checks at The Hill or anywhere else you can find him, and please note that your gift is tax-deductible.

New Year’s Day convergence will be upon us before you know it! Stick to that 2018 resolution and post at The Hill on 1/1/18 from 0700-0800 for what is sure to be a great start to the year. Reach out to me with any questions.

PA out.

 

 

 

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Westeros – 12.11.17 – “MONSTER”

QIC: Princess Aurora

PAX:  Megatron, Porcelain, Right Said, Butch Please

5 brave souls posted at Westeros to do battle with the MONSTER.

Having sent out the message that there would be a 10 Manmaker penalty for showing up in long sleeves, it was apparent that neither Porcelain nor Megatron saw that message. That, or they just didn’t care. Since we couldn’t just watch them, the rest of us held People’s Chair while they paid their dues.

THE THANG

Quick mosey down Elmington over to the gym entrance for COP. All exercises IC

  • SSH x 20
  • Squats x 20
  • LBAC x 15 F w/ 20 second hold
  • Overhead Press x 20
  • LBAC x 15 R w/ 20 second hold
  • WMH x 16
  • Merkins x 10

Mosey over to the main entrance for West End Middle to explain today’s torture: The MONSTER. 100 reps of the following exercises, and exercises may not be partitioned. Oh, and 5 Burpees EMOM.

  • Merkins
  • Overhead Lunges (which turned into hands on top of head lunges)
  • Newton’s Cradle
  • Smurf Jacks
  • Turkish Sit-up (similar to Get-up. Legs flat and arms above your head like a bench press. Sit up keeping your arms perpendicular to the ground, and return.)
  • Extenders (Like a Reverse Crunch, but it starts with an E.)
  • Rosalitas

COT/BOM

MOLESKINE:

Great work by all. This thing was tough. YHC was on his 39th rep of Rosalitas when time was up, and everybody else had at least gotten into the Extenders. Next time (yes, next time), we will reserve at least 40 minutes as I believe we started the routine with 33 remaining. That also means we did 165 Burpees in the middle of all that mess.

BULLHORN:

YHC will be taking the reins for another special New Year’s Day workout. Details still to come, but you should definitely mark your calendars. No George Michael this year, I promise.

PA out.

 

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Bomber – 10.27.17 – “Somebody’s bakin’!”

QIC: Princess Aurora

PAX: T-Cell, Megatron, Porcelain, Firefox, Bicentennial Man, Crawfish, Hambone, The Baptist

9 HIMs posted at Bomber for a taste of some fresh-baked ciabatta.

With four PAX coming off of a 2-mile warmup, the rest of the crew rolled in and we got going.

THE THANG

After a .4 mile mosey of a circular nature, we hit the COP back at the starting point. All exercises IC

  • SSH x 20
  • WMH x 20
  • LBAC x 10 F
  • Big “Baby” Arm Circles x 10 F
  • Big “Baby” Arm Circles x 10 R
  • LBAC x 10 R

Enough playtime. Step over to the path and whip out the timer for some tabata. Each round of tabata was followed by another .4 mile run.

  1. Merkins
  2. Squats
  3. BBS

With some help from Hambone, we broke out the rucks to use as coupons. PAX split into threes. P1 does 10 walking lunges with the ruck overhead while P2 and P3 bear crawl beside him. Rotate through and RnR back to the starting point.

Next up was a 50-yard Farmer’s Walk. Switch sides on the way back. P2 and P3 performed burpees .

Out of time! COT/BOM

MOLESKINE:

Glad to see Bicentennial Man back in the mix, and thanks to Hambone for Qing the warmup trot. Murphy Mile WILL happen

BULLHORN:

GrowRuck training is happening. Check Hambone’s blast for info on times, places, and routines.

Prayers for T-Cell as they’re expecting 2.1 this week. And praises for Grisham as they welcomed 2.2 Friday!

PA out.

 

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Titan – 10.11.17 – “Too Sexy”

QIC: Right Said/Princess Aurora

PAX: Hi-Viz, Stein, Third Degree, Big Brother, Tesla, Porcelain, Blue Mule, Jackpot.

With Right Said ready to pop that Q cherry, I did my best to offer my support. It went something like this:

The Thang:

Mosey around the Parthenon parking lot with various agility exercises and circle up for the COP:

  • SSH
  • Merks
  • LBAC
  • SnL Squat

Head on over to the Hill of Sisyphus for a classic round of 11’s. Jumps Squats at the bottom and Merks at the top.

Handed things over to Right Said who took the party over to the other side of the Parthenon where we promptly got right back to business with a bit of Dora 1-2-3.

PAX finish just in time to mosey back for the COT/BOM. Easiest Q/VQ ever.

Moleskine:

It was great to be back out at Titan and see so many new faces. I’m hoping to see some of them at other workouts throughout the week as well. Glad to help Right Said with his VQ, and lucky for him, I encroached enough on his time that he’s got plenty of unused ideas for his next Q!

Bullhorn:

I’ll say it again: GrowRuck. 11/18. Chattanooga. Do it.

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Westeros – 10.09.17 – “1492”

QIC: Princess Aurora aka Christopher Columbus

PAX: T-Cell, Hi-Viz, Megatron, Right Said, Bad Boy, Third Person, Porcelain, Crawfish.

The Thang:

Slaughter Starter and took off running. Put together some pearls on a string on our way to the big hill on Marlborough between Fairfax and Acklen. Short little COP featuring the number of the day, 16 (1+4+9+2), and then divided into three groups: the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria.

While PAX 1 runs up the hill and back, PAX 2 performs 16 reps of an exercise while PAX 3 holds the prescribed position. P2 and P3 alternate until P1 returns. Rotate through until each member of the group has ascended the hill.

Round 1: Clerkins and People’s Chair

Round 2: Lunges and Plank

Round 3: Big Boy Sit-Ups and Table Tops

Round 4: Jump Squats and Shoulder Taps

Line up for an Indian Run up the hill with the condition that everybody must have a turn before we reach the top or else we do it again. Thankfully, everybody was feeling fleet of feet and we nailed it first try. Then, we did an Indian Run all the way back to the parking lot, making it through three rounds just in time for 5MOM.

Moleskine:

I continue to be grateful for everybody’s tolerance of my themed-workouts.

Bullhorn:

Get on that GrowRuck train! 11/18 in Chattanooga. Invite a friend.

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Bomber – 09.22.17 – “Hamm Bros”

QIC: Princess Aurora

PAX: T-Cell, Firefox, Bicentennial Man, Hi-Viz, 3Putt, Third Person, FNG The Calvin Megatron

While setting up for the workout, YHC misplaced his phone in the mulch. Well, buried actually. After a quick and successful scramble to locate it, YHC made a an equally quick and successful scramble back to the cars just in time for launch.

THE THANG:

Mosey up the hill along the path and then circle around the upper parking lot with some butt kickers, high knees, and lateral shuffling. Back down to the cars for COP, all IC:

  • SSH x 20
  • SnL Squats x 15
  • Shoulder Taps x 15
  • Mountain Climbers x 15
  • LBAC F/R x 10

In the interest of leaving room for explanation, we moseyed over to the Jungle where the PAX were introduced to the temporary installation of rings and parallettes. After splitting into pairs, YHC explained today’s workout:

With four stations consisting of two exercises each,  PAX pairs performed one exercise at their station in tabata-like fashion doing AMRAP in 40″ and resting 20″ before flapjacking with their partner. After 6 rounds total (3 sets of each exercise), PAX pairs rotated to the next station. Those stations were as follows:

  1. Chin-Ups/Lateral Raise Iso Hold (5lb dumbbell in each hand)
  2. Bodysaws (feet in swing)/Hamstring Curls (heels in swing)
  3. Ring Rows/Hand-Release Merkins
  4. Pistol Squats (swing seat for counterbalance)/L-Sit (on parallettes, tucking and/or resting as needed)

Thoroughly “pumped,” it was time for 4MOM:

  • Flutter Kicks x 20 IC
  • WWI Sit-Ups x 20 IC
  • LBCs x 20 IC

Mosey back to the lot for COT/BOM.

MOLESKINE:

Welcome to FNG Eric Ashley NKA The Calvin Megatron*. Hailing from Ocilla, GA, The Calvin Megatron was once a Mercer Baptist and moved around a bit before settling in Nashville and taking his position as a Presby pastor with West End Community Church. Should you ever have questions on Reformed theology, it seems there is no shortage of resources amongst the PAX. Count The Calvin Megatron among them.

*as is typical of someone with low idea productivity like myself (this is fact. An aptitude test told me so), I’m more quality over quantity when it comes to brainstorming ideas. That requires time to think, something the COT does not allow. So, still a bit disappointed with my naming, my late afternoon train of thought went something like this: Eric is a Georgia Bulldog fan. Oh! Another Calvin is former Georgia Tech receiver Calvin Johnson aka Megatron. There you have it. 

BULLHORN:

  • Bagger Vance on the Stonewall Q tomorrow, and it sounds like he’s cooked up something delicious for us. Back on at 7am tomorrow.
  • Now is the time to sign up for the GrowRuck event on November 18, and experience a unique opportunity to push your limits and learn valuable lessons alongside your F3 brethren.
  • Warpath 72 in Franklin Oct 7 at 5am. Contact Big Bang for more info.

PA out.

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Bomber – 09.08.17 – “Hands-free”

QIC: Princess Aurora

PAX: Bicentennial Man, T-Cell, Crawfish, Porcelain (LIFO), Third Person

6 PAX posted at Bomber for a medium dose of pain administered by YHC.

THE THANG:

Mosey over to the lot at McCabe Pub, passing Porcelain along the way. Circle up and hold People’s Chair to wait for his company. “Umm, does anybody see him?”

Ok, so we scratched that and went back to retrieve him. Moseyed back over to Love a First Sight to check out the cute puppies and kittens while we warmed up. COP, all IC:

  • SSH x 30
  • SnL Squats x 30
  • Planks Jacks x 15
  • Mountain Climbers x 15
  • Merks x 15
  • Air Press x 15

Step on over to the stone bench for some muscle pumping DIDs paired with Box Jumps.

Round 1: Dips x 15, Irkins x 10, Derkins x 5, Box Jumps x 10

Round 2 Dips x 20, Irkins x 15, Derkins x 10, Box Jumps w/ Squat at bottom x 10

Mosey back to stone entrance and backpedal up the hill. Pause for Jumping Dans x 10, and then head down to the lot and pair up for modified Dora.

  • Burpees x 50
  • 4ct Flutter Kicks x 100
  • Squats x 150

Quick stop at the wall and hold dip position. 10 Leg Lifts L/R. RnR.

Head over to the jungle gym where each PAX is to do Pull-Ups x 20 while the rest do an ab exercise.

  • Crunchy Frogs
  • J-Lo’s
  • Freddie Mercuries
  • Hello Dollies
  • Butterfly Crunches
  • Boxcutters

Mosey back to the long wall by the lot for Irkins x 10 IC

THAT’S ALL, FOLKS! COT/BOM

MOLESKINE:

Glad to see Bicentennial Man keeps coming back. Already seeing improvements in his fitness, and hopefully he feels it, too. All of us are also pondering the disappearance of Lemon and The Baptist. Guys, it’s 60 degrees, not 30. You’ve got a solid two months until hibernation.

BULLHORN:

Since I’m writing this from the future, tclaps to all the guys who completed the GORUCK Tough Fri/Sat. For those of us who didn’t make it, let’s make a pact to do the GrowRuck together on 11/18. I speak for all of us when I say we won’t regret it.

PA out.