Category: The Knoll

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(B)Easter Egg Hunt 2025

AO: the-knoll
Q: El Capitan
PAX: Wolfpack, Derby, Papa Bear, AAA, Sooie, El Capitan, Ex-Pat, morning stār, Pebbles, Timber, Half Lyfe, G-string, Pitmaster, Étouffée, @GoldDigger, @Rubix (2.0), @Schmaltz (2.0), @Bumblebee (2.0), @Grizzly (TBD)
FNGs: 1 @Grizzly (TBD)
COUNT: 19
CONDITIONS:

Mid-50s, lovely sunlit clouds at 6:15

TUNES:

Young & Heavy

WARMUP:

Climb routine
Back stretches
Willie mays hays
Good mornings!

THE THANG:

– Circle up around the lamp in field
– 22 eggs to find in playground, each with an exercise & follow-up hold exercise
– Each PAX will search for an egg with the lamp, all PAX will perform the exercise upon opening & perform hold exercise while next PAX searches.
– Wash, rinse, repeat

Ended with MARY: a 3-round Ring of Fire & American Hammers

MOLESKINE:

Life is constantly changing & you change and grow as a man each passing year. I asked the PAX to take some time to reflect, with a moment of silence, on one aspect of change in their lives and one aspect that has stayed constant. I then asked everyone to think of one person (spouse, mentor, friend) who has been a source of strength & stability in their lives. Ended with a prayer of thanksgiving for these individuals.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

– Tax Day got moved to November 3rd(?!)
– Check slack for upcoming Night Moves & extra free workouts!

COT:

Countorama, Nameorama, coffeteria.

It was a pleasure leading y’all this morning, men!

I’m ready for a nap. :yawning_face: :el-capitan:

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Who’s on Deck?

AO: the-knoll
Q: Sooie
PAX: AAA, Sooie, Phillip Lee, Pitmaster, Stubs, Half Lyfe, Gold Digger, Eagle (2.0)
FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
CONDITIONS: Perfect, slight spot of rain at the beginning.

WARMUP:
Woke up. Wanted to go back to sleep. Checked slack. morning stār and Bumblebee have to be DR! I’ll Q. Get the trusty deck of cards. Go to the knoll. Greet PAX.
– loosen up the neck
– (Rain…let’s get that heart rate up)
– Motivators from 5 (hat tip to Bumblebee)
– (Mean streak)
– Baby arm Circles (keep ’em up)
– Back BAC (keep ’em up)
– shoulder taps via bicep curl (keep ’em up)
– Shoulder press (keep ’em up)
– Seal claps (end scene)
– Hip gyrations (don’t make eye contact)
– Walk out merkins
– WMH (review F3 Mission, Core Principles, Credo)

Speaking of “Credo”, *cranks up Creed “Human Clay” (the whole album)

THE THANG:
Hit the Deck
R1:
♣️ = pull-up
♠️ = squat
♦️ = WW2
♥️ = (I know what I have to do but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it) burpees
🃏 = mosey around back stop.
R2: “y’all wanna switch up the exercises or keep em?” 4 hands go up (YHC first). 4 hands stay down. AAA does the “right” thing and raises his hand. (Relief)
R2:
♣️ = merkins
♠️ = lunges (none this round)
♦️ = American hammers
♥️ = SSH in cadence
🃏 = mosey around back stop.
(No drama)
R3:
♣️ = dips
♠️ = lunges (frfr)
♦️ = flutter kicks
♥️ = Mtn climbers

Finished the deck at 0612. Time for Mary.
– hollow hold (hat tip to G-string)
– Low plank (thanks Stubs)

MOLESKINE:
Creed got me nostalgic. Shared a conversation I had with my daughters about the importance of cultivating friendships at an early age (Listening to “Old Friends” by Ben Rector as I’m typing this. [I’m not crying, you’re crying]). Encouraged PAX to reach out to an old friend and be aware of opportunities for new friendships.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
SPRING FLING THIS SUNDAY!!! Signup if you haven’t.

COT:
Prayers offered. Half Lyfe homebrew thoroughly enjoyed!

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Good Grief

AO: the-knoll
Q: morning stār
PAX: Pebbles, Sooie, Stubs, AAA, Pitmaster, Half Lyfe, El Capitan, morning stār, Papa Bear, Derby, Malibu, clay hoover, Phillip Lee, Gold Digger, She told me, Sardine
FNGs: 2 She told me, Sardine
COUNT: 16
CONDITIONS: Chilly yet spring-like.

WARMUP: Mosey to tree line and back. Ground movements on the way. Avoid the puddle (YHC wasn’t in the mood to get wet this am), avoid posts. Circle up for low slow squats and SSH.

Mosey to 2010 flood memorial bench.

THE THANG:
31 rounds of 15 seconds of work, 45 seconds of active recovery.
Exercise one: 3-2-1 ladder of power erkins and dips
Exercise two: 3-2-1 ladder of jump squats and squats

Modify up option: finish the ladder instead of stopping at the timer.

Each PAX took turns walking around the back stop with a 30# ruck and 30# kettle bell while considering a loss they have not grieved.

Mosey back to the startex for an extended COT.

MOLESKINE:
If we keep the momentum up we the knoll may be ready to spin off another AO … which on one hand, I don’t look forward to because of the great connections we have growing here. And yet, this is how we grow and provide more opportunities for men to accelerate.

Welcome to She told me (formerly “My wife told me”) and Sardine!

Well done welcoming the new men, PAX! Hospitality is one of my favorite things about F3 and we excel at it.

I used to try to come up with a new, creative BD every time I Q’ed. I’m enjoying not having to think much about it and intending to run the “power rounds” for the rest of my days. Let’s see how long that lasts.

Here’s a quote on the danger of not facing our sadness that I didn’t share:
“”Sadness does not sink a person; it is the energy a person spends trying to avoid sadness that does that.” “- Barbara Brown Taylor, From theplacewefindourselves.libsyn.com/17-what-it-looks-like-to-actually-grieve-your-wounds of Adam Young’s “The Place We Find Ourselves” Podcast: “What it looks like to actually grieve your wounds”.

I pray we all find the courage and space to face the losses of our past and present.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: skipped them; check slack or come back Thursday.

COT:
YHC shared that learning to grieve what is, what was not (or what has not come to be) has been the most effective way to grow as a man.

Shared about the 4 achetypes of masculinity: Warrior, Lover, King and Sage. Each has an entry emotion … anger for warrior, sadness for lover, joy for king and fear for sage. In YHC’s experience growing as a lover has helped mature as a King.

YHC read the an account of the passing of Eric Liddel’s life from For the Glory (by Duncan Hamilton). This is a gut wrenching account as Lidell died withough meeting his youngest child.

When I was growing up, I chased after many things. Now, at 41, I am to live in the moment and pour out as much delight on my family and those close to me as I can.

Stay curious my brothers,
-m*

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A Few Merkins More

AO: the-knoll
Q: The Merchant
PAX: Half Lyfe, Lady Liberty, Étouffée, Pebbles, Stubs, morning stār, Sooie, Gold Digger, Bumblebee, Derby
FNGs: 1 Derby
COUNT: 11
CONDITIONS:
A little chillier than Tuesday, but dry and clear skies

WARMUP:
10x SSH, 20x BACs, WMHs, 5x Motivators

THE THANG:
Dora: Split up into pairs
One person ran a lap from the playground to the baseball diamond and back, while the other repeated an exercise until they returned, then the two swapped

Repeat until each duo finishes 200x each of:
Alabama prom dates
Merkins
Lunges

Everyone went in a circle and picked an exercise for the group to do 10-20 of, then we ended with a ring of fire.

MOLESKINE:
We briefly contemplated the importance of rest

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Spring Fling
The Merchant’s Hot Buns Spicy Wing Challenge

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Another Round of Merkins

AO: the-knoll
Q: The Merchant
PAX: AAA, El Capitan, Sparrow, Sooie, Stubs, Pebbles, Wolfpack, Étouffée, Parka-Eh, morning stār, G-string, Half Lyfe, Timber, Papa Bear, Ex-Pat, Bumblebee, Rubiks, Gold Digger
FNGs: 1 Gold Digger
COUNT: 19
Warm-up:
SSH, BACs, WMHs, Motivators

The Thang:
HIIT Workout
20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest
6 exercises in a round, 75 seconds between rounds

Exercises:
Merkins
Sit Ups
Imperial Walkers
Merkins
Crunches
Squats

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3.20.2025

AO: the-knoll
Q: AAA
PAX: Timber, Étouffée, Pebbles, Stubs
FNGs: None
COUNT: 5
CONDITIONS: clear skies and dark

WARMUP: -caboose is lose around the knoll
-baby arm circles
-imperial walkers
-slow squats
-Willie Mayes hayes

THE THANG:
Pull up ladder
8- pull ups
Jog to cone and back.
7- pull ups
jog to cone and back.
Down to 1 pull up.

3 sets
1 minute pull ups jog bar hang
1 minute of leg raises

3 sets
1 minute step ups
1 minute of world war 2s

1 set
1 minute spicollis
1 minute of an exercise of choice

Finished with stretching

MOLESKINE:
“We suffer more in our imagination than in reality.” Seneca

Be cognizant of the unecessary stress we put on ourselves worrying about the future and what could happen vs focusing on the now and focusing on what we can control. So many things we worry about never actually happen.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

COT:

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Predictable as Sunshine: Cosmic rays and work

AO: the-knoll
Q: Malibu
PAX: Sooie, Half Lyfe, Étouffée, AAA, Malibu, Parka-Eh, Pebbles
FNGs: None
COUNT: 7
CONDITIONS: 57*F and gloriously warm for this dark.

WARMUP:
Mosey to pickup coupons, BAC/BBAC, slow squats, Freddie mercury, and stretching.

THE THANG:
(1) 15’ amrap: 5x ground to overhead with coupon, sprint to pavement.

Rest and stretch.

(2) 12’ amrap: 6x step ups, 4x half moons with coupon, ~10sec plank.

MOLESKINE:
One way I’ve recently been thinking about Integrity is: thoughts/words/actions all directed and ordered to the deepest good things. When I first listened to Papa Roach many moons ago, my bad choices left some Scars. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been able to grow in the habit of Integrity by being more aware and intentional about the choices in life, and selective in making the right ones. Learning to Rise Again- like the Mary Ellen Carter- isn’t always the easy road but it’s one worth choosing.
My gratitude today for this group of men, who have helped me to live a life of greater integrity. Cheers!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
BBQ on 4/6 @warner parks. See slack for more details.

COT:
Prayers for Josh, who has a long road of recovery ahead; a safe arrival of my folks today for a family visit; and those intentions in our hearts.

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Wake up early and work hard

AO: the-knoll
Q: Malibu
PAX: Pebbles, El Capitan, Wolfpack, AAA, Malibu, Papa Bear, Étouffée, Siri
FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
CONDITIONS: but nippy at the start but closed with some cosmic ray goodness and warmth at the end.

WARMUP:
Mosey to Peppbles’ place. Move 2k lbs of lumber, mosey back to playground and stretch (dealer’s choice). Prep for Thang 1 and Thang 2.

THE THANG:
(1) 15’ amrap: 7x squats + 7x Mericans.
Extra sauce for jumping squats, burpees, and variations galore.

(2) 13’ amrap: 5x plank walk outs, 10x sit-ups, 10x American Twists (variations encouraged).

MOLESKINE:
I‘ve been recalling recently the fact that I will one day pass away from this life. This reality focuses me more on living well, loving more, and giving of myself for others instead of the self-centered temptations I so often and so easily choose.
I also believe that at the end of my life I will be judged on how much I loved, and recently a friend encouraged me to try to live out and up this notion: how proud can I make my Heavenly Father when he has to judge my choices? A somber thought for sure, but a hopeful one when I know I am surrounded and encouraged by other men such as The Knoll is made.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Merican March Challenge. 4/6 BBQ meetup at Warner Parks.

COT:
Prayers for Étouffée’s friend Josh, El Capitan‘s dad, for good meetings for both Sooie and Papa Bear, and health of all our families.

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“What’s next?” 🤔 Hmm…

AO: the-knoll
Q: morning stār
PAX: Wolfpack, Stubs, Pebbles, Malibu, AAA, Sparrow, Parka-Eh, morning stār, Bumble bee (Q, 2.0), Link (2.0), Ice Box (2.0)
FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
CONDITIONS: chilly and windy

WARMUP: ground movement to the road and back: crawl crawl, army crawl, crab walk, duck walk

THE THANG:
Part 1: Q and dealers choice exercises (WW2s, merkins, motivators, Lt dans, squats, dead bugs, flex capacitors, whatever you want)

Part 2: 3 games of infection

MOLESKINE:
– YHC is a proud of Bumble bee
– Appreciate the PAX kind mumble chatter helping Bumble bee along

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
– merkin madness challenge (check slack)
– please turn you head lights off if you pull up to the park and are waiting to get out; we typically get blinded as we walk in

COT:
– count-o-rama
– name-o-rama
– Prayers for travel and hope for the heavy galettes

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Providing a new perspective on provision

AO: the-knoll
Q: morning stār
PAX: El Capitan, Wolfpack, Stubs, Papa Bear, morning stār, Bumble bee (2.0)
FNGs: None
COUNT: 6
CONDITIONS: mild and windy

WARMUP: jog to tree line with ground movement; circle up for motivators, arm circles, low slow squats, etc.

Jog to flood memorial table/bench.

THE THANG:
Rotate through 3 exercises on the minute (OTM) for 30 minutes:
– power elevated merkins … to slow merkins mixed with dips
– cross crawl step ups
– SSH with focus on core

MOLESKINE:
– solid work every one; appreciate the mumble chatter

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
– Ash Wed ruck starting at 0500 at greenway entrance down the road from the-knoll (text morning stār if you want to join)
– Merkin challenge (check 1stf)

COT:
YHC shared a word study on provision he did years ago in which he came to the following conclusion:
“”I wonder if the more correct definition of provision would be ‘to consider in advance the path and foresee the coming needs, traps, and opportunities, and then to act accordingly so that one’s family is well prepared and equipped to endure and overcome, fulfilling fully all their God given purposes.’””
Stay curious my friends,
-m*