Welcome Back Struggle 004

AO: thestronghold
Q: SalPal , Chunks
PAX: bluemule, Dan and Dave, Wham-O, Sanctions, Papa Bear, Chunks, greyalbum, Crawlspace, Not-a-Sport, catfish, Penny Loafers, Shocker (Mark Holmes), Barney, toga, Decaf, Bobby Hill, Ice Box, Pick Me, Pope, Road Trip, Wendy’s, Stir Fry, Ambassador (F3 Annapolis), Mutt, Stage Dive
FNGs: None
COUNT: 26
CONDITIONS: Slightly moist.

WARMUP: A lot of side-shuffle hops and burpees, as it ought to be. Thanks to Chunks for getting the ball rolling.

THE THANG: 3 Groups rotating through sprints, burpees, and planks on a 1 minute timer, with 5 seconds to rotate. T-Claps to Dan and Dave for decreasing sub-30 second splits on all his sprints.

10 burpee salute to the Strugglers as they rolled in at 0600 hours.

Close with planks/”watersplashers” for Mary.

MOLESKINE: Great chatter and attitude today, and glad to be out in support of the men doing this latest Struggle. High concentrations of HIM on the 4:13 campus today.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Struggle 005 date TBD.

COT: Lift up the men that took on the Struggle the last 16 hours.

Running Blockie Apocolypse

AO: thestronghold
Q: Natural Ice
PAX: Young and Restless, Red Skull, Dan and Dave, Skeet, Purple Tiger, Decaf, Hipster, Chunks, Barney, Natural Ice, Ice Box, Road Trip, Mullet, Pick Me, Singlet, Stir Fry, Boby Hill, Wendys,
FNGs: None
COUNT: 19
Conditions: Humid and PERFECT

Warm-Up:
We kicked things off with the classics: side straddle hops, light stretching, and a touch of Broga. Loosened up the shoulders with arm circles, overhead claps, seal claps, and Moroccan nightclubs. Knocked out a few Merkins to wake up the chest.

The Thang:
Everyone grabbed a cinder block coupon and got the run-down: this workout would be nonstop movement. Any downtime or wait-for-the-six moments defaulted to our “resting” move—lift block to shoulder, press overhead, switch sides, lower to ground, repeat.

We launched into a Blockee Apocalypse:
– Travel with your block
– Drop for a round of Blockees (Burpee + Merkin on block + overhead press with block)
– Start at 10 reps, decrease by 1 at each stop
– Between rounds, PAX rotated through WWIs, or our “rest” move

Made our way across the AO with grit and sweat. At the final stop, back at the starting deck, we flipped the script and hit one last set of 10 Blockees to finish strong.

Mary:
– Flutter kicks (too many)
– 20 WWI sit-ups in cadence

COT:
Wrapped with gratitude and a prayer for the men of 413 to stay strong and finish well.

Moleskin:
– Blocks were heavy
– Spirits were high
– No one quit in this group
– You can catch your breath with out stoping

SYITG
Natural Ice

Leadership Opportunities

AO: thestronghold
Q: tampalibra
PAX: Red Skull, Chunks, Dan and Dave, Skeet, Right Said, Barney, toga, Decaf, Young and Restless, Purple Tiger, AWD, Poker Face, Hoop Dreams, By Design, Richie Rich, Hello Kitty, Hot Wire, Fresh Start
FNGs: None
COUNT: 19
CONDITIONS: Perfect conditions for a preruck. YHC, Red Skull, Right Said and 5 4:13 pax for a 45min/2.5mi+ preruck with a shared 60# sb

WARMUP: SSHx30, Squatsx10, Merkinsx10

THE THANG: Grab a block or ruck / mosey to courts

5 G2S / 5 Burpee over block
10 / 10
15 / 15
20 / 20
25 / 25
20 / 20
15 / 15
10 / 10
5 / 5

4:13 guys were asked to step up and lead each evolution. We have to be prepared and postured towards leadership. Learn from those before you, adapt, overcome, stay aware of those you’re leading, etc.

MARY:
On your 6 in a circle, F3 guys take turns calling out 10-15 reps of a mary exercise utilizing the weight/block

MOLESKINE:
Always so proud of these men finishing their first phase. Prayers and encouragement for them heading out with a weekend pass, finishing job interviews, and moving into the work phase.

Burpee Bonanza

AO: thestronghold
Q: Natural Ice – CBO
PAX: Chunks, Red Skull, Skeet, Dan and Dave, Purple Tiger, Barney, greyalbum, Decaf, toga, Young and Restless, Natural Ice – CBO, Freshstart, All wheel drive, Richie Rich, Fulton, Hotwire, Hoop Dreams, Hello Kitty, Poker Face, Grey Hound, By Design,
FNGs: None
COUNT: 21
Backblast: Burpee Bonanza
Conditions: Perfect in the low 40s.
Warmup:
Pax got the blood flowing with:
– 40 Side Straddle Hops
– A short shoulder burn of Arm Circles, Seal Claps, and Air Presses
– Some light stretching to loosen up
The Thang:
We took off on a mosey, dodging holes in the dirt path, and stopped at a random parking lot in front of a business—just in time to wave at the security cameras.
Since consistency is key, I chose my favorite kind of misery: 5 burpees on the minute, every minute, with a “resting” exercise between rounds. It’s only 5 burpees—how bad could it be?
Round 1:
– 10 minutes, 10 rounds of burpees
– “Rests” of LBCs, Lunges, and Squats
After our first set, we moseyed back toward the Startdex, stopping in another parking lot for Round 2. Rinse and repeat for another 10 rounds.
With time still on the clock and some gas left in the tank, we kept pushing. 5 more rounds of burpees, swapping in some core-focused rests to balance out the burn.
At this point, we’d hit 125 burpees, but why stop there? We added 5 more. No big deal. And then another 5 just because we could.
Final Count: 135 burpees.
Moleskin:
Sometimes you have to trust the process and do hard things. The hardest thing you’ve ever done is only the hardest thing you’ve ever done—until you do something harder. Grateful for my brothers who push me to that next level.
COT:
– Prayers were lifted!
– Announcements: Some crazy 50-mile ruck coming up, and the Spring Fling on April 6th!

Valentines Shuffle

AO: thestronghold
Q: DintyMoore
PAX: Mullet, Barney, Dan and Dave, Young and Restless, Decaf, Chyna, Skeet, Red Skull, toga, Yessir, BigRig, Toots, Toadstool, Airball, DPole, JackieMoon, Square Root
FNGs: None
COUNT: 17
CONDITIONS: Brisk and Wet

WARMUP: SSHs, Willy Mays, Good Mornings, Slow and Low Merkins

THE THANG:
Mosey to front 🅿️

Partner 1 – hold plank for partner when done
10 Burpees
20 Iron Mikes
30 Merkins
40 Lunges
50 Mountain Climbers

Partner 2
Run across 🅿️ and Bernie back

Once everyone completes all five sets then mosey to baseball diamond

Break into four groups at each base.
10 Merkins and 10 SSHs before Bear Crawl to next base.
Repeat at each base until one full circuit.

Mosey to Back Hill
Partner 1
Low Plank Hold
Ohio Prom Dates
V-Ups
Elevated Leg Holds

Partner 2 sprint down and bear crawl back up

Mosey back to Start ⭕️ for 4:13 Selected Mary

MOLESKINE: One week left in this class, stay strong, encourage each other, take ownership of your opportunity.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
No BrewRuck on 2/15 :rain_cloud:

COT:
It was a pleasure to lead and encourage the men of 4:13. Thanks for having me.

BurpeeClock-Alypse

AO: thestronghold
Q: Natural Ice – CBO
PAX: bluemule, Shocker (Mark Holmes), Dan and Dave, toga, Chunks, Chyna, Young and Restless, Red Skull, Mullet, Right Said, Skeet, Decaf, Natural Ice – CBO, Airball, Yes Chef, Square root, Toadstool, Mane ‘N Tail, Saxman, D Pole, Big Rig, Duece and a Half, Jackie Moon, Take 3, Toots, Wolverine
FNGs: None
COUNT: 25
CONDITIONS: Fantastic

WARMUP:
– SSH
– Squats
– Merkins
– Arm Circles
– Air Press
– Seal Claps
– Moroccan Nightclubs
– Stretching as needed

THE THANG:
PAX set off on a mosey toward the Helicopter Pad. However, YHC quickly grew deeply disappointed at the sluggish pace, so the mosey evolved into a series of sprints to keep things honest.

Burpee-A-Clock-Alypse – Round 1
– 5 burpees on the minute, every minute, for 15 minutes
– Between sets, YHC generously provided “active recovery” through squats, SSH, and LBCs
– Total burpees: 75

After finally feeling properly warmed up, we took off on sprint intervals back toward the StartEx. Along the way, we peeled off for 5 more rounds of burpees to bring the total up to a nice, even 100.

Upon returning to the StartEx and realizing we still had time left, YHC—ever the gracious leader—gifted the men with an opportunity to complete 5 bonus burpees (you’re welcome).

COT:
Outstanding effort from the men of 413 Strong today. The grit, attitude, and willingness to push through the suck were truly impressive. Proud to lead this crew!

3’s a crowd

AO: thestronghold
Q: Minnie Pearl
PAX: Dan and Dave, Skeet, Red Skull, toga, Ripcord, Young and Restless, Decaf, Purple Tiger, Minnie Pearl, Ol’ McDonald, C#, Dreamcast, World Tour, Crockett, Vera Wang
FNGs: None
COUNT: 15
CONDITIONS:
Comfortable
WARMUP:
Nope
THE THANG:
Divided into 5 teams of 3 and played several “games”
-cheerleader merkins
-coupon relay race
-catch us if you can
-coyote ugly

Mary’d out with Guantanamo
MOLESKINE:
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11‬:‭1‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
bible.com/bible/114/heb.11.1.NKJV

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Signing day November 1!
The struggle November 1-2

COT:
Kept Private

Wolverine

AO: thestronghold
Q: tampalibra
PAX: Red Skull, Chunks, Dan and Dave, Ponzi, Ripcord, toga, bigbang, Grape, Patty, Right Said, Ginger, Crocket, C Sharp, Catfish, Zorro, Snapper, Old MacDonald, Pearl, Humble Boxer, Filet O’Fish, Dreamcast, Big Country, Vera Wang, Slab, Ten Pack, Speedway
FNGs: None
COUNT: 27
First. We didn’t finish the workout and that drives me crazy. I’ll take that as poor leadership there are a few things I should have adjusted BUT I’ve done this workout solo and even Q’d it a few times (starting at 200 reps) so I know it can fit in. I don’t like not finishing things, personal pet-peeve of mine :sweat_smile:

Exercises are to be done in sets of 25 reps. After completing 25 reps, run to the designated spot and do 3 burpees. After the 3 burpees, run back and continue with exercise.

175 curls
150 big boi situps
125 Overhead Press
100 Kettlebell Swings
75 Merkins
50 We’re not worthy’s
25 Blockees

The 200 rep set would have been Bonnie Blairs but I knew that was not going to happen and I’ve been doing Squatober so my legs barely work anyhow and decided to cut it :joy:

Always have a buddy!

AO: thestronghold
Q: toga
PAX: Chunks, Dan and Dave, Red Skull, Right Said, Dan Tanna, toga, Skeet, Decaf, C Sharp, Snapper, DreamCast, Old McDonald, Coon Skin, Slash, Pearl, Vera Wang, Big Country, Old G, Humble Boxer, The Raptor(Miami), Zorro, Speedway, Filet O Fish, Ten Pack
FNGs: None
COUNT: 23
CONDITIONS: Glorious!

WARMUP: Mosey to the gravel lot for some calisthenics and the always fun, scorpion stretch amongst the rocks.

THE THANG: Partner up with instructions to spend the rest of the workout with you partner. Work together and finish together!
Part 1: Execute Bear Crawls and Polar Bears down the gravel lot and back. Form up in 2 columns and mosey to the lot across from the STEM school.
Part 2: Partner carry across the slot, flapjack and return to the other side of the slot. Execute the same with wheelbarrows and repeato 2x more.
Part 3: mosey the entrance to the STEM school where P1 executes 12 rows on the bar while P2 hold people’s chair. Flapjack and repeato 2x more times. The PAX (RA!) did this without starting till everyone was holding the chair and mounted the bar and could not complete until everyone was done.
The finish: mosey back to the home lot, quick marry and done!

MOLESKINE: It’s always humbling to lead and know that the PAX (RA!) will follow your lead for the duration of the workout. This is always a gift, but it’s especially humbling when you realize all the change these men are dealing with. RESPECT!

ANNOUNCEMENTS: It’s been 6 years of our F3/4:13 symbiotic relationship. YHC can only hope that the men of 4:13 are getting as much out of this as the men of F3. Here’s to 6 more!

COT: Prayers for Chunk’s grandmother who is in hospice and for the strength, health and will of the men in 4:13. Let’s keep the 40 days rolling!

Stay Classy,
Toga

The Standard

AO: thestronghold
Q: Chunks
PAX: Dan and Dave, Salami, hambone, Schnauzer, Young and Restless, Hair Band, Pole Dancer, Dan Tanna, Shocker (Mark Holmes), toga, Skeet, Spinal Tap, Grape, Right Said, Natural Ice, caprate, Red Skull, C Sharp, Snapper, DreamCast, Old McDonald, Coon Skin, Slash, Pearl, Vera Wang, Big Country, Old G, Humble Boxer, The Raptor(Miami), Zorro, Speedway, Filet O Fish, Ten Pack,, Big Bird
FNGs: 1 Big Bird
COUNT: 36
CONDITIONS: Pleasant

WARMUP: No warm up. Gave a 5 min warning to do some stretching.

THE THANG:

Circle up and partner up 1:1 F3 – 4:13
Welcome with Disclaimer and the standard: Push yourself

Then explain that during the workout the F3 & 4:13 men are to get to know each other with the F3 man prepared to give the 4:13 man a nickname at the end of the workout.

Right Said recited the Mission of F3.

Then we run in two lines with the F3 man on the left and his partner to his right. The partners sprint to the front as a team when I call out Front. We ran a mile around the campus, Train caused a little pivot to get the whole mile

At 1 mile we stopped and did a set of BOMBS starting at 5 and each exercise increasing the reps by 5 to 25 Squats. Then I talked briefly about how Mental Toughness is perishable. Just because you finished mental toughness week doesn’t mean it lasts forever, you must requalify every day.

Then we ran again following the same method I yelled Front and then stopped for another set of BOMBS starting at 5. Then talked briefly about 1 second decisions. Between now and the end of the 40 days they will have to make a lot of 1 second decisions. It only takes one of those to lose everything. You must gain control of your mind when all you want to do is quit. Cause at some point you will want to quit.

Ran back to start ex with a detour out onto foster ave and around the corner following the same method for a final set of BOMBS starting at 5. Then talked briefly on Performing without Motivation. Right now you have a purpose to finish the 40 days, but there will be times when you don’t have an easy goal like that and you have to Perform without Motivation, you just have to do it. Use these next 40 days to gain control of your mind and body. All these men here and the others that will take this journey with you want to see you succeed and win. But it’s not given without work. This program will push you, but will also support you. Take advantage of this opportunity, forget about your past and live in the present.

Circled up for the naming ceremony. The PAX did not disappoint with some good names this class.

We had and FNG that Red Skull named Big Bird.

Thanks to everyone that came out and the atlantis men.

Always an honor to lead you men.

Strength and Honor,
Chunks

COT: C Sharp asked to lead the closing prayer in the ball of Man.