[Pain Train] More Bad Decisions

Date: 2026-10-02 AO: Pain Train Q: Sooie , PAX: Bulldog, Half Lyfe, Siri, Roadkill, Derby, Sooie, Kiwi, INCHWORM, Shakira, Argggg, Paper Trail, Uh Oh FNGs: 1 Uh Oh COUNT: 12 CONDITIONS: SOLID: not as cool as before, but decent beatdown weather
WARMUP: Before the first exercise could commence, our plans were temporarily thwarted when a local denizen had laid claim to our tables, delaying the inevitable furniture-based foolishness that would eventually come to pass. We proceeded with the warmup anyway…but Hark! What was this sonorous tone gliding gently into our ear canals? Was this the melodious humming of a choir of angels? Nay! ‘Twas the dulcet tones emanating from Roadkill ‘s new whip, a beautiful electric cargo van, whose friendly exterior seemed to say both “I have your delivery” and “Hey kid, you wanna push pop?” The warmup continued until YHC announced KNERKINS, prompting an immediate cry from the ranks: “ON THE ASPHALT?!?” The dissenter was chastised, the knerkins were performed, and the PAX was reminded that questioning the Q is rarely a productive endeavor.
THE THANG: 1 of 4 — Half Mile Hang We then moseyed to the pull-up bars for the Half Mile Hang, splitting into two groups, with one group running a quarter-mile lap while the other performed hanging knee raises before switching. Two rounds each meant half a mile of running and plenty of time hanging from the bars, with ten Lieutenant Dans levied against anyone unfortunate enough to surrender to gravity.
2 of 4: Chill Hill >From there we headed to Chill Hill for 11’s, beginning with one Mountain Climber at the bottom, followed by a Politician to the crown of the hill for ten Merkins, then a mosey back down. The reps shifted until we reached ten Mountain Climbers and one Merkin, with the downhill running and backwards uphill Politician combining to make a surprisingly effective method of reducing the PAX to a collection of heavily breathing quadriceps. All were sufficiently gassed by the end, Kiwi may or may not have suffered some groinal distress, and our FNG, Uh Oh, Politicianed up the hill like a seasoned swamp monster despite having no reasonable expectation of knowing what he had gotten himself into.
3 of 4: TABLE CARRY!!! We then formed an Indian Run to reclaim the tables, divided back into our original groups, and briefly introduced confusion when YHC forgot which group I belonged to. Order was eventually restored, and two tables were carried from the gazebo to the stage and back while the rest of the PAX followed in a train of walking lunges. As each front carrier tired, he moved to the back and everyone shifted forward, ensuring that the burden circulated appropriately. Miraculously, no injuries were sustained during this portion of the morning, which may be the strongest evidence yet that Pain Train occasionally looks after its own.
4 of 4: Descending(?) DIDs With time running short, we finished with DIDs: five Derkins, five Irkins, and five Dips, then four of each, then three, two, and one. There was some initial confusion regarding what it meant to “count down from 5,” requiring a brief clarification that the numbers were, in fact, supposed to decrease.
MOLESKINE: The workout was then complete, and our FNG received his name, Uh Oh, after recounting that those were the final words he heard from his doctor immediately before being anesthetized for a precarious procedure. A name forged in medical anxiety seemed entirely appropriate for a man who had just survived his first Pain Train.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: GRUESOME NEWSOME!!! T-claps to Half Lyfe, Hair Band, INCHWORM for making it happen.
COT: Prayers lifted. Coffee downed.

[Pain Train] Riverwalk AO Naming Beatdown!!!

Date: 2026-09-26 AO: Pain Train Q: Half Lyfe , PAX: Sparrow, Piglet, Half Lyfe, INCHWORM, Barb, Siete, Twin Turbo FNGs: 1 Twin Turbo COUNT: 7 CONDITIONS: Nice cool morning. Will take it!
WARMUP: SSH, WMH, Windmills, misc.
THE THANG: All potential names written on cardboard. Can’t RiverWalk Hill by the Mill Gruesome Newsom The Wall Mill Works Deep End New(som) Train Pool Party The Grinder. Group collectively eliminated prior to start for reasons only PAX will know.
Each person grabs one and we hold plank together to determine bracket seeding. Last person standing=1 seed, 2nd to last=2 seed, etc.
Had 4 rounds of exercises. After each name match up we would switch rounds.
Round 1 20 Merkins 40 Mountain Climbers 30 Iron Mikes
Round 2 20 Carolina Dry Docks 40 Flutter Kicks 20 Lt Dans
Round 3 20 Decline Merkins 30 Dips 40 Squats
Round 4 10 Burpees 8 Absolutions 10 8-Count Body Builders
Once each PAX completed exercises they could move 1 (of 2) 25# AO name plate either forward or backward. AO name Plate that made it to the end of the parking lot first was the winner of that match up.
And the Champion is………
Gruesome Newsom!!
MARY: N/A
MOLESKINE: F3 discussion for PAX to help grow this AO.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: various getting to know F3
COT: count off, name-o-rama, named FNG Twin Turbo! prayers and coffee.
PLAYLIST: Various.

Climbing Everest

Date: 2026-09-23 AO: Insane Train Q: Wolfpack , PAX: 2 a dayz, Choo Choo, Chili Dip, Sooie, INCHWORM, Bulldog, Roadkill, Wolfpack, Derby, Juicy J, Argggg, El Capitan, Half Lyfe, Sharpshooter FNGs: 1 Sharpshooter COUNT: 14 CONDITIONS: little mist. Perfect temp.
WARMUP: ssh and stretches while we wait for Sharpshooter to roll in from his armadillo fight
THE THANG: sandbag carry to bottom of Mt. Everest.
10 SB Rows 10-20yard SB lunges 10 SB Presses
Repeat to top of hill
SB carry back to startex
MARY: Nah
MOLESKINE: tried to keep it quiet through the neighborhood. May have spooked an old lady or two.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: 9Square tourney Friday at pain-train Juicy J has a Titans 5k on Saturday so message him if ya want to join (and birthday brunch) New AO naming workout Saturday morning – message Half Lyfe for deets
COT: big mountains are hard to climb, but it’s worth it for the view. Go climb something big today.
PLAYLIST: grunting

[Pain Train] Riverwalk A0 Round 3

Date: 2026-09-12 AO: Pain Train Q: Half Lyfe , PAX: Hair Band, Sparrow, Half Lyfe, Siete, Barb, Sheriff Shire FNGs: None COUNT: 6 CONDITIONS: Dewy
WARMUP: SSH, Windmills, WMH, Runners Stretch.
THE THANG: Round 1 Run Aheads (Indian Runs) once person gets to front 16 Iron Mikes. 1=1. Round 2 Circle Up. Merkin Pull through a with kettle bell. PAX did merkin together then would do pull through with kettle ball. Did both left direction 2x then right direction 2x. Squat with kettle bell or plate weight pass. Did both directions. Left and Right. Did a few rounds each. Round 3: split into 2 groups. 1 group did 100 mountain climbers. Other group did weighted step ups with squat. Round 4: To the wall. Sprint up Crawl Bear down x5. Round 5 To the playground. Split into 2 groups. 1 group did 30 swing rows or pull ups. Other group did 4 count heal taps with WW2. Swap.
MARY: House of Pain Jump with Jump Squats. Leg burner.
MOLESKINE: Continue to grow this AO and get on Slack!
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Tussle coming up. 5k run and father daughters work out.
COT: Count Off, Name-o-rama, prayers, coffee.
PLAYLIST: Random.

Insane Train

Date: 2026-08-26 AO: Insane Train Q: Juicy J , PAX: Half Lyfe, Juicy J, Argggg, Roadkill, Bulldog, El Capitan FNGs: None COUNT: 6 CONDITIONS: amazing
WARMUP: side straddle hops, baby arm circles, low slow squats
THE THANG: Dora Dora and an epic sandbag workout!
MARY:
MOLESKINE:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
COT:
PLAYLIST: EDM baby!

Nein! NEIN!!!

Date: 2026-09-09 AO: Insane Train Q: Sooie , PAX: Half Lyfe, Juicy J, Roadkill, Bulldog, El Capitan, 2 a dayz, Sooie FNGs: None COUNT: 7 CONDITIONS: Pleasant, just shy of wunderbar.
WARMUP: SSH: 27 BAC: 18 BBAC: 18 Squats IC: 9 Merkins IC: 9 Stretch OYO
THE THANG: Moseyed up to the playground only to discover someone had surreptitiously left a sheet of paper with the mnemonic “SCHNITZEL” scrawled on it, so we proceeded to make a workout from it! 9 exercises. 9 reps. 9 rounds. 1 champion. S – shoulder press C – curl H – halo N – Nantucket squeeze I – imperial crawler T – twist Z – zercher squat E – elevated splunge L – lunge
MARY: 1 minute plank buyout
MOLESKINE: Reading Wendell Berry for the first time. Reflecting on taking time to pay closer attention to the people and processes taking place around me and not just rush from point A to point B. Thinking more in terms of generations rather than seasons.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: WESTSIDE WEDNESDAY tonight! Juicy J and Roadkill are both :hardcommit:’s for it! 5:30-7:30. Tailgate Brewery. BYOF
COT: El Capitan completed all 9 rounds. I awarded him FREE F3 workouts for the rest of the month. SalPal can redeem that voucher. Awarded all PAX present with a commemorative coloring sheet in honor of our Nein! NEIN!!! workout. Though it was Bulldog who got the official workout sheet.
Color your sheet. Post it as a reply to this backblast. The PAX that receives the most emojis will get free F3 workouts for the rest of the year! If you weren’t present, feel free to print and color your own sheet attached to this backblast.
Prayers lifted. Mountain Mojo enjoyed!

[Pain Train] F3 Riverwalk Round 2

Date: 2026-09-05 AO: Pain Train Q: Half Lyfe , PAX: Half Lyfe, Piglet, Inch Worm, Siete, Blinker,, Sheriff Shire, Barb FNGs: 2 Sheriff Shire, Barb COUNT: 7 CONDITIONS: perfect conditions to sweat!
WARMUP: SSH, WMH said Mission, Principles, Credo. IW, Windmills, Runners stretch.
THE THANG: Thang 1- 7 Stations. Timer is farmers carry lunge walk. Pax rotate between following exercises. SB floor to ceilings, coupon curl/overhead press/tricep extension, Iron Mikes, Merkins, coupon curl/overhead press/tricep extension, dips. 2 Rounds of that. Thang 2 – Over to the Wall Angry Bear Crawl x2 Sprints up hill x2. Thang 3 – Tubthumping Song. Held Plank everytime “Down” was side did a burpee from plank position back to plank position. A lot more downs then I thought. Fun way to finish.
MARY: N/A
MOLESKINE: Plan was to wake up at 5:20 with alarm set. Plan work out, make playlist, pack car with all the gear and be ready to leave with kiddos in plenty of time. Instead woke up at 5:43 missed alarm that was set for 5:20. Had to get 3 kids ready, snacks packed, weights packed, bikes and scooters packed for kids, coffee and water. Luckily arrived at 6:01 to a graceful PAX that was ready to work. Offer yourself Grace when needed, patience with yourself and those around you and being able to roll with the punches.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Westside Wednesday and 5k coming up.
COT: Count off, name-o-rama, named 2 FNG’s. Welcome Barb and Sheriff Shire. Coffee. 4 FNG’s in 2 weeks ar Riverwalk. Let’s keep it going fellas!!!!
PLAYLIST:Random

[Pain Train] Pain Train

Date: 2026-09-04 AO: Pain Train Q: G-string , PAX: Sooie, Juicy J, Pebbles, Half Lyfe, Roadkill, El Capitan, Wolfpack, G-string, Cheeks, Bulldog, Hooters, Inchworm FNGs: None COUNT: 12 CONDITIONS: Perfect for a South Texas boy. Aka, hot and humid
WARMUP: SSH x 33 5 burpees Imperial walkers 5 burpees Slow squats 5 burpees Merkins 5 burpees Stretch OYO while workout is explained
THE THANG: hyrox style: complete exercise then lap around the park 50 thrusters Angry bear crawl 25 man makers weighted lunges 1:1 50 rows Burpee broad jumps 50 merkins Shout out to Pebbles for crushing the workout and lapping, I think, everyone.
MARY: Coupon WW2 Leg raises Heel taps Plank
MOLESKINE: Be free of the outcome. Working in the ER means being prepared for anything to come through those doors with no warning. It also means that I rarely see how people end up. Someone comes in with a stroke or heart attack, and I have about five minutes to do everything I can for them before sending them off with a different team, and I may never find out what happened or even if they lived. People come in from overdosing on something. We get them stabilized and send them out just hoping they won’t fall off the wagon again. In those few moments I have with them, I have to give all my expertise (limited as it is), all my hope for them, and some joy to ease their fear. Then, when that time is up, I leave and do it again for the next patient. Every person I encounter, I want to see them healed, but that isn’t my place to force that. I have to trust my team, the other teams in the hospital, and the patient themselves. In doing that, if there is success, it isn’t mine alone. If there is failure, it isn’t all my fault. I have to give everything and then let go peacefully. Same can be said for raising our children and so many areas of life. Do what you can, and be free of the outcome. “Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
ANNOUNCEMENTS: – CSAUP burpee run thing by Wolfpack on Sunday – 5k on the 26th Juicy J – IronPax is live!
COT: Prayers were offered up.
PLAYLIST:

The Knoll

Date: 2026-09-03 AO: The Knoll Q: The Banker , PAX: morning stār, The Banker, Half Lyfe, Étouffée, AAA, Bumblebee FNGs: None COUNT: 6 CONDITIONS: Fine morning
WARMUP: stretching and jogging, work a little bit of calisthenics
THE THANG: Dora- partner does a 25 yard MOT of choice down and back while other partner is getting reps.
MOT’s : Bear crawl, crab walk, lunges, burpee broad jumps, politicians, duck walk
Exercise: 100 Merkins, 200 WWII’s, 300 flutter kicks, 200 squat jumps
MARY: Stretches and personal shares
MOLESKINE: I’m very tired and sore, had to be willing to adapt the plan
ANNOUNCEMENTS: next Wednesday at Tailgate Brewery, get together with families
COT: prayers
PLAYLIST:

[Pain Train] Riverwalk Soft Launch

Date: 2026-08-29 AO: Pain Train Q: Half Lyfe , Hair Band PAX: Half Lyfe, Piglet, Hair Band, Roadkill, Shakira, Juicy J, Dr. Dump, Chains (Ryan Johnson), Inch Worm, Tea Bag, Siete FNGs: 2 Tea Bag, Siete COUNT: 11 CONDITIONS: Sunny and cool. Love these mornings!
WARMUP: SSH, WMH, Runners Stretch. Go over Mission, Credo, Principals. Wind Mills, Michael Phelps, Mosey to first station.
THE THANG: Half Lyfe Q: Station 1: The Hill – 2 Groups Group 1: Bear Crawl up with sand bag as team. Crawl Bear down with sand bag as team. Group 2: Alternating Jump Ups on the rocks. Switch. Station 2: The Pavillion – 2 Groups Group 1: Dips/Merkins Group 2: 4 Cones in square formation. Each cone 1 burpee. MOT between cones. Run, Side Shuffle, politicians, side shuffle. Complete 4 rounds total split into 2 half’s. Switch at the half. Station 3: The Playground – 2 Groups. Group 1: Pulls Ups/Swing Rows/Some Abs Group 2: Lt Dans around playground. Switch
Hairband Q: Partner Up Suicides Partner 1 does suicides. Partner 2 does exercise. Switch after partner is done with suicides. Freddie Mercuries (2=1) 100 Total Squats 100 Total 50 Carolina Dry Docks 50 Burpees.
MARY: N/A
MOLESKINE: Talked a little about F3 to FNG’s.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: More F3 info to new guys.
COT: Count Off, Name-o-rama, Named FNG’s, Prayers, Coffee. Welcome Siete and Tea Bag!
PLAYLIST: Random