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

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

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:

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.

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.

“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

Dealing it out

AO: the-knoll
Q: G-string
PAX: Pebbles, morning stār, El Capitan, Half Lyfe, Wolfpack, Stubs, Sooie, Papa Bear, Sparrow, Bumblebee
FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
CONDITIONS: Dark with a sliver of crescent moon. Brisk but warmer than than it has been.

WARMUP:
SSH and something else before I got there. Sorry guys!
– Slow Squats
– Mike Tysons
– Willie Mayes Hayes while we went over the mission and core principles

THE THANG:
Deck of cards work out. Reps match the card. Aces are 15
:hearts: – Decline Merkins
:spades: – Pulse Squats
:diamonds: – Pullups
:clubs: – Reverse Lunges
:black_joker: – 10 Burpees
Twos: Mosey to the backstop and sprint back
Threes: 15 reps of the exercise chosen by the person who drew the card.

MOLESKINE:
We discussed two questions.
1. What are some things you want your son (or daughter) to know before they leave home?
2. Who do you want them to be?
We then left with a challenge to think about how to communicate those things.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Biscuit run this weekend
March Merkin Madness starts on Saturday
Night Moves happening

COT:
Prayers were offered up.

Round Two: It’s about You

AO: the-knoll
Q: Ex-Pat
PAX: Ex-Pat, Pebbles, Stubs, Tebow, Sooie
FNGs: None
COUNT: 5
CONDITIONS: 65 and a nice breeze – no rain!

WARMUP:
◦            Little baby arm circles
◦            Back backs
◦            Don quixotes
◦            Lazy imperial walkers
◦            Mozy

THE THANG:

Quote: Richard Rohr – “Most of us were taught that God would love us if and when we change. In fact, God loves you so that you can change. What empowers change, what makes you desirous of change is the experience of love. It is that inherent experience of love that becomes the engine of change.”
? What do you need to love about yourself so that change can happen?
 
1 – 5 minutes of work, 5 minutes of running
◦            Merkins – 10
◦            Lunges – 10
◦            WWII – 10
◦            Run
 
Quote: John Philip Newell – we need to find ways of sharing our intimate experiences of the Mystery, for we are one. It is through one another that we will know more of the Life that flows within us all. It is through sharing our fragments of insight that we will come to a fuller picture of the One who is at the heart of each life.”
? Who do we need to have a good conversation with?
 
2
◦            Pull-ups or Swing Rows –
◦            London Bridges –
◦            Leg Lifts –
◦            Run 5 Min
 
Quote: Wendall Berry – “Healing is impossible in loneliness; it is the opposite of loneliness. Conviviality is healing. To be healed we must come with all the other creatures to the feast of Creation.
? Where do we need healing and who will it be with?
 
3
◦            Back Extensions  –
◦            Burpees
◦            American Hammers
◦            Run 5 Min
 
MOLESKINE:
Tell someone you trust your answers sometime this week. Do you need quiet or do you need music?

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

COT:
Celtic Prayer we used at the end:

May the blessing of light be on you – light without and light within.
May the blessed sunlight shine on you like a great peat fire,
so that stranger and friend may come and warm himself at it.
And may light shine out of the two eyes of you,
like a candle set in the window of a house,
bidding the wanderer come in out of the storm.
And may the blessing of the rain be on you,
may it beat upon your Spirit and wash it fair and clean,
and leave there a shining pool where the blue of Heaven shines,
and sometimes a star.
And may the blessing of the earth be on you,
soft under your feet as you pass along the roads,
soft under you as you lie out on it, tired at the end of day;
and may it rest easy over you when, at last, you lie out under it.
May it rest so lightly over you that your soul may be out from under it quickly; up and off and on its way to God.
And now may the Lord bless you, and bless you kindly. Amen.

Quiet Thinking While Working Out

AO: the-knoll
Q: Ex-Pat
PAX: Ex-Pat, Malibu, Half Lyfe, Sooie, El Capitan, Wolfpack, Stubs, Papa Bear, Pebbles, FLO, Samwise (2.0), Iowa (2.0)
FNGs: None
COUNT: 12
CONDITIONS: Misty – did I sweat or is that rain? Not so sure.

WARMUP:
– Little baby arm circles
– Back backs
– Don quixotes
– Lazy imperial walkers
– 3 min Mozy
THE THANG:

Quote: Alchemist- When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.
? What is one thing you want to make better?

1 – 5 minutes of work, 5 minutes of running
– Merkins – 10
– Squats – 10
– WWII – 20
– Run

Quote: Thomas Merton – You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.
? What is the challenge in your present and what is one tool you need to move into it?

2
– Dips – 20
– Calf raises – 20
– Mountain climbers – 20
– 5 min run

Quote: MLKjr – But the end is reconciliation; the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the beloved community. It is this type of spirit and this type of love that can transform opposers into friends
? Who do you need to be reconciled with – a person, a group? What is a step that you can move into relationship and community

3
– Shoulder taps – 30
– Step ups – 30
– Crunches – 30
– 5 min run

MOLESKINE:
We need accountability- tell your answers to at least one person you trust this week. Thinking about the quiet and sitting in the questions. Leave room for contemplation and see what happens.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
March 1 – Loveless Run, Game Night Soon (I forgot the date and time and place).

COT:

Isolated, never alone

AO: the-knoll
Q: Étouffée
PAX: Pebbles, Half Lyfe, Stubs, Sooie, G-string, Lady Liberty, Sparrow
FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
CONDITIONS: just right

WARMUP: mosey to the stop sign
5 Burpees
10 slow squats
mosey back

THE THANG: (3) 10 minute AMRAP circuits, rotating exercises with partner

Round 1:
A) Sprint around backstop
B) 10 Pull-ups, 20 Push-ups, 20 Dips

Round 2:
A) 60 yards with sandbags
– 20 yards walking lunges
– 10 yards over-head walking lunges
– 30 yard mosey back
B) Plank

Round 3:
30 yards. Partner A down, B Back
– 10 yard wheelbarrow walk
– 20 yard partner carry
– 50 (split up) Big Boys

MOLESKINE: Isolated, but never alone. So often we may find ourselves in a state and/or temptation of being worn down or in isolation, discouragement. No matter how isolated we may feel, we are never truly alone. Not only is God with us, but there are so many others we are connected to seen or unseen. Our presence and our actions matter and affect others and ripple beyond – our family – our friends – our coworkers – our community – and beyond.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: biscuit ru

COT: nameorama, countorama, coffeteria, and sweet sweet olive oil enjoyed