Tag: toga

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8-Count Body Builders!

Date: 2026-08-20 AO: The Stronghold Q: Hipster , Red Skull PAX: Young and Restless, Hipster, Red Skull, toga, Barney, Right Said, Decaf, Dr. Brown Slip, Zummies, Gumbo, Micro Soft, Sweet Tooth, Purple Rain, Stick Death, Cuties, Pinto, Blue Cheese, Dory, Krabby Patty FNGs: None COUNT: -15 CONDITIONS: Absolutely Perfect – wet, rainy with a little thunder
WARMUP: Started with a mosey to the front school lot; YHC was unsatisfied with the effort to extended the mosey to the NSA parking lot. The warm up included a Scorpion Stretch to ensure our front side was wet and some WW1 to get the backside wet.
THE THANG: After demonstrating how to count and execute the 8-count body builder movement, each 4:13 Strong man came in the middle, introduced himself and told us one thing he had learned about himself over the past 40 Days. Then he lead us in 5 8-count body builders. That brought our 8-count body builder count to 60.
Mosey to the Smokestack parking lot where each 4:13 Strong man told us about a goal and then led us in another 5 8-count body builders bring our total to 115.
Mosey back to the NSA lot where toga led us in the final 5 to get our total up to 120.
Mosey back to the StartEx and time was up.
MARY: No time for Mary today
MOLESKINE: So thankful for the rain this morning. There is nothing better than getting a man into adverse conditions to help him realize that he can do hard and uncomfortable things. There was a lot of self pity this morning as the 4:13 Strong were feeling sorry for themselves for getting a little wet. The perfect way to end the 40 Day Challenge. Thanks to bluemule for the workout idea and the F3 PAX that joined us.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Signing Day is tomorrow at 11:30am. Come join us.
COT: Prayers for guidance and wisdom as these men transition into the Work Phase of the program.
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The Stronghold

Date: 2026-07-30 AO: The Stronghold Q: Wham-O , PAX: Tinkertoy, Young and Restless, Wham-O, Red Skull, hambone, Barney, Dr. Brown Slip, toga, Hipster, Chunks, Purple Rain, Top Chef, Stick Death?, Zoomie, Curious?, Cat Woman, Bisquick, Wings Down, Sweet Tooth, Crabby Patty, Blue Cheese, Pinto, Squid, Micro Soft, Gumbo, Dory FNGs: None COUNT: 26 CONDITIONS: perfect
WARMUP: lite
THE THANG: “dealers choice”
Setup – Deal the entire deck evenly to all PAX. – Go around the circle. – On your turn, play any card from your hand. – Lead the exercise if it’s in cadence. – Play continues until every card is gone. Suits – ♥️ Merkins (OYO) – ♦️ Squats (IC: 1=2) – ♣️ Big Boys (IC: 1=2) – ♠️ Burpees (OYO) Card Values – 2–10 = Face Value – J = 11 – Q = 12 – K = 13 Aces = Wild – An Ace may be played at any time on a matching suit. – The announced exercise is canceled. – Both cards are discarded. – Entire PAX runs 1 lap. Jokers = Bear Crawl
Totals (Full Deck) – 90 Merkins – 180 Squats (1=2 IC) – 180 Big Boys (1=2 IC) – 90 Burpees – 4 Run Laps (if every Ace is used)
MOLESKINE: nearly finished the deck. Q could do better explaining cadence required.
ANNOUNCEMENTS: Chucks leaves for Montana for 2 months. Prayers for his time away!
COT: prayer circle
PLAYLIST:
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The Stronghold

Date: 2026-06-11 AO: The Stronghold Q: Tinkertoy , PAX: Pearl (Jonathan Halter), toga, Tinkertoy, Red Skull, Decaf, Young and Restless, Wham-O, Pepsi, Hipster, Barney, Sean Southall, Goose, TopChef, PeachFuz, Duncan, ToeJamb, MissesWinters, Grasshopper, Gristle, TrainWreck, BoogieMan, KiddyPool, TinderFoot, Puffy, Swiper, Clueless FNGs: None COUNT: 27 CONDITIONS: 75* and moist
WARMUP: SSH, mosey, but kicks, toy soldier, shuffle, hip opener, good mornings, Willie Mays Hayes, Phelps, arm circles, shoulder press
THE THANG: 4 corners 150 reps – Step ups – Merkins – Squats – WW1 Mode of transport: creepers
FitnessGram Pacer Test
MOLESKINE: 150 reps was aggressive
ANNOUNCEMENTS: One week left for 4:13 guys
COT: Financial literacy exam for 4:13 guys
PLAYLIST: White girl bangers
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Super Bowl Prep

Date: 2026-02-05 AO: thestronghold Q: Wham-O PAX: Tinkertoy, Young and Restless, Dan and Dave, Decaf, toga, Chunks, Wham-O, Hipster, Pearl (Jonathan Halter), Brown Slip, Barney, Red Skull, 4:13 Strong Men FNGs: None COUNT: 25 CONDITIONS: brisk / windy / good championship football weather
WARMUP: SSH 25, LB arm circles 10, imperial walkers 10, Good Mornings 10, Merkins 10, Coupons
THE THANG: “Championships aren’t won on Super Bowl Sunday. They’re built in the weight room, sharpened on the practice field, and finished at the goal line. Today, we go through all three.”
TODAYS RULES: 1. Every single rep, every block has a hand on it 2. If a teammate cannot complete the rep with the block, another man may hold it for him (while the teammate in need does an “un-burdened” rep beside him)
ESTABLISH TEAMS (4) W/CAPTAINS
1 – THE WEIGHT ROOM (10): NO POINTS | 3 Rounds • 20 DL → Upright Row • 15 Chest Press • 10 Thrusters Plank on coupon until all done
2 – THE PRACTICE FIELD (10): 1 Round = • 10 Merkins (coupon) • 15 Swings • 20 Chest Press • 25 Mtn Climbers (4ct) Each completed round = 1 Point
Drive 3 – THE GAME: GOAL LINE (10): Teams VS. Teams race / 3 “Plays” head to head / each winning team earns a point / final play you’re vs. EVERYONE only the 1 winning team earns 2 points.
plays: – 25 Blockees – 15 Blockees – 5 Blockees
MOLESKINE: stick to consistency in the little things over time and you’ll build something great. Don’t do it alone, bring in the man beside you!
ANNOUNCEMENTS: N/A
COT: prayers for Caleb’s family (hospitalized) (brought forward from Road-trip)
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New Years Day Convergence – Welcome 2026!

AO: thestronghold
Q: Red Skull
PAX: Hipster, DintyMoore, Mumbler, Ponzi, Natural Ice, Purple Tiger, hambone, toga, Chunks, Barney, Wolfpack, Tinkertoy, Young and Restless, Tim the Toolman, Decaf, Grape, Pep, Topanga, Take 3, Animal, BTB, Tool Bit
FNGs: None
COUNT: 23
CONDITIONS: 32 Degrees – perfect workout weather!

WARMUP: Mosey to the gravel lot for the usual warm-up: SSH, IWs, Windmills, Squats, Merkins, T-Ups and Scorpion Stretch.

THE THANG:
Mosey to the Auditorium

Part 1: Mental Toughness Week (Tryouts) – Burpee Apocalypse with a run around the building the building in between each round.

Mosey to the North Lot

Part 2: 40 Day Challenge – 6 weeks of work condensed down to six movements: Lt. Dan, Bear Crawl, Crab Walk, Burpee Broad Jump, Crawl Bear and Politician.

Mosey to The Hill

Part 3: The Work Phase – 7’s on the hill with Hand Release Merkins at the top, run down the hill, Jump Squats at the bottom, Politician up the hill.

Mosey back to the flag and time!

MOLESKINE:
4:13 Strong is a great program for men who want to change the course of their life, but it is hard. Only 35% of the men who enroll have what it takes to complete all program requirements. A big factor to success are the relationships that our men build with other men who can show them how to handle hard things. You can make a real difference for the 4:13 Strong guys by showing up, working out with them and modeling how HIM face challenges.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
LeanPax begins on 1/5
The Stronghold is now meeting every Thursday
Struggle Prep is coming in a few short weeks
Young and Restless is the new AOQ of The Stronghold

COT:
A great turnout for our New Years Day Convergence. Thank you all for coming out to join us!

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A Time for Reflection

AO: thestronghold
Q: Red Skull
PAX: Right Said, Brown Slip, toga, Young and Restless, Wham-O, Dan and Dave, Barney, Hipster, Decaf, Phonics (Franklin), Mater, Dinky, Mosh Pit, Shred-It, Cuties, Speed Date, Raisin, Old Man River
FNGs: None
COUNT: 19
CONDITIONS: 45 degrees…the first chilly workout of the season at The Stronghold.

WARMUP: SSH, Windmills and Willie Mays Hayes. Mosey to the first school parking lot to continue the warm-up with Squats and Imperial Walkers.

THE THANG: Long mosey to the far front lot followed. YHC demonstrated the cadence for 8-Count Body Builders by doing five and then invited each 4:13 Strong (8 in total) to lead the group in a set of five. Before leading they needed to share something that they had learned in the past 40 Days. Decaf jumped in to share and lead bring our total count to 50 8-Count Body Builders.

We celebrated our accomplishment with a mosey to the back of the campus. Then each 4:13 Strong man was invited to share their vision for the future and how that vision is different today vs. 40 Days ago, and then lead us in another set of 5 8-Count Body Builders. Barney jumped in at the end to share some of his wisdom and gave us 5 more 8-Count Body Builders, bringing our total to 95.

We reversed course and retraced our steps making stops at both locations on the way back home. Hipster had the privilege of getting us to 100 and Wham-O got us to 105.

Once we got back to the flag YHC offered another 5 to get the total for the day up to 110 8-Count Body Builders.

MOLESKINE: It was a great morning. Thank you to the F3 PAX for coming out and supporting our men. Winners of the 4:13 Strong shirts were Right Said, Dan and Dave and Phonics

ANNOUNCEMENTS: That was the last workout at The Stronghold for 2025. Please consider spending your Thursday mornings at greenmachine or atlantis for the next several weeks but make sure you come back to thestronghold in January!

Signing Day tomorrow at 11:30am. All are welcome.

COT: Prayers for wisdom, strength and guidance.

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Block Party

AO: thestronghold
Q: tampalibra
PAX: Red Skull, Brown Slip, Hipster, Decaf, Barney, toga, Shocker (Mark Holmes), Dan and Dave, Young and Restless, Mosh Pit, Cuties, Nap Time, Gold Fish, Comic Book Guy, Old Man River, Rocket Man, Speed Date, Shreder, Raison, Puppy Chow, Lace Out, Mater
FNGs: 13 Mosh Pit, Cuties, Nap Time, Gold Fish, Comic Book Guy, Old Man River, Rocket Man, Speed Date, Shreder, Raison, Puppy Chow, Lace Out, Mater
COUNT: 23
CONDITIONS: Ideal

WARMUP: 25 SSH IC w 1 burpee penalty, 10 squats IC w 2 burpee penalty, 10 merkins

I checked in on these guys during mental toughness week so I know they can do cadence! I wanted to stress the importance of it without being an ahole and calling out guys individually on week 1. The guys not doing it great were trying and that was enough for today – we get to week 3 and they’re not matching cadence perfectly you start calling them out though PAX! The standard is the standard, you rise to it not the other way around.

THE THANG:
I’ve got a few different things I try to do for my 4:13 Qs depending on where it lands in their 40-day progress. In week one, I intentionally design a workout that is tough and structured in a way that they won’t be able to fully complete it—at least not yet. It’s not accidental or meant to be over-programmed; it’s intentional. I want them to see the standard, to feel the gap between where they are and what’s possible, and to know that while they can’t meet it now, they can get there if they trust the process. During the workout, I adjust reps or sets on the fly so it’s still achievable, but the impact remains: they get punched in the face by the challenge, yet also discover that even when scaled, they can do hard things. The point isn’t to be a hardass and break them down but to set the tone—that growth takes effort, discipline, and commitment, and they are capable of it. It’s a delicate balance of punching them in the gut a little with a tough workout to both show they can do it but they still have a ways to go.

4 sets of 25 Abolishers (Tampa named) (4-count flutter with two block presses = 1 rep). In between each set of 25 you run to the fence and do 2 burpees (burpees go up by 2 each round)

Some PAX finished 4 rounds, probably 50% made it through 3. YHC called it, talked about moving on bc of time but now they know the standard

3 sets of 15 to-be-named movement (We’re Not Worthy + 2 Block Press = 1). In between each set of 25 perform the same run to the fence and do burpees (burpees go up by 2 each round) – starting where we should have left off last time though (10).

Again made the audible and moved it to sets of 15, 10, and then 5 respectively.

Finisher with the burpee-apocalypse – made it down to 5 and then called it a few minutes early for time bc the first class has the extended name-a-rama!

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90’s Summer Morning Beatdown

AO: thestronghold
Q: Hipster
PAX: Tebow, Pearl (Jonathan Halter), tampalibra, Red Skull, Dan and Dave, Right Said, Barney, toga, Chunks, Natural Ice, Purple Tiger, Young and Restless, Decaf, Wham-O, Napoleon, Step Back, Cowpie, Blackjack, Puppy Chow, Big Mama, One Star, Clorox, Cool Runnings, Beyonce, Purple Rain, Old Made
FNGs: None
COUNT: 27
CONDITIONS: Pleasantly Moist

WARMUP: Classic WOR, grab a coupon

THE THANG: Name That Tune – 90’s Hip Hop Hits

Blockey buy-in (10 I think?), start the music

Each song we are moving around campus, carrying the coupon.

At each stop – Around the Worlds waiting for the 6

Once all in – 413 PAX has the chance to name artist and title. Correct answers reduce # of blockeys, incorrect answers add more.

There were 8 or so stops around the Stonghold, with a smattering of correct answers, averaging about 7 blockeys per stop, with some WW1’s mixed in for good measure.

Back to the startex for the blockey/WW1 finisher.

MOLESKINE: Lively PAX this morning, decent showing with Name That Tune considering most of these pups hadn’t yet been born.

Thanks to the F3 guys who added some extra support and encouragement for the slower PAX, great group effort all around.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: 50 miler coming up

COT: Prayers for 413 families going through some stuff, and the current class to stay focused and persistent. Always an honor to lead!

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Look Back and Look Forward

AO: thestronghold
Q: Chunks
PAX: toga, Purple Tiger, Shocker (Mark Holmes), Right Said, Red Skull, Decaf, Barney, Young and Restless, Tater, Wendy’s, Ice Box, Stir Fry, Road Trip, Bobby Hill, Mutt, Singlet
FNGs: None
COUNT: 17
CONDITIONS:

WARMUP:

Indigenous peoples run with Q setting the pace to first parking lot.
13 SSHs and the explanation

THE THANG:

Indigenous peoples run with Q setting the pace to next parking lot.
Each 4:13 HIM told the PAX what they were proud of they overcame during the last 40 days. Then lead the PAX in 5 eight count bodybuilders.
Indigenous peoples run with Q setting the pace to first parking lot.
Each 4:13 HIM told the PAX what are their goals moving forward. Then lead the PAX in 5 eight count bodybuilders.
Red Skull & Decaf & YHC lead 5 eight count bodybuilders with words of encouragement
Indigenous peoples run back to StartEx
Circle up for some Mary to wrap it up

MOLESKINE:

This is not the end it’s just the start.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

COT:

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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.