It was a hot and humid Saturday morning begging to be conquered by 14 PAX. After reading each day’s Backblast from this week, I knew that the PAX had been beaten up pretty good. Knowing this caused me to change absolutely nothing about my planned workout lol. I trust that the PAX knows when to push it, when to rest and when recovery is needed in order to continue growing in pursuit of the various goals we all have. And I also saw that a few others ran 5+ miles or rucked for 1.5 hours before the workout, so there is obviously a plethora of youth and energy in the PAX. With that, my goal each and every Saturday is to challenge myself (and the PAX), pushing the point of muscular failure while focusing on form, pace and rest intervals.

The Thang

Warm Up: Braveheart (a workout named in honor of Papa Smurf)
3 Rounds of:
50m Shuttle Run
5 Burpees
10 Push Ups
15 Air Squats

This was performed OYO but with No Man Left Behind. The PAX waited until the last man finished the round before moving onto the next.

Thang 1
12 Minute AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible)
6 Thrusters (weights included DB, KB and Barbell)
6 Bar-Facing Burpees
12 Box Jumps

After the AMRAP, a total of 7 minutes was alotted to either run 400M, 600M or 800M and use the remaining time to hydrate and rest. Hence, the 7 minutes in Heaven workout title…

Thang 2
10 Minute AMRAP
5 Shoulder to Overhead Presses (weights included DB, KB and Barbell)
10 Deadlift (weights included DB, KB and Barbell)
15 Box Jump

Again, a total of 7 minutes was alotted to either run 400M, 600M or 800M and use the remaining time to hydrate and rest.

Thang 3
7 Minute AMRAP
3 Thrusters (weights included DB, KB and Barbell)
3 Pull Ups
6 Thrusters
6 Pull Ups
9 Thrusters
9 Pull ups
12 Thrusters
12 Pull Ups
…

At this point, I couldn’t remember the order of operations. Luckily Cousin It reminded me of the order of events. Unfortunately, he had to to do this multiple times within a couple minute time period!

Prayer Requests
Continued prayers for Papa Smurf & family as he continues his brave fight.
Continued prayers for Cold Cut & family, grieving the passing of Kim Jones. How about an associated praise though for Kim as she is surely walking free of any physical pain at the Right hand of our Father!
Prayers are needed for a friend of Mr. Belding fighting the disease of addiction.
Prayers for the FIA group forming in ENC. F3ENC’s continued support and assistance will surely be appreciated. Answer the call to help End Women’s Suffrage! (sorry – this is a really bad joke from the Man Show, but I couldn’t resist.)
Praise for the Sasquatch as this event has the potential to be HUGE!!!

Announcements
FIA kickoff is imminent. The suggestion was made to possibly hold their Saturday workout at Boyd Lee. If so, I can assist with the coordination of certain ladies wanting to drop their kids off at the pool. I meant park…ahahaha I need to grow up. But seriously, I’m pretty sure Gazelle said he could watch any kids if needed. Once you get to 2.7 or whatever, it’s apparently no big deal…

Sasquatch is on July 30th. If you aren’t signed up to run or bike it, please consider signing up to assist in some form or fashion. This will be an excellent display of all 3 F’s!

Moleskin

I really like some of the Moleskin’s that I have been reading and I believe it was String Bean that put together a few thoughts on each brother. I’m going to give it a shot.

T-Bone – you are the consummate F3 brother. Through your words and actions, you are obviously a respected father, husband, executive, church leader and community leader. Your progression that I have been fortunate enough to watch is absolutely incredible. From not even really running to running a half-marathon over the year that I have known you is beyond amazing! Your inclusion of Pepperoni into F3 is admirable – something I want to emulate once my boys get older. And last but not least, the work you put in each time you Q or participate in a workout is second to none.

Pepperoni – you absolutely crushed today’s workout. I don’t know if everyone saw the work you were putting in, but your form became impeccable on the box jumps, you paced the group on both runs and your shoulder to overhead work improved by the set! If I could go back in time, I would do exactly what you are doing to strengthen your body and mind at our workouts. The sky is the limit for you – we can all see you have a heck of a support system to get you there!

Duff – you quietly and methodically go about your work and always end up performing solidly in every workout I’ve ever seen you participate in. On top of that, you are hitting up quite a few races on the weekends. It’s always fun to run with you and catch a few words of wisdom (or temporary discontent!). I sincerely appreciate your support of my Saturday workouts. It means a lot to me that you feel you get your money’s worth on Saturday mornings and keep coming back!

Goose – it’s such a small world man! You are obviously a leader of a kind and loving family. Knowing that your availability is limited, it’s awesome that you come out on Saturdays AFTER rucking for some ridiculous time period beforehand. It’s an honor and a pleasure to work out beside you. And plus, I’m pretty sure that lady was talking about you today man. She made another comment that you didn’t hear about what she wanted you to do with that belt you were wearing!

Cousin IT – the man, the myth, the legend. Who runs the equivalent of a near marathon, then comes out and runs 5+ miles the next day and then comes out on Monday morning and says “I’m just a little sore”?!? That would have put me in the hospital! But more importantly, it’s obvious to see what a great father to your two boys you are and your love for F3, consistently holding the PAX accountable for their actions that maintain the integrity of F3ENC. I’m honored to work out beside you (on the days that I do!) and I’m happy that you have chosen F3ENC to spend your 250+ workouts with each year.

Gazelle – you’re just the man bro! Reading your backblasts and listening to you speak is inspirational in the sense that you have achieved the balance in life that so many of us are working to obtain. I couldn’t picture a better ambassador for F3ENC at the events that we participate in. You are going to kick some butt and take some names at the BRR!

Stretch – you’re pacing and capacity for work is inspiring. It’s blows my mind to think that you have been running long distances for only a short period of time. You’re obviously passionate and knowledgeable about your profession and the advice that you are able to provide the PAX is not easily replaceable. I appreciate your support during our Saturday workouts and welcome you to always be vocal, especially on form and pacing, helping to ensure that everyone’s effort is maximized.

Early Bird – you are filling out that tank top these days man! The consistent strength work you are doing, in addition to the cardio and endurance work is really showing up! I’m thinking you need to guest Q the Boyd Lee Beatdown in the near future as I can’t wait to see some of your ideas in action. It’s a pleasure working out beside of you as we have quite a few parallels in our lives right now with balancing young children, work, and making time for fitness, faith and fellowship.

Mellow Johnny – dude, you’re a brother from another mother. You’re able to mix a laid back attitude with a fierce competitive fire unlike anything I’ve ever seen. You’ve proved to the group that if you commit to training for an event or style of fitness, you will not only succeed but you will excel. It’s my hope that Saturday’s workouts allow you to put in work that translates into better results in any and all athletic feats you are currently training for. I am looking forward to running the Sasquatch with you and mixing our magic concoction together at Paramore Park that propels us to Sasquatch victory and a place on the Mt. Rushmore of F3 Clydesdales. There is a place for us 200+ pounders in F3! Typically last place in these dang running-focused events, but we will continue to push our feather weight friends to the limit, improving the PAX as a whole as an indirect result.

Mr. Belding – RESPECT! In all seriousness, I can only hope to match your physique, mental and physical capacity for exercise/pain, and passion for God and family when I reach a similar point in my life. We say this all the time, but you are truly an inspiration to all, especially younger F3ENC brothers who wonder what 50 will look and feel like. You are proof that age is just a number and I look forward to working out with you for many years to come! You are my sounding board as I try and devise new ways to torture the PAX on Saturdays.

Michael Scott, Macklemore (Baby Mack) and JAG – Thank you all so much for posting and choosing to attend the Boyd Lee Beatdown. It was obvious to everyone this wasn’t the first time you all have crushed a tough workout. Speaking on behalf of F3ENC, we welcome you to the group and look forward to seeing you at future workouts and fellowship events!

And a special thanks to the PAX for FINALLY LETTING ME NAME SOMEBODY!!! I must have worn you guys out to the point where you didn’t even want to put up a fight lol.

As always, it’s an honor and a pleasure to lead such a fine group. I can’t wait until next Saturday…

Lachey