Author: backblasts

Date: 2026-03-28
AO: Tar Pit
Q: Portage ,
PAX: Portage, LeMond, T-bone, Homie, Da Vinci, Panhandle
FNGs: None
COUNT: 6
WOR:
Every Minute on the Minute – 5 Rounds
15 Jumping Johns
10 ‘merkins
15 Big Boy Sit-ups
Stretching on your own.

The Thang:
A the base of the spa:
1. Broad Jump up the ramp, making as few jumps as possible.
2. Half way, stop and do 45 ‘merkins (15 wide, 15 narrow, 15 regular) 3. Once at the top, do 45 dips
4. Hold plank to pick up the six.

Answered the question to our neighbor: What are your fears and hesitations about AI? How do you use AI in your person life? In your professional life?

Walk down to pick up our coupons. Carried them up the stairs to the top. There we did an exercise and after each exercise we carried out coupons down and up the stairs. The exercises were: 1. 60 LBCs
2. 30 Oblique V-Ups (each side)
3. 40 Rows
4. 30 Zercher Squats
5. 30 Power Cleans
6. 30 Curls
We then carried our coupons to the front of the building and finished our workout with the awe of a great sunrise. 1. 20 Salt Shakers (each side)
2. 20 Swings.
Stretching

Moleskine:
No matter how our technology changes and unfolds in our world, people will still be people. Be certain to see the person in front of you, and the person you’re interacting with through technology. Our humanity will remain despite technology.

COT:
War, God’s Will

Tags: Tar Pit, Portage, LeMond, T-bone, Homie, Da Vinci, Panhandle

Date: 2026-03-28
AO: Mastodon
Q: Endo ,
PAX: Treebeard, Falsetto, Carmen, Dumpster, The wet burrito, Stock boy, Jailbreak, Cookies, Endo, Cheap Shot, Audible, Profe, Jayhawk, Christopher Kempen (Taxi) FNGs: 1 Christopher Kempen (Taxi)
COUNT: 14
WOR: 7xmotivators, Abe Vagodas, CH squats, CH merkins, xc skiers

The Thang: This was Endo’s first attempt at a math beatdown, and just like math, what was supposed to be simple became complicated really fast, verging on chaos. So we modified.

Handed out cards with 6 exercises. PAX were instructed to do 2 sets of 2 times the first 2 exercises (2 cubed) OYO, then 3 sets of 3 times the first 3 exercises, with the 6th exercise being for PAX that got ahead of the group (and or Q). We all missed the great vocalizations of the jackson 5 while getting lost in rep counts and which exercise we were in. Cut this one off at the end of the song. Here are the 6 parking lot plyos:

Shaun white’s
Apolo ohnos
Bode millers
Line hops forward and backward
Line hops side to side
Curb steps (my daughter amrita told me to try this one)

Mosey to base of Hoffa. Failure to Launch activity in honor of upcoming next attempt to launch Artemis on April 1 (who thought that was a good idea?). Q failed on 6th round.

Round 2 – standing exercises, but we did them as a group with Q telling when to switch. Song was Cake’s “Mr. mastodon farm” (1994). Followed by They Might Be Giants “Dr Worm”. Squats
Bonnie blairs
Imperial walkers
Star jumps
Jungle boys (too similar to star jumps)
Single leg deadlift hop

Intermission activity was an alligator merkin race. Stockboy and Carmen cruised it while the rest of us lumbered to the finish.

Mumble chatter about using coupons as decoratives for the workout was silenced in round 3. Did coupon exercises to some U2 songs.

Block dips
Goblet squats
Bent rows
Curls
Thrusters
Scull crushers

Intermission activity was bear crawl tag (aka When Animals Attack in the Exicon). Bears that got tagged joined the its.

Round 4 – down on the ground for these exercises. Songs were counting crows “Omaha” and caedmons call “this world”.

Flutter kicks
Chuck norris Merkins (knuckles)
Broken bicycles
Plank jacks
Bar fights
Cockroach situps

Grand finale – marathon merkins. Pick a number that you think is your limit of merkins in one shot. Do that, then do 5 more (without stopping). That’s what makes it a marathon. A friend of mine (Jon Marshall) defined a marathon as “one more mile than you can physically run”.

We ended there and skipped the SHOP and PT portion.

Moleskine: piggybacked on The Wet Burrito’s moleskin from earlier this year that we need to always remember the everyday people that are caught up in these conflicts around the world. I’ve been including that a lot in my prayers time recently.

COT: cookies M, sparrow trip, pax seeking jobs, people involved in war torn areas

Tags: Mastodon, Treebeard, Falsetto, Carmen, Dumpster, The wet burrito, Stock boy, Jailbreak, Cookies, Endo, Cheap Shot, Audible, Profe, Jayhawk, Christopher Kempen (Taxi)

Date: 2026-03-28
AO: Flat Earth
Q: Spielberg ,
PAX: Hypotenuse, White Noise, Jolly, Candyland, Tortuga, DQ, Oompa, Snatch (F3 Northwest HWY), Spielberg, Shiplap FNGs: None
COUNT: 10
WOR: SSH

The Thang: 4 games of 5v5 with different constraints

Moleskine: Be specific with your feedback

COT: silence

Tags: Flat Earth, Hypotenuse, White Noise, Jolly, Candyland, Tortuga, DQ, Oompa, Snatch (F3 Northwest HWY), Spielberg, Shiplap

Date: 2026-03-26
AO: Dark Room
Q: LeMond ,
PAX: Toto, Framed, Manhole, Lakers, LeMond, Tortuga, Flower Boy, Brainfog FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
Backblast: Dark Room Extravaganza
– Warmorama:
– Side Straddle Hops
– Challenge: 2 sets
– 10 4-ct high knees
– 10 4-ct squats
– 10 4-ct alternate shoulder taps
– 10 4-ct mountain climbers
– 10 4-ct fire hydrants
– Arm circles.
– Hill Thang: Partner up. Partner 1 does goblet squats while Partner 2 does Bernie Sanders up the hill, does 3 burpees at top. – At the top: 3 burpees
– At bottom: Partner does 20 goblet squats, then holds Al Gore. – 3 rounds per Pax.
– At playground:
– Pax partner up
– One pax hangs from chain of swing
– Other pax performs 15 burpees
– Switch and repeat
– Okay, 15 burpees is too many so we decreased it to 10!
– At the ledge
– Single-leg side plank for 30 seconds on each side
– Done in succession with no rest — 20 Squats, 20 Box Jumps or Step Ups, 20 Bulgarian Split Squats – Broad jump torture: 3 rounds
– Coupon remains fixed; broad jump from coupon to cones, mosey back – 5 BBS, 10 salt shakers, 20 curls
– 10 BBS, 15 salt shakers, 25 curls
– 15 BBS, 20 salt shakers, 30 curls
– Mary
– Breakdancers
– Flutter kicks
– Leg Lifts
– American Hammers
– Moleskin:
– Ecclesiastes 7:21-22
– 21 Do not pay attention to every word people say,
– or you may hear your servant cursing you—
– 22 for you know in your heart
– that many times you yourself have cursed others.
– I reflected on this and was struck by how often I think about how people have insulted me without remembering that I have also hurt others with my words.

Tags: Dark Room, Toto, Framed, Manhole, Lakers, LeMond, Tortuga, Flower Boy, Brainfog

Date: 2026-03-25
AO: Ground Zero
Q: Manhole ,
PAX: Manhole, Audible, Buns, Cheap Shot, Samsonite, Dr. Phil, Stock boy FNGs:
COUNT: 7
WOR: sure

The Thang: ruck

Moleskine: motivation, you have to want the change

COT: iykyk

Tags: Ground Zero, Manhole, Audible, Buns, Cheap Shot, Samsonite, Dr. Phil, Stock boy

Date: 2026-03-26
AO: Mastodon
Q: Dumpster ,
PAX: Audible, Stock boy, Endo, Dumpster, Chuck, Homie, Samsonite, Big Mac FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
WOR:

It’s a beautiful day for a ball game
Throwing a ball
SSH
Trunk Twisters
High Knees

RBI Baseball theme
Right leg stretch
Left leg stretch
Butterfly stretch

Star Spangled Banner
Calf Stretch & Calf raises

Mosey to Hamptons

The National Game
Roll ball (at least past the tree)
Bear crawl to get it
Crab walk back with ball on crotch
Repeat until song is done

Mosey to PoopHouse

First Base – Abbott & Costello
Wall Sit pass 2 soft balls
Sit-ups w feet on wall, pass 2 softballs
Flutter kicks pass two softballs
Mosey to Third Base (Hoffa)

Angels in the Outfield

Rotating Counter Clockwise
1st station – Hit Soft Ball & retrieve ball
2nd station at Top Right – 15 Burpees
3rd station at Top Left- 30 Crunches
4th station at bottom left- 60 SSH

Mosey to Baseball Diamond

Organ Baseball Music
Hit wiffleball with bat, run bases, go to outfield to get a hit ball If waiting do squats.

Go to soft cooties area

Take me out to the Ball game
( 7th inning stretch )
Step Ups on bricks

Cubs Fight Song
Partner BBSUs with wiffleballs

Move to SHOP

Casey At The Bat
(narrated by James Earl Jones)

Several exercises:
Crunchy Frogs
Jane Fonda – Right leg up
Jane Fonda – Left leg up
Front Lifts/ Supermans
Hold plank
Dips
Raggedy Andys

Mosey Back to Start

Recover Recover

Tags: Mastodon, Audible, Stock boy, Endo, Dumpster, Chuck, Homie, Samsonite, Big Mac

Date: 2026-03-25
AO: Tar Pit
Q: Jolly ,
PAX: DQ, Da Vinci, Panhandle, Tortuga, Jolly, The wet burrito FNGs: None
COUNT: 6
WOR:
Abe Vigodas
Arm Circles
Seal Claps
Mountain Man Poopers

The Thang:
5 Alive-
Big boy sit-ups
Skull crushers
Goblet squats
Merkins
Thrusters

Rotate mode of travel between benches – lunges & rifle carry.

Moleskine:
Gratitude.

COT:
DQ’s FIL health, Tortuga’s 2.0 job.

Tags: Tar Pit, DQ, Da Vinci, Panhandle, Tortuga, Jolly, The wet burrito

Date: 2026-03-21
AO: Tar Pit
Q: LeMond ,
PAX: Portage, DQ, LeMond, The wet burrito, T-bone, Tortuga, Homie, Da Vinci, Panhandle, SAGA FNGs: None
COUNT: 10
– Warmorama
– Motivators from 7
– Abe Vigodas
– Side Leg raises
– Copperhead merkins
– Copperhead squats
– Arm circles
– 5-Alive with coupons around Lake Ellyn
– Merkins off coupons
– Curls
– Squats off the blocks
– Coupons Swings
– American Hammers with Coupon
– One partner farmer carries both coupons
– Other partner does 5 burpees and catches up.
– After round 3, we switched from burpees to Jungle Boi Squats – If partner catches to first partner, he can grab one of the coupons. – If not, farmer partner holds plank at bench.
– Trio: one partner farmer carries, one does burpees, the third rifle carries to bench and then moseys back. – By the short wall:
– Body weight holds on the wall for 1 minute.
– Side single leg plank hold for 30 seconds
– At the field
– Relay race: start by sprinting and then divide up teams evenly – Relay race: Pax runs to other cones, does 20 squats, 20 thrusters, – Note: ran out of time on this thang!
– Mary
– Flutter Kicks
– Moleskin:
– I stumbled on some old emails of mine from 1999 and I was struck with how bad my writing was and for how wrong some of my political views were. I realized that we can learn and grow.

Tags: Tar Pit, Portage, DQ, LeMond, The wet burrito, T-bone, Tortuga, Homie, Da Vinci, Panhandle, SAGA

Date: 2026-03-23
AO: Tar Pit
Q: Big Mac ,
PAX: Big Mac, Oompa, T-bone, Tortuga, Da Vinci, Panhandle, Jolly, Chuck, SAGA FNGs: None
COUNT: 9
WOR: Follow the Leader style Warm-o-rama (Da Vinci’s Theme Song)
Body scan follow the Q: SSH, neck rolls, arm circles, tappy taps, goofballs, jerky stretching.

The Thang — Paired Rounds with Music
Each round has two exercises done during one song. Do the first until exhaustion, if you can’t keep up the second and need to switch back, run the wheel. After every two rounds, I’ll ask if you’ve cracked the code of the Da Vinci Connection? “What connects those two songs?” These are Da Vinci inspired connections, so you’re unlikely to get any without having them revealed.
Round 1 — “A Change Is Gonna Come” (Sam Cooke) Derkins & American Hammers with coupon (Written at 32, he died at 33.) Round 2 — “Changes” (David Bowie) Dips & Scissors
Connection: Both artists died unexpectedly — Cooke at 33, Bowie announced his death through his final album released 2 days before he died of liver cancer. Round 3 — “Hallelujah” (Jeff Buckley version) Curls & LBCs
Round 4 — “Suzanne” (Leonard Cohen) Overhead Press & Flutters And Jesus was a sailor when he walked upon the water
And he spent a long time watching from his lonely wooden tower And when he knew for certain only drowning men could see him He said all men will be sailors then until the sea shall free them But he himself was broken long before the sky would open
Forsaken almost human, he sank beneath your wisdom like a stone
Connection: Cohen wrote Hallelujah which was Buckley’s most famous song. Also Jeff Buckley drowned in a river which Cohen’s song “Suzanne” imagines: water as both beauty and danger. Round 5 — “Hurt” (Johnny Cash version) Rows & Russian Twists Round 6 — “Everybody Hurts” (R.E.M.) Thrusters & Bicycles
Ran out of time. Basically, both are about hurt, but move in very different directions. Sort of a resignation vs a call to hold on. Speed Round – Desert Father Quotes
Do an exercise, run the wheel, read a quote
20 burpees + sprint the wheel
Abba Poemen said that blessed Abba Anthony used to say, “The Greatest thing a man can do is to throw his faults before the Lord and to expect temptation to his last breath.” 20 hand-release merkens + Sprint the wheel
Abba Poemen teaches: (111)
“As long as the pot is on the fire, no fly nor any other animal can get near it, but as soon as it is cold, these creatures get inside. So it is for the monk; as long as he lives in spiritual activities, the enemy cannot find a means of overthrowing him.” 20 thrusters + Spring the wheel
80 Abba Bessarion also said, “Do not give your heart that which does not satisfy your heart.” 20 BB and 20 coupon swings + Sprint the wheel
81 He also said, “If you take little account of yourself, you will have peace, wherever you live.” 20 OHP * 20 WWIII situps & Sprint the wheel
85 “It is said of Abba Pior that every day he started all over again.” — Poemen 85

Moleskin
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” (Matthew 16:26) COT

Tags: Tar Pit, Big Mac, Oompa, T-bone, Tortuga, Da Vinci, Panhandle, Jolly, Chuck, SAGA

Date: 2026-03-24
AO: Dark Room
Q: Framed ,
PAX: Lakers, Flower Boy, Portage, Framed, Toto, Brainfog, Beaker, Manhole FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
WOR:
– Imperial Walker Texas Rangers
– SSHs
– Abe Vigodas
– Tappy Taps
– T-bone Burpees

The Thang:
Round 1 — Short loop 11s at the lights – Chuck Norris merkins (knuckle) + BBSUs

Round 2 — F3 equivalent exercises inspired by Total Gym
– Squats = Coupon Goblet Squat
– Back Rows = Bent Over Coupon Rows
– Pullovers = Coupon Pullovers on the ground
– Chest Press = Coupon Press on the ground
– Tricep Extensions = Skull Crushers

Round 3 — Mary circuit at the playground

Moleskine:
“There is no finish line. When you reach one goal, find a new one.” —Chuck Norris

COT:
IYKYK

Tags: Dark Room, Lakers, Flower Boy, Portage, Framed, Toto, Brainfog, Beaker, Manhole