Backblasts

Backblast: Pearls on a String = AO VQ! Date: 12.7.23
AO: #ao_dark_room
PAX: @Manhole @Banks @Beaker @LeMond @8-Track @Crack @Captain Crunch
FNGs: 0
Q: @Banks
Total: 7

WOR:
– 7x Motivators IC
– 10x mountain man poopers IC
– 10x Windmills IC
– 10x Merkins IC
– Stretch OYO

The Thang: Pearls on a String

Since this was my AO VQ, I wanted to explore a little bit and take the PAX on an adventure. We took the long loop and made various stops along the way:

We moseyed North and Started with Dan Taylors up to 8 as we headed West.

From there we moseyed over to hacksaw ridge and completed a Jacobs Ladder. We ran over the hill and down, completed a burpee and then ran back over the hill. We did this 7 times adding a burpee each time.

Next we moseyed along the outer loop and then completed 11s at each lamp post. We started with 10 Merkins and 1 Squat and finished with 10 squats and 1 Merkin.

Finally we finished our loop with some reverse BBS Suicides. We completed 20 BBS and then ran to the last light pole, turned around and ran back to complete 20 BBS at the next light pole. There were a total of 4 stops for 80 BBS

We next completed 7s (same concept as 11s) with 6 Pull-ups and 1 Squat finishing with 6 squats and 1 pull-up.

We wrapped up with 20 BBS to make it an even 100 on the day and then ran back to the flag

Moleskin: The man in the arena

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Theodore Roosevelt

COT: Prayers for Crunches girls as they have a recital this weekend, Prayers for Cracks family and all of the current chaos and for his daughter as she tries to figure out a big upcoming move.

Backblast: First annual Krampusfest
Date: Thursday, December 7th, 2023
AO: #ao_mastodon
PAX: @Linc @Samsonite @Hancock @T-bone @Tortuga@Spit Valve @Stock boy @Sparrow @Jailbreak @Jolly @Big Mac @Ankles @TBTF @Spokes @Mad Cow @Da Vinci
FNGs: 0
Q: @Da Vinci
Total: 16

Warmorama to Krampus Song

Thang:
Between rounds: Hit Krampus with Disc and 1 Sprint
Not Hit Krampus is 2 Sprints
Rounds:
Exercises during hand-rolled non-algorythm songs (from Bruce Cockburn, Amy Grant, Dolly Parton/Kenny Rogers):
Derkens and American Hammers with Coupon
Dips and Scissors
Curls & LBCs
Overhead Press & spell Krampusfest
Skullcrushers & Flutters
Merkens and BBSU
Chest Press and Coupon Sit ups
Rows & Squats
Thrusters and Bicycles

Moleskin:
Summary of Arthur Brooks’ Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier. “Happiness is not a destination. Happiness is a direction. We won’t find complete happiness on this side of heaven. This is good news. We can stop wondering what’s wrong with us.” He prefers the term “Happierness.” The macronutrients of happiness are enjoyment, satisfaction, purpose

Enjoyment takes an urge for pleasure and adds two important htings; Communion and consciousness.. Thanksgiving dinner. Pleasure is animal, enjoyment is human. Don’t settle for pleasure, but rather make it into enjoyment.

Satisfaction. The thrill of accomplishing a goal you worked for. When you do some difficult or painful and it meets its life’s purpose. It doesn’t come without work or sacrifice.

Purpose This is the realm of meaning… purpose leads to the transcendent. True purpose almost always entails suffering.

Each of these has some pain in them. Happiness and sadness can co-exist. You cannot eradicate your feeling of unhappiness to get happier. 

Date: 12/5/23

AO: #ao_tar_pit

PAX: @T-bone, @DQ, @Shiplap, @8-Track, @Panhandle, @Jolly, @Tortuga, @LeMond

FNGs: 0

Q: @LeMond

Total: 8:

• Warmorama:

  • Goofballs: 20

  • Monkey Humpers: 20

  • Mountain Man Pooper: 10

  • Bat wings: 10 in each direction

• At start of track

  • 100 gas pumpers

• Charles Bronson

  • Run to 80 yard line, army crawl to endzone, run back

  • 40 blockies

  • 40 uneven merkins

  • 40 leg raises

  • 40 SSHs

• Travel to base of ramp

  • The Hodor

  • Inspired by Hodor of Game of Thrones and his only purpose in life to carry a crippled boy. With a cinder block held in front of you, squat until the block touches the ground, stand, rotate the block over your head to a triceps extension, squat, stand, rotate the block back in front. That’s 1.

  • 30 within the loop, at least ten on the ramp.

• More thangs

  • Crowd Pleaser: Merkin followed by a Groiner

  • Crowd pleaser pyramid 1:1 to 5:5 to 1:1, Q calls out down and in

  • Bucket brigade up and down the stairs.

    • Next time, we’ll use a 60-lb sandbag!

• Mary

  • Box cutters

  • Swimmers

  • Side bends

  • Little Orphan Annies

• Moleskin: Embrace the Absurd

  • Absurd: utterly or obviously senseless, illogical, or untrue; contrary to all reason or common sense; laughably foolish or false: an absurd explanation.

  • Learning to accept the irrationality of people, including yourself.

  • Examples:

    • Man who keeps a collection of guns but leaves his garage door open all of the time.

    • People who keep gym memberships without ever using them.

    • Q leading core exercises while Pax lie in a cold puddle.

• Prayers for @Jolly’s M, who recently left her job.

Backblast: Full Body Beatdown
Date: Tuesday, December 5th, 2023
AO: #ao_mastodon
PAX: @Captain Crunch @Samsonite @Linc @Bean @TBTF @Ankles @Spokes @Maniac @Hancock
FNGs: 0
Q: @Stock boy
Total: 10
Warmorama: Motivators, Copperhead Merkins, Copperhead Squats, Tappy-Taps, Stretch on your own
Thang 1: 16s of 15 Merkins/1 Curl to 1 Merkin/15 Curls, with mode of transport between lampposts alternating between lunge walks and murder-bunnies
Thang 2: 30 BBSUs, Manrise to top of Hoffa, followed by 30 4-count flutter kicks, all in cadence.
Moleskin: I realize I often extend more grace and patience to friends, acquaintances, and even sometimes strangers than I do to my own immediate family. I’m challenging myself and the PAX to pause before reacting to requests/petitions from family, and to attempt to enter into those interactions with a spirit of grace and patience.
Prayer: Healing and recovery for my friend/neighbor Mike from his neck surgery.

Backblast: 12 Days of Christmas
Date: 12/2/23
AO: #ao_tar_pit
PAX: @T-bone @Beaker @Da Vinci @Banks @LeMond @The wet burrito
FNGs: 0
Q: @Banks
Total: 6

WOR:
7x Motivators
10x Windmills IC
10x Mountain Man poopers IC
Stretch OYO

The Thang: 12 Days of Christmas
We did round 1, and then ran the long circuit at the spa. Then completed round which was round 1 + 2 and then ran. We incrementally added an exercise each round and then ran. We did 12 reps of each, then lowered to 10 reps with 15 minutes left in the workout. This was a burner.

The rounds were as follows:
Overhead Press
Merkins
Coupon Swings
Burpees
Big Boy Situps
Bent Over Rows
Coupon Squats
Dips
Derkins
Thrusters
Dive Bombers
Crunchy Frogs

No one finished, but @T-bone and @Beaker got through 11 rounds.

We wrapped everything up with some squats to the tune of "Flower" by Moby.

Moleskin:
Remember the reason for the season and be deliberate with your family.

COT:
Prayers for Tbone’s MIL Birthday, Peace for Ongoing Wars

Da Vinci7:05 AM

Backblast: Friday Run Club – 8 Deadly Thoughts conclude
Date: 12/1/2023
AO: #ao_ground_zero
PAX: @Ankles@Dr. Phil@Toto@SAGA@Beaker@Topham@Bo-Peep@T-bone@Da Vinci@Hancock@Frank
FNGs: 0
Total: 11
Q: @Da Vinci
Conditions: Rain

Warmorama to Dolly Parton’s Winter Wonderland

The Thang: We walked and we ran

Moleskin: The last of these eight deadly thoughts are especially difficult to overcome: listlessness (solution: perseverance), vainglory (solution: solitude), pride (solution: humility).  The truth is the thoughts earlier on the list are minor compared to these. They’re so difficult that we can’t do it alone.

“Before the wood becomes wooden flame—completely one with fire—the wood spits and hisses and oozes in preparation for becoming all flame. As part of the process of healing we become acutely aware of just how filled we are with arrogance, envy, preoccupation with our reputation, judgmentalism. Indeed, these characteristics were there within us, but we were at most only vaguely aware of them; now the living flame of love is drawing them out and placing them in our sight. The problem is that this stage of growth in humbling self-knowledge is singularly painful, with the result that we feel we are falling to pieces when in fact we are becoming one with the living flame of love.” Martin Laird, A Sunlit Absence: Silence, Awareness, and Contemplation(140-141).

If Laird’s books interest you, I recommend starting with the first one in the series.

Date: 11/30/23
AO: #ao_mastodon
PAX: @Stock boy @Samsonite @Mad Cow @Jolly @SAGA @Da Vinci @Jailbreak @Archive @8-Track @T-bone @Banks @Linc @Tortuga @TBTF @Spokes @Panhandle @DQ
FNGs: 0
Q: @DQ
Total: 17

WoR

• SSH
• Arm circles
• Copperhead squats
• Copperhead merkins

The Thang
PAX toured a bit of Mastodon, making various stops along the way. Our movements included:

• Start at the trail just west of the parking lot. Lamp post 11s with merkins decreasing and burpees increasing.
• Scout run on the trail to the picnic tables
• At the picnic tables, each PAX completed the following exercises and did squats for the six:
  • 25 table thrusters
  • 50 merkins
  • 100 bonnie blairs (1 is 1)
• Remaining at the picnic tables, each PAX then completed the following exercises and did squats for the six:
  • 25 derkins
  • 50 tricep dips
• Jog to Cooties
• At Cooties, each PAX completed the following exercises and did squats for the six:
  • 10 pullups
  • 20 pike presses
• Jog back to flag
• Lots of Mary back at the flag:
  • crunchy frogs
  • Oblique v ups (left side)
  • Oblique v ups (right side)
  • Plank jacks
  • Scissors
  • @Panhandle flutter kicks

Moleskine
Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly. Don’t let imperfections discourage you when you’re practicing a habit or developing a skill.

CoT

• Praise for the good health of the friend of @T-bone’s 2.0
• Prayers for @Stock boy’s neighbor recovering from neck surgery
• Prayers for @DQ’s aunt going through cancer treatment

Backblast: Thanksgiving Beatdown to remember
Date: 11/23/2023
AO: #ao_mastodon
PAX: @Jolly @DQ @Bloomer @Tortuga @piper (FNG) @squirt @Bean @Banks @Manhole @Katniss @Jailbreak @Gunga @Airpump @Cheeks @Bones @T-bone @wishbone @Panhandle @Beaker @TBTF @Captain Crunch @Stock boy @LeMond @Da Vinci @Shiplap
Q: @Shiplap
Total: 25
Conditions: crips but perfect for a beatdownWarm-O-Rama
SSH x 25, Tin Soldiers x 15, MMP x 15, Picking Daiseys, Arm CirclesEMOM – 15 burpees for 5 rounds – not sure this is considered a warmup but got our minds rightThang 1: Banks
Greata – 100 Blockees, 200 Thrusters, 300 Coupons swings
Partner up – 1 PAX performs exercises while the other runs HoffaThang 2: Shiplap
Sandbag throws with BOMBS
PAX1 pick ups the sandbag and throws it forward towards the pool house. PAX 2 completes BOMBS (Burpees, outlaws, Merkins, BBSU, Squats) x 15 reps. Runs to partner and they switch until time expiredEnded with EMOM – 10 sandbag thrusters or 15 burpees – only had enough time for 1 round.Moleskin: Feel gratitude for all of your relationships – good or bad, they all have a purpose.

Date: 11/18/2023
AO: #ao_mastodon
PAX: @Stock boy @Bloomer @Jailbreak @Maniac @Linc @Falsetto @Sparrow @Captain Crunch @TBTF (Q)
FNGs: 0
Q: TBTF
Total: 9
Conditions: cold-ishWarm-O-Rama:
– SSH x50 IC
– TBone burpees x10 OYO
– Copperhead Merkins x10IC
– Good mornings x10 OYO
– Abe Vegodas x10 IC (nice and slow)
– Stretch as needed/Michael Phelps it out OYOThang: Light posts and Garbage Cans
Moseyed around the @Archive mile alternating between 5-10 reps (each PAX picks a rep count that challenges them) at each light post and garbage can along the way. We mixed in some Ring of Fire, Waterfalls, Dan Taylors, Sprints, and misc shenanigans along the wayMoleskin – be intentional with your time and present to those around you. Offered up the challenge i used to do often of "no phone Sunday"COT – Maniac’s friend Schwartz health struggles, war and conflicts around the world, challenges spoken or unspoken of the PAX and those aorund us.

Backblast: Friday Run Club
Date: 11/24/2023
AO: #ao_ground_zero
PAX: @Tortuga@T-bone@Beaker@Topham@Stock boy
FNGs: 0
Total: 5
Q: @Tortuga
——————–

Conditions: Cold-ish
Warm-o-Rama: Stretch (OYO), imperial walkers IC, mountain climbers IC, walk south for a block-ish

The Thang: Run south on the Prairie Path, turn around and come back.
Moleskine:  Ask for help.  Don’t let your pride stop you.
COT: Prayers for @T-bone’s sister looking for work as her divorce soon becomes official, @Stock boy’s neighbor recovering from neck surgery, @Shiplap’s uncle Chris recovering from multiple serious injuries after a crash.