The day after Christmas tends to be a bit dreary. The excitement is over, parties are done, no more chances to wear that tacky sweater, and back to work for many. Folks are sluggish after enjoying lots of holiday cheer, which seemed to be the case for the F3 NOLA PAX since no one signed up to lead The Foundry, including myself. Even after some feelers were thrown out on the group chat, no one was answering the call. So in the last hour, YHC felt the he could take one for the team, kinda like eating those Christmas dinner leftovers that no one else wanted. Surely someone would be there in the gloom to help me polish off Aunt Peggy’s bland dressing and that smoked turkey that cousin Bill infused with too much cayenne. So as the clock neared 5:30am, it appeared we’d have a table for 5 in City Park. Nothing special in store, just a hodgepodge of exercises and circuits that we’d figure out as the morning progressed.
Mosey down RM with a warmup pit stop: Hillbillies x20, WM x10, AC x20, ISW x20, Plankroll x20, Merkins x10
Stop #3 – The Foundry: Round 1 included partner assist Pull Ups x2 rounds with WWII Sit Ups x15 (timer). Round 2 came together on the fly…Body Rows, Hanging Knee Ups, Squats x25 (timer)
Stop #4 – The Practice Track: Line up for for some to-and-fro Bear Crawls, Lateral Lunge, Inchworm, Crabwalks, and Kongs.
Then a mosey back to the flag with no time for dessert. COT to cap things off.
The PAX enjoyed some good F2 on the moseys throughout the workout as we recapped holiday events and got the morning off to a good start.
Cool and crisp conditions this morning at Rock City, perfect “football weather” for a black and gold themed beatdown on the heels of the Monday night Saints vs. Panthers game. A few die-hards were sporting team gear and after the disclaimer along with a brief explanation of what lied ahead, we brought it in for a “Who Dat on 3″…not quite the same coolness as Brees in the Dome but it helped get the juices flowing. Then a mosey to the usual field for a quick warmup of SSH, Arm Circles, Imperial Walkers, Windmills, and LS Squats.
Made our way to the rock pile to select a companion for the morning and over to the large field for some drills. First up would be a round of exercises paying homage to the Saints 11-2 record so far this season. What better way to celebrate the 11 wins than with 11’s! Here’s how it went:-Curl Press with rock (10-1)-Backpedal to parking bumpers (approx 15-20yds)-Hand Release Derkins w/feet on parking bumpers (1-10) -Lunge Walk back
Now we couldn’t forget about the 2 losses so in an effort to push ourselves to get stronger, we circled up for 2 minutes of Up-Downs. Might have been a bit ugly at the end but the PAX hung in there for a long two minutes.
Next up would be a “Heisman Run” giving a shout out to Mark Ingram and Cam Newton that would be taking the field later that night. In order to be considered for the Heisman Trophy, one must show superb running skills with the ball, maintain possession of the ball, and be fast. Using our rocks as footballs and making sure not to fumble, we warmed up with Squat Press x20 before tucking in the rock(ball) for a run weaving around the trees(defenders) and finishing with an endzone celebration of Squat Press x10. Then waited for the six with a wall con roca sit on the fence.
Still time for another circuit so this time we partnered up in a line for some “Boom and Zoom” to give props to our elite running backs, Ingram and Kamara. YHC assumed it was common knowledge that the talented duo is nicknamed “Boom and Zoom” but apparently he was wrong. After some heckling and discussion, we noted that to be a star running back you must be strong enough to keep from coughing up the ball and fast enough to gain yardage. Therefore PAX #1 stayed put for “Boom” curls AMRAP to work on the guns while PAX #2 “Zoom” ran around the tree and back (50yds total?) as the timer. We did this for approx 4-5 minutes with some grumbling from the peanut gallery after a few minutes in.
Two minute warning was approaching so we called an audible to keep rocks overhead as we made our way back to the rock pile. From there a mosey back to the flag, a few minutes of planking, concluded by a “Who Dat” plank/merkin circle.
COT included some lewd yet fitting nickname suggestions for our FNG but we landed on Piper…welcome! Also an announcement for Crazy Ivan race coming up in Jan. Prayer intentions for Brad Brechtel and for a good, safe, injury free football game tonight.
Thanks for letting me lead. Hopefully we’ll be 12-2 by the time anyone reads this. Who Dat!
28 PAX ignored the threat of rain and made it out The Mothership this Sat. We lucked out with a “calm before the storm” as the the guys assmebled and prepared for takeoff. YHC wanted to mix things up with an old school City Park history tour as part of the workout, similar to a few beatbowns circa 2015. The night before had the forecast looking nasty, so the plan was to stay close to cover and hone in on a few of the iconic landmarks right there in the original part of the park. The 1300 acre park was established in 1854 and has lots of history, great architecture, nature, wildlife, and of course trees….home to one of the largest collection of live oaks in the world. Generations of New Orleans residents and visitors alike have enjoyed the park so it only seemed fitting to pay homage to a few things that make it a great place. As the clock struck 5:30 we discussed the plan for the day, followed by the disclaimer, then off to….
First stop, The Peristyle, built in 1907 to have outdoor dances and concerts for the “well heeled” New Orleanians….some chatter from Rudy about Jingle Vader being in that category. Using the year as the rep count, we started with Imperial Walkers x19 and Windmills x7.
Then an ugly mosey around The Casino Building with some doubt from the PAX before going up and over Popp Bandstand for Stop #2 on the nearby grass.
With 12 granite columns and topped with a bronze dome, Popp Bandstand was named for is benefactor, John F. Popp, and is a replica of the Temple of Love in Versailles. In 1916, Popp made a donation to the park to build the Popp Bandstand which was completed in 1917. The Spanish Mission Revival-style “Casino” building opened in 1913 as a place that sold refreshments. Because of that, the City Park legend says that the building originally was called a cantina, using the Spanish word for a place where food and drinks are served. In a 2008 Times-Picayune story, City Park Executive Director Beau Bassich said he believed the New Orleans dialect colloquialized the word into “casina.” However, 1913 newspaper articles do use the word “casino” to describe the new building, explaining it will be “the amusement center of the park,” though there is no mention of gambling.
Here we circled up using 1917 and 1913 to inspire the rep count for Peter Parkers x19, Low Slow Squats x17, Mountain Climbers x19 and Arm Circles x13.
Then we recaped the age of the park, 164 years, with a Plank Merkin circle where all PAX held a high plank while merkins were cranked out individually in a clockwise manner up to 164 total.
Then a mosey over the stone bridge towards City Park Ave for a meandering jog through the oldest grove of mature live oak tress the world. We made sure to recognize the two oldest ones by looping around McDonough Oak and then, after some doubt from the PAX about my navagation ability, made our way to the Ansmen Oak, both of which are approx 800 years old. Here we circled up for an 8 round burpee countdown, one round for each century…Burpees x8,x7,x6,x5,x4,x3,x2,…x8 for the crowdpleaser! More about City Park trees here: http://neworleanscitypark.com/in-the-park/trees-in-city-park
Then a mosey over the Ansmen Bridge, one of 9 built by the WPA, and back to The Peristyle where we lined up on one side for a partner circuit. This included 8 rounds of PAX #1 performing the specified exercise across the Peristyle and back (timer) while PAX #2 stayed put with a stationary exercise.
1)Inchworm & Wall Sit
2) Bearcrawl fwd/bwd & Balls to the Wall
3) Duck Walk & Declined Plank
4) Crab Walk fwd/bwd & Wall Sit
5) Lunge Walk & LBC
6) Kong & Balls to the Wall
7) Fiddler Crab & Flutter Kicks
8) Lateral Lunge & Wall Sit
Next up, we couldn’t leave out the adjacent Great Lawn that has hosted countless hours of F3 beatdowns. Built in 2010, the Goldring/Woldenberg Great Lawn is enjoyed by many and has seen a slew of picnics, concerts, yoga classes, and side straddle hops over the past 8 years. So we moseyed a quick loop to the Great Lawn and back to the nearby benches for a partner circuit of: PAX #1 Dips x20 OYO while PAX#2 runs to GL for Merkins x10 and back. Rinse and repeat for 3 rounds total follwed by a “victory lap” around the GL topped off with planking to wait for the six.
Still some time left for a few more history lessons so over to the rear of The Peristyle to gaze upon the banks of Bayou Metairie. Although it is now a landlocked lagoon, Bayou Metairie was originally a natural waterway spanning from Bayou St. John to the swampy area near what is now Old Metairie, essentially following the path of current day Metairie Rd. Once used by the Native Americans and early settlers, the banks of the bayou gradually formed the Metairie Ridge which provided high ground for ground transportation and later development of homes.
Since we didn’t have a year to use for rep count, we shifted our focus to 1946, the year of the first City Park Big Bass Rodeo, which is the oldest freshwater fishing rodeo in the country. At this point YHC had to alter the planned exercises and went with the first thing that came to mind, burpees, which really seemed to excite the PAX and peanut gallery, given the initial silence of disbelief followed by some grumbling and the “we already did enough burpees” comments. So PAX#1 knocked out Burpees x19 while PAX #2 held a wall sit on the ledge along Bayou Metairie, which had an awkward slope not conducive to said exercise. Then partner plank slaps, aka patty cake, holding a high plank and alternating hand slaps up to 46.
Nearing the end of our hour, we had just enough time remaining to circle up under The Persistyle for some themed Mary. YHC breifly talked about the various projects completed by the WPA (Works Progress Administration) in the 1930’s throughout City Park, including Tad Gormley Stadium, nine concrete bridges, a golf course, several art deco conrete benches, and Roosevelt Mall. In 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt came in town for the dedication ceremony. Pics below and more info at: http://neworleanscitypark.com/in-the-park/works-progress-administration-in-new-orleans-city-park
In this undated archival photo, President Roosevelt chats with New Orleanian Paul Alfred Montreuil, 7, at the dedication of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Mall in City Park. Also pictured: Marcel G. Montreuil, park superintendent; George Grundmann, chairman of the dedication committee and vice president of the park board; and James H. Crutcher, administrator of the WPA in Louisiana.
Our WPA and FDR themed Mary consisted of:
W – Weezey Jeffersons x10IC
P – Pickle Pounders x15IC
A – American Hammer x20IC
F – Flutter Kicks x20IC
D – Dying Cockroach x15IC
R – name??? exotic exercise led by Triple Shift x25IC
Moseyed back to the flag with some rain for added bonus. Capped things off with a COT and announcements. T-claps to War Eagle for stepping up to lead the prayer. He’s a pro at that stuff and much more eloquent in that field than YHC.
NMM – Thanks to the PAX for bearing with my non-professional tour guide ability and abbreviated history tidbits throughout the morning. As always, the peanut gallery led by Rudy and others kept it entertaining. T-claps to Mahatma and others for the occasional motivational cheers and USMC grunts to keep the PAX in high gear. Several guys asked for links (http://neworleanscitypark.com/in-the-park) to some of the City Park history in so I included several in this backblast, which may be one of the longest in F3 history….sorry for the long read, if you made it this far. My wife asked if I was writing a book.
“The American Dream means giving it your all, trying your hardest, accomplishing something. And then I’d add to that, giving something back. No definition of a successful life can do anything but include serving others.” -George H.W. Bush
The air was crisp and chilly on Wednesday at The Foundry, just the way we like it. Perfect conditions for paying homage to the 41st President of the United States on this national day of mourning. Regardless of one’s political beliefs, it was hard to not have respect for the guy and the days he spent as a leader of our country. With that being said, we read a few of #41’s quotes before takeoff. YHC also mentioned that he sifted through some of the Northshore’s backblasts to get some inspiration for the day. With The Crazy Ivan race coming up in January, us Southshore guys need to make sure we can meet or exceed the physical and mental fortitude of our brothers across the lake. Without further ado, the disclaimer was recited and off we moseyed down Roosevelt Mall.
Warmup (with a Northshore twist):
Good Mornings x10
Finkle Kicks x10R x10L (these were ugly, as expected)
Arm Circle x10F x10R
Lateral Lunge x10
Scorpion Kicks x10L x10R (a tad lackluster)
Forward Lunge w/forearm to ground x5L x5R (good stretching here!)
SSH x41 to cap it off for pres #41
Foundry:
This would be a circuit found in a Northshore backblast called 3-6-9 which consisted of:
3 Pullups, 6 Merkins, 9 Squats every minute on the minute (EMOM) for 10 rounds. At first, this seemed a tad too easy but it got the juices flowing a few rounds in. After round 5, we circled up for a tribute to G.H.W.B. with a plank/merkins circle counting up to 41, then holding a low plank for 41 seconds in silence, then another plank/merkin circle up to 41, topped off with Flutter Kicks x41IC and LBC x41IC. Finished with rounds 6-10 with some good mumble chatter to boot. Looking back, YHC feels certain the Southshore PAX can handle that circuit with 4-8-12 or even 5-10-15…we’ll see.
The Track:
After a mosey for the foundry to the practice track, we circled up for some burpees in honor of George H. W. Bush, stressing good form that would make him proud. We knocked them out in chunks, x10 x10 x10 x11 for 41 total. YHC was hoping for a lap around the track but it was time to mosey back to base.
COT:
The usual announcements of upcoming events and Christmas party/workout next week. A few more words about #41 before ending with a prayer.
Good way to start the day. Thanks for the opportunity to lead.
On the tail end of a surprisingly cold November week, four men proved their manhood by posting in the 45-ish degree gloom at Pontiff Park for The Uptowner. The scheduled Q requested a sub days prior so YHC hopped on it as to commit to posting and help ensure the frigid-fartsack would not prevail yet again. As the PAX trickled in, one could only notice some crazy dude walking up in beach-like attire….sleeveless, in shorts, no gloves, no hat….wait, that’s the one and only Jingle Vader! YHC is always in awe of his tolerance to cold weather. After exchanging a few stories to recap the frigid workouts throughout the week, the clock struck 5:30 and we kicked things off with a disclaimer followed by a quick warmup:
Hillbillies x20, WM x10, AC x20, ISWx10, Plank Roll x15
Circuit #1: Next up, grab a small “good form” rock to work with before moving on to a larger one. In an effort to avoid wet rocks and wet feet, we opted to stay on the pavement for:
Tricep Ext x10
Rock Overhead/Side Press to Opposite Knee x10 (Imperial Rock Press?)
One Hand Rock Curl x10 (use other had to balance/assist)
Squat x10
Rinse and repeat (all IC)
Circuit #2: Set small rock down, grab a larger “man maker” rock and return to the circle. JV once again declined an offer of the extra pair of gloves YHC had five feet away….must be immune to the numbness that the rest of the PAX encounters with chilly boulders. I’m envious. This circuit would be w/partners doing the following:
Eight men mustured up the energy and desire to get stronger in City Park this am. Some of the other Wed regulars must have have decided to get their beauty rest in preparation for the H8 tomorrow. The rest of us reached down, grabbed a pair, and assembled on Roosevelt Mall in the gloom. YHC was glad to be getting back in the groove after several weeks of no-run and/or low imact workouts. The goals for the morning were as follows:
Break a sweat and get stronger
Focus of upper body and core in an effort to save some legs for the H8 24 hours later
Recognize that October Down syndrome awareness month
Recognize that October is breast cancer awareness month
About a minute before launch, YHC shared with the PAX some info and stats about Down syndrome, aka Trisomy 21, which Tool 2.0 was born with. It was also mentioned that many individuals with DS strive for inclusion as well as “abilities vs. disablilities.” So naturally our number for the day was 21 and after the disclaimer, we were off in a mosey to start our workout.
Pre-Thang:
IW x21, AC x10F x10R, WM x10, LS Squat x21, Peter Parker x21, Pickle Pounder x10, Hip Flexor x21sec ea side
Mosey down RM, hook a right on Stadium Dr for some backpedaling (100yds?) to the Refinery….FYI the Foundry is fenced off for Voodoo Fest.
Tabata-like circuits, 21 seconds all out w/10 sec rest, Split up in pairs, four stations:
Round 3: Same as above w/ one 21sec set at each station
Mosey over yonder for hydration and a freshly mowed field. October is also breast cancer awareness month so we had to pay homage to the ta-tas. There are various Burpee-for-Boobs challenges that go around social media every October so YHC figured we’d work some in. In an effort to not drain or strain the H8 guys, we opted for a low-impact burpee variation known as the Inchworm Burpee. Plus it’s common knowledge that anytime you’re dealing with the ta-tas, you gotta take it easy, be gentle, smooth, and avoid jumping and overly vigorous motions. From a standing position, bend knees, squat down and place hands on the ground, “inch” up with hands similar to a bear crawl but keeping feet stationary the entire time, then crank out a Merkin, then “inch” back to standing position. After quick demo, we proceded with Inchworm Burpees x10, then x8, x6, x4, x2.
Headed back to the flag with 90 seconds left for a Plankorama to seal the deal.
COT included H8 announcement, Q’s needed for Stomp and Foundry, and the reading of the Down Syndrome prayer to St. Robert Bellermine, the patron saint of DS. Intentions for YHC’s neighbor who is pregnant with her second child and had a recent diagnosis of DS…may the positives outweigh any negatives.
Might have been some other stuff YHC failed to recall.
Thanks for letting me lead and allowing me to raise a little awareness for something near and dear to me.
It was a rough Monday morning for us Saints fans on the heels of that embarrasing loss in the season opener. Surely a 45min therapy session at Rock City would help cure any hangovers or headaches. Here’s how the healing went:
Started with a mosey to usual area for warmup x20ea SSH, AC, WM, LSS, LCC, follwed by a brief delay where YHC pointed out scoring 40 points in a game is nothing to shake a stick….gotta think positive! YHC annouced we’d knock out 40 of the final exercise which were SSH, despite Rudy’s request for burpees, which would come later. Then a bear crawl to the rockpile to make sure the juices were flowing.
We picked our rocks and headed to the main field/track area, keeping the rocks moving along the way with curls and presses.
Circuit #1: We lined up on the back of the endzone and partnered up. PAX #1 ran to opposite endzone for 10 Burpees and ran back (timer) while PAX#2 knocked out Curls x20, LBC X20, Curls x20, LBC x20,…until partner was back. Flip flop, rinse and repeat twice for a total of 3 rounds.
Circuit #2: We lined up again, this time approx 1oyds from the edge of the track. Got things going with a 10 Burpee pre-thang to bring our total up to 40 Burpees. Then, 4 rounds of Shoulder Press x10, Bear Crawl to track, Merkins x10, Backwards Bear Crawl…..totaling 40ea on the two exercises.
Mary: Round Robin included Hello Dolly x20, V-Ups x10, In-Outs x10, Penguins x20, capped off with LBT x31 to give a shout out to the LSU Tigers scoring 31 points and to Mahatma’s son who is on the team.
Time was ticking so time back to the rockpile, then a mosey to the flag followed by some planking.
COT: YHC explained the orignal workout plan envisioned was hinged around the Saints winning and using the points scored as rep counts and as a way to celebrate our road to the post season. Since we instead ended with a loss, YHC thought it would be fitting to still use the points scored by the Saints as a reminder for us to be greatful for what you have in life and not stress over what you don’t. Additionally, we all have rough days on occasion and need to remind ourselves that the next day is a chance to move forward and make any improvements….which is hopefully what our beloved football team will do. Capped things off with a prayer with intentions for Hawg’s mom and YHC’s son Brady.
A mighty PAX of three men posted for the weekly 610 Stomp, F3’s running focused workout held in City Park every Tuesday. Apparently some of the regular PAX were scared off by the forecast of the ferocious Tropical Storm Gordon heading our way. YHC had the Q and has been stuck in a rut lately with running pace so after brushing up on some speedwork tips via the interwebs, the plan was to incorporate some Fartleks in the workout. Although it sounds like just another goofy name out of the F3 Lexicon, Fartleks are actually a real thing and is Swedish for “speed play.” Fartlek runs are a very simple form of a long distance run and is simply defined as periods of fast running intermixed with periods of slower running. The goal for the morning was to keep moving the entire time and work on speed by doing the following:
Normal mosey to NOMA at you own pace.
Hit the track around the Big Lake (3/4 mile total) with a pace OYO “kicked up two notches” until the bike rental area, then finish the lap at a regular or slower recovery pace.
Rinse and repeat then immediately mosey back to the practice track.
At the track, continue the fartlek pattern with a faster pace for a full lap, followed by a recovery lap or half lap. Keep repeating and vary up the fast runs and slower runs. Lots of other runners out there doing similar workouts, several of which were easier on the eyes than the normal running PAX.
As time was about to expire, the three of us reconvened and Frac called an audible for a final 100 meter sprint followed by a 100 meter run and mosey back to the flag. Total distance covered ranged from 4.53-5.38?mi in a 43+min span. YHC
COT included prayers for Frac’s mom, the PAX heading to the BRR, and for those in the path of the storm.
“The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.” -Vince Lombardi
Another notch was added to The Foundry belt when 10 of F3’s finest gathered in City Park for the weekly hump day workout. Lots of themed workouts lately with Elvis, Notre Dame, Iron Pax, etc so YHC kicked around several themed ideas with no avail until finally formulating a plan 5 minutes prior to kickoff. Nothing extravagant in store, just a mix of usual stuff and few things with a twist, all of which would hopefully break a sweat along with building some endurance and muscle. Being that football season is upon us, why not steal a few drills from the world of pigskin….who knows, one of us may get called up to the big leagues. After the PAX of 10 assembled and the usual disclaimer, the clock started for 4 quarters of sweaty goodness.
1st Quarter:
Mosey down Roosevelt Mall with some high knees, butt kicks, and backpedaling thrown in for good measure. Huddle up in the grass for IWx20, PPx20, ACx20, WMx10, Seal Jacksx10, capped off with approx 20 Up-Downs. Then, a mosey to The Refinery.
2nd Quarter:
5 Stations including Body Rows, Hanging Knee Ups, Squats, Pull Ups, with timer being Step Ups x12L + x12R. Rinse and repeat. YHC’s forearms were screaming from lots of bar gripping so thinking we should have substituted the rows for dips or merkins.
Then to the sideline (large landscape timber) for Derkins x20 OYO, Lunge Walk to tree and back, followed by Derkins x20.
Halftime:
Mosey to water fountain for hydration and 1-2 min plankorama.
3rd Quarter:
Mosey over to Christian Brother’s Falcon Field for some turf time. First up would be a partner routine with PAX #1 performing AMRAP Burpee Jump Overs in rapid fashion on the goal line while PAX #2 runs across the field to the opposite endzone for 10 Merkins then runs back. Flip flop, rinse and repeat. Lots of grunts and heavy breathing.
4th Quarter:
The last circuit was originally designed to be somewhat of an experiment to test our athleticism but YHC botched it up a bit due to a cardio buzz. Plan called for a series of relay team sprints (40yds) to see if we could put any correlation to age, F3 tenure, etc….and get the competitive juices flowing.
Sprint #1: Line up by age with young bucks on one team and old dudes on the other. First person from each team sprints 40yds and touches goal line, which then prompts next person to run, and so on. This resulted in a photo finish so we concluded it was a tie. Looking back, YHC could have laid this out in a different way but we rolled with it.
Sprint #2: Line up by amount of time participating in F3 which had it split with guys around 1 year or less on one side and the vets on the other. Same 40 yd sprint with the newbies coming out on top. T-claps to Mahatma for pushing hard, maybe too hard.
Sprint# 3: Line up again but due to time ticking and YHC having a brainfart, we settled for a group sprint then proceeded to mosey across the grass, alongside the track and back to the flag:
Two Minute Warning:
Plankorama and Hip Flexors to seal the deal.
Overtime:
COT and sweaty BOM to cap things off.
Not much mumble chatter or buffoonery to report. It was a rather quiet 45 minutes…YHC can only hope that was due to a good beatdown being delivered and not a just a poor job of keeping the PAX entertained.
Thanks for the motivation, camaraderie, and chance to lead.
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” -Kelly Clarkson
Lots of buzz going around lately about the semi-annual H8 coming up in October. It’s always a tough workout as well as a good test of progress for the PAX. It’s also a love-hate thing for YHC since it has put me through the wringer and almost killed me, each time getting closer to that 8 lap goal. The run is palatable, as well as the bear crawl, but the merkins and burpees seem to be slow many of us down. So, in order to fix this, YHC thought we’d knock out a scaled down version of the H8 as part of the Thursday workout at Okwata. Here’s what went down:
Conditions: Warm, dark, and zero breeze…just how we like it
The PAX: Some usual Okwata crew plus King Kong making his way to the AO for the first time…t-claps
The Disclaimer: Not a professional…push yourself, don’t hurt yourself…try to give it your all for the next 45 min…
The Warmup: Mosey over to the usual warmup area only to find some loud people still partying/fighting so a detour over to the seawall area for SSHx20, HBx20, ACx20, WMx10, ISWx10, Plank Rollx10, Peter Parkerx20. Then we lined up for a mosey along the seawall with a stop at each light pole for Squats x10 at each one, six poles total. Probably not the best thing to do before the H4/H8 route but YHC wanted to make sure we broke a sweat first and the workout wasn’t a cakewalk. Capped it off with LS Dips x25 at the planters.
The H4: Run the same lap/route as the H8 with bear crawls in the middle and merkins (instead of descending burp/merk) at the end…40 on 1st lap, 30 on 2nd, 20 on 3rd, 10 on 4th, 10 on 5th. Goal was at least 4 laps in 20 minutes. T-claps to Mahatma and Smooth for blasting off right out of the gate. The PAX pushed hard and several guys finished 4+ laps.
The Finale: Enough time left for a mosey along the levee towards the House of Pain. Group 1 stayed up top for LBC x40IC + Penguins x20IC (timer) while Group 2 ran down to the pull up bars for AMRAP Pullups followed by Hanging Knee-ups. This was a long timer, maybe too long, but the PAX hung in there. After a round for each group, time to head back to the flag.
COT: A few announcements and followed by a prayer.
Here’s a few things we kicked around post-workout in regards to maximizing our individual performance at the upcoming H8:
Use the downhill runs to catch your breath and don’t try to race down.
The top of the levee has a few sharp surprises during the bearcrawl. Appeared to be pieces of exposed plastic mesh.
Try to crank out the Merkins/Burpees in a fast manner. YHC fell behind on this.
The fall and spring temps are more conducive to this workout than August.
Calling cadence and working in squats does not help boost your time.
