8 PAX arrived by ones and twos for the first ever “Valentine’s Day Tuff” beatdown, and it was clear that these lugs were in need of some educatin’ on the true meaning of love. Thankfully, though YHC may not be a smart man, I know what love is.
The warmup started with Seal Jacks, which blew everyone’s mind, causing the schismatic tendencies of Yankee Joe, Paradox, and Enron to flare up for the first of the typical ten or so times this beatdown. But, we made it through via synced clapping, which is always a morale booster. Warmup continued with the usuals plus some mountain climbers, high knees, and butt kicks without much of a break between each exercise–YHC knew we needed time for all the lecturing that was to be peppered (heavily) throughout the beatdown.
We started with a song to get the juices flowing and the cardio system blowing in preparation for another Merkin Mile for time. YHC chose “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys to illustrate that the earliest, shallowest stages of love pretty much consists of idealism and brain chemicals. Though important to the process, this stage should be endured without making any major decisions or doing anything that can’t be undone. So, we let the “good vibrations” and “excitations” be our trigger words for burpees while SSH’s carried us through the rest of the song. Most idealism driven chemicals come and go pretty quick, especially when real life kicks in, like endless burpees.
The stage after the initial buzz of being struck by the arrow of love is typically a sort of tunnel vision–it takes over all your thoughts and all your time, and you can’t focus on anything else. What better way to navigate this stage than a manly Tunnel of Love. YHC hearkened back to my VQ exactly three years ago where this routine was one of the highlights. You can’t beat crawling through a sweaty man tunnel fraught with stalactites, stank breath, and butt slaps. Once again, being hit with the reality of life is the only way to safely navigate to this stage.
The third stage of love is usually defined by a sense that we can conquer the world together, there has never been a love as strong as ours, and we’ll “stay right here forever, until the sky falls down on us”. Again, this is chemicals talking, so still not rooted in reality, but an important part of the process, nonetheless.
This stage would be experienced by the PAX through completing the weekly Merkin Mile (1 mile run w/25 merkins at each quarter mile), which has been given special attention due to the superhuman efforts of Pommel Horse from Lake Charles setting the bar at 7:47. The PAX started with watches synced and a belief that our determination, desire, and confidence (brain chemicals) would see us through to at least a sub 8:00 time. Alas, reality broke through again–nothing kills determination and confidence chemicals like survival instinct chemicals kicking in somewhere between that second and third set of merkins. Self-preservation is ultimately the enemy of love, and every man felt it this morning. The fastest time was 8:25, which was slower than the previous week’s posting, most likely because of that added block that was mistakenly left out last week. But, the push was, again, impressive, and it set us up well for the next stage.
So, if love isn’t a feeling, if it isn’t just a natural chemical reaction that runs the risk of fading away when things get tough, then what is it? We’re naturally attracted by the “other-ness” of the other, but it’s exactly that “other-ness” that tends to wear on us over time and cause us to go into self-preservation mode. And, our brains actually can’t handle a non-stop flow of those “in-love” chemicals; they actually have to fade for us to be able to properly function. So, what is love, then?
IT’S A CHOICE.
When the body says I need to take care of me, it’s a choice to live for another. When I get tired and want to retreat, it’s a choice to push forward into the mystery, into the pain, into the risk of losing it all because the other is truly worth it, and there is so much beauty yet to be discovered.
This morning, there was so much concrete, grass, and mud yet to be discovered, and the only way to get better at pushing through the instinct to self-preservation is practice. So, since practice makes perfect, and the number 7 is the symbol of perfection, 7’s it would be.
We started at the stage with 6 curls (for the girls in our lives) and then block and bear across the field to the sidewalk for 1 thruster before murder bunnying back to the stage for 5 curls, etc. The tenacity of the men was impressive, especially Enron’s, who used his sprint/stop/sprint technique and his long limbs to draft YHC for the duration and then powerfully pass me on the last stretch. Also, Smooth Operator continues to show the same solid determination and drive that’s got him #1 in the rucking category for Run Cajun Run–even once time was called, he refused to stop and finished strong on his last stretch of bunnies. What a beast!
We didn’t finish the 7’s because we still have a long, long way to go before we’re perfect in our ability to love our wives. So, bring on the blocks, bears, bunnies, merkins, burpees, crying babies, financial unknowns, in-laws, mood swings, and getting older. It’s gonna be a helluva ride.
COT and Paradox prayed us out. It’s an awesome gift to be able to train not just the body but the mind and heart through F3, and it wouldn’t be possible or nearly as fruitful without you guys. Deeply grateful for the camaraderie this morning, and looking forward to continuing to improve with y’all!
SYITG,
Goose
