F3 New Orleans

Tag: Okwata

  • Okwata Just Got Real

    Good things happened at Okwata on Thursday am. It started a bit earlier than usual when YHC and Shorty got out there at 5am to install the pull up bars on the picnic shelter that we had previously decided would suit our needs. Okwata is a great site but that is one of the only things it lacked to make an ideal AO…problem now solved. After a little drilling and zipping in some screws, we now have three solid pull up bars near the fountain. We were a bit worried the levee board police or NOPD might drive by and see the lights as we were working so we had a bogus sorry…”we were hired by the mayor’s office to install them as part of a citywide fitness initiative.” Luckily it didn’t come to that and hopefully they will remain up there for many workouts to come.

    Install was finished just in time to get our sweat on so after the disclaimer, our PAX of five moseyed the usual loop around the MG fountain with a some high knees and backpedaling thrown in for good measure. Circled up on the grass for a warmup COP:

    SSH x20IC, Windmill x20IC, Imperial Squat Walker x20IC, Peter Parker x20IC, Plank Jack X20IC

    Mosey to paved area on the seawall for a few rounds of progression exercises using the circular concrete planters:

    Round 1: Bear Crawl Suicides using the 5 planters. Start at the line in the concrete, bear crawl on right side to first planter, stand up, loop around and run/sprint back on left side. Rinse and repeat until all 5 planters have been conquered. (that last long stretch really had the sweat flowing)

    Round 2: Tuck Jump Suicides using the next 5 planters. Start at the line, run/sprint to back of first planter, complete 2 tuck jumps, run/sprint back. Rinses and repeat with untill all five planters are done, increasing tuck jump x2 each time (2,4,6,8,10=30 total)

    Mosey to next cluster of planters for:

    Round 3: Inclined Merkin progression using the 8 concrete planters. Start with 2, move to next one and increase by two each time. (2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16=72 total reps)

    Mosey to next cluster for:

    Round 4: Ledge Crunch (knee-ins?) using the 3 concrete planters. Start with 10, then 20, then 30. 60 total

    YHC wanted to hit the next cluster for dips but time was limited so a mosey across the street to backpedal the inclined stretch where Canal Blvd goes up the levee. Mosey on top of the levee and down to the picnic shelter to test out our new hardware. Split in two groups to do pull-ups (group 1) while group 2 run up levee to other side and back as the timer. Rinse and repeat with each PAX doing two rounds of each exercise.

    Mosey back up to the top of the levee with just enough time for some core work. Line up facing the lake to what would be a dealer’s choice round of Mary (this is out of Griswold’s playbook…thanks Griz) with each PAX choosing and leading an exercise.
    Douille – Dying Cockroach x20IC
    Rudy – Russian Twist x23IC (those last three were brutal)
    Shorty – three part leg crunch?? x10alt, x5R,x5L
    Tool – Plank Roll – alt R&L x20IC
    Surge – Aquaman x20IC

    Mosey back to flag for usual announcements and COT. It was a great morning to be outside making ourselves stronger. The picturesque scenery along with the breeze off the lake make Okwata a great AO. T-Claps to Douille for making the drive across town from the river to the lake….please let the other Uptowners know they don’t need a passport and the journey isn’t all that bad.

    Thanks for letting me lead.

    Tool

  • VQ – Griswold on the Lake

    This was my first ever Q, so I showed up a few minutes early to make sure I wasn’t late and could plant the flag, etc. I had been out of the country for a couple weeks, so I was a little nervous about physically handling the workout, but whatever. I was the first one there, and I waited for a few minutes for people to arrive. 5:25 rolls around….. no one there. 5:28…… maybe people will roll in last second. 5:30……. still standing solo. Maybe I’m in the wrong location? I look around, check my bearings. Maybe it’s the wrong day/time? Double check my phone, and I see that it’s 5:30 on Thursday.

    By this point it’s 5:34, and I figure I’ll just go on a nice little jog and workout by myself. I start putting the flag back in the car thinking it’s not needed. Then a car pulls up, with someone inside that I don’t recognize. I ask him if he’s there for F3.

    His name is Ken (aka “Risky Business”). He’s relatively new to F3, and said he’s still wiped from the previous Saturday’s workout. So I figured I would modify everything and make it a little lighter on the workload. Mostly some easy running with some legs and some core.

    First, we cross over to the lakeside, turn left, and do a jog all the way until we hit a construction zone and can’t go any further. Just under a mile according to google maps. We stop, and begin the first exercise.

    We use the lightposts as a marker. Broad jumps to the first post. Bear crawl to the next. Lunge to the third. And inch worm to the fourth. This takes a good bit of time, the posts were much farther apart than I thought, and we take a short breather. Begin running back towards the cars.

    Get back to the flag, and do some core workouts. LBTs, Superman, LBCs, flutter kicks, windmills, and rowers. My first attempt at counting in rhythm was pretty sheisty. Then we finish with the roundup, we each gave some pretty heartfelt shout-outs. Risky Business took the prayer.

    All in all it was pretty enjoyable and memorable. Big love to Risky Business for showing up and making sure I wasn’t flying solo on my VQ.

    Griswold

  • Cincol (Sinkhole) de Mayo

    In semi-honor of New Orleans’ tribute to the Mexican victory against Napoleon III’s crack troops on this day in 1862, we promptly head to

    COP Uno
    Five burpees (for Cinco)
    SSH x31IC (for half of [18]62)
    Parker Peters x31IC (for second half of [18]62)
    Five burps (for Mayo)

    Mosey (apt for today, as it’s a cowboy transformation of vamoose, which is another cowboy transformation from vamos or vamanos, let’s go) to Canal Boulevard for

    COP Dos
    Lunge walk to the top of the levee
    Duck walk to the bottom
    Pause (breathe for dear life)
    Bear crawl back up to the top of the levee
    Bear crawl back down (somehow the road gets longer and longer)

    Mosey to the circle of benches. Sadly there are only eight, while the PAX is nine. So Bogey is forced to share a bench with his Q. Sorry.

    COP Tres
    Dips x18IC
    Left leg dip x10IC
    Right leg dip x10IC
    Incline Merkins x18IC
    Low slow dips x18IC
    Derkins x10

    For those with no sense, they followed the Q through the Sinkhole. A bit squishy. The more sensible members of the PAX managed to stay dry. We call them Pollos.

    COP Quattro
    Zig-zag elevens up and down the levee back towards the Flag. One to 10 of LBCs at the top, and 10 to 1 of lunge jumps at the bottom, with diagonal moseys between top and bottom.

    Finally, with El Sol de Mañana, to

    COP Cinqo por Ciculo de Maria (with apologies for my Spanish)
    Senor W x18IC
    Patadas de Mariposas x18IC
    Putins (or, perhaps for today, Troskeys) x18IC
    Las Cucarachas moribundas x18IC
    Un minuto de tablon (or, as Tonio said in I Pagliacci, La Commedia e finita!)

    To COT for thanks. Sorry for the bad puns.

  • An Okwata Sunrise!

    YHC was in a deep slumber at 0524 this gloom, but thanks from a call from Cowbell #Tclaps, I shot out of bed like:

    movies ryan reynolds fc surprised weapon

    You see, it’s one thing (a terrible thing) to fartsack on a fellow brother of the NOLA Pax, but it’s another thing (never..ever.. do this) to fartsack when it is your Q!  Since Okwata is only a hop, skip, and a jump from my place… YHC was there right on time with the flag to make our Pax of 6! Honestly, YHC was still sleeping, and didn’t even notice a FNG (Surge) amongst the Pax.  Tclaps to Surge for posting! … but anyway, lets get to it… but first

    DISCLAIMER

    Tha Thang

    Warmup COP

    15x Squats IC
    10x Squat Hops IC
    16x Plank Jacks IC
    15x Merkins IC

    Sorry for the miscounts, I was still waking up….

    glitch morning tired grand theft auto wake up

    But after that, I was ready to roll!  Mosey on over to Canal Blvd for some circuit work.

    Canal Cycle

    Course map is as follows: Run up the street to top of levee, and then across to other side. Before going down, complete the leg-specified exercises #dontskipLEGDAY or you end up like this hulk:

    Once finished the legs, run down and back to start for some upperbody work.  Repeat x 4

    Round #1: 15 x Monkey Humps OYO (On Levee) / 15 x Elevator Merkins IC (At Start)
    Round #2:  15 x Squat Jumps OYO / 10 x Alt. Shoulder Taps IC & 10 x Alt Shoulder Tap Merkins
    Round #3:  15 x Sumo Squat Kicks (Both Leg Kicks = 1 Rep) / 10 x Under the Fence Merkins
    Round #4: 6MOM (15 x Crunchy Frogs IC, 8 x Alt. Leg Pistons IC, 8 x R. Leg Lift/Extend IC, 8 x L. Leg Lift/Extend IC, 15 x Flutter Kicks IC, 15 x Hello Dolly IC)

    Mosey on over to the lake to check out the view (check out @F3NewOrleans for the pictures), and line up by the benches/ledges.

    More Arm Work

    15 x Dips IC
    10 x Incline Merkins IC
    15 x Dips IC
    10 x Incline Merkins IC
    20 x Low Slow Dips IC
    2 x Vinyasas OYO

    Back to the flag, where we had the Name-o-rama, Shoutouts, Prayer.  Thanks for letting me lead! See yall at our 2nd F tonight at the Bulldog (Magazine) for 7pm.

     

  • A Man for Each Season

    A small Pax on a glorious morning.  In homage to the last day of the Quarter, the Pax followed the months.

    Round One (January through May)

  • SSH 31xIC
  • Imperial Walkers 29xIC
  • Lunges 31xIC
  • Peter Parkers 30xIC
  • Don Quixotes 31xIC

    • Round Two:  After a mosey along Okwata, the PAX does some suicides with the lamp posts: mosey fast to first lamp post for one squat, then back for two, then mosey to second lamp post for three, back for four, etc. to fourth lamp and back.  Q had the six: patient PAX.

    Round Three (June through August)

  • Hop-ups 20xIC, rest (cause June 21 is the beginning of summer, yeah, that’s why), then another 10xIC
  • Dips 31xIC
  • Incline Merkins 31xIC

    • Round Four (September and October)

  • Trek up Mount Everest OYO for 20 squats and down for 10 burpees
  • Trek up again OYO for 20 more squats and down for 11 burpees.

    • Round Five (November and December, plus a recap of the first three months)

  • LBCs 30xIC
  • Russian Twists 31xIC
  • Hello Dolly 31xIC
  • Flutter Kicks 29xIC
  • Dying Cockroachs 31xIC

    • Close with prayer for each day and month.  Thanks for keeping me honest.

  • It’s On.

    7 men in the Okwata gloom wating on YHC as I pulled up without a moment to spare.  Like doing SSHs during the first COP it has become a custom at Okwata to run around the Mardi Gras “Fountain” to start the warm-up.  I use the quotes because it is never on.  I think it has been in full operation once since we started this AO.  So I decided we would break from tradition and head west, that is, until I pulled up to the flag.  It’s on.  Change of plans – sticking with tradition.  Disclaimer as I tie my shoe.  It’s on.

    The Thang

    We jogged around the MG Fountain in all of it’s splendor, circling up in the dry grass nearby for the Warm-up COP:  SSH x 30; IW x 30; Don Quixote’s x 15; Merkins x 15; LSS x 30…all IC.

    The beauty of the fountain was too good to leave, so instead of jogging to the planters along the lakefront, we stayed by the fountain and paired up at each bench for some Tabata.  The wooden benches by the fountain are pretty weathered, so YHC gave them a quick test before proceeding.  Tabata consists of 8 exercise sets.  Go all out for 20 seconds followed by a 10 second rest.  Today we did Decline Merks, Box Jumps, Dips, Squats, Repeato

    Mosey to the corner of Canal Blvd and Lakeshore Dr and circle up for 2 minutes of Mary:  LBC x 40; Flutters x 30; Putin x 20…al IC  followed by a quick exploratory jog up and over the levee along canal and back on the other side of the street.  A nice little lap with a hill.  Seems to be a popular route with the locals.

    Dirty McDeuce:  3 – 12 rep exercises all IC (upper, lower, core) followed by a Canal Levee Lap.  Repeat 4 times.

    • 1st set: – Merkins, Sumo Squats Elbow,  Peter Parkers – Lap
    • 2nd set – Diamond Merkins, Lunges, Elbow Parker Peters – Lap
    • 3rd set – Wide Merkins, Toe Raises, Plank Jacks – Lap
    • 4th set – Carolina Dry Dock, Squats, Hello Dolly

    Called an audible and ran along the levee back to the flag instead of making the last Canal Levee Lap.  This gave us time for some Quadraphilia, although it was only about a minute and a half (if that).

    Back to the flag for announcements and shout out.  T-claps to the PAX today – strong showing at Okwata, even without some of the usual suspects.  Wolf kottered after taking a break for the birth of his child.  Congratulations are in order and T-claps for getting back on the horse.  Also good to see Boudreaux hitting his third workout of the week – #RhodeIslandStrong.  And finally T-claps to Tool for bringing the Northshore flag.  Seemed appropriate to plant it on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain this morning.

     

  • Rectangles and Circles

    Six men converged on Lakeshore Dr. this morning and were greeted with pleasant conditions.  This was YHC’s last notch on the belt for Q-ing in all six AO sites.  Fortunately no rain in sight, even though the forecast looked iffy and YHC mapped out the morning assuming it may be wet and muddy.  Operation Dry Feet would still be just as effective with dry ground so after a quick disclaimer, we were off for a mosey around the MG Fountain.

    Circle up for the pre-thang:

    SSHx30, IPWx30, Plank Rollsx20, Smurf Jacksx20 (All IC), 10 Burpees OYO

    Mosey over to where Canal Blvd crosses the levee to knock out 4 laps of the following rectangular route:

    Backpedal uphill southbound on sidewalk.

    Bear Crawl westbound on top of levee

    Run downhill northbound

    Lungewalk Eastbound

     

    Mosey over to the first cluster of circular concrete planters for some ledge work.  This would be a progression with increasing reps at each planter:

    Cluster #1 – 8 planters – Hip Slappers x2,x4,x6,x8,x10,x12x14x16 = 72 Total Hip Slappers

    Plank, wait, and mosey to the next cluster.

    Cluster #2 – 3 planters – Ledge Crunches x10,x20,x30 = 60 Total Ledge Crunches

    Plank, wait, and mosey to the next cluster.  (T-Claps to Hotty Toddy for pointing out the L.P. Okwata landmark sign…we’ll definitely have to pass back and read it and incorporate that into a work somehow)

    Cluster #3 – 8 planters – Dips x2,x4,x6,x8,x10,x12,x14,x16 = 72 Total Dips

    Plank, wait, and mosey to the next cluster.

    Cluster #4 – 10 Planters – Inclined Merkin x2,x4,x6,x8,x10,x12,x14,x16,x18,x20 = 110 Total Inclined Merkins (This proved to be brutal…maybe too brutal.  Note to self: next time swap hip slappers for IM) T-Claps to Cowbell for nearly executing the lagniappe dare of inclined merkins on the 3ft trash bin.

    That was it for time so a short mosey back to the flag.  The usual COT announcements.  YHC took a play out of Splash’s book and encouraged the PAX to all try to do something nice for one person today, whether it be a family member, co-worker, neighbor, etc.  Ended with a prayer for the flood victims in LA, bombing victims in Belgium, and also gave thanks for the religious freedoms we enjoy here in the US, especially on the heels of a Christian holiday weekend many of us celebrate.

    In addition to our modest PAX of 6, there were plenty of runner, walkers, and cyclist on the lakefront this am.  It always seems to give a slight motivational boost when others are out bettering themselves along side us.  Glad I was one of the ones out there this am.

    -Tool

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Love to hate me

    “Tough times never last but tough people do.”

    7 pax strong came out in the beautiful gloom not knowing what they were getting themselves into.

    YHC decided to turn up the intensity level because he was unable to post all week.  (sorry pax).

    Welcome to F3, I am not a trainer…. you know the rest…

    The Thang

    quick mosey to seawall for some good old fashioned stretches.

    COP #1: Warm up stretch

    • knee slappers X 20
    • Left leg over right, right over left
    • Run in place 15 sec.
    • wide legs- stretch left, middle, right
    • Run in place 15 sec.
    • arm stretches- left, right
    • Run in place 15 sec.
    • Windmill X 20

    Mosey further down seawall

    Webbicides:

    like suicides, but including my favorite- BURPEES.

    starting at lightpost #1, complete 1 burpee, run to lightpost #2, complete 1 burpee, run back to #1, complete 2 burpees, and so on through 4 lightposts.

    YHC forgot to say this was a competition (that usually helps pick up the pace of the pax).

    mosey to the top of the levee.

    COP #2: Super 21

    • 1 merkin, 1 FULL sit up, 2 merkins, 2 sit ups, increasing reps thru 10
    • Recover- Monkey humps X 21
    • Super 21- reps 11-14
    • Recover- Mountain Climbers X 21
    • Super 21- reps 15-18
    • Recover- Hillbillies X 21
    • Super 21- reps 19-21

    Total Merkins completed: 231

    Total Sit ups completed: 231

    Word on the street was that JV gave birth to twins during this beatdown!

    Tclaps PAX, tclaps.

    mosey down levee to the sidewalk.

    COP #3: Mary

    • Russian Twists X 25
    • Flutter kicks X 25
    • Penguins X 25

    Finish out with some traditional stretches.

    Gather up around the…(JV runs to car to get flag)….Flag for count off, name o rama, and prayer.

    Prayers for patience when things get tough, just like we pushed through this post, we can get through anything life throws at us.

    Thanks for the privilege to lead this gloom.

    -Cowbell

     

  • Straight Dope

    7 Warriors from Okwata will have an advantage over the common man today after taking a performance enhancing shot of HBH.  In the book Hurricane Season, J.T. Curtis attributes the river levee for some of his team’s remarkable success (26 State Titles in the last 41 years).  He believes that his kids are stronger in the 4th quarter because of all the time they spend in the summer running up the levee.  Some day, when the men of Okwata are interviewed regarding their greatness, they too will attribute a levee to their success.

    YHC rolled in with 30 seconds to spare, gave a quick disclaimer and started moseying aimlessly as the PAX quietly chuckled at my directionless leading.  I promise I had a plan, it’s just hard to find dry, level ground at Okwata.

    The Thang

    YHC decided to go up and over the levee, aka Heart Break Hill, aka Heart Rate Hill, aka Leg Breaker, aka Soul Crusher, for a Warm-up COP on the other side.

    Warm-Up COP:  SSH IC x 30, Hillbillies IC x 30, Good Mornings IC x 15, Peter Parker IC x 30.

    Mosey back over HBH and line up across it, halfway down the other side for Clock Merkins.  1200 is facing up the levee and 0600 is facing down.  We did Merkins in cadence positioned according to the time YHC called out:  1200 – 8 merkins, 0300 – 7 merkins, 0600 – 7 merkins, 0900 – 7 merkins.

    A short mosey over to the picnic table to pay homage to Mr. Awesome’s favorite dance movie, Step Up, with 20 Channing Tatums quickly followed by 20 Tatum Channings.

    Mosey back to HBH and partner up for some Heart Break Hill 1-2-3.  Pax 1 executes as many reps as possible while Pax 2 sprints up and over HBH and back. Flapjack until team goal is reached.  We sprinkled some recovery Mary between each round.

    Heart Break Hill 1-2-3

    • Round 1 – 100 burpees
    • Circle up for 51 LBCs in-cadence
    • Round 2 – 200 merkins
    • Circle up for 51 Dying Cockroaches in-cadence
    • Round 3 – 300 Squats
    • Circle up for 25 Putins in-cadence and 15 Hello Dollys in-cadence

    This left us with just enough time to take in the scenery.  Mosey to the top of the Soul Crusher and take in the view of Lake Pontchartrain.  We added some Quadraphilia to our viewing pleasure.  Run down the Soul Crusher and back up always facing the lake until the four minute timer expires.  Bubba thinks this may be the most painful of F3 exercises.  I can’t disagree.

    From here it was a short mosey to the flag for the count off, name-o-rama, announcements, and Shout Out.   If you have some guys on the Northshore that you would like to EH for our April 9th launch, email their contact info to nola@f3nation and we will get them added to all of the pre-launch emails.  Continued prayers for the health of Heisenberg’s Father-In-Law.

     

     

     

  • Better Late than Never

    “And sure enough, even waiting will end… if you can just wait long enough.” – William Faulkner

    Yeah, but a week and 1 day is too late… Sorry to the eight men who posted at Okwata last week.  I know you guys can’t wait to read these!  So let’s see what we did, but first

    DISCLAIMER

    Warmup mosey around the Mardi Gras fountain and circle up in front:

    COP #1 (Warmup):

    20IC x Seal Jacks

    20IC x Imp Walkers

    10IC x Good Mornings

    10 x Deconstructed Burpees (10IC x Squats, 10IC x Plank Jacks, 10IC Merkins, 10IC In/Out Abs, 10IC High Jump Hip Slappers)

    Mosey down to Canal and circle up.

    COP #2 (Jack Webbs) x 8

    Mosey up the levee and Partner up.

    Dora (10’s ?):

    Partner 1 runs down and up the levee, while Partner 2 performs Mayweathers (a.k.a. Plank Punches).

    Plank up for six.  Walk back to Canal, and duck walk to the bottom (burn!)

    Handoff to Cowbell to finish up. YHC had to get to work early.

    Mosey down lakefront and partner up.

    Dora (150’s):

    Partner 1 run to a dedicated light and back, while Partner 2 does step ups (75 x each leg).  Plank up.

    COP #3:

    20IC x Dips

    10 OYO x Burpees

    Mosey to parking lot and circle up.

    COP #4:

    30IC x Slow Calf Raises

    30IC x Calf Raises

    Down on your six for Mary (Class Participation): Each Pax picks a core exercise and completes 10 reps of Putins, Hello Dolly, LBCs, Penguins, Flutter Kicks, High Dolly, Dying Cockroach, Dr. W.

    Mosey back to the flag, 1 minute to spare, so 5 more burpees.

    Circle up around flag for nameorama, shoutouts, and prayer.

    Good work, great men!