F3 New Orleans

Tag: The Birdcage

  • Audubon Lagniappe

    Fourteen men assembled in Audubon Park this am to get their normal Wednesday fix with a bit of lagniappe.  YHC’s last two Qs included a landmark tour and history lesson of City Park so the pressure was on to do the same for Audubon.

    Disclaimer included the usual F3 lingo along with YHC’s warning that some of the history lesson soon to be given would most likely included errors and would only be as accurate as what he read on the interwebs.  Audubon Park is not YHC’s “homefield” so there was definitely some “craming” the night before to brush up on the days of old.

    The Thang:

    Short Mosey to the bandstand for warm up.  YHC informed the PAX that in 1871, The City Of NO acquired the land (formerly a sugar cane plantation) with intentions to an urban park.  That was 144 years ago so that was the number of reps for this COP all IC:

    SSH x 24

    Windmill x 24

    Arm Circles x 24

    IPW x 24

    Plank Jacks x 24

    Monkey Humps x 24 (these brought the burn)

    Mosey over to the soccer goal for round two.  The 1884 World’s Fair was held on the ground we were standing so YHC felt the need to pay tribute to that by splitting up into four groups, rotating clockwise to complete 2 rounds of the following with a 1-8-8-4 rep count (well sort of):

    1 x One Arm Plank

    8 x Low Low Slow Squat

    8 x Peek-a-boo Pull Ups on goal post

    4 x Triple Merkin Burpee  (timer)

    Mosey over the levee to the banks of the mighty Mississippi River where YHC reminded the PAX of the Great Flood of 1927 which was the greatest river flood in US history, displacing over 600,000 people and triggering massive flood control.  We also talked about the Flood Control Act passed in 1928 that prompted new levee standards and brought The US Army Corps of Engineers on board to tame the Mississippi River.  Those years set the tone for our 6 minutes (or 4 minutes?) of Mary all IC:

    19 x Boxcutter

    27 x Russian Twist

    19 x Pickle Pounder

    28 x LBC

    Mosey back to flood protected ground to spend some quality time with the concrete bench in front of the Zoo, where we talked about two relevant dates in the park’s history.  The first was 1914 when The Audubon Commission was established to maintain and develop the park.  Two years later in 1916, the Audubon Commission constructed a large flight bird cage which was the first of many animal attractions that laid the footprint for a world class zoo.  COP included the following IC:

    19 x Left Leg Step-ups

    14 x Dips

    19 x Right Leg Step-ups

    16 x Inclined Merkins

    Mosey to the field for a Sudden Change w/Lagniappe consisting of 21 BURPEES to recognize the fact that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month as well as Down Syndrome Awareness month.  This was a spin on the “Burpees For Boobs” initiative with the Spartan Race with a rep count of 21 to give a shout out to those with Trisomy 21 a.k.a. Down syndrome.  (Props to YHC’s 11yr old son with DS)

    Mosey back to the flag.

    Shout out and prayer geared to those with cancer, special needs, and health ailments.

    YHC enjoyed leading.  Trying to remember and relay accurate information while gasping for air is art form that I’m gradually trying to figure out.

    Tool

     

     

     

  • Can we walk instead of Mosey?

    “You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it.” -Lionel Messi

    15 of the finest men gathered for a beatdown in the gloom.  This was the first full Q constructed by YHC, and I hope the PAX enjoyed it!

    DISCLAIMER

    The Thang:

    Mosey towards the Golf Club House and over to a grass patch.

    COP #1 – IC: Plyo Warmup

    • 20 x Seal Jacks
    • 20 x Squat Jacks
    • 20 x SSH
    • 20 x Plank Jacks
    • 20 x Power Squat
    • 20 x Single Leg Iso Hops (Left x10 / Right x 10)

    Mosey over to the lamppost and lineup at the road for Stop #1.

    Stop #1 – OYO: Merkincides

    • Start with 10 Merkins, then the PAX runs to the first lamppost and back to complete 10 more Merkins at the startline, then runs to the second lamppost…until completion (5 lamppost in total).
    • YHC forgot the first 10 merks at the start and shot out like a cannon… the PAX had to reel me in.
    • #Tclaps to Mr. Awesome & Virility for flying through the Merkincides.
    • I believe Barefoot Contessa rolled an ankle… sorry to hear man. Hoping for a quick recovery!

    Plank up and wait for the Six at the startline.  Since the PAX was gasping for air, we did a quick mosey to the Lake Pavillion or Stage or Canopy…idk… and partner up.

    Stop #2 – OYO: Storming the Beach

    • Starting at the low side, the first wave of PAX perform Jump Ups on the steps to the Pavillion, then it is “up and over” the Pavillion. Mosey on the outside back to start.
    • Second wave of PAX is released once their partner is on top of the Pavillion.
    • Repeato until the Q calls the final wave. I believe most of us got through at least 5 waves.

    Plank up until the PAX finishes their final wave.  Due to the lower steps being filled with birds all day (it is the #Birdcage),  the planks were performed with an aroma of birdshit in our face.  Sorry for that!

    Mosey to soccer goal post.

    Stop #3 – OYO: Shift Work

    PAX divides into 5 groups to perform AMRAP for the following exercises:

    • 6 x Burpees (Time is up once group completes and rotate)
    • Pullups
    • Spiderman Plank
    • LBCs
    • Flutter Kicks
    • Repeato x 2

    Mosey to the birdcage.

    Stop #4 – IC: Legs & Arms

    PAX lines up on the bench and performs the following IC:

    • 20 x Dips
    • 20 x LLSU
    • 15 x Incline Merkins
    • 20 x RLSU

    Mosey past the 20+ Tomatos doing a Zumba class in the parking lot towards Magazine and circle up for the last stop of the morning.

    COP #2 – IC: 5MOM

    • 15 x Hello Dolly Leg Lifts
    • 20 x Putins
    • 15 x Ski Abs (start in high plank and keep hands in place on ground, begin by jumping both feet together to the outside of right hand on 1, jump back to high plank on 2, jump both feet together to the outside of left hand on 3, jump back to high plank on “Rep Count”… Repeat til done)
    • 15 x LBTs
    • 10 x In & Outs (start in high plank and keep hands in place on ground, begin by jumping feet inbetween both hand on 1, jump back to high plank on 2… Repeat til done)

    We were gassed, and YHC joked about walking back to the flag… But this is not how we roll.. we mosey!  Sorry if anyone in the PAX got their hopes up for the thought of walking.

    Mosey back to the flag for Name-O-Rama, Shout-Outs, & Prayer (5 Finger Prayer by Pope Francis)

  • One Year Later

    Pre-Thang:  YHC was  happy to be back out in the gloom after a couple of injuries and ready to take the Q on the F3 NOLA one year anny. Thirteen men showed up with time to spare and we hit the road to get better.

    The Thang:   Mosey around to golf club house and over to the festival of lights. Lunge to first light, Bear Crawl to second light, Lunge to third light, Bear Crawl to fourth light and plank up.  Plank Jacks x 14 in cadence.

    Mosey toward front of park.  Sudden Change–10 Burpees– after a short run.  Continue to Prytania Street for a push-o-rama:  Merkins x 14, Low Slow Squats x 14, Larry Craigs x 14, Squats x 14, Chuck Norris x 7. All in cadence.

    Mosey toward St. Charles Ave with another stop for Sudden Change.  Continue to the fountain:  Dips x 14, Step ups x 14, Derkins x 7, Step ups x 14, Incline Merkins x 14.  All in cadence.

    Continue around park track with more Sudden Change after a quarter mile.  Mosey to putting green for 6 MOM: LBC x 50, Dolly x 14, Real Freddie x 14,Hi Dolly x 14.  All in cadence.

    Indian Run all the way back to the flag.

    TClaps to the PAX for all hanging together for a solid 2.3 mile journey.  It’s always a pleasure to be with this group.  Thank you one and all for keeping this going.  Let’s all do what we can to make it grow even more!

    COT with shout out and regular announcements by YHC.

    Good Times!

    Roots

     

  • The Best for Last after the Bulgarian Left

    17 men gathered around the flag for the weekly birdcage beatdown. Hog ran up a few minutes into the 1st COP after a bit of trainspotting to make us 18.

    Mosey out to the main zoo field for a COP:

    SSH x20, IW x20, Peter Parker x20, Arm Circles x20 (reverse halfway),  Parker Peter x20, Hillbillies x20, Seal Jacks x20

    Mosey to the zoo soccer field for a Back 40 (4 groups rotating exercises).

    1st run: Pull-Up Knee up x10, cross-fit merkins x10, Knee up jumps x10,  Lunges (each leg) x10, plank in middle

    2nd run: Pull-Up Knee up x10, cross-fit merkins x15, Knee up jumps x15,  Lunges (each leg) x15, plank in middle

    The Back 40 got the job done but was disjointed at times…YHC needs to work on the OYO structure for our large Wednesdays.

    Mosey to the zoo steps:

    Step up R x20, Incline Merkins Left Foot Up x20 (or x40 for Hog & Awesome), Bulgarian Split Lunge Right x20 (Tclap to Awesome for the technique assistance) , Slow Dips x20, Step up L x20, Incline Right x15, Bulgarian Left x20

    Then an uncharacteristic, enthusiastic cheer from the PAX of “Thanks for saving the best for last” after the call of 10 Derkins to finish. At least that’s the way YHC heard it…

    Mosey to the lights by the bandstand for some Groundwork (light to light):

    Bear Crawl, Crab Walk, Spiderman Crawl, Inch Worm the best for last Burpee Broad-jump

    Thoughts and Prayers to all those in South Carolina

    Help our F3 South Carolina families – here:

    F3 South Carolina Go Fund Me

  • The Bear Necessities

    On a wonderful Wednesday morning in NOLA, 17 men set off in the gloom for this kick-ass beatdown.  The two Q’s did not communicate about what we would use for our downPAINment, but our minds were thinking the same thing: “We need to bear crawl the hell out of the PAX”… and bear crawl we did!  Bagasse had the reigns for the first half.

    DISCLAIMER

    Warm-Up:

    • Mosey down Magazine St. to the open field by Entergy Blvd.

    COP #1 – IC:

    • 23 x SSH
    • 20 x Goofballs
    • 20 x Peter Parkers
    • 20 x Hillbillies
    • 20 x Arm Circles (10 x Forward; 10 x Backward)
    • 20 x Wife Pleasers (a.k.a. Amnesty Special)

    The Thang:

    • Mosey to levee by Leake Ave & Walnut St.

    Stop #1 – OYO: Elevens on the Levee

    • Each PAX does 10 repetitions of exercise #1 and then 1 repetition of the exercise #2 (10/1), then 9/2, 8/3, 7/4, etc. until you get to 1/10.
    • This set of elevens consisted of performing exercise #1 (Squat Jumps) at the bottom of the levee, then bear crawl (forward) up the levee to perform exercise #2 (Clap Merkins) at the top of the levee, then bear crawl (backward) down the levee to complete the set. However, the PAX soon relized that there was crushed gravel at the top of the levee (Crushed Gravel + Clap Merkins = Bloody Hands + Why am I doing this).  Some of the PAX performed a hot route audible, and switched the location of exercise #1 & #2.  #Tclaps to anyone bold enough to continue with clap merkins at the top.
    • At around the 6th to 7th time bear crawling up the levee, RY heard this quote “Bear Crawl, I hate you. PS I love you”, and is now thinking about making this quote into a shirt.

    Once the PAX was finished with our bear crawls, we were now ready for hibernation. Instead, Bagasse handed the PAX over to YHC, and I had some sprint work to do.

    • Mosey to the soccer field on Magazine St. and River Dr.

    Stop #2 Part #1– OYO: Sprint Circuit

    • The sprint circuit consisted of performing an ab exercise –IC, then sprinting approx. 60 yards to the soccer goal to perform a part of the BLIMPS set – OYO, then jogging back 60 yards to the start line and plank up for the #six. Rinse & repeat until all the letters in BLIMPS are complete.  Here are the exercises performed:
    • At Start – IC:
      • 20 x LBCs
      • 15 x LBTs
      • 20 x Flutter Kicks
      • 20 x Hello Dollys
      • 12 x V-ups
      • 15 x Putins
    • At Halfway Point – OYO:
      • 5 x “B”urpees
      • 10 x “L”unges (each leg)
      • 15 x “I”mperial walkers
      • 20 x “M”erkins
      • 25 x “P”lank jacks
      • 30 x “S”quats

    Stop #2 Part #2– OYO: Bear Crawl Indian Run (50 yards)

    • The PAX divided up into groups of four, and since bear crawling was far from our memory after the sprint circuit… we performed a bear crawl indian run to remind us about Bagasse’s beatdown. Each group lined up and held high plank.  The last man in each group bear crawls to the front and holds plank once he gets to the front of the line. Rinse/Repeat until each group makes it 50 yards.
    • YHC has to take the blame for the “drunken bears” running into other groups since I failed to point out a specific landmark to crawl to.

    By the time we finished, it was 615 am, so we high-tailed it back to the flag for the Name-O-Rama, Shout-Outs and Prayer.

    I added a video of what the PAX looked like on the levee.  Man, I miss the movie Jungle Book.

  • Where’s the bar?

    Surprising amount of activity as YHC walked up on the flag spot this morning. With a little over ten minutes to start time, we were already pushing a double digit PAX. As Yankee rolled up with seconds to spare we hit the fifteen F3er mark including two FNGs. Wednesdays in the park are getting stronger every week…but the most surprising scene was a clump of dirt where our pull-up bars used to reside. Hopefully they moved on to better home. One lost and lonely sole was trying his best to workout without his trusted bar, possibly holding back some tears. Yet there’s nothing to fear, we’ll have shiny new toys soon (or not)…let’s mosey.

    Warm Up –  Mosey to the goal post field for a warm up COP:

    SSH x20, Imperial Walkers x20, Peter Parker x20

    Another round this time with the “evil twins”:

    Sealjacks x20, Hillbillies x20, Parker Peters X20

    After warm up, line up by cones left by our good friends at Entergy:

    Boo Boo Bear Crawl to the goal post, switch legs half way

    Divided up in five groups of three rotating twice through the following:

    Pace setting Burpee Knee-Up Blasters (name for this?), Plankjacks, Squats, Merkins & LBCs

    After two rounds with little chatter but lots of body language thanking God it wasn’t three, we got a ten count by Shorty then mosey to Zoo statue steps:

    Incline Merkins x10, Right Food Step-up x20, Decline Push-Ups x8ish, Left Foot Step-Ups x19 and finally freak nasty dips x15

    After a 10 count by Yuengling, we took a long mosey to bandstand for some Blimps Suicides:

    Burpees x5, Lunges x10, Imp Walkers x10, Merkins x10, Plankjacks x10 & Squats x10 all intertwined by running to different lampposts and back.

    Tclaps to Amnesty for calling out This is BS halfway through (YHC somewhat agreed) and for Shorty by setting a strong pace to finishing plank up

    Quick stop at the water fountain for some much needed hydration then back to the flag for 2 minutes of plank-o-rama.

    Closed with a COT – thanks given for health and asked for strength to get out the fartsack every morning and attack a demon with all you got (something along those lines)

    Keep the Strong Wednesdays going…

     

     

  • Agassi’s VQ/Rocketman

    Posted by RY from an email Yeungling and Agassi

    Agassi started us over to the corner of the park for:
    Side straddle hops
    Imperial walkers
    Shoulder circles
    Little baby crunches
    Hello Dolly
    Then a mosey back to The Oak Alley for
    50 yrds Lunge/Bear Crawl
    50 yrds Grapevine/Sprint
    Hand off to Yeungling:
    1. Mosey to goal post Rocketman (Astonaut Workout) – HIIT 45/15 – 1 Round ‘mercans prisoner squats seal jacks peekaboo pullups lunges ***lots of groans from the PAX here.
    2. Mosey to JJ Audubon
      Right Leg Step up X 15 Slow Dips X 16 Left Leg Step Up X 15 Slow Dips X 16 Decline mercan X 12
    3. Mosey to grass – Mary Penguins X 20 Rosalita X 20 Putins(russian twist) X 12 Divebomber pushups X 8
    4. Plank-o-rama

    TCLAPS to Splash and Griswold.  Griswold is Splash’s first EH to come back for a second beatdown!

  • Sunrise over Loyola’s steeple

    Beautiful morning.  72 degrees, no humidity.  It was just short of a miracle.

    As I pulled up to the AO – I was happy to see Splash chilling with a brand new FNG. – Ashton.  Who is now known as Griswold – as in Clark from Vacation.  Griswold is the 6th FNG is the last week!  I was also psyched to see Tundra who made it out to post for his last time in a year.  His flight to Jordan where he will be for a year was leaving today at 10AM.  As soon as 530 hit we got this party started…

    Warm UP- Run down Oak Alley, Circle Up for a warm up COP.

    For SSH x 30 –we attempted to add the Black Widow.  A burpee on the 5th SSH.  It was tricky to keep the cadence with the burpee but we got it done mostly.   Thanks to whatever PAX I stole that from- I read about it in your backblast last night.

    Then Imperial Walker Squats x 25, Merks x 10, LBC twist x 25, Mtn Climbers x 25

    After the warm up COP – we hit Oak Alley for some  –

    Side hops both sides, then Bear Crawl, then Boo Boo Bear Crawl left foot up and then right foot up

    Then we hit the course around the park.  At 3 Circles Of Pain  we did the same workout.  As tribute to Tundra for his new job in Amman, Jordan we did 15 ‘Merican style push ups (merks).  Then we hit legs, and core.  Slow Squats x 25, LBC X 25, and Peter Parker x 25.    At the end of the route we had completed over 150 of all 3 of those exercises and over 75 push ups/Merks.

    We did one COP at 1/2 mile mark.  Then another at one mile.  At the Fountain on the St Charles side of the park we added another COP.  Lots of tomatos and bicycles (is there a F3 word for those 2 wheeled harbinger’s of death?)  Plenty of bike warnings for Hawgcycle who opted for a rare FARTSACK this AM.

    X25 Step Ups left leg, x25 step ups right leg x 25 Dips/Freak Nasties, x 10 Inclined Merks

    Mosey’d to the Water Fountain – Plank and wait while each member of the PAX got water

    At the golf green across from the water fountain – we did the 3rd COP from above.  As we walked on the fairway we were treated to an amazing sunrise with the Steeple of Holy Name back lit by a spectacular sight.  What a way to wake up on your last day in New Orleans Tundra!

    After that COP we filled in for an Indian Run.  2 Cycles through the 11 man PAX.  After that it was horses to the barn all the way to the FLAG!  #Tclaps to Splash and  Douille who led the way!

    Plank and wait at the FLAG.  Sorry we got back 1 min late.

    Amnesty commented on the repetitive COPs and was disappointed after YHC started with the Black Widow because he was thinking we would get all kinds of crazy stuff.  However – today I truly wanted to try and hit the 150 mark in Sit ups and Peter Parkers.  Squats was a bonus.  I also wanted those extra push ups!

    Finally we closed with the COT- asking us to be better men every day in all that we do and with all the people we interact with.  I dropped the ball here and I really should have talked about Katrina’s impact on my life philosophy but maybe I can piggyback on Friday!?

    Tclaps to FNG/Griswold for his first workout

    Tclaps to Shorty for his 3rd post this week!  Dang brah!

    Tclaps to the krewe that stayed for extra credit on the pull ups

    Tclaps to Tundra for posting today for his last workout for awhile!

    YHC had a great morning and really enjoyed the weather, the peer pressure and sunrise.  Looking forward to seeing (or not seeing)  you men in the GLOOM!

  • Chaka’s Kotter – So you think you can dance?

    OK – so a big surprise for the Pax on Wed AM.  We were greeted by an amazing sight – Chaka Khan’s Kotter.  Chaka – a school teacher by day and a competitive hip hop dancer by night took a summer break from everything including F3.  However we were thrilled to get him back in the fold on Wed AM.  Good job Roots on the re-EH.  Reveille originally had this Q but we had to make a sudden change the night before – he is moving to Denver next month and life is hectic!  Keep Rev and his family in your prayers.

    So with Chaka in the fold – off we went at a mosey to our first COP.

    Warm Up – SSH x 25, Merks x 15, Peter Parkers x 20, and Imperial Squats x 20

    Then we mosey out down Magazine St to the Levee.  The levee is blocked because of some powerline work so we sudden changed and followed the train tracks to the Fly.  On the way we did

    Wiley Coyote x 15 in honor of Keyman

    From there we worked our way to the levee at the Fly.  It was GLOOMY and obviously hard to see.

    I put down four orange cones that I was carrying with me.  And we started the squares.

    Bear Crawl one lap then 10 lunge jumps  then Backwards Bear Crawl another lap and then 10 lunge jumps.  Plank and wait.   Agassi and Jazzy got attacked by Fire Ants a few times during this exercise – sorry guys I wish we could see!

    Then we mosey’d over to the Fly – Riverview.

    Here we commenced the MerknMary.  It was designed for Bagasse who complained we didn’t do enough upper body last workout.  So I tailored this workout for him – unfortunately he FARTSACKED on us!

    1.  Putin x 15  2.  Diamond Merks x 15  3/4.  Hip Dips each hip x15 5.  Stagger Left merk x 15

    6.  LBC x 15  7. Stagger Right Merk x 15  8.  Parker Peters x 15  9.   Flutter x 15

    10.  Hello Dolly x 15  11.  CDD x 15  12.  Reverse LBC x 15, 13.  Cockroach dying x 15

    14.  Plank Jacks x 15,  15.  Freddy Mercury Real x 15   16.  Chuck Norris x 5

    For a total of 230.  Plenty of upper body and core!

    Then we hustled back to the Flag.  At  this point – Chaka informed us that the COP above was about what he does in his Hip Hop Dance class every week!  Yikes.  Who knew Chaka was a dancer?  Maybe F3 should have a name re-evaluation every year?!

    Anyway it was a pleasure to share the gloom and humidity with you guys.  Yeungling closed the COT with a prayer and I really appreciated him stepping up – I was so tired after the workout.

    Tclaps brother!

  • Burps at the Bandstand

    I originally had Cavalier scheduled to Q but YHC didn’t do a good job confirming his role – so we will have to wait for the Cavalier VQ!

    YHC suspected that Cavalier may not have read the schedule – so I had 2 COPs in my back pocket.

    It was a MUGGY/ HOT August NOLA workout.

    Mosey to Oak Alley.

    In Oak Alley for COP 1  – SSH, Imperial Walker Squats, Diamond Merks, and Peter Parkers x 25

    Mosey to the bandstand for some 6MOM.

    LBC, LBtwist, FLutter, Parker Peters, Plank Jack, Hello Dolly, Rosalita, x 25

    Hip dips x 15 each leg

    Hand off to Roots

    Mosey out to golf club and back to bandstand area for BS(Burpee Suicides) under the oaks. 10 reps x 5 progressing to the furthest light.

    Mosey to the shelter picnic tables. Dips x 20, LBC x 25, Step ups x 12, Incline Merkins x 12, Step ups x 12, Decline Merkins x 10, LBC x 31, Low Slow Dips x 15 all in cadence.

    Over to the lights for a quick sprint to the road and back to the flag.

    Good Times!  Not a lot of Mumble chatter.  Some angst/whining about the Burpee Suicides but it got quiet after 2 reps.