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“Hey, What running club are you guys with?”….something something something…

FNGs: Not this time
Warm Up: 20 SSH, 15 Frankenstein, Next exercise….10 The Windmill (YHC brainfart holding hands over his head on remembering Imperial Walkers), 187 – “I’m laughing because the Q forgot Imperial Walkers”, 10 IMPERIAL WALKERS. Let’s get to it.
The Workout: EC: Well there was a bunch…. Old U-Turn 5: Warbucks, U.T.I, Cupid, Pikachu, Browns to the Superbowl – 3?: Lipstick . 2.5: Aquaman, 2: ShamWow!, Webex, Dahmer, Sparty. I’m pretty sure there were others out there….Let me know who and I’ll update.   Thanks all those picking up the 6 today. I think there was about 10+ PAX who turned near the movie theater and then over and over again – some logging more than 7 miles on the turns…That’s awesome.

Mary: She was left waiting
Announcements: BRR Training runs – Skidmark posted routes and sign-ups in Slack. Crablegs – follow HIM on social media.
T-Claps (Recognition): All those EC’rs out there today. Starbucks lady made a comment: “you guys are all over town today”
Prayer: YHC took us out.

Nothing Has Changed in 4 Years…

22 PAX joined me in my 4 Year Anniversary and 16-Bit’s 1 Year.

FNGs: Welcome Go-Gurt!
Warm Up: 16-Bit warmed us up with smurf jacks, morracan night clubs, leg stretches, arm stretches, and a merkin circuit of 5 standard, 5 w/right leg up, 5 w/left leg up, and then 5 standard again.

The Workout:

–A Little P90X – “Do your best, forget the rest”

  1. Jump shot 15x
  2. Double Airborne Heisman
  3. Run Stance Squats (switch feet-looking forward, touch toe)
  4. Swing Kicks
  5. Twist Combo, tip-toe twist
  6. Leapfrog Squats

Howling Monkeys – We bent over and grabbed our ankles while each PAX did 5 Monkey Humpers

Two Rock Shakur (grab two rocks)

  1. Biceps – In –  15x
  2. Triceps – Bent over curls
  3. Shoulders – Arnolds
  4. Biceps – Front
  5. Triceps – Overhead extensions
  6. Shoulders – Overhead
  7. Biceps – Outer
  8. Triceps – Tricep press on your back 40x
  9. Shoulders – Deltoid extensions – side raises – 15x

Crabjacks 25x

Mary: Around the horn with various exercises.
Announcements: SUP Aug 3 at Jordan Lake, Meg Smiles Charity Auction this weekend
Prayer: Dusty’s brother, DoubleD and his family after his father’s death. John Deer (leg fracture)

It was honor to Q four workouts this week and lead you men. F3 has extremely impacted me personally and professionally. Thank you!

Is there a Big Dipper?

EC: Redenbacher, Lipstick, Nemo, YHC

FNGs: Not today…

Warm Up:

The original plan was to endure the heat and do a simple out and back from R4TJ headquarters to TBD headquarters, see if we could do a fly-by and see some of those PAX out to be DETERMINED.  Slap some hands, some asses, and bring it back to R4TJ HQ for COT.  Then, even before we could start warm-up, I locked eyes with DawgPound and he was giving me those big puppy dawg eyes.  He wanted to run The Little Dipper…  How can I say no!?  There was some backlash in the ranks “Who’s the Q?”  I answered “Well, I am!” and justified that it’s running and I want to make sure that R4TJ is catering to the needs of it’s VIPs (which is anyone that shows up and has a voice – extra VIP status for ‘The DawgPound’ because is has a THE in his name).  Had he requested that we all start doing Merkins for the duration of the workout, I would have said “Dawwwgggg, Please!” but he only suggested a slight detour on our return route and we probably netted a bit more mileage which MADE US STRONGER!!!  But, I digress…

Frankensteins, Daisy Pickers, High Knees, Butt Kickers were our warm-up moves.  The last two were in motion towards the stop sign off the main drag into Ting near the construction.  We began the run from the sign.

The Workout:

A RUN!  It really shouldn’t surprise anyone, R4TJ is listed as a RUNNING AO on our website.  Not listed on our website is that we typically run for something closer to an hour end-to-end at R4TJ.  Lipstick and I will need to call on our resident web heads to fix that.  We’ve been living a lie…

We ran The Little Dipper for THE DawgPound as previously discussed.  It’s named for it’s shape, see this backblast for reference.  187 was fast to ask about the Big Dipper…  We simply don’t have one here in South Wake.  Maybe it’s because Holly Springs isn’t very big? Or perhaps we discovered the Big Dipper but called it the Little Dipper because we were hoping for more from a Dipper?…  Not sure…  Curious… Fascinating… Intriguing….  Dodo Birds?  OH, YEAH!  So we were running and it was really hot and steamy out this morning.  I don’t know about the rest of the PAX but it was a struggle today for YHC.  I managed to get back to HQ clocking in just over 5 miles (even with the slight short-cut down the stairs instead of going all the way to the light at Ting).

It is important to note that we had 2 visitors this morning

– Peeping Tom of Carpex was out.  Still a little bloody and bruised in places but getting out in the gloom from some walking and light running where his injuries would allow.

– Borland from Raleigh was present and accounted for as well.  Glad to have him out and in my corner to maintain order at the AO this morning.  Be glad some of you were counted, nuf said.

Mary:  Big Mary or little Mary?  Do not tell Big Mary, I called her Big…  It never goes well…

Announcements:

-Sasquatch CSAUP 7/27 – Hit up Owais for details, check your Social Media accounts

-Still needs for this weekend to support Meg’s Smile – check with Sliderule

T-Claps (Recognition):

-Midget for helping bring everyone together this morning (through the power of his High School self) but also every other day of the week.  He is always our spirited mascot/ambassador, EHing guys on the runs through town at many of our AOs and keeping the rest of the nation aware of what we are doing here in South Wake.

-Sliderule is killing the target for Meg’s Smile charity this month with everyone’s help of course 🙂

Prayer:

-Crablegs – Great work out there on behalf of ALS, hope you are enjoying your travels and stay safe.

-Double D – Your family is in our prayers following your father’s passing.

-Our BRR 6-man, stay well men and God speed.  Take care of yourselves and each other as you continue your training.

-Emeril’s Dad – recovering from surgery

-Friend of YHCs son Corbin, still in a coma after a dry drowning event.  He did come off of the ventilator and is breathing on his own.

Particle Board’s VQ

20 PAX (12 for EC) posted at Purple Cobra to experience a VQ from Particle Board.

EC: Banana Seat, Redenbacher, 187, Pikachu, WebEx, Warbucks, UTI, Skidmark, Dahmer, Pablo, Full House, Lucky Charms

FNGs: None
Warm Up: Started with standard warm-up lap, warm up exercises in cadence: SSH x 30, Good Mornings x 10, Imperial Walkers x15, Hillbillies x 15, Sir Fazio arm circles 10F & 10B, 10 burpees OYO
The Workout: PAX moseyed to the Wells Fargo parking lot and found an accountability partner.  PAX were instructed to complete a Dora 1-2-3 (100 Merkins, 200 Freddie Mercury in cadence, and 300 prisoner squats) splitting the exercises between partners.  Partner 1 started the exercises while partner 2 ran out of the lower entrance to the lot and ran up the sidewalk along Holly Springs Rd to the intersection of Sunset Lake Rd and completed 5 star jumps (adding 2 star jumps for each return visit to the intersection) and then back to the lot to rotate with partner 2.  Once all reps were completed, Q had partners complete a “reverse partner’s chair”?  (pax faced their partner and performed a wall-less peoples chair, but held partners hand for balance).  Pax then moseyed to the  other side of the lot behind the building to perform a few BTW exercises.  Exercise 1: Partner 1 was in BTW while Partner 2 did diamond merkins x20, then switch and repeat.  Exercise2:  Partner 1 was in BTW while partner 2 did mickey mouse merkins x 10, then switch and repeat.  Pax then moseyed back to the circle for Mary.
Mary: Homer-to-Marge IC x 2o, pickle pounder IC x 20, side plank crunches (5 IC on each side), 5 burpees OYO.
Announcements: Check slack and FB, Meg Smile charity auction, Amazon Prime Deal on Garmin Watch for those PAX looking
Prayer: Crab legs, Double D’s family, Dumbo’s Aunt

Oyster Shell Injuries, Indian Run Education, and Hills.

Pre-Blast featured a reference to Hills this morning. The reality is that BRR is just around the corner and more and more PAX are finding their way to AGS on Sunday’s. For this morning’s edition of AGS, YHC figured it fitting to pick up where we left off from last week and provide another bootcamp style running workout with Hills as the main feature.  Last evening received an ‘HC’ from Deadbolt indicating a return to the gloom. A 5:45am pickup time was established.

As normally is the case on Sunday morning, YHC picked up his gear and in a half-awake manner, picked up the phone to check the status of Wescott clowns looking to clown car. Quick glance and was disappointed to see that Deadbolt was out. Apparently, oyster shell cuts to the foot are a real thing for those who spend time at sea, and can impact one’s ability to perform roadwork on Sunday’s. Not sure if these were suffered on the boat or at a restaurant, but in any event, he’d be missed out there for sure this morning.

Arrived to a very occupied Womble parking lot. That silver sedan has become a fixture, signifying Redenbacher was out getting his EC fix beforehand. And what is this?….A Double D sighting?  YHC thought he had seen a ghost. Glad to see him back in the gloom and especially on a Sunday. I’ve mentioned this before in previous BB’s, but when you put a Double D in the mix of any workout, it amplifies the experience to another level. Pull into my spot and give a nod to the right as DawgPound and Cowboy make their appearance. Plant the flag, greet Pablo, who will be rucking with DawgPound this morning. Good to see him back as well fresh off of vacation. Full House and Cruise arrive from their EC run just as UTI and H1N1 roll in.

Circled up and as 6 o’clock hits, we were off.

Warm Up:

Light jog to the back end Ivan parking lot for the following warm-up exercises. All in 13 reps (homage to Alex Morgan and today’s World Cup final and to redeem my cadence count blunders from yesterday)- Imperial Walkers, Good Mornings, Hack Sacks, Hillbillies, Mountain Climbers. Just as we finished up Mountain Climbers, we hear some very loud Mumblechatter in the distance…Better late then never, Yogi comes trotting in to cash in his HC from the night before. When you arrive late, you do burpees, so with that, 5 burpees OYO. Light jog to the far end of the parking lot to perform Fazio Arms 13 F\13B. From there, lined PAX up in single file for an Indian Run back to the flag. Squat hold at the flag while YHC explained the route.

The Workout: While Pablo and DawgPound took their ruck toward Sugg and to the lake, YHC would provide some hills and accountability to the PAX looking to run this morning. We would start on Stinson in front of the Womble parking lot and begin a scout run past the Hunt Community center to the top of the hill and continue it until we got to the 1st side path in front of the baseball fields. When we got to the path, we held for the six and and began an Indian Run back to the starting point. At times during this Indian run, we had a few gaps in the line causing some inconsistency with pace and some PAX leaving the back of the line before the prior PAX had a chance to make it back in front of the line. As we got back to the starting point, PAX squat holded for the six. As we squat held, Yogi provided a history lesson on the origin of the Indian Run. He shared that it was designed for longer distances to keep the PAX together, so that the line would move to accommodate the pace of the slower PAX to keep the group together and avoid instances where that PAX would not fall behind and get eaten by a bear or other wild animal. As I write this, I’m hoping that there is a PAX out there that decides one day to dress up in a bear suit and jump of the bushes the next time we do an Indian run at Womble to illustrate this point…. I digress, my apologies.

At the conclusion of this history lesson, YHC explained the route again to ensure everyone was on the same page. This would be a hill accountability run where we would be picking up the six periodically throughout the run and tackle the hills together. The route would take us down and up Stinson. When we reach the top of the hill at Stinson, we would circle back and pick up the six. We would then take a right onto Bass Lake and head to the parking lot at Bass Lake. When we reach the parking lot, we would pick up the six and ensure that we arrive at the same time and\or squat hold for the six. At the parking lot, we recovered on a series of 3 exercises- 5 burpees, 10 star jumps, 20 squats before making the final push back up Bass Lake Road and back onto Stinson. Great pushes by all PAX up the hill. We made 2 stops on the way up the hill were PAX either circled back for the six or did a plank hold with Merkins mixed in (thanks to DoubleD for setting this standard). On the last stop at Stinson, PAX performed one last plank hold for the six and performed 13 merkins, before making a strong push back down and up Stinson. As PAX finished up, they were treated to a Yogi and Abe jail break up the hill to finish up at precisely 6:58… 2 minutes shy of the 7am end time and just under 5mi of ground covered as promised.

Mary: Series of stretches as we waited for Pablo and DawgPound to finish up their ruck.

Announcements: JoCo needs some support. Head out there if you haven’t had an opportunity to experience a workout at these AO’s- Grow the Mustard Seed as UTI shared his experiences from recent travel to Michigan. F3 Dads Camp coming up. Check Slack and FB for details. Sasquatch July 27th CSAUP.

2nd F- Dunkin Donuts.

Prayer: Prayers for a pastor H1N1 knows, who recently suffered the loss of a child. Additional prayers for a Wescott neighbor Tom, who recently passed unexpectedly. Prayers for his family, wife, and 8 children. YHC took us out.

Sweat Puddles

12 men woke for the 4th of July week. No vacation for these men. They were rewarded for their commitment to Paradise City with a 3+ mile beatdown.

EC: Bullseye, Aquaman, Full House, Katniss, Skidmark

FNGs: None
Warm Up: 1 lap warm-up with stops to do 20 Side Strattle Hops, 10 Windmills, 10 Imperial Walkers, 10 Hillbillies, and 10 Sir Fazio Arm Circles forward and reverse.

The Workout: Groups of 3 by speed. 3 man catch me if you can indian runs and do 3 laps. 1st lap the pax does 3 burpees. 2nd lap 4 squats, and 3rd lap 5 merkins.

As groups finished go pick up the 6.

Met at bottom of ramp for 7’s to the top. Burpees at the top and WWII’s at the bottom. Modified mid way to only run half the ramp up.

Mary: Pax stayed in Plank for 8 minutes. During plank pax did right and left arm up, side crunches, Peter Parkers, Pickle Pounders, and merkin clock with stops at 12, 9, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1. Held plank and then finished with 5 merkins.

Announcements: 4th of July Convergence. New AO off Ten-Ten combo Q with Carpex.

T-Claps (Recognition):

Prayer: Crablegs. Those traveling for the holidays.

 

I Only Have One Pace

Today was all about interval training. Q put the Pax through several interval runs at which he was quickly informed by several that “I only have one pace.” Overall, the group covered about 5 miles.

Two for EC: Redenbacher and Skidmark

FNGs: None
Warm Up: YHC encouraged everyone to warm-up OYO before we got started but if you want to identify a warm-up it would 1 lap around Ting in 4 or 5 man Indian Runs.
The Workout: After the Indian Run mosey Q called out a location and a pace with which to run, once at location they turn back for the six.  At the stop sign below the basketball court Pax ran at half marathon pace to the stoplight.

After the intersection Pax ran half marathon pace up the hill in Bridgewater. Repeated 2x but on the second once Pax crested the hill they ran at 10K pace to the first road on the right.

Two runs at 10K pace up the hill within Bridgewater to the stop sign. Second one crested the hill 5K pace to the bottom by the Red warning flags. Pax ran three times back up the hill at 5k pace and ran recovery pace to the bottom. Last one up we picked up the six. From the peak of the hill in Bridgwater we did a progression of 1/2 marathon pace to the bottom at the hard right of the EC route, 10K pace to the powerline road, and 5k pace across that road to the end. Circle back for the six.

From this location two group indian run back to Ting with a jailbreak call at the intersection of Main St.

Mary: Some light stretching.

Announcements: Bring water if you need it.

T-Claps (Recognition):

Prayer: Be safe when running. More likely to die running a 5k than a half marathon. Know your limits and modify when you need to.

Dumbo took us out.

 

Paradise City 6/17 Backblast (I Hate Dice)

Pax of 7 

Beuford, Dumbo, Lucky Charms, DawgPound, Catniss, Full House, Popinski and Breach on the Q

Warm Up: Run up the ramp and circle up for 22 counts of SSH, Imperial Walkers, Good Mornings Daisy Pickers and Frankensteins.

The Workout: The hated dice made their appearance for a run around ting with some stops along the way to roll the dice.

Stop 1  Frog Jumps, squats, SSH’s

Stop 2 Burpees, Jump Ropes and Plank hold

Stop3 in the tunnel for some Balls to the Wall,  peoples chair, Austrailin Mnt climbers and seal clap peoples chair

Stop4 Burpees, jump squats, merkins

Stop 5 Mountain Climbers, Box Cutters, Pickle Pounders

Stop 6 Homer to Marge, Crabwalk down the parking lot, Merkins

Stop 7 Squats, High Knees LBC’s Follows by a pax race to the midway point of the ramp and back x2 in under a minute.

Mary: 5-minute ab burnout 22 counts of the following (LBC’s, Hello Dolly’s, Reverse LBC’s Homer to Marge and Freddie Mercuries)

Announcements: None

Prayer: Pray for the family of Warchild

After the Rain..11 PAX get stronger with Rucking Miles and Hill Work

Heading into this morning, it was really a toss up. The heavy rain from the night before was likely to alter our plans for a run this morning, but the Sky Q had our best interest in mind by holding the rain off and sending down some extra humidity to dry the roads prior to 6am. Clown car in Knight Rider was full this morning, complete with a shovel flag, a sack carrying Midget, and a Deadbolt. Arrived to Womble with a fleet of cars already parked. Wait a minute…. “Abe?” A newcomer to AGS, looking for some honest miles. This guy is showing up and making a statement, first breathtaker and now posting on Sundays. Then followed by Draper, the big Red Truck toting Skidmark and Bullseye, then followed by Full House, and Wood Creek’s finest- UTI and Lipstick. Oh and don’t forget Redenbacher, picking up a 1/2 mile EC before the Main Event.

A solid 11 at 6 o’clock start- 3 Ruckers (Skidmark, M4L, and Bulls Eye with 8 Runners). Started Warm Ups that went a little like this.

Warm Up: Light jog to the back lot with carioca L\R, R\L to the start. Continued to the other side of the lot with Butt Kickers and circled up for Hillbillies X10, CP’s X10, Fazio Arms 10 F\10 Back. Frankensteins back to the start with alternating toe walks\heel walks and circled up for air squats X10. Ruckers proceeded to their route and headed to Main St, while the running PAX proceeded to mosey with YHC. Stopped at the first picnic shelter and circled up for some GM’s X10. Quickly lined up in tight formation for a solid Indian run to the Ivan Lot. Circled up in the back lot while YHC explained this morning’s route. At this point it was starting to mist a bit, which provided a good cut in the humidity. Fortunately for us, the Sky Q waited until after our run was over to let the rain fall and provided some gentle breezes throughout the run.

The Workout: The menu today called for Hills. With BRR just a few short weeks away, we put some elevation in the plan for this morning. PAX would proceed down and up Stinson where they would be taking a left onto Bass Lake Road. Follow this to the stop light at Holly Springs Rd. and proceed to Rhamkatte Village merging left into the development and onto Jones Hill Road with a slight shift down Old Ride Road to the end of the development with a U-Turn around back onto Holly Springs Road, proceeding left to Homegrown, right on Linksland, right on Salem Ridge, Right onto Bass Lake (up the BDH-Big Damn Hill), and back onto Stinson for the final push back up to Womble.

Strong pushes from start to finish by all PAX. A big shout out to Lipstick and UTI for picking up the six throughout the run and for pushing YHC up Bass Lake and the final Stinson push. By the 5th and 6th mile of this route, YHC is usually pacing at 10min, but this morning, lots of inspiration drawn by all PAX to help me find a new gear and a steady climb up Bass Lake with an 8:36 in the final 1 mile. #ironsharpensiron.

Rejoined the Rucking PAX at the Womble lot for stretches and COT just as the rain started to open up.

Mary: Stretches OYO
Announcements: Fitness Test tomorrow at PC, Moving help at Midget’s this afternoon. Skidmark carrying Breathtaker this week and will be calling on PAX to wear an eye patch during workouts this week in support of A Cure in Sight (this months charity).

T-Claps (Recognition): Abe for his AGS debut and putting in some solid work this morning. All PAX for conquering the hills and those rucking with weight strapped to their backs. Speaking of backs, I’m not sure if anyone saw the light banter from the pre-blast last evening, but I am suddenly intrigued by this BRR “see my back ” exchange between M4L and Pikachu last night. Looking forward to seeing how the training unfolds in the week to come….

Prayer: YHC reminded PAX about goals. Shared that part of attaining your goals and achieving what you set out to do is knowing what you have to give up in order to achieve them. That can sometimes mean doing the things that you don’t like to do (ie: hills, burpees, getting up on Sunday) in order to ensure optimal performance on race day or any goal you set in front of you. Challenged PAX to find 3 things (fitness-wise or personal\work related) that they like least and do these first each day this week.

Deadbolt took us out.

Crazy Indian and the Medicine Ball

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VgufM9iLbI

EC: Aquaman, Bulls Eye, Cowboy, Cupid, Full House, Slide Rule.

Some PAX were still rolling in at 5:30. Thought they were all FIA, but then BAM! Crab Legs!

FNGs: Welcome STP–The Racer’s Edge. Disclaimer given.
Warm Up: Mosey to upper parking lot. Fancy feet step up on parking curbs, two steps per curb. All the way down, then all the way back up. Circle up for SSH 25x, GM 10x, the Sprinkler (arms pointed out front, in cadence left 1, front 2, right 3, back to front 4 = 1 rep). Loosens up torso. 10 Merkins, followed by Downward Dog.

The Workout: Was looking forward to applying this format. Indian 1: Kicked off the Indian-run-themed-workout using a 10 lb. medicine ball I picked at a yard sale. This exercise was requested a while back by Deadbolt–I think he called it Pass the Pill. Indian run formation, pass the ball to person behind you, then the six ran the ball to the front. Rinse and repeat. PAX passed the ball at first, but then we advanced to a blind overhead toss. The drop rule was in effect. Drop = five burpees. Was a little slow at first, but then Bulls Eye spiced things up with a drop or two. Probably caused by those gloves he was wearing! Or maybe the bad tosses? Either way, Cupid has dibs on borrowing the medicine ball for his next workout. Medicine ball ultimate?

The Good Morning Burpee was in full effect. Say Good Morning to a walker/runner, if they return the Good Morning, then we do five burpees. We got stiffed on several good mornings–or maybe just could not hear them. Finally, we got a solid Good Morning from Crab Legs as we converged on the greenway. Five burpees, finally!

Indian 2: Rail Road Indian Run. PAX planked up about two feet apart. The six jumped over each PAX, moving to the front of the line. Keep those hips down Slide Rule! Continue til all PAX have jumped.

Indian 3: And this was the toughest one. PAX does low slow flutter while the six does 10 WWIIs. Upon completing the WWIIs, the six runs to the front. I had planned to keep doing low slow flutter continuously, but that proved too much. Thus, we “rested” while each six ran to the front. This was a long round, even with only 12. There were more than single tears on this one!

Field of Dreams/Diamonds Are Forever. More Indian run to baseball dugouts, but sprint from greenway to scoring tower. Meet up at home plate, count off 1, 2, 3, 4. Ones go to first base line for Merkins, twos to second for squats, threes to third for LBCs, fours = the clock at 15 burpees. Complete the burpees and head to first, each group advance until each group did the burpees.

Only 10 minutes left and still want to do feature exercise: the Crazy Indian. Mosey around pond to amphitheater. Assume BTW position. First PAX drops to feet, runs around the wall, cues the next PAX, just like an Indian run, til all PAX have run. Lots of shaking arms–perfectly normal. Done!

Mary: No time, joined kettle bell COT
Announcements: Crab Legs shared his goals during his leave from work: spend time with family and have an impact on ALS. He announced that he will be achieving both soon, as he visits every major ballpark across the country. He’ll visit with and interview folks whose lives have been affected by ALS. He plans to share his journey and those stories via every social media outlet available. Plus, he’ll be looking for mainstream media coverage as well.
T-Claps (Recognition): Nice work by those posting EC this morning!
Prayer: Safe travels and high impact for Crab Legs and his family on their cross-country summer adventure.