The Thicket 6 years
YHC first posted on January 23rd, 2017 at the Thicket. Duplo had EHd YHC to come out after the neighborhood pay-for-play bootcamp (Camp Gladiator) went out of business. 5:45 start time seemed early in those days, but it would be nice to save ~$75 a month.
Marky Mark was the Q in 2017 and was kind enough to share the backblast (https://f3raleigh.com/lose-yourself-2) from that fateful day. It’s funny how you can’t remember what you ate for breakfast, but I remember 80% of that workout pretty well, including that first warm-up circle and Marky Mark saying, "First exercise is side shuffle hop…". I remember being beatdown but enjoying every minute of it by getting to mix some running in with some exercises that I’d never heard of – crawl bear, running with bricks. I was hooked.
Flash forward 6 years later. YHC had the Q (and was co-site Q of the Thicket) to celebrate the anniversary. Some interesting cosmic elements also lined up…
– Today was the exact same day – 1/23/23 vs. 1/23/17 (that wasn’t planned)
– It rained the night before my first post. It rained last night, and we were met with similar post rain wet, but mild January conditions.
– 1x2x3=6 and 1+2+3=6 and 6 years
– Catskill also first posted on this day six years ago. Luckily, Catskill heard the cosmic call and made it out to the Thicket on this fine morning.
Of course, the theme would be based on 6. We would explore the AO with 6 reps of various exercises – intentionally picking a few that were my weaknesses (pull-ups, derkins) and a few that were my strengths (running, cardio).
WARM UP
Fast reps of…
– 6 SSH IC
– 6 mountain climbers IC
– 6 merkins
– 6 squats IC
– 6 WMH IC
– 6 FWD Arm Circles IC
– 6 RVS Arm Circles IC
– 6 Overhead claps IC
– 6 Plank Jacks IC
– 6 Lunges IC
– 6 Burpees OYO
THE THANG
Thang 1 – The Picnic Tables
Mosey behind the school to the picnic tables that seemed to have gone from the pandemic cafeteria to now be permanent fixtures at Woods.
– Derkins x 6 IC
– Dips x 6 IC
– Iron Mikes x 6 IC
– Repeat 6 times
Thang 2 – The Playground
Divide into 2 groups for a push pull set.
– Group 1 – Balls to the Wall
– Group 2 – Pull Ups x 6
– Flip x 3
Thang 3 – The Road
Mosey to the road for some cardio.
– Sprints x 6
– Merkins (at bottom) x 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 6
– Jump Squats (at top) x 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (left out the 6)
MARY
– Asheville Abs x 6
– Plank Set
– Shoulder Taps x 6 IC
– Peter Parker x 6 IC
– Parker Peter x 6 IC
– Ring of Fire
– Merkins to 6
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
– Leprechaun Dash is March 11th (YHC is the race director). Spread the word and register today.
– https://www.ymcatriangle.org/programs/sports-adult/leprechaun-dash-5k10k
– Bourbon tasting
– Rabbit CSAUP in the works
– The Gambler is back – Last weekend in April
COT:
YHC is thankful to F3. In addition to all of the great fitness benefits, the friendships and just pure entertainment of it have been worth the price of admission. Some top of mind things that I’ve learned along the way….
1. Getting up isn’t that hard – at first, setting the alarm for 5am seemed unthinkable. I’ve come to embrace early rising and now, getting up is the least hard thing.
2. We each have our own strengths – some guys can carry heavy things, some guys can do pull-ups all day long, and others might be better runners. That’s okay. F3 forces us all to face our weaknesses, embrace them, and always try to improve.
3. Fitness is more than just fitness of the body – Fitness of the mind and the ability to contribute to society as a leader are just as important. F3 is about all of those things, body, spirit, and mind, to try to become high-impact men (HIM). That focus beyond just the physical is what makes F3 special.