No Excuse November

DATE: 11/3/20 **ELECTION DAY**

QIC: Chappie

Turned out to be yet another Baker’s Dozen consisting of the 13 HIM who won THAT FIRST BATTLE and posted on the first truly cool gloom workout of Fall 2020. Bad weather cannot stop these men–No Excuse November has begun!

Here’s the skinny: YHC tried to bring some new exercises to the Gloom…

WARM-O-RAMA:

• SSH – 18 IC
• Windmill – 18 IC
• Imperial Walker – 18 IC
• WTHEKS – 18 IC
  • (What The HEKS = High Elbow Knee Slide) [Bearcrawl position. Alternate raising high elbows up & over your back, twist & slide opposite knee under. Rinse & Repeat]
• Cherry Pickers – 15 IC
• Swartzjacks – 18 IC

THE THANG:

Legs

• Broad Jump Squats – 10 rounds OYO
  • [BJ, squat, turn around in air, BJ back, squat, turn around, BJ, rinse and repeat]
• Partner Pushes – 3 rounds across the lot & back, alternating who pushes
• Lunge Thrusts – 3rounds per leg
  • [Lunge right leg, thrust high knee following lunge. 5 reps same leg. Swap. Rinse & Repeat]
• BPJ’s, (Bad Parking Jobs) a.k.a. Line Touches
  • [Side-shuffle, touch parking line, side-shuffle back, touch parking line. Rinse & Repeat]

Shoulders

• Curbside Carolinas [Feet together, up on curb, butt in air, Carolina Drydock] – AMRAP OYO, resting means your finished. Ruxpin was last man standing
• Shmerkin – 5 rounds OYO
  • (Shuffle Merkins) [Plank position, shuffle right 3 “steps”, 5 Merkin, shuffle left 3 “steps”, 5 Merkins Rinse & repeat]
• Swerkins – 5 reps, boosted to 10 Reps at half, swap w/partner, while remaining PAX ☆RR Tracks across lot, mosey back, rinse & repeat til all PAX work through the RR Tracks

☆ Mosey 30, 20, 10 around the short block

3rdF Beak in Action | YHC shared the following:

Years ago Lt. Sakowski was the leader of our Field Artillery survey team when I served in PA’s 28th ID BTRY F 109th FA. After completing a successful mission during a field training exercise, Lt. Sakowski and our Platoon Sergeants decided to reward our team’s hard work with a bit of what I’ll call a “field picnic” — after several days of eating MRE’s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, we were ready for a change! They’d snuck back to the PX and picked up some rolls, cold-cuts, lettuce, tomato, pickles and some other snacks, etc.

Our Lt. had scouted out an “off the grid” spot and in the midst of making our way there with 3-4 vehicles right behind his, Lt. Sakowski’s driver hit the brakes, and our Lt. stood up to extend through the top of his uncovered/topless 1/4-ton Jeep and began shouting to turn around and high-tail it back to where we’d come from. Based on the nature of his commands, the tone of his voice, and the look on his face, nobody asked a question and we got out of there fast!

Once we finally made it to the location he’d originally picked, Lt. Sakowski owned up to what he had done — he discovered he was leading our small convoy directly through the middle of an Impact Area! For those unfamiliar with what that is, it’s an area where bombs are dropped and into which Artillery and other weapons are fired during live-fire training exercises. I.e. YOU DON’T WANT TO BE IN AN IMPACT AREA!!

Outside of the fact that if you’re in there you’re a target), the moral of the story is that everyone one of us in our artillery survey team, not to mention everyone in my entire unit, would’ve followed Lt. Sakowski anywhere, especially into battle! He was a rare leader! He was a proven leader! He was a humble leader. He was a great leader who was highly respected by all. His leadership was defined by consistently leading well on all occasions, not by that single incident of taking us into an extremely dangerous area. Even in that moment he took full responsibility of what could’ve been a catastrophic mistake.

Let’s go ahead and call it “NO EXCUSE NOVEMBER,” not just in terms of posting or not posting, but in all we do. We’d all do well to stop making excuses and blaming others for failures. We’d do well to own up to OUR mistakes (and sins) so that we’re able to learn from them and grow into better leaders as a result…better leaders in our homes, in our workplaces, and in the communities in which we serve. We’d do well to take ownership and responsibility and lead even where someone else has come up short.

One biblical example of this that I’m thinking of is Peter… He exhorted the elders as a “fellow elder in 1 Peter 5:1 to, “Shepherd the flock of God among you…” Where did those words come from? See John 21 where, at a post-resurrection breakfast along the beach, Jesus pulled Peter aside and asked him 3 times, “Peter, do you love Me?” Each time Peter responded with, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you” and each time Jesus responded with, “then shepherd my sheep.” Remember Peter was the one who openly denied Christ. He was a failed leader, a broken leader. In all practicality, we assume Peter’s repentance, his ownership of sin and failure. He was humbled and broken; but lesson learned he was restored and then Jesus recommissioned him with the words…follow me!

Abs

Here’s what YHC had planned next:

• Big Boy Heal Touches
  • [Lying flat, arms extend on ground behind head. 1 knee upward toward chest, torso up extending both arms to touch both sides of same heal, back down, raise to opposite heal, back down. Rinse & repeat]
• Crazy Dolly
  • [On six, hands in ground near hips, torso in recliner position. Feet at 6″, spread out like Dolly, bring feet together, then knees to chest, back out, spread feet like Dolly, feet back together, knees to chest. Rinse & repeat]
• Boardwalk Big Boys
  • [Partner hold feet, six on edge of Boardwalk Bench, lay back 1/2 – 3/4, back up. Consistent motion. 5 reps, swap with partner, rinse & repeat]
• Boardwalk Liars
  • [Partner holds feet, lie on stomach with upper torso extended over edge, hands behind head, lower down then back up. 5 reps, swap with partner. AMRAP while other PAX☆RR Tracks across lot, mosey back]

EXTRAS:

• Rosie – AC/DC version, 05:36 mins. of Rosalita! (Extra credit if done at home)
• Dragon Tires
• RR Tracks across the field
• Wall Work

We ran out of time, so Here’s what we actually did:

• Mary – 3 rounds: 4-Count Freddies (Quattro); American Hammers (Woodstock); Flutter Kicks (Leatherman)

COT/BOM:

• Announcements: Another fundraiser 5k coming up, Quattro to push out the details to PAX on Groupme; Woodstock likely to miss 11/5 VQ due to travels and looking to swap Q’s with another PAX. BIG NEWS: Today was last day single “reeespect” for Streudel, tomorrow the beast turns 60 and gains double-reeespect in the COT! Remember, it’s No Excuse November” so lets be HIM, eliminate the excuses we’re prone to make, and, who knows, perhaps we’ll develop some new habits that’ll carry us beyond November.
• PRAYERS: It’s Election Day… nuf said; Chattahoochee’s 2.0, Taylor, recovering from tonsillectomy; Woodstock safe travels to pick up a plane; etc.

~Chappie, out!