AO: CHOP, Milton, DE

PAX: Chattahoochee, Fireplex, Gump, Probe, Ruxpin, Streudel, Whirlybird

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

Imperial Walkers – 20 IC

Cherry Pickers – 15 IC

Bolt 45’s IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Moroccan Night Clubs – 51 IC

Windmills – 15 IC

Hydraulic Squats – 10 IC

The Thang

The Super 21 Cycle on a Hill starting from Strawberry Alley to Mill Street on Chestnut Street.  1 Merkin to 1 Big Boy Sit up. Nur up the Hill.  21 Merkins to 21 Big Boy Sit ups. Run down the Hill. 2 Merkins to 2 Big Boy Sit ups,  Nur up the Hill. 20 Merkins to 20 Big Boy Sit ups. Run Down the Hill 3 merkins to 3 Big Boy Sit ups. Nur up the Hill 19 Merkins to 19 Big Boy Sit ups.  You Get the pattern..!!  Pax completed the evolution down from 15 Merkins to 15 Big Boy Sit ups on top of the hill and to 8 Merkins and 8 Big Boy Sit ups at the bottom of the hill.  A break was taken for the F3 message.  Pax finished strong with 1 burpee at the bottom of the hill and a Nur up the hill to complete 21 Burpees before the Circle of Trust.

F3 Message

Count-O-Rama, Name-O-Rama, and the Circle of Trust.  Please keep all our HIM in your thoughts and prayers.  

F3 Message 07/01/2025

Pushing the Goal, Missing the Process – #5022

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Chimney Mountain! I had to get to the top of it. Why? Because it was there! Of course, I had to drag my young family into this obsession with me. One vacation day, I made that “Daddy’s Great Adventure for the Day.” Now it wasn’t a steep hike; a trail through the woods that gradually took you to the top of the mountain. As we walked along, my wife and the kids kept noticing little things – like chipmunks and squirrels and flowers and interesting rocks. Of course, whenever we noticed one of those little things, we had to stop; which was not my favorite thing to do. I had a goal, folks, and chipmunks and interesting rocks didn’t help me get to it. At one point, they stopped us just to listen to the wind blowing through the tall pine trees. That’s nice, you know, but not if you wanted to see the top of Chimney Mountain before sunset. Finally, my frustration made it to my mouth, “Honey, the reason for this hike is to get to the top. Don’t you understand?” To which she said something like this: “Oh, I thought we came to enjoy the hike.” Great! I was interested in the result; she was interested in the process!

I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “Pushing the Goal, Missing the Process.”

Later, my wife and I were reflecting on our different perspectives about our Chimney Mountain expedition (and we did finally get to the top, by the way). My wife said, “I wonder if this was a little like God and us. We are more interested in getting the result we want, and He’s more interested in the process.”

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Samuel 22:31, “As for God, His way is perfect.” I think when the Bible talks about God’s way, it isn’t just talking about where we end up. It’s talking about the road He takes us on; the methods He uses. OK, I’ll have to agree with my wife – the process. And His process is always perfect, but certainly not predictable.

In Isaiah 55:8-9 it says, and God is speaking here, “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.'” God’s ways, God’s means of getting us to the answer are unpredictable: “beyond finding out” in the words of Romans 11.

Which brings us to whatever mountain you’re working on right now. If you’re like me, you’re focused on the result you need: the money, the life partner, the healing, the place to live, the job, the change, the answer! You’re in a hurry to get to the top of the mountain. But God, the God whose ways are perfect, is asking you to slow down and enjoy the hike, let the process be beautiful, not just the destination.

The easy part for God is giving you your answer; showing you the top of the mountain. The hard part for God is you – getting you to be the man or woman He redeemed you to be. And He’s using this climb to develop faith in you, or deeper personal holiness, or humility, or to move you from trusting in yourself to totally trusting in Him. He wants you to become a better you on the way to the answer that you want so much.

I’m by nature a goal-oriented person. Just ask my fellow hikers. But in recent years, God’s teaching me an exciting new way to pray: “Lord, I ask You for this answer we need, but please do it in Your time and in the way that will bring You the most glory and us the most growth.” Surrender to your Lord is more than just, “God, give us what You think is best.” It’s a total surrender to whatever timetable He wants, whatever process He wants to use, and whatever He wants to make you go through on your climb up the mountain.

We want to scale the mountain. God wants to change the mountain climber, and He’s using the trail to show you what you need to be. You are His goal. So, enjoy the process.

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

WARM UP

SSH 20 I.C. CHERRY PICKERS 20 I.C IMPERIAL WALKERS 20 I.C. WINDMILL 20 I.C. LOW PLANK > 360* LOW PLANK CRAWL > 10 PLANK PRESS UPS.

THE THANG: MODIFIED MURPHY

1/2 MILE MOSIE

100 BIG BOYS – 200 MERKINS – 300 SQUATS

TACKLED IN 1/4 INCRAMENTS (4 ROUNDS)

25 BIG BOYS – 50 MERKINS – 75 SQUATS (X4)

1/2 MILE MOSIE

THIRD F: 5 LOVE LANGUAGES INTRO

QUALITY TIME RECEIVING GIFTS ACTS OF SERVICE PHYSICAL TOUCH WORDS OF AFFIRMATION

NUMBER-RAMA NAME-O-RAMA COT

6 HIM gathered together on a chilly morning to embrace the suck as YHC Gump was brought back from the dead with a surprise Q (thank you Sherlock much appreciated). We welcomed a HIM (Breakfast Club) from downrange back as he was visiting family for the Holidays.

Warm o rama

• 20 SSH
• 10 windmills
• 10 grady corn
• 15 crab flippers

THE THANG

In typical Gump fashion we went for a stroll through the GRITMILL. We Mosied the Riverwalk around for a warmup just to get us over to Gigante parking lot. Here we worked thru the 100 ab workout.

• PAX completed 100 of an exercise, first one to 100 called it and everyone was done, after the exercise we did a lap around the parking lot. The exercises were as follows:
• 100 LBC- lap
• 100 BBSU -lap
• 100 flutterkicks single count- lap
• 3rd F message
• 100 doubletap LBC- lap
• 100 American hammers- lap
• finished up the workout the way we started and took a nice mosey back down the riverwalk to end the beautiful Gloom

3rd F message

Colossians 1:10-14

10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;

12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:

13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

it was great spending the morning with all of you HIM, i will be back out regularly as soon as I can. It’s hard to drive from anywhere to get the kiddos on the bus by 610, and on the days my wife has off work I let her sleep in because Shes been working full time and going to college full time. Saturdays I take the kiddos out hunting. Just know our family has changed in the past 2 years and I am fully focused on serving them. See you Gents soon!!

QIC had his chance to bring it on this beautiful Gloom for the 1st time in a few months. IT was a great morning and thank you to all the HIM thgt made it out.

Warm o Rama

20 ssh

20 cherry pickers

15 windmills

The Thang

• Mosey over to HOB front parking lot for a little bit of Running

10 burpees 1 lap

10 burpees 20 merkins 1 lap

10 burpees 20 merkins 30 Bobby Hurleys 1 lap

Insert 3rd F message here details below

10,20, 30, 40 squats, 50 LBC 1 lap

Return back to AO for COT Announcements and prayer requests

3rd f message

QIC GUMP announced that last week he and his M celebrated their 20th anniversary. There is no real secret to the success in this endeavor. Basic Biblical principals have led to years of success in our marriage. Beginning with forgiveness. QIC shared that 26 years ago his father found out that his mother was cheating on him and in a jealous rage turned a gun on his family and shot us. Years later, and a restored relationship with his dad, QIC gump needed some advice and asked his dad what he would have done differently, other than not picking up a gun of course. His father replied, ” I would have forgiven her and let her go in hopes that she would return”. With this said every successful relationship needs a foundation in Christ. Both partners need to practice forgiveness, and grace in order for the relationship to work and mature, and once you get thru the tough times the relationship is stronger than ever. Here are a few scriptures I found to back up my message:

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;

bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.

Colossians 3:12- 13

Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.

Colossians 3:19

Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was

brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and

came and told their master all that had been done. Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

Matthew 18:21-35

QIC: MacDaddy

18 Outstanding HIM including one FNG beat the fartsack and showed up for a GritMil beat down. We had such a good turnout we had to overcome and adapt to our situation in order to have enough coupons for everyone. Big thanks to Chief Quattro for lending out various weighted objects to fulfill the order.

Warm-Up
Side-Straddle-Hops X 20
Bolt 45s
Merkins X 20
Cherry Pickers x 20

The Thang
Mosey to Basketball “Field”

Round 1.
With 1 gallon jugs
50 Bicep Curls
Sprint to opposite end of B-Ball court, 5 Burpees
NUR back to start and 50 Bicep Curls
Everyone does Squats until 6 is in.

Round 2.
With 1 Gal Jugs
50 Overhead Shoulder Presses
Walking lung to opposite end of B-ball court, 5 Burpees
NUR Back to start and 50 Overhead Shoulder Presses.
Everyone does Squats until 6 is in.

Round 3.
With 1 gal jugs, lay flat on back for 50 tri-cep extensions (Skull Crushers) with 1 gal jugs
Scissor run to other side of B-ball court, 5 Burpees.
Scissor run back to Start, 50 Tri-Cep extensions with 1 gal jugs.
Everyone does Squats until 6 is in.

Round 4.
With 1 Gal jugs 50 Juggerbell Swings with squat.
Tightrope Walk with arm out to other side of B-Ball Court, 5 Burpees
NUR back to start for 50 Juggerbell Swings
Everyone does Squats until 6 is in.

3rd F
Being a Man who Leads

In the Bible Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 11, where he says, “The man is the head of the woman…For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man, for indeed man was not created for the woman’s sake, but woman for the man’s sake. This is Paul upholding the concept of a man’s leadership in the family by appealing to the order of creation, and the fact that man was created first, then the woman as a helper to man. Later on in Ephesians Paul addresses a married man’s role as head of his own home. Paul establishes that God’s design is that the husband is “the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church”. Then the bible gives specific instructions on how husbands are to fulfill their leadership role, beginning with the important command: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loves the church”.

Let’s think about the for a second. How much does Jesus love His church. This love would be described as a sacrificial, purifying, caring, unbreakable, Christ-like love. Christ’s love for the church is a model for husbands to follow, and is a living illustration of the redemptive love of Christ. One of the greatest act of love anyone could do for another is to sacrifice their own life for them. (Acts 20:28 – Christ purchased the church with His own Blood).

Now the question to ask is, if we are to love our wives with that same kind of love, how to we compare? Well, the answer is we all fall short, and we do not even come close. But that’s okay, because Christ has set the standard, so we now know where to aim.

Some more questions we could ask ourselves is:

How are we sacrificial in our own home?

Are we so self-focused that we are not aware of the needs in our home?

Are we willing to sacrifice our time to listen to & comfort our wives and provide emotional and physical security?

Who is the spiritual leader in the home?

If you are a Christian man, then you will recognize that success in your home is far more important than success in your career.

So when we leave here today, let’s note where it all begins, with the command, “Husbands, love your wives”.

C.H. Spurgeon said,

“A husband loves his wife with a constant love, and so does Christ his church. He will not cast her away tomorrow having loved her today. He does not vary in his affection. He may change in his display of affection, but the affection itself is still the same. A husband loves his wife with an enduring love; it will never die out. He says, “Tell death us do part will I cherish thee”, but Christ will not let death part his love to his people. Nothing shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

So gents, with that said, we now know God’s standard when it comes to being a Godly husband, a leader in our home, and a father to our children. Let’s use that in our life to better serve our family.

Date: 08/04/2022

AO: CHOP, Milton, DE

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

SSH – 20 IC

Burpees – 10 OYO

Cherry Pickers – 20 IC

Bolt 45’s IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Jiminy Crickets – 10 OYO

Windmills – 20 IC

The Thang

Pax completed the Hindenburg BLIMPS routine from the Exicon at the CHOP.  We modified the sprint portion to a straight line across the CHOP Parking lot approx. .02 miles apart.  Sprint from the Church to the field behind CHOP and perform 1^st exercise, sprint back to Church and perform 1st exercise, sprint back to the field and perform 1st exercise.  Sprint back to the Church and perform 1st exercise.  Plank it up until all PAX are in.  That completes one round.  Rinse and repeat for the remaining exercises as identified.  Round #1 – 10 Burpees. Round #2 – 20 Lunges (10 each leg).  Round #3 – 30 Imperial Walkers.  Round #4 – 40 Merkins.  Round #5 – 50 Plank Jacks.  Round #6 – 60 Squats.

F3 message –The 3^rd F was shared after completing round #4.  See Below….  

PAX finished the beat down strong with more burpees OYO & AMRAP.

Count-O-Rama, Name-O-Rama, and the Circle of Trust.  Please keep all our HIM in your thoughts and prayers.    

F3 Message 08/04/22

THE TROUBLE WITH SELFIES

January 9, 2017

Jim cracked me up with the story he told in his recent family newsletter.

He and his honey were enjoying some personal time at the Atlantic Ocean. Which is really big. Jim decided to take a picture of himself and the ocean. Which is really big.

Later, he made a disturbing discovery – which he reported this way. “I think I missed the ocean!”

Which is really big.

Oh, he’s in the picture, all right. But the Atlantic is nowhere to be seen.

Now how can a smart guy miss something as big and beautiful as the ocean?

By totally focusing on himself.

I’ve made that mistake. Missing the big thing because I was so focused on myself. I suspect I’m not alone.

When we’re hurting…when we’re grieving…when we’re grappling with a big problem – we tend to go inward and become all about ourselves.

We miss the person we married because we’re so focused on our frustrations with them. Before we married them, we magnified what we loved and minimized what bothered us. Now we’re all about our frustrations with them, forgetting all we loved about them.

So it’s selfie time. All about me. Losing sight of the one we once could not live without. So we stop loving like we did, and they start responding to the change.

We can miss our kids the same way. By dwelling on how they’re disappointing us, defying us, distancing themselves from us. So we’re sucked into a cycle of seeing – and talking about – only what they need to change. Not seeing – and talking about – the big picture of their strengths and their potential. We focus the lens on our hurt and fear and frustration – and miss the big stuff. The masterpiece God made and entrusted to us.

I know how much my picture can become a selfie when I’m going through a hurting time. Pain tends to make us selfish. Self-centered. Self-pitying. All those nasty self words.

But my Bible tells me that there’s always something bigger going on than the immediate situation. “All things work together for good to those who love God,” it says (Romans 8:28). And it quotes God as saying, “I know the plans I have for you, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).

There’s a Big Plan. For my good. But I’ll miss the big and beautiful part if all I focus on is my pain.

When my precious Karen was suddenly gone last May, my natural tendency was to be all about me – my grief, my life without her, my future.

But, thankfully, God quickly rescued me from my selfie. And began to show me what I could become through this greatest heartbreak of my life. I can honestly say my heart is more open than it’s ever been – open to God’s voice, open to letting my journey help others on their journey, open to the broken and breaking hearts all around me.

What’s scary is that our “selfie” focus can actually cause us to miss the biggest and most beautiful sight of all.

The God who made us.

We so want to have life our way that we live as if we’ve dethroned Him from the throne of our life. In the Bible’s words, “Each of us has turned to His own way” (Isaiah 53:6). And those “God, You run the universe, but I’ll run me” choices have “separated you from your God” (Isaiah 59:2).

All about me. Missing the God who’s the reason we’re here. Whose love we’re made for. Who thought we were worth sending His Son to die for.

The Ocean is right there, within my sight. Unless I’m blocking the view.

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

• SSH – 20 IC
• Mountain Man Poopers 15 IC
• Hairy Rockets 20 IC

The Thang:

Mosey to grassy area in front of doctors office

• Moroccan Night Club 40 IC
• Cherry Picker 15 IC
• Flutter Kicks 30 IC

Mosey to HOB entrance

• Imperial Squat Walker 20 IC
• Merkins 15 IC
• Zombie Crunch 15 each direction OYO

Mosey to Rogers Signs

• Iron Mike 10 IC
• Diamond Merkins 15 IC
• The Outlaw 10 each direction OYO
• The First F3 Message: A Philosophy for Winning

Mosey to fire hydrant jail break to next hydrant

• Cherkins 25 OYO
• Big Boys 25 OYO

Wosey to guard railing

• Plyo Merkins 20 OYO
• Dips 40 OYO

Mosey to Rogers Signs

• Twinkle Toes 20 IC

Mosey to HOB

• The Sketch 12 IC
• The Second F3 Message: The Heart of a Champion

Mosey to AO

• Number-rama
• Name-arama
• COT

Message: Excerpt from Bob Richards A Heart of a Champion book

A Philosophy for Winning

We all want to win, but what are the characteristics of winning. Number one: you’ve got to have the will to win. It’s a will to win, and not just a wish to win. I know a lot of people who have what I would call a wish to win. They’d like to go to the top. They daydream about the position they’d like to hold in life. They tell you their potential, about the heights they could soar to, or the distances they could run, the times they could perform if they would only get out and train. I think the greatest thing in life is to be able to dream, to have great aspirations, but I think it equally important that you have a will that can turn that dream into a reality.

Second you need to have inspiration. I’ve been amazed to see mediocre athletes, fellows drifting along with great potential but never really realizing their full abilities, suddenly inspired by a great coach, or some great ideal something that will lift them up and they would do the impossible. Inspired people: It’s when the see themselves not as they are but as they can become. It’s when they see themselves, not in terms of their weaknesses and shortcomings; their failures and inadequacies, but in terms of what they can be, when they begin to believe they can be what their vision tells them—-that’s when they’re inspired.

Lastly, take God with you. It’s the greatest ingredient in what I call a winning philosophy. These athletes believe that they have a power greater than their own. Nothing can thwart them, with God they do great and tremendous things.

The Heart of a Champion

Every man or woman needs the heart of a champion. It’s a quality of mind, a mental resolve, an attitude that turns a man or woman beyond the normal and the mediocre to accomplishing great things in all walks of life. The difference between a champion and a mediocre athlete is the difference between one who gives up and one who doesn’t. This is the basic philosophy that has made America great. It’s a philosophy of freedom, of liberty, of the great ideals we cherish. The spirt of America is the spirit of greatness; it’s the heart of a champion.

The champions I’ve seen have had another great quality. They dared to believe the impossible. What is the story behind athletics? It’s the story of young men and women who come along and say, “no matter what others say, I believe the record can be broken.” These young men and women, with faith and courage and vision in their hearts, daring to believe the impossible and training themselves to a peak perfection, have broken every record in the books.

The America system and way of life is perhaps more beautifully expressed in athletics than in any other field of endeavor? All the competitive element, all the drive, all the pressure, all the fire that makes America great is found in our athletic programs. The Bible says: “All things are possible to him who believes”

Life has its hurts, its setbacks, its defeats, its heartaches. No man can meet life in all of its fullness, but he must at one time or another meet hurt and pain and suffering—not only physical but mental pain, spiritual pain, financial pain. The champion is the one who can meet it with a stiff upper lip, with faith in God, and somehow, even with that hurt and pain in his heart, he keeps on going to achieve greatness.  

DATE: 19 May 22

QIC: Chappie

YHC and Focker were stand-ins for Mr. Mom, who pushed back his VQ to next Tue., May 24, as he was “feeling under the weather.” (Stay tuned) Focker adjusted to the change order and got in his VQ Warm-O-Rama. The guy’s a natural! Time to get him in the Q rotation. Focker warmed up the 14 PAX who won THAT FIRST BATTLE (over the fartsack) like this:

WARM-O-RAMA:

• Disclaimer given
• Finkle Swings – 10 each leg, OYO
• Turn & Bounce – 15 IC
• Windmill – 15 IC
• MNC – 20 IC
• SSH – 20 IC
• Flutter Kicks – 20 IC

Focker said he forgot how hard it was to do cadence while exercising. But YHC observed that his old Army days came right back. The dude’s a natural! And major Tclaps to Focker: He just jumped into F3 a month or two ago and he just doesn’t miss! Consistency is key. Look up consistency in the dictionary and you’ll find Focker’s pic. Keep posting brother, you’re on to something!

YHC broke out the big dice for the dicey weather. Here’s how it went down:

THE THANG:

4 Big Dice, roll ’em down the field as far as you can, PAX make their way to the dice via Bear Crawl or Crawl Bear and do that number of reps…

First Roll: 17

• Bear Crawl to Dice
• 17 Burpees
• 17 X’s & O’s

Second Roll: 6

• Crawl Bear to Dice
• 6 Burpjacks
• 6 V-Ups

Third Roll: 14

• Bear Crawl to Dice
• 14 Burp-N-Merks (Total Merkins = 105)
• 14 E2K’s (each leg)

PAX circled up and took in 3rdF at this point: “Habits eat Willpower for Breakfast” (see below). After the 3rdF it was a Prison Break back to the parking lot.

PAX partnered up for Partner Push across the parking lot and back, while 5 PAX would rotate over to the swing-set to swap out for AMRAP Swerkins. Most got in…

• Partner Push – 3 rounds
• Swerkins – 3 rounds, AMRAP

Round of Mary:

• 4-Count Freddies – 51 IC (at the hands of YHC)
• Flutter Kicks – 20 IC (at the hands of Drago)
• 6″ Hold – 3 rounds of 10-Counts (YHC)

That was a wrap.

NUMBER-RAMA

NAME-O-RAMA

COT/BOM:

• Announcements: Get the word out about the Memorial Day Mini (CSAUP), menu sign-up will be posted today or tomorrow, and don’t forget to bring a brief bio of a fallen warrior to share sometime during the workout. Roving Ruckf3st Friday will be at CHOP.

• Prayer: For Fireplex’s dad, Johnny, battling cancer. For YHC’s M’s Uncle Donnie, given a week to a month to live (cancer). For Chauffer’s M and family. And for Quattro’s M’s feet…

Always happy to Q, thanks Mr. Mom for extending the opportunity. Glad to be your stunt double. Can’t wait to see what you unveil at your VQ.

Chappie, out!

The following is the 3rdF shared mid-workout: (Highly adapted from Steve Moore)

I recently heard the statement by Steve Moore that HABITS EAT WILLPOWER FOR BREAKFAST. Good or bad, your habits will dominate your willpower. Period. Hence, the saying in workout circles “You don’t need motivation, you need discipline.” Discipline forges habits and whether you’re trying to make or break a habit, willpower eventually subsides.

Understanding the power of habit is critical! The difference between ordinary and extraordinary in every area of daily life physically, spiritually, relationally, financially, and intellectually, etc. isn’t one shining moment of overachievement. It’s a series of meaningful but modest actions over time.

WILLPOWER CAN GET YOU STARTED, initiating positive change, but [Good] Habits will enable you to follow through consistently.

HABIT FORMATION: There’s common agreement that habits include a REWARD, a ROUTINE, and a CONTEXT.

REWARD: Can be as simple as the feeling of satisfaction you get from doing something that aligns with your goals, makes you feel good, or achieve a desired outcome.

ROUTINE: The specific sequence of actions that produce the reward. This is where your brain connects all the individual action steps and bundles them for retrieval later. (i.e. like getting up and driving here this morning, you didn’t have to think about it step-by-step; it is routine. And that’s the way we want our habits to be.)

CONTEXT: Is any part of the situation or environment that serves as a trigger for the routine. For example: When I started going to F3 workouts in SC, I was a night-owl, always have been. I immediately found it difficult to stay up til 1 or 2 a.m. AND get up to workout. I had willpower, but needed new habits because eventually the old habit of staying up half the night would eat my willpower for breakfast! I’m at my best when I get to bed at a decent time (new habit). The reward is that I’m able to make the workouts and stay physically fit. The routine, as I mentioned the other day, is that I wake up at 4 a.m. no matter what (regardless of whether I’m working out), and the context quite simply is physical fitness, camaraderie (fellowship), and faith (mine is strengthened because of walking through life with you guys and being part of something bigger). I want to engage in these practices because the value is compounded over time. The same could be said for working hard, eating healthy, investing in a friendship, etc.

Yet, because WILLPOWER is a diminishing resource, WILLPOWER must focus on building a habit, not on completing a task (i.e. anybody can do something 1x or 2x…). There’s a difference. WILLPOWER helps establish the context and routine. But the power of habit enables consistency and compounds the benefits/reward over time.

Since there’s great wisdom in the Word of God I’ll leave you with this: The Bible warns against bad habits (which enslave) but it also exalts good habits, discipline, and self-control:

• 2 Peter 2:12 warns we’re not to be like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed. Turned into food, clothing, wallets, boots…
• Prov. 25:28 says, “A man without self-control [good habits] is like a city broken into and left without walls.”
• Prov. 13:4 “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the diligent (HIM w/good habits) is richly supplied.”
• 2 Tim. 1:7 “God have us a spirit NOT of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
• Gal. 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control; [and the kicker is…] against such things there is no law.” !!!

Habits eat WILLPOWER for breakfast, be sure to develop good ones (habits).

DATE: 4/30/22

QIC: Chappie

18 PAX won that first battle and posted for “Sandbag Saturday” led by YHC. Shout out to TRex and Gump for adding to the collection of 9 GORUCK bags (varied weights) plus 10 good ol’ fashioned 40lb sandbags. The collection made everyone’s day. Here’s how it went down…

WARM-O-RAMA:

• SSH – 18 IC
• Swartzjacks – 18 IC
• Sealjacks – 54 IC (Since YHC is 54 years respect) *Too many quit! (See 3rdF shared: Slaughter in F3 Nation Newsletter)
• Windmill – 10 IC

Mosey to the field beside the Presb. Church (where PAX found the beautiful stack of sandbags. PAX circled up for 3rdF. YHC played the audio from Slaughter’s message in the most recent F3 Nation Newsletter (Had planned a 3rdF “Habits Eat Willpower for Breakfast” but Slaughter’s message was too good NOT to share.) Then it was time for sandbag business…

THE THANG:

PAX were directed to split up with sandbags: 1/2 at cone #1 and 1/2 40 yards away at cone #2. THE PURPOSE: Keep moving! Run to next cone with sandbag, drop it, run back without. Carry bags at intervals but never pass a bag. Just keep carrying bags and KEEP MOVING. YHC also called out the following exercises throughout the durations:

• OH Press – 25 OYO
• Sandbag Squats – 25 (Get low! A2G!)
• Sand Bears – Cone to cone
• OH Shoulder Press – 25 OYO

Grand Finale:

• PAX counted off by 2’s and separated into 2 teams for Sandbag Tic-Tac-Toe
• Good ol’ fashioned sandbags painted with X’s & O’s (Tic-Tac-Toe painted on center of the field)
• Teams 70′ apart. Each PAX (in-turn) must do 10 Chest-Bump Merkins on their sandbag before jumping up and carrying it to strategically place it in the Tic-Tac-Toe board. Must return to line before next PAX takes turn.
• X’s went up 2-0 before the O’s made a come from behind run for the victory. Losers had to do 10 Sandbag Burpees as punishment.

Good fun and healthy competition won the day before we made our way back to the AO.

NUMBER-RAMA

NAME-O-RAMA

COT/BOM:

• Announcements: Coffeeteria at Dunkin; Memorial Day Mini (CSAUP) coming up, invite everyone; Q Rotation coming out NLT than Sunday afternoon

• Prayers: Fireplex’s dad – Battling cancer; Quattro’s feet?. YHC encouraged PAX to begin more regularly sharing requests in the COT (i.e. we tend to pray for those outside the circle–neighbors, friends, co-workers–those requests are important, but the idea is for us get real and personal by praying for each other as well).

As always YHC counts it a privilege and is thrilled by the opportunity to Q. Appreciate all the men who posted, to include the 2.0’s (they carried man-sized sandbags and never complained once – that’s fire!)

Aye!

Chappie, out!