Gift Exchange Ladder

Neck stretches, arm circles, hip stretches and bear stretches got us started.

We built a collaborative ladder in which each person took turns leading us through the circuit and adding a new exercise with reps increasing by 5 each time through. The ladder consisted of the following:

5 Merkins- @Squealer x11 cycles (10 up, 1 down)=55 total reps
10 Childish Merkins- @Shugah x10 cycles= 100 total reps
15 Prison Get Ups- @French Lick ×9 cycles = 135 total reps
20 SSH- @Garmin x8 cycles= 160 total reps
25 Squats- @Squealer x7 cycles=175 total reps
30 Monkey Humpers- @Shugah x6 cycles= 180 total reps
35 LBCs- @French Lick x5 cycles=175 total reps
40 Alt. Shoulder Taps- @Garmin x4 cycles= 160 total reps
45 Mtn. Climbers- @Squealer x 3 cycles= 135 total reps
50 Big Boys- @Shugah x1 cycle= 50 reps (that was plenty)

In addition to adding to the circuit, each time around the circle the PAX had to lead the circuit exactly as it had been done before. The penalty for not repeating in the correct order was double the amount of the offending reps. Fortunately, we did not have to suffer through any penalties!

The focus was on presence (or presents—hence the very loose connection back to gifts. I admit it was a stretch). Presence meaning being immersed into whatever you are doing at that moment. The mental challenge of today’s workout was staying connected enough to what we were doing so each person could lead it when their turn came around again. The more focused and “present” you are in the moment, the better the outcome will be. This applies to family, to work, to workouts and anything else you care enough about to spend your time on.