Week 5

neck circles, arm circles and Michael Phelps

After the warmup, we grabbed some PVC and moseyed across the field to complete the following:

3 rounds of:
– 10 sampson stretches
– 10 overhead squats
– 10 big boys
– 10 superman’s
– 10 merkins
– 10 pullups

5 rounds of:
– 5 pullups
– 5 merkins
– 5 squats
– 5 merkins
– 10 squats

6 400m runs with a 2 minute rest in between each lap.

My thought for today is a reflection from the Exodus 90 conference I attended in Denver last Friday. Exodus 90 leadership invited 20 guys from across the country to meet in Denver for a brainstorming session. We talked about what works in the program and improvements we hope to see. We began the day with Mass, and during Father’s homily he referenced a quote that went something like “When men of faith are gathered in fraternity it shakes the gates of hell.”. I thought about that line throughout the day as a group of us were huddled in a conference room all working toward the same goal… A goal of building up a program designed to form stronger men. It was a powerful experience for me!

F3 was mentioned at least a dozen times that day by myself and other men in the group. While Exodus90 is completely focused on the 3rd F (Faith), the groups complement each other very well and both have made a significant impact in my life.

The real secret to F3 is the 3rd F. I’ve been in several COTs where I’m struggling to hold back tears because one of my brothers is going through hard times or sharing a vulnerable message that I really need to hear. There is so much power in a group of men circled with one arm on a brother’s shoulder and the other raised praising our Heavenly Father. Reflecting on it now, I think it’s times like those that shake the gates of hell.