Fitness. Fellowship. Faith.

Free Outdoor Morning Workouts To Build Community Leaders

Seismic Pyramid of Empathy

  • When: 20180227
  • QIC: Greenbags
  • The PAX: Grits, Peg, Pretzel, Muscadine, Cannoli, Milton, Flo, Probie, Smokey, Free Loader, Fanny Pack, Shrute, Sprinkle


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The mission of F3 is to plant, grow and serve small workout groups for the invigoration of male community leadership.

Conditions: 50’s and dry

FNGs: None

COP:

Mt. Climbers 10x’s IC / Merkins 10x’s IC / TTT 10x’s IC / Mt. Climbers 10x’s / DQ 5x’s IC / LBAC Forward down to air squat 2 minutes

While doing reverse LBAC’s Pax had 1 minute to get in height order.

The penalty for not doing so would be Burpees. Pax executed it in less than 40 seconds!

The Thang:  YHC has enjoyed having lunch with different members of the Pax. And we’ve had in depth conversations about matters plaguing our society.  One conclusion we came to was the apparent lack of empathy as these issues are tackled in public forums.  Most people have already formed their opinion and respond with knee jerk reactions without taking time to consider the other persons perspective.

Empathy doesn’t mean you have to change your mind, it just means you’re willing to see things from another point of view.

The goal of this workout was to not only to get better while getting smoked but to also make the Pax think about what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes. To accomplish this YHC asked questions prior to each “Staying Alive” evolution: For example…

1- Who here is a first responder? (2 members of the Pax stepped out. I instructed the rest of the Pax to imagine what it’s like to be in the shoes of a first responder. Going out each day risking your life for a majority of people that you don’t know)

2- How many of you are school teachers? (1 member of the Pax, a 10th-grade teacher, stepped out.  I instructed the Pax to imagine what it’s like to be in his shoes. What it’s like to be in a classroom with this generation along with social media and all the other issues out there)

And so on…now here’s the BC:

Pyramid Partner Workout. When it comes to partner exercises Q believes that both partners should be working and maximizing the 45 minutes of joy we have together! 🙂

PARTNER UP!

-Partner Stand Ups- 7x’s OYO (start on your six, back to back and arms interlocked with your partner and stand up together)
-80 Yard Staying Alive – “Staying Alive” is this Q’s substitute name for suicides. Personally will not give glory to a word that negatively impacts soldiers, families, friends and has personally impacted this Q several times in his life. Now… off my soapbox and back to The Thang!!
-Alternating Stand-Ups- 10x’s OYO (5 each arm) – Help your partner off the ground 10 times alternating never letting the partner’s hand go. (This continues to be a core destroyer and stomach swirler!)
-80 Yard Staying Alive
-Dead Lift Derkins- 15x’s each (one partner holds the other partner’s legs performing deadlifts in unison to the other partner executing a merkin) Switch!
-80 Yard Staying Alive
-30 Yard Dummy Drag then execute 20 Air Squat Merkin Punches. Then Switch- Old Flame informed us that the proper name for the partner drag was “dummy drag”.  After you dummy drag your partner for 30 yards. You assume the air squat position with your hands out while your partner executes 20 merkin punches. Then switch!
 
-80 Yard Staying Alive
-Low Plank Jumps 25x’s each OYO – One partner performs a low plank while the other partner does 25 side jumps over their legs. Switch!
-80 Yard Staying Alive
GO BACK UP THE PYRAMID by repeating the above exercises in reverse starting at Partner Dummy Drag/Merkin Punches ending at Partner Stand-Ups

Mary:

Freddie Mercuries 10x’s IC / LBC’s 10x’s IC / WWI Sit Ups OQ /

Creeds 10x’s IC = WWII situps plus a left/right jab up top (Named after Apollo Creed).

Numberama: 15

Namerama: Grits, Peg, Pretzel, Muscadine, Cannoli, Milton, Flo, Probie, Smokey, Free Loader, Fanny Pack, Shrute, Sprinkle, Greenbags

Pledge and COT: Done

Announcements: Done

Moleskin:   This workout never disappoints. Several pax admitted to being on the brink of splash merloting. YHC included! Proud of how the men pushed through and how serious they were as YHC asked them the questions pertaining to empathy!

Devo:

EMPATHY – Have you ever felt misunderstood because the person you were talking to didn’t take time to consider things from your perspective?

I remember when my twins were first born and coming home after a grueling day at work. All I wanted to do was get home, get out of my work clothes and relax!  Can you relate?

When I finally got home, my wife greeted me at the door with a dazed look on her face and asked me to take over taking care of the kids because she needed a break!  Before I thought about what I was saying, I blurted out:

“A break?  From what?  You’re here at home all day “just” taking care of the kids and yourself.”

My wife: “You don’t know what it’s like to be in my shoes, taking care of our kids all day long…(you can imagine the rest of what she had to say as she thoroughly educated me on the duties of a stay at home parent)”

She was 100% right. I was being a jerk and subconciously I was being selfish without even knowing it.  All I was thinking about was me and what I wanted and how I felt without taking into consideration how and why she felt the way she did.

That gentleman is a prime of example of not exercising “Empathy”.

One definition for Empathy is: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

It’s the ability to intentionally pause for a moment and consider the perspective of the person you’re interacting with. And ask yourself questions like:

  • What is it like to be a Police Officer in this society?
  • What is it like to be a military spouse?
  • What is it like for a black male to walk into the gloom, for the first time, at 0500 amongst a majority group of white men that he doesn’t know? After several days of racially charged issues in our country.
  • What is it like to be a teenager?
  • Why do they feel like their heritage or history is under attack?
  • What is it like to be in the minority at your high school?
  • What is it like to be the new person at your job?
  • Why are you so passionate about making sure racial slurs aren’t used?
  • What is it like to be a white male/female attending a majority black or Hispanic schools like Burke or Stall?
  • What is it like being addicted to alcohol, drugs or pornography?

We can go on and on.  The challenge this week is to be intentional when it comes to empathy.  Take time to consider the other persons’ point of view prior to responding.

Here’s two great quotes that you can hang on to as we all become intentional when it comes to empathy:

“Seek first to understand then to be understood.” – Dr. Steven Covey

As you are training/teaching someone who is new to the skill or subject: “Remember there was a time that you didn’t know either!”

Let’s show our families and community the power of EMPATHY. AYE!