Free Fitness Movement. All you need to do is show up!
I’m too old for this shit…You mean sitting on your couch, wasting away, getting more unhealthy because that’s what all the cool 40-somethings are doing? -Sometimes, I forget to act my age. I’m 42 and I was unhealthy as fuck at 39 when I found November Project Virginia Beach. I drank too much, I ate like shit and I wasn’t around people who hoped for my success.
“I’m not sure why I’m staring at the ceiling wide awake. It’s 3am, and I’ve already listened to this “Toxicity” album three times since laying down. My body feels like it’s ready to collapse in on itself. I can’t get comfortable. It’s okay, if I fall asleep in ten minutes, I’ll have had 4 hours of sleep. That’s plenty. What’s it like to die? I don’t have much to do first thing. Maybe I should have not listened to music before going to bed? Maybe I should have smoked a little more before… I feel like I needed to smoke more. Does weed mess with my, mind? I’m going to go smoke more. Shit. Now I’m too high. Maybe I’ll play some videogames. Will I fail if I don’t do the homework I didn’t do? What’s that going to hurt? What? It’s 5 A.M.? Oh well. May as well stay up. I can tell the teacher I am sick and get out of class, maybe even get dismissed early. All I care about is band anyway. I’ll just take a nap before I go to work. Should I just quit school? Do my friends notice I wear the same American Eagle shirt three days a week because my mom found it at a salvation army and it’s all we can afford?” Me: Age 15
Holiday Weekends are always a toss up for attendance at workouts. People are packing up the station wagon for a family reunion at Lake Winnibigoshish (yep that’s a real lake, look it up, it’s in Minnesota, BG’s new home state), yet I digress. Some of y’all are polishing the grill and blowing up your pool floats for all your friends and their kids, and kids and kids!!! Better turn up the chlorine. Anyway, all this means is, fitness is usually last on your mental to do list for the weekend.
Find a group of people that challenge and inspire you, laugh and cry with you, always sweat and sometimes puke with you. You know you have found your tribe when you are with people that embrace your crazy, tolerate your quirks and love you unconditionally. Spend one morning or years with those people and it will change your life forever.
FO·MO /ˈfōmō/ oun INFORMAL
January of this year, I moved 13 hours away from my home of Virginia Beach (VB), Virginia and relocated to Tuscaloosa, Alabama. This change was drastic, but I had a bit of positivity and a best friend by my side to keep me sane. Leaving everything and everyone I knew in VB was both a leap of faith and a challenge.
Do you have it? The will to wake up? When it is early AF and there is frost on the ground. When you’re a little sore and achy from yesterday’s leg day. When you had to work overtime because your coworker needed help. When your bed is extra comfy and may or may not have a warm companion lying beside you. When you are just mad at the world and don’t want to see a single person. Do you have the #WILLTOWAKEUP ?
Virginia Beach hurricane Florence evacuation plan: travel as far as you can to the middle of the country for the hypest gathering of free fitness badasses from around the world. We may have had to change our flights or drive over 15 hours, but we made sure we wouldn’t miss this years annual November Project Summit 6.0 in Milwaukee Wisconsin. The VB crew rolled in 12 deep, missing two stranded friends (sorry Emily & Herb; we missed your asses like crazy) and we’re ready to show the NP world that, “Yes, there REALLY is a tribe in Virginia Beach”.
Sometimes you dream up a big idea and when it actually happens the real thing is a thousand times better than you could have ever imagined. That was this mornings workout in Virginia Beach. We went to the zoo, well not literally, but the zoo came to us. This was an idea that I had long before I was ever a co-leader, in hopes that one day I might have the privilege to put on this workout for my tribe of amazing people. All of the planning, research and prep helped make this one of the best mornings I have ever been apart of at NP VB.
Don’t let the name fool you, Hell Week III Parks Unknown was anything but hell. The parks new, the workouts intense, and the bonds strong. You could pay $200 bucks for some intense Groupon boot camp, but I promise that this free week of fitness paid so much more than physical dividends. Scrolling social media hours after the workouts, there were messages of new found friendships, humans believing in themselves again, and a burn that felt “oh so good”. The week concluded with a long overdue reunion and a bittersweet retirement.
For those who participated, whether you were an OG or newbie, or you came for 1 day or all 5, We hope that we did a good job of providing a good workout for you. We hope you were challenged, but also had fun. On top of all that, we hope that we reminded you of the purpose of NP: There are many things that we do really well but when we boil it down to one sentence, we’re engaging in human development and building community connections through empowering social fitness. We’re here for each other and we’re glad you’re here. But to be part of this, you have to #justshowup
Here’s how it all went down. . .
Monday & Tuesday Recap as told by Jill.
Monday: Red Mill Farms Park 🛎
We took the tribe deep into the heart of Virginia Beach to a classic park for a game of burpee baseball. The outfield was a little wet so we made some quick modifications as to keep our favorite peeps happy so they would come back the next four days. There were sidesteps, skips and weaving through trees interspersed with burpees for the base runs. For one badass, there was some dry heaving between bases, but after a quick well being check, “all good” was confirmed and the workout would continue. Finishing up the morning with head to head sprints in across home plate, left everyone feeling amazing. The tribe left with soaking wet sneaks and a buzz that would carry them into the week.
Tuesday: Malibu Park 🌀
This location was a true hidden gem with only two people ever previously stepping foot in the park. We dressed in all black and the name of the game was stealth as a ninja as to not disturb the sleeping neighbors. The bounce was epic and so were the bugs. Pathway lunges and backpedals led us onto the trails for some deep dark technical sections. Rounding out the cycle with pick your poison playground workouts. The tribe bounced among the monkey bars, slides and swings for step ups, sit-ups and dips. We finished out with a slinky wave sit-up line for our burnout. Sneaking back to our cars like we were never even there, we capped off another amazing hell week day.
Wednesday & Thursday Recap as told by Bernard.
Wednesday: Lake Lawson Park🛶
If I told you Red and I would paddle a canoe to shore, with smoke trailing behind them and “Welcome to the Jungle” blaring, you would say we’re crazy. Well call us crazy because that’s exactly what we did. Pretending the boys weren’t around, Jill set the stage for our grand entrance. She was so convincing that they were missing, that some tribe members offered to call the police to look for them! This day was literally the height of the week because there was so much going on. We started with the 5:30AM Hell Week workout, followed immediately by our 6:15AM regular workout. We also took Yearbook Photos during the 5:30AMworkout (they were all amazing…we are such a photogenic good looking group). Today was also symbolic of John passing the torch to Bernard and Jill; John started the bounce, but handed it off to B to finish it up. Hands down, Wednesday was one of our favorite NP memories of all time.
Thursday: Northside Park ⌛
Hardcore parkour. Dancing. NP. Do they have anything to do with each other? Not really. But it’s Hell Week, so anything goes. Today we started our day with a little warm up, then transitioned into grooving to the Cupid Shuffle. I must say that this group can really get down and boogie! The workout was in a skate park, giving ourselves the opportunity to live our wildest parkour dreams, going through each workout station. When trying to recruit people in the future, I will have this day in mind when I say, “We just try to have fun while we workout. We even did a workout in a skate park!” The burnout was a great way to top off the day. We did a series of sprints, but eventually separated ourselves by the year we started NP. It grew over the years and really showed the legacy John left behind.
Friday Recap as told by Red.
Friday: Ocean View Beach Park 🌊
My last day leading NP_VB. First off, wow.
Jill & Bernard pulled off a surprise that I didn’t see coming but it was a surprise that I loved. I’m not big on surprises or presents but the fact that they got and tagged all those red shirts to give away to everyone at my last workout means so much to me. (And with my own face tag on them!) It was the perfect gift/memory for all the people who showed up!
To the tribe, I’m not going anywhere at the moment. I am just taking this time to focus on myself, my family, & my career. I’m looking forward to being able to get to show up instead of having to show up. Leading is an incredible experience but you sometimes neglect your own fitness, so I am looking forward to getting off of IR deck and completing full workouts with y’all.
To all the out-of-towners & OGs & newbies who showed up for hell week & my last week. Thank you.
Lastly, Thank you all for believing in me and in November Project the movement. Thank you for allowing me to lead you for an amazing 3.5 years, I’ll never forget it. This shit is good.
Xoxo, Red
PS: I couldn’t feel more solid about the future of the tribe now that it’s in Jill & Bernard’s hands, they love this shit as much as I do and can’t wait to see where they take us from here.
Your people have spoken….
Nic:
So January 14, 2015 was when I first showed up. Red introduced himself and what he was trying to accomplish. I didn’t know that more I would #JustShowUp to a life changing movement. Just by Red showing me the embodiment of what NP stands for on that first cold, rainy, dark morning, and every Wednesday, I’ve been inspired to keep the momentum going. Red you’ve paved the way and set the bar to what excellent leadership is, gonna miss your hyped bounces and sending much love as we usher in….
The next chapter of NP VB.
Ann:
From day one I always felt welcomed. I never felt left out the way someone like me would be in just about any other similar circumstance. NP has never felt clique-ish and John was one of the biggest reasons why. He truly welcomed everyone and made everyone feel they belonged. He’s a great motivator, picture-taker, and friend.
Pete:
John has a big personality and an infections attitude. It’s no wonder why NP_VB is strong and growing.
Crystal:
“You’re weird af….you make things weird af….your voice cracks when you yell and that’s my favorite part 😆 thank you for the bounces and the weirdness and the fun and your time! It’s been real…af”
Angie P:
Thank you for all you did for us. Even when I don’t feel like I can do something or fit in with the elite runners your smile and comments would always assure me that I was doing my best and that was good enough. That is something I will always cherish and could not thank you enough for.
Mallory:
As much as I rarely came to NP, I can’t thank you enough John for all that you do for everyone at NP. You are hilarious, dude! It’s awesome to see how big NP in VB is getting! You have a great leadership energy about you and I’m happy you have some amazing co leaders like B and Jill!
Rin:
I will be forever grateful that you decided to show the beach what ‘just show up’ meant 3.5 years ago! You’ve created a tribe and memories that have made such a larger impact on mine and many other lives than you’ll probably ever realize. From Hell Week, the Crate Escape, NP Bus Takeover to every epic bounce and Mt Trashmore hill sprint you pushed the tribe to bring the energy and be the definition of #thisshitisgood. Thank you John!
Bianca:
Miss you guys! Thanks for keeping a girl motivated even all the way across the country!
Liz:
November Project VB has been such a positive influence on my life. Part of that has been John/Red as co-leader. He has always made me feel welcomed and noticed. I say noticed because when you are with a large group of people, it’s easily understandable that not everyone is going to remember your name or details about you. However with John (and our current leaders, Jill and Bernard), they have made me feel welcomed both as an individual and as part of the tribe.
John has always been encouraging, despite me missing some days or not being the fittest person in the tribe. He has consistently been supportive and encouraging, and not only to me, but to all other NP VB tribe members. I truly wish him all the best and will always be grateful that his leadership has been one of the many aspects that has kept me coming back for more with NP VB.
Stephanie:
I did not know what to think. My first NP Barry and Red, bouncing and yelling fuck yeah. And I came back, week after week. I’m so glad he brought NP here. It changed my life. Sorry to see him go. What an amazing legacy…#fuckyeah
Jenn B:
So, 2 “stories” which were prob more funny if you were there… but 1. When John was rushing down the hill to take a double jens pic and totally slipped and slid down the muddy hill…. and 2. When we had the NP movie viewing party @ Bottlecraft and he and Barry said we could ask anything. Rachel was with me and she asked them when they lost their virginity. John was BRIGHT red and basically had a nervous giggle. 😂😂😂
Jeremy:
John, thank you for what you have built here in Virginia Beach. There are challenging workouts and there are fun workouts; while these two concepts are not mutually exclusive – formulating a way to consistently combine both is much easier said than done. You have found a way to successfully bring both of these factors time and time again to the NP_VB tribe. Again, thank you!! Looking forward to lining up next to you on PR day 😘-Jeremy
Carla:
I’ll never forget showing up at the top of the stairs to check in the J&A folks when the team showed up to fill the stairs. You met me at the top of the stairs and said … Hi, I like hugs…. from that moment I knew…. this is my kind of place. Thank you John for embracing my fear from day one and making me feel like I belonged at November Project. This group has rocked my world and I will be forever grateful.
Karl:
John, you have changed so many of us for the better with your leadership, dedication and love for growing this community and we are forever thankful. We are sad to see you step down from leadership but are excited to be able to hang with you as friends and definitely as workout partners on top of trash mountain, and everywhere else that NP takes us! Enjoy your retirement old man! Karl
Ashley:
I never knew that I would come to love waking up so dang early every Wednesday morning. Rain or shine, John was there to bring the energy and fire it up. My favorite thing about him is his sense of humor, whenever something is SO GOOD! he just gets this huge grin on his face. His passion for NP, for us, is written all over him – in more ways than just spray paint.
NP VB will always be home for you John!! Thank you for #justshowingup and being an awesome leader. We’re glad you’re here! Love ya!
Corey:
I gotta say, NP Thanksgiving Football. John was super hype and intense on our team, this football game was the real deal. He kept talking it up to all of us, strategy, what we should do. He was the QB and once we started he threw I 3 maybe 4 interceptions ?! And after every one was just laughter. Because of course John would do that. It’s just such a fun memory to sum up him and NP in a nutshell, intense and in your face but all while laughing.
Luke:
John, without you literally none of us we be out here. You started something great and we’re happy to continue the movement. Thanks for bringing your energy every morning and introducing me to friends I would have never met otherwise!
Anthony:
From the day we met ‘TAKE THE TURNS FAST!!’
Emily S:
So John is basically the reason I’ve stayed in Virginia Beach, in a way. In 2016 I was really unsure of why I was even in this area, with barely any friends at the time it didn’t feel like home. Since meeting him in 2016 he helped make me feel super welcome and connected by introducing me to November Project which gave my my family away from home. He’s been a great friend and will surely be missed in Leadership.
Ryan:
Before I even knew what November Project was I met John through Lululemon. I really credit him with bringing #freefitness to this area. After meeting him I didn’t #justshowup for NP I showed up to support him because I knew he was ‘doing it’ for the right reasons. Proud to call him a friend and appreciate what he has done for the community.
Steph:
Thanks John for introducing me to NP after a drunk night at chicks! We’ll always be friends so you can’t retire from meeee!
Alexa:
“Thank you John for starting a movement and a space where anyone can just show up! You’ve brought so much good vibes and energy each week and have given people a reason to come back week after week and be weatherproof. You’ve helped make the VB (and Norfolk!) community better! Now you get to enjoy the view from the back of the bounce 😂”
Kallen:
Aww Red!!! My favorite memory is definitely squeezing 4 of us into a 2 person photo booth 🙂 photos that will last a lifetime! I also don’t think I can thank him enough for the NP race code for shamrock to get to represent NP_VB!
Lauren:
I remember the very first time I asked you about November Project. I asked you if I would throw up and you told me I’d have to show up and find out. I was curious, but skeptical. Nervous, but excited. But I decided to show up anyway. Not gonna lie, I showed up for the promise of a free North Face jacket, with no expectations other than a challenging workout with a sweet prize at the end. After the first day, I knew I’d be hooked. The energy, the positivity, the challenge…I loved it all. Fast forward a year and a half later, after countless workouts, dozens of new friends, a few epic cheer stations, four traverbals, and one unforgettable Summit, and I literally can’t imagine my life without NP. And I have YOU to thank for that! Thank you building this amazing community from the ground up and for pouring your heart and soul into all things NPVB for the past 3+ years. Thank you for pushing me out of my comfort zone physically and encouraging me when I doubted myself. Although it will never be the same without you, thank you for trusting Bernard to help carry on the tribe in your absence. He is as honored as he is excited about the opportunity. I know stepping down is bittersweet, but you could not have picked two better co-leaders to keep the tribe going strong. I’m so excited about this next chapter for you (wedding? babies? a lab named Tugboat? 😃) and for NPVB. I hope you’ll be around for many more workouts and maybe a few Chick’s socials.
I’m glad you’re here.
Marleigh:
You will be missed so much! Thank you for all the great memories and for making me feel welcome even though I’m younger than most of the tribe members. You have truly started something amazing here and I’m so glad that I get to continue to be a part of it! Can’t wait to workout alongside you! – Marleigh
Sam E:
Three summers ago, Amory convinced me to come out to November Project and I have no regrets as I have never seen such a motivated, positive group of people at 6:15am (I’ve only ever had experience with my cross country team that complains the whole time). But most of all, I have never met someone so energetic and passionate about what they do. Thank you for all the fun workouts, the great atmosphere, and thank you for bringing NP to Virginia Beach, man.
Jillian H:
John- You’ve changed our lives and changed our marriage! NP VB has given us an activity that we love to do together. We will be forever grateful for all that you’ve done to create this incredible tribe. Thank you, Jillian & Joe H
Jenette:
Hi! Thank you for putting this together! I’m still kinda new I don’t have any funny stories. I am just eternaly grateful to John for starting the VB tribe. My life has become so much more awesome since I started coming to NPVB. I know it takes a lot of work and dedication to get a tribe started and I feel incredibly lucky to have one in my city. So just a great big thank you!
Old Soul Nicole:
Red, you are one of the most happy go lucky people I know, it may have something to do with your Irish heritage…I’m gonna miss your bounces the most, but I know B-NARD is gonna hold it down for you. As for workouts, Jill has got it in the bag! You’ll always be a part of the tribe. Much love!
Lania:
During the rock n roll dc half marathon in March I was struggling after that terrible Calvert Hill at mile 7. I was not having fun. I wasn’t enjoying my race. The np cheer station wasn’t even rallying me. And then John came up behind me out of nowhere. He cracked some joke, made me laugh, and had that huge smile and was beaming that crazy red energy we all love. I didn’t even know he was there. And he ran about a block with me. His energy ramped me back up. And his quick feet got my feet back under me. Seriously. That block was everything and I’m not sure I would have managed that birthday race PR without it.
Bernard
NP has done more for me and others than you can think, but that’s for a separate post. The reason I’m able to run around a mountain of trash and hug strangers all while having a great time is because of my boy, Red. He built something that we are all proud to be a part of. I thank you; we all thank you. You should be happy and proud of what you’ve created here in Virginia Beach. I can only hope to keep riding the wave, brother. Thanks for believing in the tribe, and especially me to carry on as you step down. But don’t worry, homie. We got this! Cheers!
Ultra Crazy Jill:
Sometimes you just have to do something crazy, something that scares the shit out of you. For me, it was to #justshowup that first day. The ginger at the top of the stairs hugged me and upon hearing “I’m glad you’re here” I was hooked. Red, you have created a community of humans who’s lives are forever changed & ultimately better for having you in them. Thanks for always putting up with my heckling, answering my litany of questions about NP, and most of all for trusting me with your tribe! You’re my hero…boss!
