Free Fitness Movement. All you need to do is show up!
In preparation for #worldtakeover and the #NPSUMMIT (that will be starting tomorrow), we decided to do a mountain theme workout here in New Orleans…yes, we are below sea level.
We searched long and hard for something that could be similar to a mountain. Good thing we found a steep ramp at the entrance to the Superdome to use as our mountain. If we didn’t have the Superdome Ramp, we would have to break in to the Zoo and use Monkey Hill….one of the tallest points in New Orleans.
The tribe spent the morning counting down from 100 by 10s doing jumping jacks, squats, crunches, and leg lifts. We think they enjoyed it, but not as much as the Superdome’s security guard that did some squats with Will.
But enough about the workout…let’s talk about Sibyl, the winner of the positivity award today. There were two reasons she received this award…yes she shows up, works hard, etc. but more importantly, she helped to increase Cameron’s blood alcohol level one Friday afternoon. We truly thank you for helping to bring out Ronnie, his alter-ego!
Announcements:
NP Summit: September 25-27…Be there or be square
Support the Ferret Street 5k…if you can run it, help out someone who can’t afford to run it! The link is below…
https://www.jlno.org/Freret5K
Friday will be at the Lakefront at Shelter 1 this week. Make sure to come watch the sunrise over the lake with us!
First off we want to congratulate the Women’s soccer team. Way to kick some serious ass on Sunday. Can you imagine what they would be like on some stairs?!? Maybe one day one of the tribe will find out!
Now to the more important stuff…Today we prepared the tribe for San Fermin in Nueva Orleans. Cameron began our bounce by asking everyone to get their bull horns out and turn to a member close to them and tell that person they are “UnBULLevably” awesome! That got everyone in the right mindset for the running of the bulls November Project Style. There was running, push-ups, mountain climbers, and jump squats involved in the workout. We couldn’t call it the running of the bulls if the workout didn’t have some bulls involved. The new tribe members were given noodles and told to hit the first person they saw. The bull and the runner had to hug it out and the victim of the beating had to do 5 burpees. I guess we have a different type of bulls in New Orleans!
As a “mature” member of the November Project NO tribe, you can probably tell that I have taken a few “laps” around the sports world in my time! For me, growing up in St. Louis in the 60s meant field hockey, basketball and gymnastics. College was flag football and soft ball, and as a young Army wife with four little ones to corral, Jazzercize (think pastel lycra, high ponytails and wristbands) became my passion, mainly because they offered free babysitting! I didn’t begin running until we moved to New Orleans and all of my children were swimming competitively…I could either sit on the pool deck and watch hours of endless freestyle…or run the track. I chose the track. Also, (and for very shallow reasons) I realized every runner I knew had beautiful legs…what a bonus!
Running morphed into triathlon, which I was very passionate about for ten years. Sprints gave way to half Ironmen, and finally under the tutelage of a great workout partner, Ric Mostert, I tackled Ironman Florida. I loved every minute of the training and the race itself, – it was an unbelievably wonderful experience. In my opinion, IM is sort of a selfish endeavor though…I was trying to get all of my long workouts in, continue my work as a dental hygienist, be social, and still be there for my family. I thought I was doing a really good job…the reality was that my kids said they felt like they had a zombie for a mom who was many times physically present, but mentally asleep! So…I fell back on the part of triathlon that I love most…running!.
The Tribe got the ball rolling this morning with a little warmup consisting of bouncing squat low fives and jumping 2 hand high fives… (yeah, you have to let that description digest for a minute). Then the Tribe was off on a lap around the dome and logging in some good stair work time.
After a short water break everyone partnered up and the group was back at it again. Partners alternated with one partner doing planks or wall sits while the other partner ran a lap around the stairs. After the lap, the partners switched jobs. Just to add a little spice to the morning, an impromptu 5k was being run around the superdome. The 5k group consisted of a large number of scientist in town for a conference. The real challenge for tribe members was avoiding smacking into a random scientist as they jogged on their loosely laid out 5k course. In the end we can report that no protractors or pocket protectors were harmed in the making of this sweat filled workout.
The workout today was tough, grueling (Hey there and welcome back Mr. Humidity!), and hard as shit… Cameron must have spent the last 6 months nursing his injury and plotting ways to include all six months of latent exercise energy into one badass #NP_NO workout. The final bell on the time clock could not have come soon enough for most members of the tribe as we worked our way through a descending ladder (10-1) of movements at five different stations. For good measure, he even threw in an extra dose of stairs at the end of each round. He really is a swell guy… But, an equal dose of hugs and perspiration propelled our regular tribe members, first timers and three awesome ladies from Orlando in town for a convention (sorry we didn’t get your names, but we loved having you join us!!!) through to the end all intact.
First off, I hate running–and those who know me hear me say that frequently.
Back in July- a best friend and some other friends kept telling me about a free morning workout at Champions Square called November Project. I joined and after the first week, I was hooked-3 reasons…camaraderie, accountability, positivity!
Today had a very special feel. Kate came with a workout that brought back all of our inner child. The warm-up was above-average due to the participation of an all night drunk who decided to join us this morning. If we only had video of him riding off mid work out swerving 20 feet in each direction as he peddled away sipping on his hot malt liquor. We did our best to sober him up with a dose of mountain climbers and push-ups prior to getting the workout going this morning.
Hoppy Wednesday
That’s right, we went there with the title. I mean, it is the Wednesday before Easter and so of course we had a Easter themed workout.
The perfect morning weather for a workout and NPNO had a large group today (The hibernators have started to awaken). With Kate at the wheel, she got the group going with an adaptation of the Bunny Hop. It was later remarked by an anonymous commentor (Preston) “Hey, we need more line dancing before breakfast!” After that, the group was off to the traditional warm up of a lap around the dome and chewing up some stairs.
This month’s member spotlight is………..Amany!
“I can’t believe you wake up THAT early to go exercise! Why would you want to do that?!” If I had a nickel for every time I heard that phrase, I’d have a lot of nickels!
People assume that since I’m crazy enough to run as much as I do, that I’ve been a runner/athlete all of my life. WRONG. I started running in high school when I saw my uncle, who is a life-long smoker, running laps. I figured if he could do it, so could I. I eventually joined the track and Cross-country team at school, but for the sole reason of hanging out with my friends (and beating my uncle!). I was definitely not committed to anything more than that. I recently reached out to my old coach to thank him for his encouragement and for putting up with me during my social teen years. I may never run a 5 minute mile, but I did manage to qualify for the Boston Marathon and I owe my start to his persistence and patience. It’s amazing what you can accomplish with a little perseverance and a mind full of motivation!