You know, the first time that you decided to #justshowup ? When you finally got the courage to stop socially lurking, were tired of your friend nagging you to try it “one time please”, figured November Project might just be FOR YOU! I am pretty sure that we all remember that morning. You checked and double checked the location and time, googled directions & exactly how much time you needed to find parking. Maybe you got there early and sat in your car second guessing why the hell you were doing this. Or perhaps you got there late and questioned whether it was worth it to go anyway. Needless to say, you took that chance and showed up to your first November Project Virginia Beach workout.
I’m too old for this… Guest Blog(VB)

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.
Bringing the Heat (VB)
NPSUMMIT 2019 – Las Vegas – Rock N Roll
THE FULL SCHEDULE
Friday – Travel day.
Saturday Workout 6:29AM – Las Vegas City Hall – Please arrive between 6-6:20AM. Workout will begin at 6:29AM sharp – No shirts will be painted during the workout (see “Post Workout” right below). We understand you’re most likely racing at Rock N Roll, but please move your body with us. Standing around is NOT the way to kick off this weekend. There is a coffee shop with a bathroom within a block of the meeting place.
THE BUS Saturday Post Workout / 8AM Depart City Hall
Positivity and Support-Guest Blog by Justin Hall (VB)
“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
New Friends(VB)
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.
NP Homework – Runaround
Theme. “Runaround”. What does Runaround meant to you? Running fast? Running slow? Running in place? Running in circles? Running solo? Or with friends? There are no right or wrong answers so show us what you got! Runaround.
Rules. To enter the contest, post a photo to Instagram and make sure to tag @knockaround @novemberproject and use hashtag #NPKnocks. In your photo, you must be wearing a pair of Knockaround sunglasses. Bonus points for #GrassrootsGear. You’ll be judged on creativity, fun, humor, x-factor, and authenticity so photoshop or other photo altering software will not be allowed. If your Instagram account is private make sure you open it to the public otherwise we won’t be able to see your submission.
What if you don’t have a pair of Knockaround sunglasses? This weekend only go to http://knockaround.com and with code NPKNOCKS receive 35% OFF your entire order. The sale kicks off at midnight EST Friday and will end at midnight PST Sunday, June 2.
Timeline. We’ll be accepting submissions starting Saturday, June 1 and going all the way through Friday, June 21. Our friends at Knockaround will pick 6 favorites, which will be hosted on their website for the world to vote on. The voting will start on Sunday, June 23 and will end Friday, June 28. The photo with the most votes will be named a winner and officially announced Sunday, June 30th.
The Prize. A trip for one person to November Project Summit in Las Vegas, NV (flight and hotel) + a different pair of Knockaround sunglasses for every NP workout week for a full year (52 pairs of sunglasses)! Incredible, right!?
So get your creative hats on and start cranking those homeworks out.
Find Your Tribe (VB)
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 – (VB)
FO·MO /ˈfōmō/ oun INFORMAL
- anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.

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.
A Peek Under The Hood
Leadership Support and Training:
Our leaders are our most important assets. Their willingness to selflessly wake up before dawn and lead workouts is the only reason that this movement keeps growing and prospering. It’s vital to us that we continue to provide them with support and resources so they can continue to excel in leading their city. One way we do that is by connecting them with other leaders at our annual gathering we call the Meeting Of the Minds, or MOM for short. At MOM, the leaders have the opportunity to share stories, learn from each other’s successes and failures, and foster relationships that transcend geographical boundaries and time zones. We discuss everything under the leadership umbrella such as creative ways to recruit new members, how we can improve inclusivity, ways to plan an efficient workout, as well as addressing ‘Corporate’ topics with strategic decisions that we at NP HQ are working on. We also bring in specialists who have a unique perspective on diversity and inclusion to challenge us to shift paradigms. And even though the hashtag #safetythird has seen its fair share of usage on social media channels, we take the safety of our members very seriously and offer CPR certification classes to every co-leader interested.
Day-To-Day Operations:
November Project, Inc. has two full-time employees, Brogan Graham and Bojan Mandaric, and one part-time contributor, Laura Green. This trio is in charge of all non-workout leading operations including, but not limited to, designing and executing NP strategy, planning and operating an annual budget, communicating with leaders, growing the new and existing NP locations, and collaborating with our sponsors, partners, and local communities. As we move into this new space, the job description is now expanding into the growth of the non-profit/youth program and fundraising that may require bringing on more hands on deck.
Administrative Cost:
And finally, the not-so-sexy yet extremely valuable tools associated with administrative duties which include website hosting and maintenance, accounting, legal expertise and compliance, mailing, and printing, just to name a few.
We hope this gives you a more transparent view on how your donations are used to grow the movement we all love and appreciate. If you’re interested in supporting November Project, click here.


