It’s 5:15 a.m. and several groups of guys around the Lowcountry are meeting up in what they call “the gloom” (meaning the sun isn’t even up yet) for a free, outdoor workout where they’ll experience a physical beatdown that they fully expect will leave them lifted physically, mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually.
This is F3 – which stands for Fitness, Fellowship, and Faith – the last of which the group simply defines as a belief in something bigger than oneself. They stress that while they certainly don’t shy away from each man’s individual faith, they are open to all men.
No-frills men’s fitness gathering pushes physically and emotionally
Founded in 2011 in Charlotte, North Carolina, by David Redding, a former Green Beret, and Tim Whitmire, a former journalist, when their group workout class became too crowded, F3 is a fast-growing network of men’s fitness groups that fuse exercise with spiritual fellowship. Redding used military terms for exercises and hoped that maybe 10 men would show up to their first class on January 1. But after they had emailed friends to join them for a quick morning burn, 35 guys showed up in the parking lot of a middle school.
Then, F3 blew up during the pandemic, expanding from about 1,900 groups to more than 3,400 groups across the country and internationally, with a mission to resolve, as John Lambert (aka Slaughter; all F3 participants have a nickname given to them by their group), the network’s CEO, explained, “a problem that society at large and men definitely didn’t even know they had: middle-age male loneliness.”
“Our credo is ‘Leave no man behind, but leave no man where you find him,’” said Mark Berglind (aka Judge Judy), co-founder of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton F3 chapters. “And the way we do that is through adherence to our five core principles which state that all workouts are free of charge, and workouts are open to all men. They also are held outdoors – rain or shine, heat or cold. The guys who participate also lead the workout in a rotating fashion, with no training or certification necessary. Finally, workouts end with a Circle of Trust.”
“The Circle of Trust element is simply two to three minutes at the end of each workout where someone shares a devotional or inspirational quote and usually a prayer for each other, our families, our community, our country,” said Joey Varin (aka JV).
That Circle of Trust element might explain why F3 quickly became about more than fitness – the other two F’s stand for fellowship and faith. The shared workout struggle and the shared fellowship that comes from involvement with an F3 group also brings a deepened sense of faith for many participants and is making a difference in the lives of hundreds of men, ages 20 to 60-plus from all walks of life and fitness levels.
After their first F3 workout, men are given a nickname after they’ve shared a little about themselves with the others. While it might not be something they’d pick for themselves, it’s all in good fun, and when F3 workout buddies run into each other around town, they use their F3 nicknames. It’s all part of the “fellowship” aspect of the group that results in the bonds these men form with each other.
Varin, owner of Lee Built Homes and the F3 Lowcountry Nantan (what F3 members call their leaders), grew up on Hilton Head Island and lived in Charleston for a long time, which is where he was introduced to F3.
“That was about 11 years ago, and there wasn’t even a formal F3 chapter there yet,” Varin said. “I loved the concept so much that I ended up being one of the initial leaders in Charleston.”
Back then, the F3 chapters were only in North Carolina and South Carolina, with a couple in Georgia. Today, there are 4,676 chapters that span the United States, throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa.
“It has been a grassroots movement that’s taken off, where men support each other in a great workout that also allows us to bond as we attempt to better our family lives, our homes, our neighborhoods, our communities, and the world at large,” Berglind said.
At the end of each workout, during the Circle of Trust, when the men stop to talk and pray, is where the building of trust and friendships begins.
Berglind, a partner at Vaux Marscher Berglind law firm, found his way to an F3 workout eight years ago when he was visiting his brother-in-law in Rock Hill, near Charlotte.
“It was already spreading like wildfire then,” Berglind said. “I went to my first workout and really enjoyed it, just seeing the fellowship of the guys and quite frankly, it was a beatdown that I still remember. I was sore for about a week after. So, I decided this is something that I wanted to try to start in the Lowcountry.”
In 2015, Berglind attended the first F3 Lowcountry workout in Bluffton, which grew into what is called in F3 jargon an AO, or area of operation. Now Bluffton has two workout locations. The Hilton Head AO launched in 2017, and now there are three locations on the island.
Workout attendance can range from two or three guys to more than 30, but typically, attendance averages 12 participants.
Jason Broene (aka Buckeye), principal and studio manager at Court Atkins Group, started going to the first early morning F3 workouts in Bluffton in the spring of 2015 at DuBois Park in Old Town and has not looked back since. After separating from the Marine Corps in 2007, his physical conditioning had plummeted due to a new career and two small children at home.
“When I experienced the getting-up-early, outdoor bootcamp style workouts that I was familiar with and knew I needed to get back to, not only did my physical fitness improve, but I started to meet and workout with a lot of great guys with similar life situations,” Broene said. “I began to feel the camaraderie and esprit de corps with this group that I hadn’t felt since serving in the Marine Corps.”
The group pushed Broene to improve physically, which he says allows him to keep up with his three active boys and set an example for them. He said the group has connected him with great men who push each other physically and mentally, joke with each other, and encourage and lean on each other.
“Most importantly, though, the group continuously challenges me to ‘live third’ and be the leader in my community and the husband and father at home that the Good Lord has called me to be,” Broene said.
Andrew P. Schumacher (aka Spaulding), CEO of Palmetto Dunes Property Owners, recently celebrated his seven-year anniversary with F3. He admits that he had no idea what he was getting into, but he was hooked early on. With a wife, kids, and a big job, he found little time to take care of himself, so F3’s early morning schedule and meeting men with common goals provided the answer for him.
“F3 has afforded me the opportunity to meet a new group of men where friendships have thrived,” Schumacher said. “The impact we have on one another is one of the main reasons I continue to get up at 4:45 a.m. The camaraderie in the morning is infectious – from the grunting and sweating to the shouts of encouragement and occasional jabs. (These) are what builds the fellowship which keeps us coming back for more. It has changed my life physically, mentally, and spiritually.”
At the end of each workout, during the Circle of Trust, when the men stop to talk and pray, is where the building of trust and friendships begins. Those relationships have paid dividends in the daily lives of these men, many of whom had meandered in their faith.
“F3 has made my faith a priority again,” Schumacher said. “By prioritizing fitness, fellowship and faith, this group has helped me grow personally, build meaningful friendships, and improve my overall well-being. It has also challenged me outside my comfort zone: I am able to confide. I am able to be counseled. I am able to be built up by other men or return the favor to another. It helps me to be a better person.”
One thing great about F3 that all the guys agree on is that, no matter where you post (workout), the names and faces may be different, but it is the same group of men – getting after it in the gloom with a common goal.
