You've got this.

This could be the beginning of something BIG...that is, if you decide to take action. F3 isn't just a workout group - its a brotherhood of regular guys looking to better each other. You don't have to be in shape or know anything about exercise. Don't let your excuses remove you from opportunity.

Are you intrigued yet? If so, read on my friend!

We've been at this F3 thing for a while now, so we've heard pretty much every excuse as to why a guy can't come to a free workout with other guys at a time of day when the rest of the world is still asleep. Here, our choices for The Top Five Excuses men make to not give F3 a try:

1. “I need to get in shape before coming to an F3 workout”

This is No. 1 with a bullet on the F3 Excuse Charts. For a lot of guys it gives them all the wiggle room they need in their minds to try an F3 workout and to be honest there's really nothing you can do on your own that's going to get you ready for that first workout. Almost no one working out in a gym or on the streets (let alone coming off the couch) combines the kind of aerobic and bodyweight fitness that F3 workouts demand. So you need to make the choice to join a bunch of other men and push through the pain. Because “I need to get in shape” is really just a way of keeping the commitment just over the horizon, always just out of reach. The only way to get in shape is to put yourself in the middle of a group of other men and force yourself to keep up with the Pack. The good news is…our Credo is that “We leave no man behind, but no man where we find him.”

2: “I already belong to a gym.”

Hey, that's great. I bet it really rockets you out of bed every morning to think about another exciting day on the treadmill, headphones plugged in so you can listen to the SportsCenter anchors run through yet another rendition of “Hot or Cold? Brought to You by Miller Lite” while the plastic ficus next to you waves gently in the 68-degree climate-controlled splendor. Meanwhile, elsewhere in your home city, men are gathering of their own free will in temperatures ranging from 9 to 90 degrees and conditions ranging from starlit to monsoon to sweltering to give it their all for an hour and launch into the day with power and impact. Trust us, there's a difference.

3: “That's too early to get up to work out. I'm really not a morning workout guy.”

Oh, yeah…we know you. You're the “Lunch Hour Workout Guy” until that 11 a.m. conference call runs long and you don't have time to workout and get back for the 1:30 meeting, so You'll have to run over to Chick-fil-A to grab some fast food that you can pretend isn't “fast food,” but You'll definitely get out in time to hit the YMCA before you go home except your wife calls and she needs you to go pick up your son from basketball practice so she can get your daughter from violin lessons and still get home in time to put dinner on the table and meet her friends for girls' night out at 7:30 and, well… now you're “Tomorrow Workout Guy,” aren't you?

4: “I'm already working with a personal trainer.”

Yeah, I can tell. Really getting your money's worth there, aren't you? And you're paying this guy or girl how much to count your reps and hold a clipboard? Did I mention the Fourth F that comes after Fitness, Fellowship, and Faith? It's called: FREE.

5: “This sounds like some sort of cult.”

Back when our father's fathers ran the world, a bunch of men gathering at odd hours to engage in common effort for the common good and with an eye toward the larger improvement of the world around them and the raising up of men to be leaders was simply plain vanilla, old-fashioned civic engagement, and it was what grown men did. If society has moved so far toward atomization and self-absorption that free assembly and group pride qualifies as cultish behavior, then so be it, but we will be the ones, in the words of the late William Buckley, standing “athwart history, yelling stop.”

Everything you need to know about F3 Blue Ridge.

It starts at 5:30 a.m.

(You get used to doing things you thought were impossible.)

Ah, the biggest barrier to showing up. We know it sounds crazy-and it sounds weird saying this, but you will come to genuinely love waking up early and getting a jump start on your day. You'll also love the time you get to yourself without emails, kids, spouses, and daily life creeping in. F3 is a break from all of that.

It's a 45 minute boot-camp style workout.

F3 is a a peer-lead, non-professional boot camp-style workout. Everyday is different (depending on who is leading) but the exercises are typically running, pushups, jumping jacks, burpees, stuff like that — and then occasionally doing something called “Murder Bunnies” with a cinder block, but I don't want to freak you out.

It's always outside - usually at a park or school.

We literally meet in parking lots of parks and schools around the Virginia area. I got to tell you, those places where your kids play baseball look completely different at 5:30 a.m. A core principle of F3 is that the workouts are always held outdoors. It's dark, quiet, and wonderful. We call it “The Gloom.”.

No one will yell at you. It's not a competition. It's just you versus you.

So if you're imagining a drill Sargent yelling at you to do pushups, you've got it all wrong. In fact, it's pretty much the opposite of that. The men of F3 Blue Ridge are here to encourage you, whatever your ability, age or fitness level. We have the saying “Leave no man behind, but leave him better than you found him.” So no yelling. Just the occasional fist bump.

It's completely free. No strings.

So yeah, F3 is a free mens workout. There is nothing to buy. No up sell, or cult to join. There's no points or rewards. No affiliate program or multi-level pyramid of recruitment incentives. It's just simply free. There is nothing to rent. No one to pay. Just a group of guys that come together at 5:30 a.m. in parking lots around the Blue Ridge area to work out.

It has nothing to do with religon.

F3 stands for Fitness, Fellowship & Faith®. The faith thing can be a turn off to some men - so let's unpack it a little. F3 is not a Christian organization. A lot of men in the group are, but F3 itself has nothing to do with any religion. We end every workout with a positive thought for the day. It could be a reflection or perspective from whomever is leading the workout. Some may call that a prayer. Whatever you call it, it's food for the soul. Our version of faith isn't to get you to join a church - we just want you to believe in something bigger than yourself. Even if it's the man next to you.

It's all ages. There are men from 22 - 65.

F3 is open to all men. We don't care if you're in your 20s or 70s, you have a place here. The nature of our workouts is you versus you. No matter your age, F3 will have you push yourself, without hurting yourself. Besides, there are some 60 year olds in the group who put us all to shame. Respect, Respect.

There are multiple locations

F3 Blue Ridge is held on some of the finest parking lots, parking garages, parks, and public spaces in the Blue Ridge area. We keep expanding. Any location is probably only a 15-minute drive from your house. That means you can sleep in until 5 a.m. Find a location near you.

But I can't do a _______! I haven't worked out in years.

Wait, wait. Let me make sure I understand. You can't do push ups? You're not a runner? You're about 50 lbs. overweight? You've never worked out in your life and you don't know how? You're maybe a little embarrassed by your physical condition? Perfect. Start tomorrow. There will be other men there in the same boat as you. No one will judge you on your shape — and they won't try to “motivate you” into shape. They will just be by your side during the workout, and probably offer you coffee afterwards. You got this.