Another big crew...

A whopping 34 runners gathered in the Hollybush Estate's Rocky Garden this afternoon to help Michael and Margaret, probably our longest standing task owners, with some big winter tasks.

...for some heavy duty work

Having all met successfully eventually (postcode/Google satellites seemed to be a hit & miss combo) at the garden, Margaret proceeded to run through our 4 huge tasks:

• One team was heading to neighbouring street to shift a vast amount of stone cobbles, forming the most impressive human chain
• Another team was tasked with planting the big delivery of young tree whips, with a splinter task then digging over some neighbouring ground
• Two teams headed to the back of the gardens to move compost, with another splinter task then shifting multiple bags of compost

An hour of heavy lifting, digging, running (for some), turning, carrying and planting later saw every last bit of work completed, and two absolutely delighted task owners.

Having expressed heartfelt thanks to our big team of runners, and a very appreciative thanks in particular to our many new runners, Margaret and Michael bid us farewell as we trundled off to neighbouring Middleton Green's basketball court where Chi had carefully laid out some cones in preparation for this afternoon's fitness session.

And an INTENSE fitness session...

The team brilliantly sped through an intense running, core, stretching and tough body weight-move session, finishing the watchful eye of Chi, for the second time this week. Way to go, crew.

What a vast, vast difference you made on a grey January afternoon. You just kickstarted 2020 and then some.

And we have some big thank you's for today's session...

• Thank you to Chris, for stepping in so quickly and efficiently, to greet all runners, especially our new runners, and lead them around to Rocky Park.
• Thanks to Chris and Si for leaving the fitness session, to help Michael complete the cobblestone task.
• Thanks to Isabelle, Leo, Chi and Liz for some brilliant pics.
• Thank you to Chi for co-hosting the fitness session.

And the biggest of thank you's to our wonderful, wonderful first time runners, Laura, Sohere, Charlotte, Sarah, Ailsa, Mia, Jeremy, Millie, Evie, Amy, Niamh, Keara, Rebecca, Krisztina, Sunny, Richard, Anna.

You achieved a staggering amount this afternoon, and the only question remaining to be asked is, when are you coming back?

We're running again on MONDAY!

Talking of which, we're back on Monday - yes,just 48 hours away, for a whopping THREE-TASK EVENING!

Followed by some more life-enhancing fitness in beautiful Meath Gardens, so I'd get yourself booked in now, if you want to start your week with a bang.

In the meantime, have a lovely, lovely weekend everyone.

Storm Freya no match for sturdy GoodGymers

20 runners braved Storm Freya to head to Victoria Park for a variety of heavy duty gardening tasks...

We gathered in a compact hotel room this evening for tonight's pre-task briefing. Due at glorious Victoria Park at 7.10pm, to meet Tom, our terrific new task owner, we needed a few minutes to run through the details of tonight's range of tasks, before we hit the tarmac.

A full body workout

We arrived promptly at a dark park, to be greeted by Tom, on a bike laden down with gardening kit. We kept up with the bike through an increasingly dark park as we headed up central drive, grateful for those runners who'd headed out with head torches this evening. We finally reached The Old English Garden where three teams worked on: turning a wall of compost in the compost pen; raking an entire bed ready for seeding, and redistributing soil onto shrub beds.

As usual, the runners worked at lightning speed, and it wasn't long before the back-up tasks were completed, as well as the original tasks. It was a windy, cold night but the runners ploughed through mound after mound of leaves and soil. They shovelled, and forked, and raked, and wheeled, so every muscle in the body from core to calves was thoroughly worked. Even the mud-shifting from the rakes was labour intensive this evening.

Fartlek in the freezing wind

And then it was time to head back to the tool shed to replace kit and be briefed on tonight's fitness session: task owner Tom would lead us back out to Crown Gate East, changing pace on his bike, offering the runners an impromptu fartlek session.

GoodGymer Tom then led us through our Victoria Park speed session, a few 20-second bursts of fast running, before we headed back down Old Ford Road for stretching and polishing off our favourite McVities Gold bars.

It was a FULL. ON. evening: the weather was stroppy, the park was dark, the lake was, well, there; the running was fast, and the mud stubborn. But the GoodGymers breezed through, not batting an eyelid, other than to adjust headtorches. As always, you rock.

The first March shout-out's

A big warm welcome to Tom, who joined us tonight for his first run (how are your lats?). Thank you for shifting so many leaves on your first run. And to Simon, by no means new to GG, just to Tower Hamlets, and we hope so much you'll join us again soon.

And thank you, from us all, to: Bryon, for leading the runners back on the fartlek session; to Leanne for perfect, careful backmarking, above and beyond what we expected distance-wise tonight, and to Tom, for powering our runners through that last bit of fitness-boosting.

Now, next Monday...

We're back to Oxford House next week, to enjoy an indoor task where we'll help Sarah and the team continue the big makeover of this beautiful arts centre. Read more and sign up here.

All that leaves me to say is have a wonderful week, and hope to see you very soon.

Editor's Note

After whizzing through this evening's announcements & intro (as much as I ever 'whizz' when it comes to talking), our transition to warm up was briefly interrupted as Bryon stepped forward to present me with a one year anniversary balloon sculpture and a Wonder Woman card on behalf of the group. Blimey. You lot know how to turn a trainer from chatty to teary in seconds. I maintain GoodGym IS YOU. Thank you.

A chilly day - but smiling Good Gymers!

A respectable sized group of 14 runners met at Meath Gardens, just off our very own Roman Road, on a very chilly, very grey Saturday afternoon. But with plenty of smiling new faces on board, we took no time in heading off in high spirits to the Community Centre to drop bags and get ready for our first bit of running for the day.

Moving our muscles in Meath

Dharmesh and Si kindly headed up the running session – they led the GoodGymers on several laps of Meath Gardens, at varying paces, while I met the runners back at our trusty tree trunk exercise spot for some Bulgarian split squats to warm up the lower body for the planting and digging ahead.

Let the bulb-planting commence

A little while later, we headed to the railway bridge to meet the Meath team who were well prepared with trolleys, bulb-planters (quite the waist workout, is a bulb planter. Who knew.) and flasks.

Two teams were dispatched to get digging and planting and a whopping 1600 bulbs were planted in less than an hour.

Way to go, team.

We wheeled, we dug, we whittled, we pogo-d: it was quite the workout. And then we were meeting for our cheerio pics, and some more running and core work to finish with.

What a Saturday afternoon calorie-burner!

Well done, everyone, for your vast achievements today, and for fabulous energy, on what was a pretty cold weekend.

Today’s shout-outs and thanks go to…

Dharmesh and Si for taking over the ‘meet and greet’ at the start of the run, while I met the task owner, and for leading a terrific little lap session before the task. What a great intro to GG you were for our new runners. Thank you.

And thanks to the whole group today for their brilliant pun contributions!

And a huge, New Year GG welcome to new runners Emily, Amy, Dee, Michael, Annalise and Olivia, not new to GG but new to us at Tower Hamlets – what a treat!

We're back on MONDAY!

And we’re doing it all again on Monday - what could be better. We’re inside (hurrah!), with some painting-prep and de-cluttering at the lovely Oxford House, a short run from our meeting point. Details and sign-up are here.

Until then, have a fabulous weekend, and I hope to see you very soon.