As the sun shone, 29 happy faces tripped along through Lewisham to cover 7km of running and help out at Seniors.

What a gorgeous evening for running and doing good in great company! This week saw one absolute first-timer to GoodGym, hello Matthew and two visitors, Akay, who has previously been along to GoodGym Bexley and Ernie, who is a regular up in Islington, we hope you felt the Lewisham Love :)

In fact, there was an awful lot of love to go round this week, with some of our runners feeling a little high from a weekend of EPIC running. From midday on Saturday to midday on Sunday, our awesome Team Lewisham Wildcats ran 8km laps of hills, trails and through the woods at Endure 24. Between them they ran a whopping 135 miles, supporting each other throughout. They lifted each other's spirits when times felt hard, they gave their all to make sure their team mates had enough rest and, best of all, they represented GoodGym with a smile on their faces and the Lewisham crown sitting proudly on their heads. We're all incredibly proud of what you achieved, well done superstars! Give a cheer to Nykolette, Helen, Amber, Caireen, Jacqueline, Kim, Conroy and Stephen (and added Kudos to Kim, Helen, Conroy, Amber and Nykolette for making it along tonight!!).

Tonight's task was taking us over to Seniors. We do enjoy our visits here, but have to gear ourselves up for the longer run and the HILLS! A quick warm up got our heart rates up slightly (and helped us get to know each other a bit better) and off we went. On an evening as lovely as this, how marvellous to be able to run through Ladywell Fields and push hard up and over Blythe Hill, with a last sweep down to Stanstead Road. At Seniors we were met by Cathy and Alice, who showed us through to the garden at the back of the building. Now this garden is big and, with 29 people ready to get stuck in, Cathy had her work cut out assigning tasks. Pretty soon though, everyone was either putting on gloves or grabbing tools, ready to get stuck into one of the many jobs on offer...

• Digging over the beds in the polytunnel to mix in the manure, creating hotbeds

• Working in the same way over at the raised beds, creating areas to grow vegetables

• Lifting a bench out onto the grass to coat it with teak oil

• Weeding and sweeping the patio

• Sanding tables on the patio, ready for oiling or varnishing (some of which was also done)

• Crawling into the little spaces under the building to pull out tables, ladders, chairs and all sorts of other items, which were then sorted, creating a more orderly space in which to put the useful items that were to be kept (well done Marta and Ernie, this looked like a cramped and dusty job!)

There was even enough time once the polytunnel was done to make a start on an overgrown bed, giving it a quick strim and rake. Just look at that list of jobs! This kind of work is heavy and not always easy for some of the regular volunteers at Seniors, so well done all of you for making a difference in just half an hour.

Before we ran off, Cathy briefly told us about the open day which is happening this coming Saturday, to which we are all welcome (entry is just £1, which enters you into a raffle) and with the lovely new children's play area, we were invited to bring along our smaller members too.

At this point on a run to Seniors, we know what's coming next. The secret is to grit your teeth, drive your arms and step lively (oh and chatting gets a little harder the higher up you go!)...but it's so worth the effort! Tonight's view was particularly good, with clear skies and a setting sun. We are very lucky around here, with so many beautiful green spaces :)

Arriving back at Glass Mill, there was just enough time for one last push, a little wall sit, as if our thighs weren't burning enough already! Next week is pretty special all round. We are venturing over to Surrey Docks Farm, which is always a real treat (think goats, donkeys, sheep, sleepy pigs...). It does mean a long run though, so there is the option of running one way and taking transport the other (remember, we get to run alongside the river for once, which is pretty special). Sign up here to join us, when we might also be celebrating a milestone and getting excited about our summer social at the Wildcat Wilderness.

Have a great week x

Venturing out in the wake of a storm, 25 intrepid explorers covered 5km, taking on two tasks in Hither Green.

Oh my. Did you see the lightning?! Did you hear (and feel) the thunder?! At about 5.30 the rain poured down and the ground began to rumble, with lightning striking a signal at Hither Green, trapping some of our runners either on trains or on station platforms. Some agreed to meet us at the task and some came running into the foyer at the last minute, looking a little flustered. By the time we had gathered and chatted, the sky had turned blue and the air was starting to warm up again. We had another great weekend of racing to celebrate, with runners and volunteers at the Hackney Half, the Rock and Roll Marathon in Liverpool and, over in Chistlehurst, our very own Conroy taking on the half-marathon distance. Well done!

We were joined tonight by two new-comers, a big welcome and all our Lewisham Love to Sarah and Glain, who most certainly weren't put off by the dramatic weather!

After a quick, knee-tagging, stuck-in-the-mud type warm up, we ran as a group to Manor Park, with Anita keeping us together at the back, thank you Anita! It was quite a tough hill up, but we were soon rewarded with a downward slope to the park, where we met Anne-Marie. Here, I left a large part of the group to get on with the task and took the rest of our marvellous volunteers back to the Ted Ray Scout Hall, where we were due to finish the painting from last week. En route, we picked up Nykolette, Bradley and Malcolm, who looked very much like they were waiting for a bus.

Last week we managed to do a big section of painting, but couldn't quite reach the top bits, running out of time before it was all done. This week we had a platform and ladders and the determination to complete the job. Meanwhile, around the front of the building, Vic and Matt were busy painting the bricks around the doorway, brightening up the entrance, while we chatted away around the back about Endure 24 and Malcolm's first marathon, this coming Sunday. Before long, we were stepping back and admiring the finished paintwork, whilst nibbling on a Malted Milk (cow biscuit) or Bourbon (thank you!). As we said goodbye, we went to see how Vic and Matt were doing, discovering that they couldn't be tempted to join us in running back, because they really wanted to finish what they had started! That's some high level dedication there! Good work.

When we arrived back at Manor Park, we found a team of tired runners, having worked hard at a number of very physical (and also delightful) tasks:

• watering the orchard (collecting the water from the River Quaggy)

• pulling up bindweed (please come and do this in my garden!)

• putting together a shiny new wheelbarrow

• weed bashing

• watering tadpoles (wow! This has to be one of our most unusual tasks so far!)

Thank you to Conroy and Emma for documenting all of this with such lovely photos and to everyone for working so hard at both tasks this evening.

Next week is a Bank Holiday, which means nothing to us because we don't stop doing good for anyone! Our task will take us towards New Cross this time, to Luxmore Gardens, where we will be doing some painting (and maybe a bit of digging). Don't forget to sign up to our Summer Social at the wonderful Wildcat Wilderness (thank you for hosting us Maria!) and also the GoodGym Olympic Games (thank you Conroy for sharing your Olympic torch ideas, all ideas welcome!). Have a great week and very good luck to Malcolm at the Edinburgh Marathon!