Wandsworth smashed its own record for runners last night, and smashed it good. With no less than 46 of us, we just needed was Roy Castle and his trumpet confirming that al we needed was a bit of dedication. With the equivalent of over three rugby teams running to help out community organisations we are able to make a huge difference in our borough.

We couldn’t have made it without our amazing new runners, so here’s to Andrew, Paula, Georgie, Jessica, Larraine and Foster. Give them a cheer, Wandsworth, they’ve earned it!

A huge well done too to Alex who absolutely nailed his first ever 10k race this weekend in Regent Park. If you’re keen to get a race in the diary but don’t know where to start come and let me know and we can find you the perfect challenge. Don’t forget about park runs across London – and beyond – every single Saturday. Why don’t you have a look at the GG leaders board and while you’re there give Sophie a cheer, for she has sprinted to the top of the distance rankings. Way to go. Same goes for Berit who has been smashing out the good deeds along with Alex who also tops the cheer board. Well one Matthew for sustaining us with all that cheering!

All that running is thirsty work, so don’t forget about our monthly social which happens to be this Thursday near Russell Square, more details and sign up found here.

This week’s CoRUNdrum comes courtesy of Jordan  who asked us where the longest street in Britain can be found. Good one! With that in mind, we set off down the Wandsworth Road – which felt pretty never ending – and headed to Food For All. This amazing organisation provides a completely free food market for those who need it most, supports community self-help and is committed to tackling homelessness and social exclusion. We hope to work with them a lot in the future, and our next trip will be supporting them by distributing food to those that need it.

This time though we were there to see what it was all about, meet the lovely people and do a few jobs. This started with emptying the huge pile of rubbish, and never one to miss out on the chance to make a human chain we got cracking. Excitement peaked at the head of the line when Jessie spotted a mouse (new GG mascot?) but thankfully there was nothing bigger lurking in there. Our next task was to peel off the vinyl stickers on the soon to be repurposed Food For All van, which proved to be a very satisfying job, and the team had to be persuaded to step away from the vehicle to complete our third mission, which was to distribute posters to all the businesses along the Wandsworth Rd on our run back. Sinead took an early lead as the first to persuade a local shop to put it up, the rest of the team could be found weaving in and out of places all the way to Larkhall Park, where we stopped for a quick abs blast at the top of a hill. We worked our core hard with a combination of Russian twists, planks, crunches, scorpions and mountain climbers. A strong core is key to an injury-free and efficient running style as it helps reduce twisting and keeps us stable when we get tired. And to take our mind of the pain, we discussed our dinner plans – with pasta and burgers coming out on top, with cold sausages a less popular option. Whatever you went for, team, you earned it.

We pushed it harder for the last mile of the run, bossing that final deceptive hill on the way back to the BAC with ease. While we stretched we crowned this week’s CoRUNdrum winner - clever Holly that knew Streatham High Rd is the longest in the country. Well done Streatham and Holly. Next week we’re going to have fun delivering some flyers for a local community centre who need help spreading the word about their Easter festival. It’s a shortish run so we’ll be off to Battersea park to do a cracking fitness session. Don’t miss out, you lovely people. Sign up here:

https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/spreading-the-word-for-our-local-community-centre

Fourteen FANTASTIC @GGSheff runners ran 4KM and carried countless dusty tables and chairs up three flights of ancient stairs to assist in bringing the Abbeydale Picture House back to it's former glory for the benefit of the local community.

After running 2KM to the venue we met NOTORIOUS NICK and SENSATIONAL STEVE who gave us an excellent explanation of the work that CADS are doing to bring the Abbeydale Picture House back into use with community events, art exhibitions, flea markets, studio space and more!

Following forty minutes of carrying tables and chairs up the creaking stairs we took to CENTER STAGE for the fitness performance of our lives! To a roaring audience of zero we;

*SQUATTED *LUNGED *180'D *BURPED *CLIMBED MOUNTAINS *DUCK WALKED *PRESSED UP *TRI-DIPPED - TO SOME DUBIOUS BACKING SOUNDS

Nothing wrong with a bit of squeaky furniture and some heavy breathing!

Finally we relayed our way around the sensational stalls and exited stage rear for some refreshments, before heading back to base on an alternative route and took in the local 50M athletics track to get some final sprints in before we stretched off.

With a lot more lifting and shifting still to be done I am sure we will return again for a repeat performance! Take a look at the before and after photos to see what an impact we can have in such a small apace of time!

GREAT EFFORT @GGSheff!

Next week we are off to a new task location with THE BEST NIGHT TIME CITY VIEWS OF THE STEEL CITY to help FRIENDS OF SHEAF VALLEY PARK

You can sign up to next weeks run with FOSVP here