It was the perfect evening for a spot of GoodGyming last night. With clear skies and warm weather, we met at Cavendish school, a regular task location for us, to help with the ongoing improvements the new caretaker is bringing in.

First stop was to take a look at the nature project we've been helping with, and it was fantastic to see new pathways and big compost bins had appeared. After firefighting the weeds and overgrowth for so long in the past it feels great to see real progress happening - we'll be back again soon to support some more!

Our job for the evening was in the school grounds themselves, and it was a biggie. We were tasked with moving a huge pile of green pine cuttings over to the playground area to provide a soft surface underneath the climbing frames. So with Chris and Florian taking charge of shoveling the big pile of pine, and Suze, Luis, Emily, Tish and Jon transporting it over to the site, while Michelle and Remy raked, we were soon operating like a finely oiled machine.

Before we knew it, we were all smelling very Christmassy, and the playground had a brand new covering. We just had time to knock out an intense glute session whilst trying to remember the Superman theme song. After a quick Swan Lake recital from Michelle, we recreated one of the best GG Hounslow photos to date, and then headed out. Thanks for an amazing effort last night everyone!

Don't forget we have a couple of missions coming up which could definitely do with a few sign ups! Especially this one to help plant at Harvard Hill and next week's lunchtime shift at Hounslow foodbox which is also looking very quiet!

Next week we're going to be helping Abundance London reclaim an overgrown area in Chiswick, see you there!

It was a double header last night in Hounslow! With two tasks to choose from, there was something for everybody. We also got a chance to welcome Beata to her first Hounslow session - great to have you join us!

Those that preferred a shorter run/walk to a local organisation took on the weeding task at Chiswick Methodist church, led by Michelle. What sounded initially like a relatively light job actually turned out to be quite the session. Luckily, as Michelle put it, they took it very methodically....have a look at the impressive before and after photos to see what the group managed to achieve. They also had birthday girl Alanna there to keep spirits up - many happy returns to the lovely lady herself on her special day! When the group is reunited next week we'll give you the bumps.

The second group set off on a slighter longer, and arguably somewhat less scenic route to Gunnersbury Park where a hefty job relocating logs waited for us. We used what three words to find the exact location, running past many very much smaller piles of logs en route. When we finally did arrive, we realised the scale of the task. There was no shortage of enthusiasm though, and we started shifting the logs as fast as our legs could carry us. Until, that was, we discovered a section of the local wildlife that had made the pile its home. Lifting up the wood we found lots of little families of frogs nestled in the mud. So as not to disturb their peace, we gently worked around the tiny amphibians, and soon only the giant unliftable logs were left. Great work everybody.

Next week we're off to do another stint at the Cavendish Nature area, so pack your gloves ready for the next step in this exciting project.

Have a great run into the weekend GoodGym!

We were in high spirits last night at our group run as it was the first time in months we met in bright evening sunlight. Couple that with the fact that we had some great racing last week (well done Florian and Steph!), the promise of a new task at Duke's meadow, and with lots of the group off to Paris for a weekend of marathons and croissants, everybody was in fine form!

We set off through the beautiful grounds of Chiswick House, and soon arrived to find Jo from Wild Chiswick waiting for us with all the tools we needed for the job. Duke's Meadow is run as a trust and over the years it has created fabulous play areas, planted hedgerows, wildflower meadows and an orchard to increase the bio diversity of the park. The trust is a social enterprise focused on sustainability and volunteers maintain the area.

Our job for the evening was to cut down the cherry tree suckers that have sprung up around the more mature cherry trees. This new growth saps energy away from more essential components, particularly fruit-bearing branches or foliage, and spread outwards rather than upwards thereby taking up space for other plants. Without wasting any time we snipped away and cleared the branches for collection, happily working away under a falling blanket of blossom and sky bursting with sunset colours.

In just a short amount of time the difference was clear, so we packed up our tools and made our way back across the field. Great work everybody. By the way, if you notice a notable improvement in the quality of some of the photos this week, you can thank Michelle and Lucy for an upgrade on my efforts with some lovely snaps! Next week we're at Cavendish school to do some more work on the nature area. Looking forward to seeing you then.

Happy running Paris racers!

It was a night of hellos, farewells and celebrations last night at GoodGym Hounslow!

First off we welcomed Gus to his first session - so great to have you join us. Sadly we also learned that it was to be Maddy's last session with us (for now) as she's returning to sunnier lands. We'll miss you Maddy, send us an invite when you get GoodGym Brisbane off the ground!

We were also bidding a sad goodbye to Pippa, who is off to join GoodGym Brighton, but not before she made a perfectly timed exit with her 100th good deed. Great to see you'll be taking your wings tshirt with you, and come back and visit soon!

With so much going on we had a big group for the evening, which was just as well as we had a big task to match! After a warm up we set off for Gunnersbury park, where we were helping the wardens there clear some areas where brambles had been cut down to make way for grass and trees.

We soon claimed our fleet of wheelbarrow, donned the thick gloves provided to deal with the spiky brambles, and headed off into the dark to find our job for the evening.

The machines the park had used to clear the areas had left loads of cut brambles which they had asked us to tidy up, so we set to it. Talking about the races of the past weekend (well done Harvey, Alan and Steph!) we filled ton bags full of debris, only pausing to gently move a giant bumble bee who had made a home in it.

After a good stint we moved all the bags over to the path and made our way back to base. I've already had an email from the park warden Lizzy thanking the team for your hard work, so well done for all the efforts.

Next week we have a new task helping to tidy up a community centre's outside space. Hope to see you there!