27 brave runners headed out the rain last night for a selection of plant-based good. 🌱

We started off welcoming Cat, Jo and Chris for coming on their first ever GG run 👏 and congratulated Samantha for winning our SPOTM! With 13 good deeds this month and 100km+ ran to make those good deeds happen, she's absolutely smashing it. A killer haul of not one but TWO laser tag mugs, a purple piggy bank, a single packet of hot chocolate mix and of course a shower cap.

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Nicky took a small but powerful group off to Styles Gardens:

After a 1k run and a quick photo shoot in the playground (all in aid of the nationwide 1k GG Olympics race), we met Karen at Styles Gardens. With the assistance of a tree-climbing tabby cat, we got to work. After 40 minutes, we'd cleared a huge pile of branches/ivy/brambles and litter-picked a lot of rubbish. Karen was delighted with our progress and especially glad that a few residents were interested in what we were doing and how they could get involved. Unfortunately, having dodged the rain until then, the heavens decided to open for a VERY wet (but mercifully short) jog back to Papa's. 💦

Putting the style back in Styles - Karen from Styles Gardens.

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Getting to the root of it.

Everyone else split in 2 to go to Larkhall Park - George and Lucy leading a longer 3k run and the rest of us taking the direct route.

In a bit of a bind.

At Larkhall, we met Carl who told us the weeds had been growing like crazy this year. We had two patches to get to work on - One with A LOT of bindweed, twisting itself round every single plant it could find - even the weeds. The other patch was filled with small weeds and Chris, Jon and Frances were pondering the age old question;

What counts as a weed?

We decided it was down to looks, which is a bit shallow I guess. 🤷‍♂️

Rooty Pageant

At the end we took a quick snap with our piles of weeds all laid out, Carl said thanks and we blitzed some sprint relays before heading back to base.

TOP WORK EVERYONE 🎈

Next week we've got another couple of tasks: Spreading woodchip at Moorlands Gardens and helping out at Hillside Gardens Park. Sign up here.

We kicked off by welcoming our new runners - Rose, Alice, Alistair, Struan and Crissy - Nice to have you along!

And then it was time for the SPOTM with possibly the best(worst) SPOTM ever?! This month's winner was the recipient of:

• a bookmark
• 2 luggage tags
• a couple of sachets of deep heat/freeze
• 2 t-shirts made from recycled cotton and plastic bottles

and the pièce de résistance (donated by the wonderful Katie Welford);

• A SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH OF JOANNA LUMLEY

And the worthy winner, who smashed her 10k target by 7 and a half minutes, and recently did her 50th good deed was Aislin!!! Give her a massive cheer! 👏 👏 👏

Absolutely Fabulous.

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George lead a group on an 11k run, to complete the final stage of an epic task for the Lambeth GP Food Co Op. We started a few weeks ago by emptying soil from some huge planters in Stockwell. Then they got transported to Crown Dale surgery where we moved them into position last week. And then this week it was all about filling them back up with soil.

With encouragement/entertainment from a couple of local lads, the team aced it, getting the job done, smoothing out the soil and headed back in time for a quick stretch.

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The rest of us ran 4k to help Justin at Ruskin Park Community Garden. They've been doing a load of work lately to get the space looking tidy and producing lots of fruit and veg.

We were mostly in the fruit cage, using all manner of tools to de-weed and remove grass. It was pretty cosy so some of the team cut a big chunk of bramble back, which will eventually make room for more vegetable plots.

When all the excess greenery was on the compost heap, we headed back via a quick hills session. Squeezing a couple of hill reps into your run is an awesome way to improve your running form and give your cardiovascular system a boost.

We focussed on - keeping the body straight with your head up, bringing knees up higher than they normally would and using your arms and driving them back and well as forwards.

After a few reps, when everyone was sufficiently worn out, we made the run back with limited enthusiasm for red traffic light squats and lunges...

Top work everyone! 👊

Next week we're helping out at Papa's Park with some weeding and painting. Of course we'll be fitting in some 1k loops, some circuits and we'll even be delivering some posters for Age UK's Food2U project. Sign up here!