No schooner said than done

As the evenings get lighter and the layers come off (maybe, if you're really bold), 22 intrepid explorers took to the streets of SE4 to spread the word about Ahoy! Between 3 and 7km were run, with a series of heart-pumping mile (or 1km or 800m) repeats being completely and utterly smashed!

Joining us in Lewisham tonight was new trainer Tim, ahead of the launch of GoodGym Bexley next Monday. Tim was seeing how we do things in South East London and I'm pretty sure we gave him a great Lewisham welcome. Why not give him a cheer and wish him luck by clicking here? We also welcomed two new runners, Habi and Chris - well done to Chris, who ran a half-marathon yesterday but still pushed himself hard on our fitness session, tough stuff.

Chris wasn't the only runner to be feeling both a little sore and a little buzzy tonight, Sean, a regular at GoodGym Lewisham, also ran the Hampton Court Half-Marathon, bagging himself a PB in the process...knocking forty minutes off his previous time. FORTY MINUTES! Epic stuff Sean! Our pre-run briefing seems to be a regular PB-fest these days, keep 'em coming people!

When you have visiting dignitaries from other GoodGym areas, you want to show them a good time. Taking Tim by the hand, we led him down the back streets of London's premier borough, showed him how easy it is to lose people (never happened on our group run before) and even got out the first aid kit for good measure (only the second time in just over a year). All the treats. After our short run to Ladywell, we gathered at the corner of Chudleigh and Ladywell Roads, distributing flyers for Ahoy! and a few little GoodGym cards to show people the way. The instructions were to work in pairs, two people to each side of the road, don't put flyers in the 'No junk mail!' letterboxes and meet back at the corner of Dressington Avenue.

Off the groups went, flyers in hand, eagerly finding their road and flyering away. Gradually, people trickled back and joined in a few sets of squats, lunges and leg-lift squats (always good to entertain the traffic). After some press-ups and dynamic stretches, we regrouped and were reunited with our wandering souls, to head over to Ladywell Fields. A little push, up and over the curly/windy/spirally bridge and we swept over towards the cafe to hear about tonight's fitness session. Thank you to tonight's lovely back-markers, Steve and Judy, who made sure we didn't leave anyone behind.

And repeat!

We don't often have a bit of extra time to devote to the fitness element of our group run, but tonight we were able to take advantage of a really nice one-mile loop, with a good mixture of up, down and flat, with a few twists and turns to keep in interesting. The options were a mile, approximately 1km or around 800m. The goal was to run your chosen loop, rest for two minutes, then repeat in the opposite direction. Of course, those who wanted to could mix it up and we had a great combination of milers, 1k and 800s coming and going at different times, cheering and encouraging each other to push hard to a sprint finish. Excellent work everyone, this session will really build your strength and also help you pace yourself, building that mental grit that gets you to a strong finish.

At this point, newcomer Chris showed us his incredible sprint action, as he aimed to catch the incoming train home. A big cheer all round as he got there just as the doors opened.

The rest of us, happy to ease back on the pace, ran back to Glass Mill, where Tim took us through some stretches and we ate some sweet, but really quite healthy treats. All homemade goods welcome here.

There was lots of talk about the upcoming monthly GoodGym social, which this time will be in...Lewisham! Yeeeeaaahhh! And not just anywhere, Catford! Sign up here to join in on a non-group run day, lycra optional. Tomorrow we have an opportunity to enjoy a task in the daylight! Have a look at this starter session, which is part of Student Volunteering Week in Lewisham. It's open to anyone, not just students so, if you happen to be free, why not take advantage of an extra chance to do good? Don't forget also to join us next Monday for more good, wholesome fun.