That old Chestnut

10 do gooders hit the streets, took on the task at Chestnuts Park and ran rings around each other during the fitness session.

Chin wagging was in full swing

One by one GoodGymmers arrived at Tottenham Green Leisure Centre ready to get stuck into this weeks session. We were very happy to welcome for the first time the lovely Lindsay and Alice. It was also nice to have Cara back with us again even if it is just until you move to H town =( Chin wagging was in full swing as we approached 7pm which was great to see but we had to cut it short, heading outside for our briefing and warm up. That said and done we started Strava etc and hit the tarmac in search of this weeks light at Chestnuts Park, where we had been tasked with watering some newly installed willow sculptures and a flowerbed, clearing the orchid [I mean orchard] of any branches so park keepers could mow the grass and last but not least we would secure posts that support young trees planted around the perimeter of the park.

Locals seemed interested in what we were doing

En route we ran at a nice pass for the first half of our 4k run. Locals seemed interested in what we were doing running together in a group, two joked in asking if they could run with us. Before long we had arrived at the task site so myself Aidan and Lindsay headed into the community centre to grab the hose pip, bucket, watering can and hammer we’d be using for the task while Chris, who is local to the task, lead everyone else to the task location. With the hose fitted I split everyone up into teams and explained what they’d be doing before sending them on their merry way.

do a whip round to get our silly face off comp pics

Lindsey and Cara headed to the parks perimeter armed with a hammer to ensure the young tree support poles where all firmly stuck in the ground. Aidan was on hose duty watering the willow and flowerbed along with filling a bucket and watering can that Ben and Mohammad were using to water some of the trees within the orchard area, as the hose wouldn't reach that far. In the meantime Dawn, Alice, Sarah and Chris combed the orchard floor in search of branches from the trees, which lined one side of the orchard. Everyone seemed content as they worked away at their individual task so I thought it a good time to do a whip round to get our silly face off comp pics, before heading over to the parks perimeter to check in with the girls. We have one or two very strong contenders this week.

CSI style forensic sweeps of their area

As I looked out into the distance to find the girls I couldn’t seem to find them but this was merely down to the fact they were banging out their task so fiercely. They had made up so much ground since I last checked their location that I was simply looking in the wrong direction. Well done guys! After snapping their face off pics I headed back in to the other guys who were also blazing ahead on what was actually a pretty big task. I arrived just in time to catch Sarah and her crew doing a CSI style forensic sweep of their area. Aidan seemed to be in his zone watering the flower bed while Mohammad and Ben reminded me of two flowerpot men.

Next stop - fitness session.

We were fast approaching the end of the task so I called the last ten minutes. Everyone hurriedly finished up what they were doing then we cleared up before posing for a quick group photo beside the willow stag and reeling in the hose which Mohammad seemed to make light work of while Chris, Ben and Aidan helped untangle it. We just had time to snap one or two more group pics before hitting the streets again. Next stop - fitness session.

HUGE shout out to Dawn who’s breaking down barriers

A few of us arrived at the Phillip Lane memorial before the rest of the group, who were kindly back marked by Sarah, so we did the hustle until we had re grouped. I then split people into pairs and instructed on person from each team to do reverse dips while the others ran around the memorial twice before swapping over. Shouts out to everyone here for putting in a good effort. A quick breather and we were off again along the home straight to HQ. Unfortunately due to a slight hitch I was unable to take up my usual position to spur on the entire group for their sprint finish but everyone seemed to get a good work out and we did get those high fives in which we forgot last week. I’d just like to take a moment to send a HUGE shout out to Dawn who’s breaking down barriers and making really good progress with her running. Thank you for your kind words and I’m glad you are getting lots out of the support from the group and myself.

good ol’ feed

After stretches and a de brief a couple of people went down to chicken town for a good ol’ feed. Hope you enjoyed your well earned meal guys!

Until NEXT WEEK folks – stay fit, do good and look out for the light!