Lock, stock and two squeaking barrows

Was it the sunshine, was it the lovely task at Chiswick House and Garden or was it the promise of the three minute plank challenge? Whatever the motivation, it was wonderful to see a group of 18 of us at the group run last night, including some lovely GG tourism from Hammersmith and Ealing.

We kicked off the night with a warm up, enjoying feeling the sun on our faces rather then the rain on our backs like the past few weeks. Our job for evening was just round the corner, so we set off at a fair old lick for the community kitchen garden. Somehow our group managed to get separated over the five minute run, but we happily soon spotted the group of red tshirts running to join us from the opposite direction than we had expected!

We were met by task owner Stephen who was enjoying the golden hour light over the spectacular kitchen garden, and he put us to work. While Steph, Madhan, Emily and Luis went off into the depth of the estate to collect burdock, nettles and thistles, the rest of the crew got stuck in to shifting compost for the central raised beds. This was accompanied by the melodious sound of some very squeaky barrows which ensured we knew where everybody was at all times!

The pile soon went down, and the flower beds were treated to a covering of nutrient rich soil. Apparently this means that as well as helping growth, the gardeners have to water less, which is good news all round! It's wonderful to come regularly to the garden , as we can enjoy seeing the way it transforms over the course of the year and the benefits of our work too!

Job done, we headed off for the orangery, where a few of us learned that a couple of very famous Beatles music videos - Rain and Paperback Writer - had been shot. Luckily last night there was no Rain for us, so the write thing to do was some tough fitness challenges. We started with the three minute plank. This sounds really tough, but we kept switching up the moves so that we were constantly using different muscles. It's a great idea for runners to work on their core as it improves running efficiency and reduces the risk of injury. If that wasn't enough we also smashed out a minute's incremental squat. Great work everyone!

Next week we're back by the shoreline, hope to see you there!