Scout and about

It is always heartwarming to see GoodGymers turn up for their Wednesday run, even when it's freezing and there's a long run ahead of us. A big well done to our band of 10 who spent Wednesday evening running a meaty 7.5 kilometers to make a difference in the community.

We kicked off the night welcoming our lovely new runners Amanda and Rufus who joined us for their very first GoodGym run. Give them a cheer, team!

We also had some shout outs for the great running you guys have been doing over the week - Andy for getting himself a new 10k training PB, and Will for covering a whopping 265.5 kms so far this month. Inspiring stuff.

Don't forget that every Thursday there is a fitness session which moves location every six weeks. There is no good deed, just an hour of fitness, technique and drills, and tonight's is the last (for now) in Vauxhall. Sign up here if you'd like to improve form and get a great running work out.

It was pretty nippy yesterday, so we had a good warm up featuring tuck jumps and our weekly poll. Last night we discussed the first thing we'd all do with a cool million. Helicopters, flats, round the world tickets, boats....looks like we've got a taste for the high life in Hounslow!

Dib, Dib, Dib

We set off at a steady pace for the first leg of the night, stopping to smash out some conditioning exercises every so often to keep the group together. There may have been a little map checking at the end, just to add an element of fun, you understand, but we made it in the end to find Claire waiting for us at Brentford Scout Hut.

Claire introduced us to the scout master who had been working there for 30 years, and explained that the organisation relies on volunteers to offer local children the opportunities that scouting brings. Our job there tonight was to move 20 canisters from the hut to the garden, so, in the more efficient segment of the evening, we formed a human chain to get that gas shifted.

Next there was the seemingly simple task of finding a good place for the cage, and several attempts and many breezeblocks later we finally settled on a nice flat piece of ground and loaded the canisters back into their forever home. Waving good bye - for now - to the scout hut, we were lucky enough to find a lovely little incline to do some gentle hill sprints. Focusing on various technical points we did four reps, before heading back. Some extra little goodies along the way, for those that wanted them, were a river loop and some speed pacing. Lovely running, everybody.

Next week we have the opposite of last night's session, with a very short run and a big fitness element. We'll be planting a tree and digging a community garden in the heart of Chiswick, so sign up here to get fit and do good.