This week we headed back to the beautiful grounds of Chiswick House, where we visit regularly to keep this historic green space looking its best. It helps keep the gardens and grounds free for everyone to enjoy, and it is always rewarding to know that an hour or so of work has a lasting impact on a community space.

A special welcome to Emma, who joined us for her very first GoodGym Hounslow session! Great to have you join us.

After a warm up and a quick run, we met up with the rest of the group, grabbed our tools and got straight to work on two important conservation tasks.

Our first job was tackling epicormic growth—the shoots that sprout from the trunks and lower branches of trees. While these shoots are a natural response to stress, they divert energy away from the healthy canopy and can affect the tree's long-term health. Removing them helps put energy where it's needed most.

Our second task was trimming back the browse line—the lower branches that create a neat line beneath the tree canopy. The name comes from the height at which deer naturally browse leaves in woodland. Maintaining this browse line improves visibility and allows more light to reach the ground, supporting a greater variety of plants and wildlife.

As always, there was plenty of conversation while we worked. Topics ranged from upcoming races and ambitious cycling adventures to remarkable hospital coincidences and plenty of plans for future events. Time flies when you're catching up with good company!

With an impressive number of trees tended to, we headed over to the estate yard for fitness. Tonight it was Tabata - a high-intensity interval workout consisting of short bursts of hard work followed by brief recovery periods. It's fast, energetic and efficient. There were plenty of laughs, lots of determination, and some truly impressive squats on display!

Next week we're off to help at a local school. Hope to see lots of you there! Sign up here for all the details

Breda and Michelle stayed behind to help the Friends of Watermans Park pack everything away, after the third concert of the summer series had finished.

The gazebos came down without too much trouble, the deck chairs and cushions were stacked away in the storage unit, and, most impressively of all, the bunting was retrieved with minimal fuss. Breda’s pre- event negotiations over where it should be hung paid off handsomely, saving multiple trips up the ladder and proving that a little strategic planning really does go a long way.

Another successful concert packed away, ready for the Friends of Watermans park to do it all again next Saturday, for one last time this summer.

Five GoodGymers were on hand to help set up the third of four free summer events at Watermans Park.

Kai, Kash, Michelle and Breda took on the now-familiar challenge of erecting three gazebos. By this point, you’d think we’d have cracked it. Not quite, but Philippe came to the rescue and normal service was resumed.

Next came the bunting. As we discovered the last two saturday's there seemed to be enough of it to decorate the Thames towpath all the way to Kew. Before a single flag was tied, Breda opened early negotiations with Sevan and Kash over the optimal bunting locations, with one eye firmly on making the evening pack down as painless as possible… more on whether that strategy paid off later!

With gazebos standing, bunting fluttering and the bandstand looking suitably festive, the whole set-up was wrapped up in around half an hour. That left plenty of time for what is now becoming a Watermans tradition: the pre-performance pilgrimage in search of ice lollies.

Goods secured, we had our hydration break before Kai Sevan and Kash headed back closer to home and Breda and I returned to the park to watch the local acts.

World Cup fever had reached its peak with England’s semi final just hours away, but that meant plenty of time to fit in a good deed before kick off.

We met with tonight’s Manager, Jan from Friends of Turnham Green who gave us a briefing and a tactical run down of the big game and the goals for the evening. There was a trimming and clearing at the edges of the wildflower meadow to be done, litter to be picked, and the plants around the rockery needed a good watering following the wave of warm weather.

Time for kick off. No time to sit on the Spence! Kash and Gus tackled the strimming, whilst Max, Florian, Alan, Michelle and Steph raked up the trimmings, ready to go into one of the big blue Saka’s supported by Lucy. The other rubbish bags were taken on by Breda and Fran, also armed with the infamous Turnham Green tongs, as they Rice-d to defend the area from litter. Emily took it a little bit Eze-r, Pick(ford)ing rubbish and sharing the joys of GoodGym with the locals. Finally, playing up top on his own was Jon and the hose, giving the plants a good old hydration break on the rockery.

Captain Ana called for full time. A team photo to Marc (Guehi) the occasion was taken, and a shout out to the Birthday Boy Alan, who celebrated a big shiny birthday on Monday. Hopefully a big shiny World Cup trophy coming back to England will also celebrate 60 years soon too!

The green was looking a lot less Messi, and Jan was pleased with the results. All that was left was to get ready for the real kick off at 8PM. Kane we bring it home? COME ON ENGLAND.

UPDATE: We in fact did not bring it home, much to our disappointment and now join our French counterparts in feeling miserable because of 11 grown men kicking a ball around. Euro’s in 2 years anyone?

Michelle, Breda and Breda's friends helped to pack up the summer concert decorations, equipment and chairs.

What goes up must come down and so the miles of bunting hung by the trapeze artist known locally as Kash, and the dynamic duo of Sevan and Maxime was retrieved and packed away for another week.

Deck chairs were flattened and 3 gazebos were deconstucted in record time.