Yesterday’s session was a bank holiday special. A brilliant crew of runners giving up their time and potential long lunches to do good and create community spirit. Nice one!

We met, as always, at Battersea Arts Centre, where things kicked off with not one but two questions to get the brain firing—covering the unlikely pairing of cricket and the human skeleton. A true test of both sporting and anatomical knowledge before we even set off.

From there, we headed out to Doddington Community Garden, ready to get stuck in. Tasks included pulling out stubborn dry grass, giving the space a tidy-up, planting valerian root—known for its calming properties and often used to aid sleep—and, of course, plenty of watering to keep everything thriving. Solid teamwork all round.

Next stop: the square for a proper legs session. Lunges in all their forms, squat variations to keep things interesting, and step-ups to really finish things off. It was intense, but the group rose to it—serious effort from everyone.

All in all, a bank holiday well spent. Next week we’re heading to Balham Nursery. Hope you can join us

A big Wandsworth welcome to Anna, Honor and Charles who joined us for the first time last night — great to have you at your very first session!

We kicked things off with a run down to the Falcon Road Estate, where an organisation of local residents works hard to keep the area safe, welcoming and clean. We arrived ready to plant bulbs… but unfortunately the bulbs hadn’t quite made it in time. No problem — plans pivoted, gloves went on, and we got stuck into litter picking and weeding instead.

One knowledgeable team took charge of the raised beds, clearing, weeding and pulling, while the rest of us spread out far and wide on a mission to find every stray crisp packet and forgotten bit of rubbish. The transformation was swift and satisfying with a positive impact. We even had a special visit from a local councillor, who dropped by to be part of the action.

With the task wrapped up in record time, we headed over to Banana Park for a punchy fitness session. Partners at the ready, it was game on: who could rack up the most squats, press-ups, and sit-ups solo, before finishing strong with burpees together? There was real effort, sweat and laughs from everyone, but there was one standout team - drum roll for ... Jason and Veronica, who powered their way to victory.

Then it was time to run back to base, tackle that last hill and make even more connections.We wrapped up with stretches and more plans, such as

• Next Monday when we’ll be heading to the Scout Hall to help get things ready for the local elections

• Being part of the GoodGym cheering station at Sunday's London marathon

Hopefully see you there!

Spring was in full bloom on Monday evening, so we couldn't have asked for a better task than a visit to one of our favourite spots - Doddington Roof Garden! After a quick warm up and spring-inspired intro question (Bluebells won the prize of favourite spring flower) the group ran 1.5km to Doddington, where we were met by volunteer Melissa, who wasted no time in taking us through the evenings tasks. There was a lot to do, but with plenty of GoodGymmers on hand, including first-time GoodGymmer Joanna and a few tourists from other areas, no-one was phased by the long to do list. Beth, Jordan and Felix straight away volunteered themselves for the unenviable and rather smelly task of composting, transferring waste veg to the compost heap and turning the contents. While no-one likes to see food go to waste, it's good to know that those overly ripe vegetables have avoided the landfill and will instead help nurture future growth in the garden. Veronica and Nathan grabbed trowels and started pulling up grass to create a pathway across the lawn area, which will be filled with wildflower seeds to help the garden attract more bees and Dan, Dave and Hannah uncovered a resident toad in the veg patch! The rest of the team were busy digging up and relocating plants, weeding, pruning and sweeping; essential tasks that help the garden to thrive and keep it accessible for other volunteers and visitors.

After all that hard-work, some of the group went on to The Latchmere Pub for our monthly pub quiz social, and their heroic efforts won the team second prize - an amazing effort from everyone involved! Those who couldn't make it to the social this time ran back to the meeting point for some cool down stretches.