There was unmistakably feeling of spring in the air last night—lighter evenings, a hint of warmth and a lovely sense of collective optimism. It could only mean a Wednesday group run in Hounslow!

We headed to one of our regular spots, Strand-on-the-Green School, ready to get stuck into a two part task. Paintbrushes in hand, the first team took on the first section of wall. However, there was some consternation about the colour—was it definitely meant to be yellow… or was it supposed to be white? Coverage had to be committed, and before long the wall was getting a proper glow-up.

Team two tackled the other side—pulling, trimming, and liberating the wall from a determined tangle of greenery. There was impressive teamwork, serious progress, and… quite a lot of sneezing. Turns out ivy removal comes with a side of dust clouds, but that didn’t slow anyone down.

As the session progressed there was singing, there were tales of St Paddy's day escapades, there was the satisfying sight of filled bags being lined up, and there was definitely no incident whatsoever involving a paint tin of water. Absolutely none worth mentioning.

By the end, we had a semi transformed space and a skip full of ivy cuttings. Great work everybody. We'll be back on the 1st April to finish up the job.

There’s plenty more to look forward to:

🌱 A mission this weekend at the Eyot ⛪ Gardening at Hope Church—can you make it? 🌼 And next week we're planting cowslips on Turnham Green, plus some fun, longer fitness

A beautifully sunny if chilly morning greeted 8 GoodGymers as they gathered on the Ham Lands with Sharon and her team.

Our task today was to clear the brambles covering a pathway to clear it for safer passage for walkers. The brambles were tenacious to say the least - some of us were chopping them with loppers while others dug out the roots - but we made good progress, rapidly filling refuse sacks which were then emptied in the undergrowth.

Meanwhile part of the team tackled the ivy spreading across the ground, pulling up great clumps and filling the bags.

It was a satisfying mission and the team retired happy to the Swiss Bakery for well-deserved coffees and treats.

Next time will be on April 11th - sign up here: https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/helping-the-happy-ham-landers-46894cf6-7f0c-466b-b358-13b5740bca60