This morning, we headed to the beautiful Hampstead Heath for a parkrun, kicking off Saturday with fresh air, fitness and a bit of hill-based character building!

Hampstead Heath certainly doesn't make things easy but interesting, with its woodland trails, gravel paths, tarmac and those climbs. With around 99 metres of elevation gain over 5km, it's fair to say that our legs got a little more than they bargained for! 😂

The route took us through the stunning woodlands and Parliament Hill Fields, reminding us that running in London doesn't always have to mean pounding the pavement.

We also support the fantastic volunteers who make parkrun possible every Saturday, helping create a free, inclusive event that brings people together through movement.

After the run we had canolli and coffee at a local coffee shop to home.

Well done to Subham who did his first parkrun at Hampstead Heath with a great time to became the 9th in his age category.

As I always say, Health is Wealth! 💚

And remember: why settle for just running 5km when you can cycle there and back too? We really went the extra mile… or several as we covered 17.50km! 😆

See you at the next GoodGym adventure! 👟

Seven sturdy Goodgymmers gathered at the Phoenix for our group re-run to Shepherds Hill Gardens. It's a good long one, and to make it inclusive, we set up a walking group as well, with Patricia and Paul setting off early.

Yet we also gathered to celebrate yet another amazing milestone: Richard's 400th mission! Well, technically 402nd, as he'd been busy over the weekend helping at Ally Pally Park Run, but still, out came the hat, and we had our little ceremonial congratulations for the evening.

Subham joined us just in time for the warm up, and tonight's icebreaker was about pets, dissections and weird animals. Rachel shared a story about feeding crickets on the loose, and I recalled a fond memory of my tortoise, also called George. And, courtesy of Victoria, we learned schools in the US do a lot of weird dissection.

Then it was off for the long 2.7km run to Shepherds Hill, where Pat had already broken out the brooms and rake. There was a pile of dumped cement in one corner, which Subham gamely resolved, while Patricia tackled the grass areas, raking everything up. Everyone else was on path duties, catching all the early autumn leaves and carrying them in bags down to the leaf pile in the wood.

And before we knew it, it was time for our little tea break - some lovely fresh mint, guava juice and biscuits - so many biscuits, including a special vegan treat for me! We ate enough to earn the run back to the Phoenix, arriving about 20:30 for a warm down and a pat on our proverbial backs for treating ourselves to a night of fitness and helping the Friends of Shepherds Hill shepherd the hill.

A few good gym members came online to do yoga.

Yoga talk Strength training one of the most important elements of yoga as we grow older. We lose 3% of our strength from 50 years old per year. ( Dr Chatterjee ) our muscles provide energy production and storage. Acting like sponges for sugars. An important way to fight diabetes and stronger muscles help us burn more calories during the day.

Well, a slightly disappointing session this one because we all arrived just as the delivery van was finishing up. Paul was first and managed to help push a couple of trolleys, but Subham and I arrived just at the start time to find they were packing up and going. And it was a small enough delivery the grocery team decided they didn't need any help inside.

Paul had Gus with him and needed to go to something else, but Subham and I decided to make the most of the weather, grabbed a coffee, then walked to the Glebelands Open Space, where we did some of the outdoor exercise trail before heading home. Next week, hopefully there'll be more lifting!

A great Saturday morning session combining fitness, community at Ally Pally Parkrun.

We met at 8:50am before the 9:00am Parkrun start. The session gave GoodGym members the opportunity to take part in a challenging 5km run.

The course was challenging, with a mixture of tarmac, hard paths and trail sections, as well a significant hill. The approximately 63-metre elevation gain made it a good test of fitness and endurance. A big shout out to Subham who ran first time on the Ally Pally parkrun and did his PB on the 5k run in a few years period.

Today we put in the bag 5k run and 12.50 km cycling makes it 220-320m of climbing in total. 🙌💪

Following the run, on the way home we had coffee. It was great to contribute to an event that encourages people of all abilities to stay active and connected within their local community.

Overall, it was an enjoyable and challenging GoodGym session, combining running and social connection. A great way to start the weekend!

Five of us — Cherian and me from GoodGym, plus three of the regular Stephens House & Gardens volunteers — got stuck into a fairly substantial job at the Friday morning gardening session.

Our task was down in the Dell, where an area of around 30 square metres needed to be completely cleared of grass. We first marked out the triangular-shaped plot and then set about removing the turf.

Armed with sharp spades, shovels, rakes and a wheelbarrow, we gradually stripped the whole area back to bare soil. It was pretty physical work, so the occasional pause for a chat in the lovely sunshine was very welcome.

As often seems to happen at Stephens House, the subject of celebrities came up — helped along when one rather well-known face happened to stroll past us. He shall remain nameless, although he’s known for playing a particularly London character!

Gus supervised proceedings, briefly considering getting involved before deciding that watching the squirrels in the trees was a much better use of his time.

After about two hours, we’d cleared the whole area and left it ready for the next stage of the project.

Then it was back for the traditional and very welcome tea and cake. (happy birthday, Alan! )

Another satisfying morning helping the regular volunteers look after this wonderful community garden.