Things weren't looking promising for tonight's task as a dramatic thunderstorm — complete with forked lightning and torrential rain ⛈️ — rolled in just as we gathered at Danson Watersports Centre.

The plan was to take to the water for The Big Paddle Clean Up, litter-picking from kayaks and rowing boats 🛶 🚣‍♂️ to reach rubbish lurking along the banks that can't be accessed from the shore.

Along with volunteers from The Friends of Danson Park, a local Scout pack and Meridian Canoe Club, we huddled in the watersports reception, watching the skies and hoping the weather would ease. Not the best start for Jay's first ever GoodGym session.

Thankfully, though, the storm passed and we got the all clear to get going!

After a safety briefing, our water-based volunteers got kitted out in waterproofs and buoyancy aids before launching onto the lake. Meanwhile, two of us GoodGymers opted to stay on dry land, preferring a more traditional litter-picking approach and clocking up an impressive step count with a full lap of the lake.

The weather must have sensed that we were lending Mother Nature a hand. Before long, the storm clouds had disappeared, replaced by blue skies and glorious warm evening sunshine.

There was plenty of chatting and teamwork throughout the evening and, encouragingly, not a huge amount of litter to collect. Always a positive sign!

The time flew by and, once the boats were back on shore, everyone gathered for a well-earned hot drink and biscuits before heading home.

GoodGym tasks are always varied, but this one felt particularly special. How often do you get to go litter-picking by boat? We had a fantastic evening and can't wait to get involved again next year!

Peter was once again repping GoodGym Bexley at Avery Hill parkrun, first holding a 'Quiet Please' paddle aloft during the run briefing, then holding the stopwatch as timekeeper, recording those all-important minutes and seconds as everyone crossed the line.

If you fancy giving it a go, our two local parkruns always welcome new volunteers. No experience required, and a guaranteed feel-good factor after having been involved in a wonderful community event.

It was a hi-viz start to the day for four of us at Eltham junior parkrun.

Taking up marshalling and time-keeping roles we saw a whopping 165 children safely around the two-lap 2k course.

There were fast runners, slow runners, walkers and even a child running backwards for the second lap!

If you can spare an hour of your Sunday morning, why not give it a go? You'll be rewarded with smiles and a happy buzz. And if you need an extra reason, there's a great coffee shop nearby for a post task treat!

Swapping my pink marshal bib from last week for the blue and white Run Director hi-viz today, another glorious morning awaited 430 runners and 26 volunteers at Danson Park for Bexley parkrun number 677.

There were a number of first timers to parkrun this morning and I pointed out how addictive parkrun can be as we celebrated Indi Singh’s 300th event.

However, even he was usurped by one of my fellow RDs, Stephanie Dungate, completing her 500th event!

Congratulations to our first timers and to the 300/500 milestoners.

Phew, it was hot work at the Community Hospice this morning, but we got loads done!

We met in the Hospice canteen and welcomed Richard to his first GG session.

Jason, the Head Gardener, had two tasks lined up for us and we split into two groups.

Team Firethorn pulled on heavy-duty leather gauntlets and got stuck into cutting back an overgrown and fiendishly prickly Pyracantha 'Firethorn' hedge. They also sawed down an out-of-place and unloved Yucca in the long flower border, before chopping everything into manageable pieces and barrowing it all over to the compost heap.

Meanwhile, Team Moonbeam worked in a different flower bed, planting Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam'. The dry, stony soil put up a determined fight as we dug their new homes. Thankfully, being small plants, we didn't need to dig too deep to make room for their roots. Once planted, they were given a good watering before the team headed over to join in the hedging fun.

Time flew by, and Jason was very happy with what we'd achieved. The hedge had apparently been sitting on his to-do list for a couple of years, so it was especially satisfying to help him finally tick it off ✔️. It's always great when we can make such a visible difference!

With the jobs complete, we collected up all the tools and ferried them back to the shed before heading our separate ways.

Well done everyone, such a good vibe and a fantastic job done!

Look out for Cecilia's video on our Instagram and Facebook feeds soon!

This was our second session of letterbox leafleting to spread the word about the Community Hospice's brilliant Open Garden Festival taking place in a couple of weeks 🌻🌾🌿.

Tonight our target area was around one of this year's first-time participating gardens, and with five pairs of trainers hitting the pavements and driveways, our pile of flyers disappeared quickly.

As always, the task was about more than just getting the job done. Along the way we swapped stories of recent parkrun tourism in the Netherlands, Norway and Denmark, debated all things feline, and enjoyed the kind of friendly conversation that makes GoodGym such a sociable way to stay active.

Mission completed, and with 1.5 kilometers-worth of steps logged, we headed to the pub for a well-earned drink before heading home.

Cheers, and have a great weekend everyone!