Some GoodGym sessions have you running. Some have you gardening. And every so often, if you’re lucky, you get both in one evening. That’s exactly how six GoodGymers ended up trading trainers for trowels, joining Hope and Adrian to give the planters along Smithdown Road some care and attention. The brief was simple: weed, tidy, top up the soil and pick up any litter along the way. Liam, Fred and I started the evening with a run from the Liverpool Women’s Hospital area towards the traffic island where Ullet Road meets Smithdown Road, where the rest of the group was waiting. Once everyone had gathered, Liam took us through the safety guidance, making sure we all knew how to work safely around the traffic. Hope then talked to us through the task and explained what needed to be done. With the safety briefing complete, the instructions clear and the gloves on, we were ready to get stuck in. We started at the traffic island itself, coaxing the planters back from “a bit wild” to something genuinely lovely. We pulled out the weeds, added fresh soil, and gave everything a proper tidy. From there, we worked our way along Smithdown Road, planter by planter, weeding, trimming and maintaining the plants, while also clearing litter from the surrounding areas. Ten planters later, the road was looking noticeably brighter for it. There was a small milestone worth mentioning too: Amina turned up with her own new pair of gardening gloves for the very first time! A proper GoodGym rite of passage. The gloves were on, the weeds were warned, and there was no turning back. A Blooming Good Session It really was a good bloom session. There’s something quietly uplifting about working your way along a row of flowerbeds. The more we cleared, the more colour seemed to spring back to life around us, as though the plants were paying us back in kind for the attention. We’d started at a traffic island, but happily there wasn’t a hint of a jam. Instead, there was steady progress from planter to planter, with soil under our nails and the road looking better with every stop. The plants were putting down roots, while the GoodGymers were putting in the graft. And as for the weeds? They never stood a chance. Wrong place, wrong time, and definitely not part of the plan. Between pulling weeds, hauling soil, trimming plants and picking up litter, everyone found their part in the effort. There was plenty of enthusiasm throughout, and by the time we moved further along the road, Smithdown was beginning to look as though it was smiling back at us. The flowers may have been the ones doing the blooming, but there were plenty of smiles blooming among the GoodGymers too. Putting Down Roots, Then Running Home We wrapped up a few minutes ahead of schedule, with 10 planters looking brighter, the surrounding pavements tidier, and Hope and Adrian’s Smithdown in Bloom project given another helping hand. With the gardening done and the weeds well and truly defeated, it was time to swap the trowels back for trainers. Liam and I ran back to the area where we had started, bringing the evening neatly full circle. We had begun by running towards Smithdown, spent the middle of the session among the flowerbeds, and finished by running back with that satisfying kind of tiredness that comes from knowing you’ve left somewhere a little better than you found it. A big thank you to Hope and Adrian for organising and guiding us through the task, and to Liam for taking us through the safety guidance and keeping everything running smoothly. And, of course, a big well done to everyone who turned up, got their hands dirty and helped make the evening such a good one. It’s a nice reminder that small deeds can add up to something real: a few pairs of gloves, some fresh soil, a group willing to get stuck in, and a stretch of road that feels a little brighter for everyone who walks past it. We arrived on foot, stayed to dig in, put down some roots, pulled out a few weeds, and left Smithdown blooming. From sole to soil and back again, not a bad way to spend an evening.

Goodgym met up this Monday to help once again with the friendly team at Friends of Princes Park. After a round of introductions, we also decided to celebrate some less commonly marked milestones including 85 and 15 tasks with goodgym. Some might say it's important to celebrate achievements at any stage.

We split into two groups. One group went off to water some young trees much in need of a drink in this drought. Princes Park has recently planted hundreds of new trees, including several cherry trees which were a gift from the Japanese embassy. Our efforts today will hopefully transform Princes Park into a beautiful Oasis!

Group two set off to weed a wall which was overgrown with grass and brambles. Little by little we managed to cut back the growth on top and pull our the weeds in the wall which made it much tidier for passers by. In supersonic speed, we cleared the path on both sides and transformed a weedy wall into Wonderwall!

Afterwards Goodgym slid away into the evening until next time.

On a damp, overcast afternoon, Liam and Aatefa met at Williamson Square at 11:30 to support Savera UK's march through Liverpool city centre to raise awareness of honour based abuse. Although the dark clouds threatened rain - and delivered a light drizzle to keep everyone refreshed - the weather largely held off long enough for the afternoon to get off to an incredible start. The march kicked off with a burst of high energy courtesy of the fantastic Katumba drummers, whose vibrant rhythms set a powerful, upbeat tone for the day. Before starting off, the crowd gathered to hear a moving opening speech from Afrah Qassim, founder and CEO of Savera UK. With the march underway, the group marched through the heart of Liverpool, making their way up Church Street and Bold Street toward the iconic Bombed Out Church (St Luke’s), drawing enthusiastic attention and solidarity from shoppers and passersby along the route. Liam and Aatefa served as marshals along the procession, keeping the group safe, organized, and moving smoothly through the busy city streets. Though the rain grew heavier as the afternoon wore on, it failed to dampen the spirits of those attending. The march culminated at the Bombed Out Church for a cultural event featuring inspirational speeches from MP Naz Shah and Afrah Qassim, alongside a lineup of wonderful performance artists. Ultimately, the event was a resounding success, doing crucial work to raise awareness around honour based abuse and stand in solidarity with victims and survivors. The determination of everyone involved proved that even a heavy Liverpool downpour couldn't wash away such an important message. To learn more about their vital mission, access support services, or get involved, please visit the official Savera UK website: https://www.saverauk.co.uk/

To complement our parkrun super Sticker Saturday, GoodGym Liverpool has taken to the occasional "Parkrun on Holiday". This time, we were ticking off "C" on the Parkrun alphabet and heading to the coast for the Crosby Parkrun.

This extra run was arranged by Clara, and Clara's phenomenal organisational skills soothe my soul. She'd ascertained attendees, sorted a WhatsApp group so we could stay in touch without spamming the main group, and shared all the important information including public transport options, parking, amenities, and event schedule in advance so we all knew exactly what we were doing. As a fairly organised person myself, it's an absolute pleasure to attend a session Clara has arranged so thank you Clara for all your hard work in keeping us all together ♥️

The weather forecast was looking, shall we say temperamental, and Clara and I met early at the leisure centre and sheltered under the cover. We were soon joined by Liam and Aatefa and headed to the briefing point, where we were given the first-timers brief including the turnaround point at the iron man statue the Parkrun Crosby team have affectionately named Bing (get it?).

We were soon joined by Amina and got the all important group photo. Liam was nearly in hot water for not sporting his GoodGym t-shirt, but when it transpired he'd recently completed his 25th Parkrun, and was debuting the much sought after 25th purple t shirt on this, his 26th parkrun, all was forgiven.

It was then time for the general brief and GoodGym got a shout out welcome as parkrun tourists. One of the volunteers was celebrating her 400th time volunteering, a phenomenal achievement.

And off we went! The weather was kinder to us than expected, there was a little light drizzle mid-run but nowhere near the expected downpours ⛈️. It's quite a challenging course, running first on the sand (the 'out' was fine as the sand was quite firm, the 'back' much harder as the sand was more clay-like and sticky). We were all glad to reach solid ground for the section along the prom, up to the lifeguard station and back. Along the prom, one of the friendly volunteers was high-fiving us with Sweep, a beloved puppet from the children's show Sooty & Sweep. Then came the most challenging section of all - grass!

We all regrouped at the finish line, 25km completed between us. Amina had done well to make the run and had to get back for her bank holiday weekend plans, the rest of us headed for a Goodgym-style breakfast at a local cafe 🍳

Somehow despite the super challenging course, Aatefa had STILL managed to maintain her new sub-30 minute streak with an amazing time of 29:18. And I learnt it had actually been my 25th Parkrun! Might look into that purple t-shirt...

I certainly wouldn't have so many under my belt without the Goodgym Sticker Saturdays, so thank you GG Liverpool for endless motivation to get out running on a Saturday morning, and thank you Clara, Aatefa, Amina and Liam for a lovely morning of seaside fresh air, exercise, and a lovely cafe (particularly one that serves an iced matcha latte with coconut milk 💚).

We said goodbye and Aatefa and Liam made their way back to the city centre for ANOTHER Goodgym session, this time volunteering at the Savera march and festival. Well done guys what an amazing effort 🌟 But that's another report...

I walked to the mission, it was a lovely brisk 45min walk. Mrs E lives on a beautiful tree lined street, she said back in the day when bobbies were on the beat, they would make this street part of their route on hot sunny days as it is always cool. With beautiful trees come autumn leaves and for Mrs E they had started to fall into her front garden. She showed me the back garden which was very beautiful as Mr E had just mowed the lawn yesterday in between rain showers. She said that the front needed a bit of attention to tidy it up. I was last here with Clara about a month ago and we had cleared a lot of the grass and weeds. This time just a tidy was needed. Mrs E had the correct tools and a green bin only partially filled ready for me to add the leaves. Once I’d done I helped Mrs E put some of the grass cuttings from yesterday in what space was left in the bin. I said goodbye to Mrs E and walked back home for a nice cup of tea.

It was a beautiful late summer evening and it seemed everyone with a car to show off had headed to the Everton Park viewpoint. Amongst the sound of exhausts and tyres on tarmac came four panting Goodgymmers who had run from Hope Street. Run leader Liam with Sophie, Laura and Fred met myself at the lookout point and we waited for John for instructions.

It was a sapling attacking mission, the saplings were spawning of the trees and off tree trunks. We were each handed loppers and we got to work, cutting back the saplings to their base.

We got some curious onlookers. The boy racers gathered at the viewpoint pulled up beside us and asked what we were doing and what we’d be doing with the waste. They looked incredulous when we told them we were doing the task for fun and to stay fit.

We worked fast and furiously. In one hour, the five of us had made a good dent on the sapling invasion, they had been defeated, until another day…

John said the council would come to collect the sapling cuttings, ‘maybe not tomorrow, maybe not the next day, but someday’.

As we walked down the hill in the setting sun… roll credits…