Last night the GG Lambeth crew were scheduled to head over and help out Valcie and the local residents at Landor Road Allotments and as of the morning we had a group of 5 of us.

This was also the second attempt to get over there as the last session had to be postponed so we wanted to do a good job but as the day progressed the attendance list began to fluctuate. By 6pm only AA Yianny was signed up (but others had committed verbally) to coming so when Michael arrived at Papa's it had been decided to postpone again...

Michael and Yianny decided to keep the Run portion of the evening and head out together only to receive a call saying two more volunteers (Marie-Noelle and Paul) plus two community members were at the plots (enjoying a glass of red opposite) waiting for us! And so in the end it was TASK ON for the Lambeth team.

After all that it was a very satisfying task chopping wood, pulling weeds, tidying, collecting green waste and generally helping to put the allotment back to some kind of order for those who had not been able to tend their plots. There was also a listing tree that needed propping back up with metal rods (perhaps a glass of red too many...?)

Just after 8 we deposited our black bags at the entrance and made our separate ways home. Big thanks to all who turned out and keep an eye out for our Summer GG Picnic event which will take place at the Allotments kindly hosted by Valcie for all our help. ;0)

Welcome to Lambeth's Tuesday evening Group Run and also a new innovation - our monthly Book Club!

Let me explain, this evening we were due to help out Valcie and the team at Papa's who kindly host us and let us use the hall before our runs. Our task was to weed and tidy the outdoor and playground areas and do a quick litter pick while we were at it and so a small group consisting of Tilly, Michael and AA Yianny met in the hall pre-run.

In lieu of a category we turned our attention to literature and particularly Japanese authors and novels (Murakami people - get on board) and from there it was a short hop to what we were are all reading currently and so our recommendations this month are Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin and Master Slave Husband Wife: An epic journey from slavery to freedom by Ilyon Woo. You're welcome ;0)

We headed off for a quick 3km loop up to Stockwell and back round via Clapham North discussing all things literature as we went and then back at base we grabbed the bag of tools and began weeding the verges of the planters around the community space.

40 minutes later we had pulled up plenty of weeds and filled two bin liners ready to be disposed of and so Papa's will be a nicer place for everyone as of tomorrow!

What better way to end the session than with a nice cold (non-alcoholic) brew, big thanks to our froemds at Athletic Brewing Co.

Despite someone trying to lock our trusty volunteers inside we managed to escape and so we look forward to our next GoodGym task.

Thanks team - see you at the next one.

We were back at Papa's last night to help out tidying up around the place!

The evening started well with a couple of returning faces after a long time away with both Emily and Charlotte joining us, it was lovely to have you both back!

We changed up our introduction routine by having a story caterpillar - where each runner adds a sentence to the runner before - and in the end we ended up with a tale of exploding bikes, giant peaches filled with cookie balls, stubbed toes and getting stuck in traffic, what a day.

After a quick couple of kms loop we arrived back at Papa's to discover new locks on the gates meaning AA Yianny didn't have the new combination but we were able to get in to get our tools via the netball courts and a few phone calls later and all was sorted - including letting out a couple who had been marooned in the park :0)

Joined now by Marie-Noelle and Paul we set to work clearing along the railings and litter picking to spruce the place up and we also brought out the hand lamps for the first time - fare thee well British summer.....

Thanks to all and see you at the next one.

Last night we were back over at the wonderful Landor Road Allotments to help out Valcie and the community clean up the space.

It was a small group with Will and AA Yianny running from Papa's and Marie-Noelle and Paul joining us by walking to the task.

After a quick chat about books and festivals the runners set off for the short trip down to Landor Road and we were met by the rest of the crew as well as the indomitable Valcie with the tools and plenty of sweets and treats to keep us going!

The two main tasks were to cut a neat border for the planting areas as well as to clear a section where folk had started dumping all their green waste - big no no...

We divided into pairs and got stuck in and with a solid 45 mins ahead of us managed to get through loads.

After bagging and dropping all the waste and the obligatory family photos we were done for the evening and could relax having only had the lightest of sprinklings from the British summer weather.

Check out the lovely photos and big thanks to all - see you at the next one!

A beautiful early summer's evening last night and we were off to discover a little haven between Brixton and Clapham which no one knows about, until now....

As ever first things first and that is a warm welcome to brand new GGer Will who joined us for his first session, Will it was awesome to have you with us!

Tonight's category was a good'un so we will recycle it next week but both Michael and Will shared their 3rd favourite song of all time and there was clearly a theme, we had Aretha's Rock Steady, Vulfpeck's 1612 (great track!) and Nina's Feelin' Good! Add them to your playlists, you won't be disappointed.

Our compact group set off from base at Papa's and headed over to Landor Road - managing to meet Nathan on the way - where we discovered a little oasis that no one knew existed and wonderful triangular walled allotment.

Valcie was there to meet us in high spirits as ever, and she started calling in the various residents to come down and get involved sorting plots for the community and helping to clear as much of the weed growth which has exploded with the rain and sunshine we have had recently. At this point Marie-Noelle and Paul were with us and the work could begin in earnest.

As you can see from the pictures the challenge was a big one but in typical GG fashion we spread out, got fully stuck in and never mind the nettles, then by the end of the session we had cleared 7/8 bin liners full of green growth to be composted.

A very satisfying task all round so thanks to Valcie for the snacks and drinks, and to everyone for their hard work - see you all next week!

Last night's slightly less controversial group run for the Lambeth GG community and it was a lovely one - head out for a run, circle (or square, or triangle) back to base at Papa's Park and then help out weeding and tidying the grounds.

First up a warm welcome to Lara who joined GG for the first time last night - it was lovely to have you with us Lara!

Also lovely to walk in and find a hand made thank you card for GG from Valcie and the Papa's team and some treats pre run.

During this evening's introductions runners were asked to name an ideal first date place (and why) as well as choosing between a run and a HIIT session, the answers ranged from fairly 'traditional' going to a concert, restaurant, bar, walk in the park to tandem bunji jumping... Most of the group voted for a run rather than fitness - sorry Frances - with the caveat that it was a circular / triangular / parallelogrammical one. Hmmm

Anyway we set off for a quick 3km circuit and looped down to Clapham North then back up via Ferndale back to Brixton. Once back at Papa's we grabbed tools out of the shed, black bags and were tasked with clearing all the weeds along the stretch of yellow fence and then going into the netball court and clearing away around the bases of the trees there.

We had a solid 40 mins plus and managed to do a good chunk of work pretty much clearing everything and filling 3 huge black bags.

And so that was it, great to see everyone chatting and sharing stories during the task and then all away while it was still light out and only the lightest of drizzle to boot!

Big thanks to all and see you next time.