We did it !

It was a close run challenge but in the end , with a little help from our friends on a bonus task in Worthing we nailed the GG January target of 60 good deeds and 600 km in running!

Role of honour

Massive thanks and kudos to all those who turned out in freezing temperatures both tonight and throughout all of January to ensure that we achieved this prestigious target.

In particular this evening we welcomed Duncan with fellow work colleagues Erin, Amanda and her husband Dean. Also John, Belinda's husband together with Belinda herself,Anne and Charlie the dog ( alas -no email address ) joined by Paul,Tamsin, Barbara , Roxy and Nick,

Its in the bag !

30 short minutes later the team had filled a whopping 16 bags full of garden debris consisting mainly of dead palm tree branches from the flower beds immediately adjacent to the road .More than respectable by any standards and a whole lot tidier and nicer to look at.

With a few random burpees and some photos we wound up the final task of January !

Its a wrap !

Thats it folks :) We have succeeded where many GG areas have not. In reality it really is the taking part that counts.

Massive thanks to all you wonderful people :)

I hope to see as many of you as possible at the Old Bike Shed on Friday 1st feb at 8pm

Love your running

Julia x

9 runners braved the damp and a chilly easterly wind to run to the Anchor gardens to brandish rakes, hoes and a giant shovel; ridding the garden of its pesky weeds that had sprung up in amongst the gravel (previously laid by GG Worthing in an earlier task). We ran there via a lap of the pier and quickly set to work under the supervision of the ranger.

Once the task was completed we headed on Julia's magical mystery tour of the Worthing back streets followed by a fitness session on the seafront. An excellent demonstration of frog jumps by everyone and fantastic efforts (and facial expressions) on the sprints. Tamsin requested we finished with burpees and no-one disagreed... From there it was a short hop back to splashpoint for a stretch.

Shout outs this week: Special mention to Belinda (and her kit bike) for completing her 50th task - fantastic effort. Well done brilliant Belinda, you can now get your black GG T-shirt, wear it with pride!

Also congrats to Roisin who ran the Steyning Stinger at the weekend (more than a half marathon!). She shook off her aching legs with sprints and squats aplenty!

Most stylish runner award goes to Ros and her lovely warm scarf worn all evening.

Thank you all for your warm welcome to Worthing. Hope to see you in Portsmouth once we're up and running!

Next week in Worthing, it's a trip to Breathing Spaces, sign up here

High spirits despite bitter wind and everything going wrong!

On the coldest evening to date and certainly not one for the faint hearted, we warmly welcomed two newbies to the group Ros and Nigel. We were also lucky enough to have with us Bob and Mark, from the local social media group, The Friendly Agenda who were keen to learn and share about what GoodGym Worthing is all about.

It was also great to see Tamsin , Michelle and Paul but sad that regulars Belinda ( puncture) Gill ( wimped out :) ) Roisin (working) Nick ( working ) Anne ( working I think ! ) and Duncan (AWOL) who couldn't quite make it tonight.

Tonight was one of those days that other trainers had warned me about but one that, in the 11 months since GG Worthing started, I had not experienced. The task cancelled at 3 pm due to sickness! Undeterred I managed to secure a last minute litter pick up at Haynes allotment so all was well..... Or so I thought!

Locked out but not knocked out

I had been assured that the gates would be left unlocked for us but imagine my sinking feeling when I arrived at the allotments to drop the equipment to find the gates well and truly still locked !

With the plan B kicked into touch I arrived to meet the team feeling rather disheartened but cheery faces and positive attitudes soon turned things around and we hatched a plan to head south to carry out a beach clean instead.

An ocean breeze puts your mind at ease

We headed out for a sociable warm up run to and around the pier getting to know Ros and Nigel and catching up with everyone's week. We collected the litter pickers from my car before heading down to the beach for some bracing conditions.

Litter by Litter

We were joined by Mark and Bob who also braced the wintry conditions! Whilst the team went both high on the beach and low as the tide was out I grabbed a few minutes on video sharing my knowledge, experience and love of GoodGym.

30 minutes later and feeling more than a little bit cold we merged the litter to reduce the plastic trail and headed directly into the breeze for a shortish run to the outdoor gym for a fitness session ( As requested by Tamsin)

Outdoor fitness session gets the arms and legs pumping

We did a few minute circuits on the out door equipment before doing some short sprint relays together with squats , jumping jacks and a crocodile thrown in too. No burpees tonight!

Tapering for the weekend

After a steady run back to base we finished with some stretches in the warmth of Splashpoint reception . This was combined with lots of good luck vibes heading to all the runners doing the Worthing Half Marathon this Sunday, Michelle, Paul, Duncan and Nigel . Let me know if theres anyone I have left out!

Watch this space and the website for details about where we are meeting next week . As the task is in Durrington its highly likely that we will meet at Worthing Leisure Centre but I will confirm.

Have a great week everyone !

A select team of GG Worthing runners headed to part 2 of our weeding task at Windsor Lawns this evening.

An especially warm welcome to Helena from neighbouring Brighton. It was so good to welcome you to GG Worthing and please accept a big GG cheer from us all for your energy and contribution (plus cycling home afterwards)

After a friendly and informative welcome from local park ranger Duncan we set about doing our best to make Windsor beds look welcoming again.

After 4 weeks of GG tasks it never ceases to amaze me just how much we can achieve in such short a time with a such a small but determined work force. To all my team tonight please accept a huge JG GG pat on the back ( This is even bigger than a GG cheer ! )

After reluctantly leaving our task we then headed on a steady and scenic run through 2 parks to stop and bask in reflected glory of our GG Worthing debut task all agreed we need to return again soon to visit our friends of Victoria Park. After a cracking lamp post interval (and cone ) training session along a misty sea front we finished the evening with some squat and lunge drills. Special mention to Gill for her dedication and great progressive ideas, Beth for week on week fighting Southern Rail to get to the session , Belinda for her total dedication and evolving fitness and Ed for his energy and smiles in the last 2 weeks . Thanks guys and girls you totally rock ! After just 4 short weeks how I love Monday evenings.

To all look out for exciting task force event / social coming your way soon

Wow ! We totally raked it in tonight !

Sunshine , sunset, smashing out good deeds with a hoe and saying a swift hello to Sammy swan

A small but determined group of GoodGym Worthing runners set off on a glorious spring evening in Sunny Worthing.

We arrived at Windsor Lawns to be met by the team from The Conservation Volunteers and we set about our task with great gusto and enthusiasm and fun banter.

The transformation from scruffy weeds to slick soil had to be seen to be believed! Check out the photos to see the achievements.

We then had a beautiful 4 mile run along the seafront around Brooklands lake where we stopped for photo opportunities. Big cheer to new runner and photographer Ed for leading on the photos. We finished off we a fun fitness session at the outdoor gym at Windsor lawns . We waved a goodbye to Tess who was visiting from Brighton and really hope we will see you again soon. Also a special mention to Martin who was under the weather today and couldn't make it today. We missed you !