It was another lively evening with the GoodGym Wandsworth crew yesterday— and a warm welcome was in order as we celebrated Chris's first session with the group. Great to have you along, Chris! 🎉

After a quick warm up and a quiz question that was far too easy for you clever lot, we set off through the evening streets towards Larkhall Park. Our mission: help prepare the ground for a flower delivery by tackling weeding, chipping and sweeping around the beds so the new plants will have the best possible start.

When we arrived, the park was buzzing with activity. Music drifted across from people working out nearby, and the cheers and shouts from football matches rang out across the pitches. Dodging the occasional flying ball certainly kept us on our toes ⚽! It was a great reminder of just how loved and well-used this space is, and why it’s so important to keep the park safe, tidy and welcoming for everyone who uses it.

There was plenty to do. A huge pile of woodchip needed shifting alongside the weeding and sweeping. Gloves on, tools in hand, the group spread out and got to work. Bit by bit the weeds disappeared, paths were cleared, and the massive woodchip pile started to shrink. With lots of helping hands, the transformation happened quickly. 🌱

There was so much to do that we had just enough time for a short but spicy fitness session before heading home. The format: speed circuits — 30 seconds on, no rest. High effort, high intensity and high impact. 💪

Fitness done, we ran back to base for some stretches and cool down, rounding off another productive night of doing good and getting fit.

Next week we’re heading to Paradise Cooperative Garden where a massive log challenge awaits. Are you up for it 🌳🔥

Last night’s run featured many bags of collected rubbish, muddy shoes, curious passers-by with their dogs, and a very tough fitness session. Just another night with GG Hounslow!

We headed out for one of our regular plastic and litter picks down by the river. This is something we do regularly because it genuinely makes a difference. Rivers are highways for plastic and rubbish – what gets dropped upstream ends up traveling further downstream and into wider ecosystems. Our visits mean we clear the draw dock, keep the path looking welcoming and remind people that someone cares about this stretch of river.

Armed with gloves, bags and pickers, we got stuck in. Passers-by had plenty of encouraging comments as we worked our way along. There’s something about a group of runners in red stopping to pick up litter that draws attention and hopefully makes them reconsider dropping that crisp packet! By the time we wrapped up, we’d collected quite a few bags even though it wasn’t exactly dry out there either. Check out Steph’s muddy shoes. A GoodGym badge of honour in my book!

With the job done, we headed back to Turnham Green for what can only be described as a brutal fitness session combining sprinting laps and strength exercises with a dose of tactics. Michelle took the lion's share of the laps with some very impressive distance, while Lucy somehow managed to squeeze in a day of double fitness. Florian delivered some excellent sprinting form among a huge effort from everyone.

I’m just finalising next week’s session, so watch this space. There are also some missions coming up, including working on the eyot this Saturday and a session gardening at Hope Church.