There was lots to celebrate last night, from Catherine's victory at the Great North Run yesterday to welcoming Ammrs to his very first group run - give him a big cheer!

Unfortunately not everything went quite go to plan, as when we turned up to Battersea Park's lovely therapy garden, our task owner for the evening was nowhere to be seen! However, that did not stop us getting to work. After a quick phone call for the code to the shed we got stuck in to a spot of weeding along the paths.

The garden is used as therapy for adults with a variety of conditions such as autism, physical disability, mental ill health and learning difficulties. It also offers various programs such as vocational training and support to enable unemployed disabled Londoners to overcome their barriers to employment and access job opportunities, and helps stroke survivors improve their mental and physical health by working with horticultural therapists. There are workshops for adults whose mental health means they need an environment designed to minimise stress and anxiety and also women only gardening programs.

It may not have seemed like we had loads of big jobs to do while we were there, but with the garden being used for such impactful activities on a day to day basis, helping keep it weed free and welcoming really does make a difference. And we also got to admire the huge courgette flowers and opium poppies!

After half an hour of work we found a nice spot in the park for our fitness session, which last night focused on upper bodies. Our traps, lats, biceps and triceps all got a thorough workout - and we even got joined by a beautiful dog keen to get involved!

It may feel like Autumn is drawing in, but we've got plenty to keep you warm over the coming months! Why not join me for a plog along the river tonight helping collect polluting litter? Next week in Wandsworth we're going back to Paradise cooperative garden and then on Tuesday we have a great task at Trafalgar Square handing out food and sorting donation for rough sleepers. Hope to see you there!

On the hottest day of the year we were treated to some refreshing water during our warm up thanks to the volunteers at the BAC community garden who hosed us in between watering! It cooled us down but did nothing to dampen our spirits, as we had a lot to be cheerful about during our Monday run.

First of all it was [Catherine] (https://www.goodgym.org/v3/profile/catherine-moore]'s 200th good deed, which is absolutely amazing. Give her cheer for being a fantastic task force member, and for the tonnes of compost she's shifted, the masses of weeds she's pulled, and the huge amount of donations she's sorted over those 200 sessions. Way to go Catherine!

Secondly, we had some new faces to welcome to the group. Give a big clap for Lily, Kirsten and Hugo who all joined us for their first session. Brilliant to have you along, and thank you for all your fantastic efforts with a big job tonight.

In the first year of gender parity between the participants of the Olympics, we took a guess at how many athletes in total were attending before we set off for our run. Ali was bang on as she knew the answer, while Lily took a highly accurate guess. If you're wondering, it's a whopping 10 500 people going for gold this summer!

Inspired by the thought of all that sport, we set off for the Rose Clubroom. We had already started the job two weeks ago, and we were back to do the next stage of painting. It was quite a substantial run with lots of twists and turns, so when we arrived we found that a few GGers had already started work, which was great. Lovely to see Maria and Kymm join us for the first time in Wandsworth!

We got got ready to roll, commenced cutting in, and brushed up on our brush strokes, and before long the place was transforming from drab cream to a colourscape of beautiful blue and crisp white. OK, there may have been as much paint on us as there was on the wall, but the finished product was pretty impressive! Well done everybody. The community centre is a vital lifeline for local people, offering free classes and hot meals, advice, support and community building programs. It's great to help make it as welcoming and bright as possible.

Next week I'm away so Catherine will be leading this community mission to Doddington community roofgarden. Don't forget there is the weekly pub quiz social afterwards!

Let me know if you'd like to be added to our whatsapp group and I'll send you a link. And last but not leat, MOnday 12th is our 8th birthday, so get ready for a fun, birthday themed session and social!

It was a lovely start to a Saturday down in Wandsworth. A few of us breezed through Parkrun and met the wider group for a quick refreshment and then a whistle stop tour of the garden. It’s really starting to bloom nicely and we are close to harvesting some of the fruits (& veggies) of our labour. Everyone got stuck in weeding and watering to get it into the best condition. We were able to pick some cooking apples from the tree which the community theatre were pleased to accept and even got our first handful of potatoes which was very exciting! Jordan had stocked us up with broccoli and leeks which we excitedly planted while checking out the great progress of our tomatoes, figs and kale. Great work Wandsworth - we may run in red but we definitely have some green fingers!