Nine GoodGymers headed up to Whitehawk: four cyclists, three runners, and two walkers, taking on some of Brighton's most beastly hills to reach the Whitehawk Community Food Project. Thie project is a community allotment focussed on growing organic fruit, vegetables, and herbs, while giving people the opportunity to learn practical food-growing and land skills, and spend time connecting with nature.

We were there to help create some new no-dig beds for planting broad beans and garlic, as well as clearing the surrounding pathways to make them more accessible. The no-dig gardening method avoids breaking up, lifting, or turning over the soil. Instead, beds are prepared by layering organic matter, like garden compost, directly onto the ground before planting into it.

We got to work shifting and spreading alternate layers of woodchip (which smelt amazing) and manure (which did not smell amazing), gradually transforming the beds. Our hosts, Kerry, Poppy, and Ben, looked after us brilliantly, keeping everyone busy and making sure we knew what we were doing. And it seems our efforts were appreciated. They said:

*"Thanks so much for the GoodGym session at WCFP last night. It was great to meet you all. Your bright energy and hard work was very much appreciated. It really made a difference for us."

We were also rewarded with a beautiful Brighton sunset, and kindly treated to something sweet: matcha KitKats from Sarah, who's swiftly approaching her 50th GoodGym task! A wonderful welcome to Irene and Phil attending for the first time!

Beastly hills, manure, sunsets, and KitKats. Just another GoodGym evening.

What next? HERE's our scheduled GoodGym sessions across Brighton & Hove.

Yesterday, six magnificent Brighton GoodGymers ran up to Lavender House for a weeding blitz. The sun was out, and so was our appetite for destroying invasive vegetation to help the local retirement housing community thrive.

A massive GoodGym Brighton welcome goes out to Douglas, who joined us for his very first session! Douglas jumped straight into some intensive gardening, proving himself to be an absolute natural.

Meeting at our usual spot, we kicked off the evening with a brisk group run up the hill to Kemp Town. It was a perfect leg-burner to get everyone’s heart rates up and muscles primed before diving headfirst into the physical task. Upon arriving at Lavender House, the crew was greeted by Nial with the massive task of tackling fast-growing "idle weeds" creeping along the perimeter. Armed with garden tools and plenty of enthusiasm, we split up along the property boundaries and fanned out across all edges of the building.

Working at a blistering pace, the group cleared pathways and gravel borders in just 45 minutes. The result: 100% of the building’s edges were completely transformed, leaving the outdoor space beautifully tidy, safe, and accessible for the residents. It was an incredible display of team efficiency, proving once again how much a small, dedicated group can achieve in under an hour! We packed the tools back into the shed, thoroughly enjoyed drinking some refreshing water with squash to rehydrate, snapped a quick group photo, and headed off on our well-earned cooldown run back down the hill.

I had a great time volunteering at the GoodGym beach clean-up on the Sunday of Brighton Pride!

On a sunny Sunday morning, numerous volunteers gathered at the Kings Road Arches to collect the rubbish left behind after the previous day's Pride celebrations, along with what appeared to be the remains of several beach barbecues.

We filled plenty of bags with plastic items, bottle lids, broken glass and even a tent peg. However, the prize for the most unexpected find has to go to a pair of sunglasses!

Afterwards, many of us headed to Pride in the Park to enjoy performances from Paris Hilton, Mel C and the wonderful Diana Ross, safe in the knowledge that we'd done our bit to help keep Brighton's beautiful beach cleaner and ready for everyone to enjoy.

On Tuesday, GoodGym took a gentle run over to the he Community Kitchen in central Brighton—one of our favourite projects from the Brighton & Hove Food Partnership!

During the summer, the kitchen hosts a packed schedule of seasonal activities, from school holiday baking and family workshops to adult cookery classes. With so many kids dropping by, greasy handprints had made their mark everywhere!

Wiping those away was our main mission, but we also cleaned the windows until they sparkled and tidied out drawers and cabinets—a meticulous job for a dedicated few.

It was another Good session, leaving us all keen to return soon. And we definitely will!