This was supposed to be my return to Goodgym after a break. I originally signed up and became mission verified in 2023, and my last activity was in 2024. I had found it hard to fit in regular "goodgyming" activity with my schedule, and this was exacerbated by bouts of sciatica, injuries and general ill-health.

Recently my circumstances have changed, and my health and fitness has improved, so I decided now's the time to rekindle my efforts. I also felt a little guilty that Goodgym had recently renewed my DBS and were due a return on their investment!

After a false start (I signed up for a group activity, and then decided to cancel), I found a mission that was close to home and would get me back into the swing of things. I signed up to help MR.A remove some bags of rubbish from his upstairs flat, he was finding it difficult to negotiate the stairs. Mr. A lives quite close to me, so I worked out a slightly circuitous route, including a hill, that would give me a gentle workout before heaving the rubbish bags. I enjoyed a gentle 3k jog and arrived at Mr. A's promptly. Upon ringing the bell there was no answer. The mission confirmation email stated that "it sometimes takes him a couple minutes to come downstairs to let people into the building after they've buzzed the flat so be patient with him" so I waited a while. I then called Mr. A on the number provided in the email, he answered and informed me that he wasn't at home, he was in East London and he would like to cancel until tomorrow. I said that I would let the office know.

This was very disappointing. I turned around and jogged another 1km on my (more direct) route home.

Lesson learned, next time I will call ahead on the number provided to check that I should be on my way.

Anyway, my intentions were good, and I did get some exercise, so I will count this as a completed mission!

I will not allow this to deter me, I will find another mission to sign up for 😊