We arrived in convoy for our weekend session at Fox Den Community Allotment. Having taken the scenic route along the river, Caroline and I fell in line behind Becky, who had been following Daiana and Andrew from the city centre. They hadn't met before, so had no idea they were heading to the same place (although the red t-shirt was a little giveaway)! We had a chuckle when we realised what had happened 🚲 🚲 🚲

Ilse was like a beacon in her GG t-shirt waiting for us, and we welcomed Princy back for her second GG task 💪

After some introductions, Lorna was briefing us on our jobs for the session. We were working in the forest garden area and Andrew, very impressively, explained to the rest of the group that the methods used in the forest garden enable mycelium to thrive, allowing plants to communicate and supporting hydration. Eventually, after 20ish years (or 10000s of GG sessions) the garden becomes self-sustaining. 🌿

Although the garden looked peaceful, it was a hive of activity as everyone got stuck in shifting bags and bags of clay and compost to clear a bed for planting. It was a efficient operation, and a proper strength workout with some VERY heavy wheelbarrows to transport. We played many rounds of the game 'compost or clay'? I'm not sure it will catch on.

As well as this, Daiana and Andrew did a great job cutting back the hedgerows, Ilse put the bricks to good use creating some much needed borders for some of the flowering beds, and Princy and Becky made light work of cleaning and folding the huge tarp that had been used as a base to store the clay. A busy evening, and what a transformation 🙌

We were delighted to be celebrating Ilse's 10th Good Deed, which as well as being a great achievement, meant we all got some cake! 🎂 Congratulations on all the good you've made happen in Cambridge so far, we're glad you're on the team 💛

We wrapped up for the evening, feeling satisfied with another active session. Daiana harvested a couple of tomatoes and took them home in her GG branded water bottle (ingenious) and I was also gifted a cucumber, so a really top notch session for us! And yes, the cucumber did get transported home in my bike's bottle holder. 🥒#normalforcambridge

The temperatures may have been cooler this morning at Brook Leys parkrun, but the running and camaraderie were hotter than ever.

GoodGymers had all aspects covered, with Caroline managing set up of funnels and buckets, Eva and I marshalling, and Scott doing his favourite token sorting. Scott and Caroline were also running today and after Scott's success here last month, Caroline was hoping she would see a new PB today too. 💪

I was marshalling at the turn up the far end of the course and it wasn't long before Scott was effortlessly employing a Japanese u-turn to make easy work of the tight bend. Shortly afterwards Caroline was storming up the hill and I asked if we dared to dream, she confirmed it was looking good. 🤞

It was a nervous wait, but on returning to the volunteer area, I heard that not only had she got a new PB, but she'd smashed over a minute off her last one 🥳 Fuelled by Eva's massive round of applause on each lap of the lake, and with Scott's motivational cheers mid course and encouragement on the finish sprint, she pipped a sub-25 finish time. Every second really did count. Congratulations Caroline, truly amazing! 🔔

Feeling the GoodGym love, it was time for celebratory pastries to debrief and catch up ☕ 🥐

Well done to everyone who took part today and extra kudos to GoodGymers for being truly great humans and pulling together to support each other to reach their goals 🙌

This week, we visited St Laurence's Catholic Church for the first time. What a day for it, too! Because of the >35°C heat, we cancelled the run element and met at the task under our own steam - which turned out to be bikes all round! 🚲

The team this evening comprised Alan, Catherine, me and the returning Izzy. Welcome back! 🙌

Our task began with a few moments of serenity, enjoying the shady garden. It was lovely to take a pause and unwind after a busy day! The green-fingered Alan keenly set about identifying various plants using a cool app, and was one step ahead when we received our instructions 🔎

Today, we were to pot on various small plants to help them reach their full potential, and hopefully produce bountiful crops to be shared amongst the community. Alan made light work of turning the soil while Catherine, Izzy and I transferred some peppers to planters. We then made a highly efficient and somewhat organised production line (dig! water! potting mix! plant! cwtch! water!) to plant the aubergines and tomatoes into the freshly prepared ground 🌶🍆🍅

We hope these little plants handled the move and grow big and strong to yield fruitful crops! 🌱🪴🌳

It was a scorcher at Milton Country parkrun this morning with the shelter of the trees very welcome.

Two of us joined the 26 strong volunteer team and both took on post-event roles so that we could run too. Scott arrived on foot from central Cambridge with parkrun making part of a 10 miler - extra impressive in the heat 🙌

I was on post-event close down, doing an extra lap of he course to sweep up signs and cones. It was lovely to enjoy a lighter jog around the beautiful grounds and have a good chat with the tail walker. I came back to find Scott making easy work of organising tokens with the parkrun's bespoke (fancy) 3D printed token sorting boxes. I got busy packing the kit into the storage bin with some very helpful guidance from the run director to make sure it was all organised correctly.

Before heading off, we stopped at the Phoenix pop-up cafe for some delicious post-run refreshments and discussed some training ideas.

Congratulations to all 416 finishers 🎉

Meanwhile, up in Scotland, Caroline was continuing to work her way through the alphabet, collecting an 'O' at Oriam parkrun. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

This week's task saw the return of our monthly Cambridge City Foodbank donation run on behalf of Greens Organise 🥫☕️🧃🍼🍫

Joining us for the first time was Alex (welcome! 🙌), meeting regulars Catherine and Kate for a social run from Parkside Pools. I joined them at Stir, having already run that morning and using the time instead for a much-needed bike clean! We jogged to the collection point, and after a (too) brief interaction with a coned dog, bag tetris commenced... 🟩🟨🟦🟥🟪🟧

Between us, we managed to pack nearly all of the items, only leaving behind half a crate. With our bags full and our spirits high, we set off 2 km walk to the foodbank. The time flew by and the conversation flowed, discussing the benefits of strength training and enjoying the novelty of the evening's weighted exercise 🏋‍♀️

After the usual friendly greeting from the team there, we unpacked all the items into crates for redistribution - but not before weighing our bags! Between the four of us, we'd carried an impressive 53 kg of donations! The unofficial prize for Heaviest Bag went to... 🥁 ... Catherine, with a whopping 17 kg in hers 💪

Enjoying an evening stroll and discussing the benefits of social missions/visits, they dropped me back at Stir and continued their run back to the pool. Thank you for another fabulous mission!

P.S. Anyone else's legs feeling the effects of our unconventional weight training today? 😅

Making the most of another sunny Sunday, GoodGym Cambridge headed out in force to Fox Den Community Allotment 🦊

Coming straight from a Social Mission, Catherine and I cycled over the together, and waiting for us were Daiana and Andrew. Soon after came Sandra and our two newest GGers, Anakha and Princy - welcome, both! 🙌

With Fox Den first timers getting the grand tour and introduction, we put on our gloves and picked up our tools to get stuck in! Daiana, Sandra and I had fun navigating the allotment paths with wheelbarrows full of woodchip to cover exposed areas, before assembling the Royal Cambridge Bug Hotel 🪲🐞🐛

A few rows across from us, Catherine helped the tomatoes get the support they needed, guiding the plants upwards and saving them from getting trampled 🍅

Pride of place in the middle of the allotment, Andrew, Princy and Anakha made impressive work of clearing the pond. A fantastic effort for their first visit and all should be really proud of what they accomplished! 💪

Excitingly, we even made a new friend in the form of a very friendly and cuddly cat. We all downed tools for a brief fuss! Now to decide on GG cat accessories for our latest recruit... 🐈‍⬛️

Before we left, the group gathered to congratulate Daiana on reaching 10 good deeds 🥳 We love having you as part of our team, and we look forward to seeing what you do with your next 10 deeds! As is traditional now, we celebrated with some delicious cake, and reflected on another lovely afternoon. A few even stayed on to harvest potatoes, so I think it's safe to say a good time was had by all! 😊