A new year means a new look to the British Heart Foundation’s shop window and it was time to help the charity to catch hold of the January fitness drive and get the gym and fitness gear front and centre.

After helping bring racks of clothes and assorted articles down in the lift Rachel, Tom, Emma, Emily, Jade and Claire moved cross-trainers and rowing machines across the shop floor while we relied upon Jill for some artistic guidance in putting everything in the right place.

Mannequins were dressed with eyecatching gear and display cases filled with yoga mats, books and dumbbells and it all looked pretty decent in the end.

A very chilly run back to base camp (collecting valuable January Challenge points) but a warm welcome from the lovely team at the BHF as ever and the glow of a good job done.

Fifteen GoodGymers dashed through the 'snow' (more like leaves) to the British Heart Foundation charity shop this evening, ready to deck the halls and spread some festive cheer!

The shop was a winter wonderland waiting to happen. Boxes of baubles, piles of presents, and a tons of tinsel were waiting to be carried, sorted and arranged. The GoodGymers, armed with tinsel and tape, transformed the shop into a Christmas cracker. We hung stockings, draped garlands, arranged shelves, created table displays and built Christmas trees... With each ornament hung, the shop’s festive spirit grew. It was a real sleigh ride of an evening!

To add to the festivities, we were lucky enough to be joined by the Mayor of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, Councillor Liz Green and her assistant, Brian. After a brief welcome and introduction they both got stuck in. With so many hands helping this evening we got so much done - it was a Christmas miracle!

A few milestones were celebrated this evening. Congrats to Ben and Hazel for both achieving 10 good deeds. Claire hit an amazing 150 and our unwavering leader Rachel smashed a staggering 400 good deeds! Excellent work all round and quite conveniently celebrated in the pub afterwards for our monthly social :)

Following a huge donation of menswear recently, today's task was to continue unpacking and hanging a range of men's jumpers... in various shades of blue.

Very satisfying to find the only box that came in another colour (albeit grey!)

Jumpers were duly unboxed, unpacked and hung neatly ready for sale, and the mission was complete.

The task today was to move boxes of donations from the loading bay to the sorting area.

The two of us, armed with wheeled cages and a half-time Cornetto, managed to clear 4 pallets, and create a stack of 59 boxes!

We also learned it’s the BHF shop’s 6th anniversary, so happy birthday 🥳

Five GoodGymers assembled to assemble

Armed with Alan keys, screwdrivers and glue, we put together flat pack furniture donations from Wayfair ready to hit the shop floor at the British Heart Foundation store

The crowning achievement and group effort was a desk - with multiple different screws, a drawer AND a cupboard - accompanied with a manual which made it very clear that not only should people and weights not be placed on top; but possibly most importantly, no sandwiches.

It's game, set and match at the British Heart Foundation shop where we set up a sporting window display. Julie, Jade and Rachel met for a shorter group run this week to help build our distance back up. We did a couple of kilometres and met Sabir, Luke and Jana at the task venue.

One large metal crate had already been filled with racquets, balls, and other sporty items, along with a big plastic container filled with trainers and football boots. First job that Luke, Sabir and Rachel started on was to tie all the shoe laces together once they had been paired and set them up in a display. Whilst that activity was happening Jana set about dressing up the mannequins in sporty attire, careful to select eye-catching colours and styles. Julie, Jade and Sabir sorted the racquets so all the tennis ones were together in a wire basket and all the cricket, hockey and squash accessories were in another.

Time went quickly and the area soon transformed! Well done team.

Before we left we congratulated Julie on achieving 50 good deeds - what a superstar!