Our GoodGym Camden group are experts at running without colliding into passersby.

The employ several effective techniques.

Which include the swivel, the hop-and-side-step, and the zigzag.

I've seen our runners employ each of these techniques to great success on our weekly group runs through bustling Camden.

As one local journalist described our runners: as deft as a gentle spring breeze - they make urban running look relaxing*

But!

Our wonderful group (of Emilie, Jackie, John, Rose, Steve, and Will) didn't need to employ their anti-collision techniques this week.

Meeting in the calm of Regent's Park, we started our evening with a calm and quiet run around the park's outer circle and up through quieter streets to West Hampstead.

Having reached a healthy 5K and shared stories with each other, we arrived at the Sherriff Centre and were met by the brilliant Daisy and Gosia :)

Across the next 30 minutes, we donned gloves and grabbed litter pickers, and we cleared bag-upon-bag of strewn trash and litter - the perimeter (and trees..!) of the centre are a magnet for this, but we finished leaving it clear and tidy!

Thank you so much, everyone, for your time and work - I know just how much of a difference this makes to the Sherriff Centre's team!!

Here's to next time!!

*I might be lying

It'll take half an hour...

40 minutes tops...

Through Regent's Park - over St John's Wood - we'll be there before you know it!

It really isn't far!!

These were all things I said. Last night as we started. I can see the faces of our wonderful group - Happy! Not tired! Full of energy!!

I regret it all now, of course. I can barely write this report. As I remember how our 'longer' run took us through the sunset... and well into the night 😳

And yet... our brilliant group - Emilie, Emily (on their first good deed - welcome!!), Jackie, John, Steph, and Steve - shared stories, caught up, and got to know one another - they brought an enviable energy to Camden's streets yesterday, and they arrived still ready to make a difference at West Hampstead's Sherriff Centre!

Settled in a quite magnificent church, the Sherriff Centre is a hub for the community. Nursery - post office - cafe - live music - community gatherings. It is a special use of space, and we were there to make their pathways more accessible and inviting.

Grabbing pickers and torches, we filled 3 refuse sacks in 20 minutes, bagging bottles, cans, wrappers, and more. With 7 folks working happily together, it's amazing what you can achieve.

Thanks so much, everyone - for your work - and for humoring my optimistic running routes!

See you next time!

(P.S. We talked a lot about geese last night... and they appear in one of our photos!!)