☀️ Great morning! Lots of GoodGymers joined regular parkrun volunteers. We cheered, welcomed, marshalled, tail walked, and funnel managed, helping 101 runners and their families (and a few happy deer!) to run, skip, walk and high five their way 2km around Ockwells 🤩

Tonight we were weeding and cutting back overgrown foliage at Home Park Lawn Tennis Club in Windsor. This was such a fun task. We met outside the local running club, the Datchet Dashers, where we welcomed Caroline who joined us for her third session with Windsor and Maidenhead GoodGym. Mandyhad cycled from her home whilst the rest of us met at the task. The group got stuck into a warm up and a jog around Home Park. Although it wasn’t racquet science it was still quite hard not to bump into one another in the dark!

After the run, GoodGym cracked on with serve-ing the community once again with good deeds. The team cut back the weeds on both sides of the fence refusing to “let” them have any chance of returning. We were joined tonight by returning extra Fleur the dog who took a slight detour and needed the skills of Michelle and Tony to bring her home. Meanwhile Emmamade short work of the brambles and Anne Laure took no prisoners on chopping down the nettles.

What a lovely service GoodGym provided tonight – managing to tidy up almost all four sides of the courts. After the task we completed a fun circuits round complete with tennis balls. Well done team.

For tonight's task we met at the Pirate Park in Windsor and had a short walk and run to our location, Clewer Green First School on Hatch lane. We were delighted to be joined by newcomer Caroline and returning new members Scarlett and Matthew.

Thanks to Anna for leading the walkers and to local resident Emma for showing us the way. Whilst the walkers set off Amanda led an animal themed warm up for the runners and after some sideways crabs, horsey gallops and chicken shoos the group headed off.

The task tonight was to create a children's allotment which included making 10 vegetable and flower beds as well as tidying up and painting some tables. There was no herbing of enthusiasm as the team got stuck into the tasks. Anna and Rachel were just the thicket to cut back the brambles to make the space more accessible. Jess and Caroline also turniped the volume on the piles of wood and cleared the piles of debris in no time. That was certainly their good weed for the day!

We were joined by local residents, parents and relatives so together we made a merry band of 22 volunteers.

GoodGym definitely don't moss around and Emma, Jack, Georgetta, Amy, Gillian, and Sophie got straight to work sanding and painting 2 outdoor tables. Michelle, Scarlett and Matthew parsley'd the test with the veggie patch construction. The winter nights are drawing in and we were soon cutting it vine as the light faded quickly but that did not deter the team who wanted to keep calm and carrot on, committed to finishing their tasks by torch and floodlight.

The evening ended with a quick fitness session on the field powered by squats, bum kicks and joyful pressups followed by a walk back to the Pirate Park. Well done everyone.

'Twas the first day of advent, and we couldn't have asked for a more festive task! Eleven Santa's helpers - dressed not only in the traditional red and white, but also sporting some excellent festive accessories - ran, walked and cycled to the Spencer Denney Centre in Windsor to help Age UK prepare for Christmas.

Special mention to Georgeta and Sheila for cycling the 20km roundtrip from Maidenhead on this extremely chilly evening - brrrr-illiant stuff! Also big thanks to Hannah for walk-leading, Jess for back-marking and Jen for her super knowledge of Windsor underpasses.

At the Spencer Denney Centre, I got a lovely cheer for managing to unlock without jingling any alarm bells and we were delighted to find that our task owner Rachel had left out all the ingredients for a great Christmassy evening. Jack's festive playlist and Jen's scrummy mince pies provided the icing on the Christmas cake.

Hannah, Georgeta, Anita, Emma and Michelle, Jen, and Vikie made like socially distanced elves and wrapped well over 60 gifts. Sheila and Jack decked the hall with festive bunting, fa la la la la la la la la, and since Jess had a Christmas tree hat on, it was only right that she should dress the tree. Fir(st) she untangled the fairy lights, then she did a tree-mendous job with the tinsel and baubles. It was beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Speaking of music, we finished the evening with a fitness session to the tune of Deck the Halls (one burpee for every fa la la la la!) and We wish you a Merry Christmas ('we wish you squats', 'figgy pudding high knees' and 'won't go until we get some jacks'). The music was so quiet it was more silent disco than epic Christmas party but we still raised a few smiles from passers by and we got a bit fitter too.

We took the same routes on our return journeys. In total the runners and walkers covered about 5km, with the odd extra 'loop back' for some so that we could make sure everyone stayed warm and no one got lost. It was a nice to surprise to meet Anita's husband Santosh the Great in the car park after we finished our stretches.

Christmas can be a stressful time of year and it can be hard to find the time to exercise, especially when the weather is uninviting. However if you're like me, it's at times like this that I most need exercise and fresh air for my mental health. If you're looking for the motivation to get out and escape the Christmas crazies then click here to check out the listings for lots of social 5km runs and feel-good activities like tree planting.

Next Wednesday we will be delivering leaflets in Maidenhead to share St Peter's Church's programme of Christmas events. A great activity to keep that festive feeling alive and to keep us warm! Sign up here.