First run of the year! It was bound to be a smasher, and it did not disappoint....

It may have been a cold and frosty evening, but that did not stop 41 post-festive runners ready to burn off those mince pies and mulled wine and make a difference in Wandsworth.

We were treated to a bumper load of new faces for our first run of the year, which always makes us very happy. Ladies and gents of GoodGym, please put your hands together for the lovely Charlotte, Abi, Georgina, Julie, Ashleigh, Lindsay, Tamsin, and Monica who all joined us for their very first GoodGym session last night. We hope you'll all be back next week!

It was clear that you guys hadn't slacked off over the festive period, but have instead been tackling those park runs, races, training sessions and missions like proper troupers. Vix and Lorna were both still away after an amazing sub zero 10k in Norway, but we cheered Emily, Paul, Amy, Helen, Chris, Daniel, Morag and Hannah for smashing a tough and hilly 10k in Brixton only the day before. Jessie and Luke both tackled some insane racing in waist-deep mud, while John put in a fine performance in the Surrey leagues at the weekend. Well done to all those who did Christmas, New Year and early January park runs. You really are an amazing bunch! If you're keen to find the right race for you then just shout - the GoodGym team will be behind you all the way.

Our target this January is a huge one, but I know we can achieve it. Between us, we have got to hit 241 good deeds, and cover a whopping 1200 kilometers. With over 450 kilometers under our belts already (thanks in part to a slightly longer run that advertised last night!) we've made a cracking start. Don't forget to connect to Strava so the team can support you and we can clock those miles up for Wandsworth.

After a last minute cancellation, our task for the evening had changed. But the sliver lining was that we were in fact doing a job for a different and amazing charity called Caius House. This youth centre offers local young people a safe place where they are supported and can develop their own unique talents. Every child is valued - which we think is a pretty awesome ethos. So we were happy to help when they asked us to spread the word for their upcoming projects in the area.

But first - a much needed warm up. A few minutes of dynamic exercises later we did a quick poll to find out what everybody hoped to achieve in January. There were an admirable number of running related resolutions, some hoped to final banish their NYE hangover, while others just wanted to get through the toughest month of the year. We're here for you!

It was just over a mile to Caius House, so we soon set off with Helen kindly backmarking for us. Sarah had the great idea of pairing up new runners with regular GoodGym runners so they could get an idea of what it was all about, and we all happily set off for the first stage of our task. With a teenytiny detour at the end - just to add on the mileage, you understand - we arrived to find Charlene waiting for us with a big pile of leaflets. She gave us a quick talk about the work they do there, and let us know that if any of us had any special skills or work experience opportunities that we could share with the young people at Caius House, that would be great. After a few minutes pause to catch our breath we were off again, and divided up into two teams to put our trusty human chain approach into practice. Way over 400 leaflets later we were almost finished, but the clock was ticking and we needed to get our fitness session in so lovely Jamie and Alyx volunteered to do the rest on their way home, while we knocked out a quick but tough session.

We started off with a game which involved being honest and sprinting. If you answered yes to questions like 'did you have a cheeky snog over Christmas' then you had to sprint across the park, if you didn't, then you had to do a conditioning exercise while you waited. We then moved on to the parlauf - which, while it may sound confusing, is actually great for speed training. We paired up to complete as many circuits of the park we could complete in our twos, with Roshan and Luke emerging as the winners.

All that was left was to run back to the BAC, not forgetting that last hill, and a few stretches to finish off the night. Well done team, you truly smashed the first run of the year. Apparently next Monday, the 15th of January, is officially the most depressing day of the year. Counteract those winter blues by joining us for our run instead to do good, get fit and feel great!

On the penultimate @GGSHEFF run before Xmas we welcomed 2 new fantastic runners into the group. Please welcome, support and cheer;

• Michelle Clarke
• Finn Burgum

After a brief welcome and chat about the soar legs in the group after the fantastic efforts the previous day at the infamous Percy Pud 10k we set off with DANGEROUS DAVE as our back marker to our task destination of The Real Junk Food Project - Sheffield, a fairly new task, but a massively worthy cause for the group to be involved with.

On arrival we were warmly welcomed into the warehouse by Logistics Manager AMAZING ALICE and volunteers.

Alice gave us a great brief splitting the group into 3 teams;

1. TEAM MARKETPLACE RE-ARRANGE
2. TEAM HAMPER, NO PAMPER
3. TEAM SORT/IS A HOT CROSS BUN SAVORY OR SWEET? IS A TOMATO A FRUIT OR A VEGETABLE?

The teams got straight to work along to the tunes of cheesy xmas music to keep energy levels high, which were also topped up thanks to some generous snacks provided by the team at TRJFPS. A lot of our runners were in the market for a Xmas treat after being hampered by yesterdays 10k, volunteering and a few bevvies at Charlotte & Carys'. THANKS AGAIN BOTH!

All teams did a fantastic job and nothing hampered our efforts. After pudding everything away, we had a big group photo and Alice gave her thanks on behalf of TRJFPS for a market down crate effort by all...

We waved our goodbyes and headed homebound with a cheeky game of King/Queen of the hill to help shift the junk from our trunks. The crown on this occassion was won by the visiting wonder that is DANGEROUS DAVE who we all wish good luck on his PHD review today!

With climbing on Wed and the Regather Social on Dec 12th after our last run before Xmas on the 11th there is still plenty of GG action to get involved in and earn those mince pies so make sure you've signed up to them all and keep an eye on the WhattsApp group for other festive treats!

This week saw @GGSheff run to a new location with the fantastic REGATHER to help Friends of Lynwood Gardens with the upkeep of this city centre gem.

WELCOME

We welcomed a new runner to the group this week who mucked in really well with the group and is a real chip off the old block. Give a big CHEER and follow for LUKE

LETS RUN

With a bit of a longer run than usual everyone did a fantastic job of getting to the task site. On reaching the site we were given a fantastic and thorough brief of the nights task by GORGEOUS GARETH who even brought some posh moveable lights for the task to make the task doable in the dark of the wooded area and made for some very arty lighting for photos.

TASK TIME

Our tasks for the eve was to shift cut down weeds into a compost pile and shift as much woodchip into the muddy grounds of the park as we could to make the area more useable for the public and the kindergarden on site. By the end of the task we had covered a massive area with very little beating around the bush. The team really stuck with the task throughout with everyone chipping in!

PHOTOS & TREATS

At the end of the task we gather for a great group photo taken by MAGICAL MARTIN and had time for a quick drink before heading back to base with bags of treats provided by GORGEOUS GARETH of REGATHER in the form of honeycomb and fudge - DELICIOUS!

SPRINTS & SITS

On the way home as it was a bit of a longer run put in some sprint and returns with everyone doing a great job and really giving it a go when they saw the sprint go off the front and the hands go up for the loop back to 'THE KING' as the back marker. We formed a great wall sit tunnel in the underpass to give high fives and cheers as people came through and get a great group photo.

Back at base we used the wall for some stretching and headed inside for liquid refreshment, pun suggestions and talk of a GG climbing session this week - watch the WhatsApp!

Until next week,

Happy Running :)