We had a flipping great time in Wandsworth last night as we enjoyed pancake day, birthdays - and a whole lot of positive impact!

There was lots of good news to share, including these two upcoming missions:

• at a local nature reserve on Saturday where you will be creating safe access, building 'dead hedges' and log pile habitats which provides refuge for important wildlife species such as hedgehogs

• and prepping or delivering food on Sunday so that our most vulnerable people get a hot meal

Not only was it almost pancake day and a sweet social to look forward to, but it was also Jo's birthday - so there was plenty to celebrate. After our warm we each guessed how many pancakes are eaten across the UK today, with Ali's guess coming closest to the whopping 117 million total!

We set off for our task at Larkhall Park where after a bit of confusion about our meeting spot we met Theresa with tools and instructions. Our job for the evening was to weed an area so it can be planted up with hundreds of new plants, and to clear the troublesome bamboo - which was more stubborn than we anticipated.

After half an hour of solid effort we had made a big difference, and we just had time to squeeze in fitness session based on isometric holds to improve our strength and stability.

A quick run back to base and it was pancake time! Great work everybody. Sophie will be leading you in a session at the GoodGym garden next week, so why not sign up to start the week off right!

At GoodGym Wandsworth we have a lot in common with the Scouts. We're resourceful, especially when we have a task with a lack of tools (anyone remember emptying an Olympic size sand pit with kids' spades?). We're always prepared (usually with baked goods). We even have our own set of badges.

So we were more than ready to go and lend a hand at Battersea Scout Hut last night,especially as it was a toasty inside task.

We started off with some warm ups and, inspired by the Winter Olympics, and a guess at which country historically has performed best. Well done to all of those who said Norway! A small but mighty winter warrior.

We had time for a little extra mileage to warm ourselves up, so set off on a scenic route to the Scout hall, arriving a little while later to find Scout master Peter waiting for us.There was plenty to do to keep the hall safe,welcoming and clean for local users. We wiped walls, hoovered carpets, gleamed taps, washed skirting boards and cleaned away handprints. Great job everybody, the place was sparkling by the time we were done.

We wanted to take advantage of a lovely inside space, so moved upstairs to the function room for our fitness session which last night was all about core values. We did plank jumps, corkscrews, hollow holds, dead bugs and more to help build those abs of steel.

Next week we are back at Larkhall park to help with various jobs at this lovely park, and we will be celebrating Pancake day with a social afterwards at the local Wetherspoons with - pancakes! All welcome.

This weekend there is also the opportunity to prep and deliver hot food to vulnerable families and the week after a great community mission at Unigate woods. Help spread the GG love this February!

We had some amazing milestones to celebrate last night, with Ali earning her GoodGym wings by doing an incredible 100 good deeds, and Jordan getting to 300 good deeds. Such an achievement making a really big difference in Wandsworth - give them a cheer! And while you're at it, please put your hands together for Catherine and Jack who both came along for their first GoodGym session - brilliant to have you both join us.

We started off the night with a warm up and a reminder about this session coming up on Saturday. This is a big task and we really need some more helping hands -it's going to be a great workout and one that has a big impact at a local nursery school.

After a short run down to Doddington, we were met by Malissa, who divided us up into groups and got the tasks underway. From strawberry snipping to raking, mallow pulling to weeding and planting there was plenty to do. Not forgetting some more work on those infamous orange planters that have made it into GoodGym history! This time these colourful yet massive planters needed yet more shifting about and some compost dug out of them. We' ll be back before long to plant in them.

After a good stint in the garden it was time for our fitness. Teaming up into partners we alternated from and upper body to lower body focus, keeping the intensity high and getting all those muscles working.

Great job everybody!

Next week we're off to the scout hall - hope to see you there!

Last night’s GoodGym Wandsworth run had community impact, zombie related content, a lot of manure, and some EMOMs that made sure no one noticed the freezing temperatures.

We kicked things off with a warm-up and a chat about how the January Challenge has been going. We've logged plenty of good deeds but we're still only 75% of the way there - can you help us get there? There’s still time to add to the total this Saturday's community mission in Doddington followed by coffee ☕️.

Before heading off, we paused to celebrate something pretty special: Jordan’s 300th Good Deed. From missions to group runs, socials and celebrations sessions Jordan has shown up to make Wandsworth a better, more community-minded place to live. A great milestone and one that deserves cheers (and cake, next week, when we'll have even more to celebrate!)

We also tackled the big question of the evening: who would you want on your team in a zombie apocalypse? The shortlist was eclectic. Bear Grylls (obvious survival skills), Barack Obama (calm leadership and negotiation under pressure) and Claudia Winkleman (great fringe). Strong team. The Zombies wouldn’t stand a chance.

Then it was time to run – heading up to Age UK Wandsworth Day Centre. This day centre is a vital community resource, offering support, connection and activities for older residents – a place that helps people stay active, social and independent. Spaces like this really make a difference in people's lives.

Our task involved two massive piles of manure which needed spreading across the garden beds. Tools were initially in short supply, but this is GoodGym – we adapt, we improvise, we get it done. With a bit of teamwork and some impressive resourcefulness we dispersed the manure and also squeezed in a big tidy-up of the surrounding area, leaving everything noticeably more welcoming.

With the task complete, it was straight into a fitness session in the car park. The workout? A EMOM (every minute on the minute) session featuring lunges, shuttle runs and squat jumps which kept the cold at bay. Strong effort all round.

Looking ahead to next week: we’ve got more milestones to celebrate, another great task, and then our monthly pub quiz. See you there!

Of course! Here’s the same report with all asterisks removed: Yesterday was meant to be 'Blue Monday', but there was absolutely nothing blue about GoodGym Wandsworth this week. Any gloom was swiftly chased away during the warm-up, where we shared the things that cheer us up most. The answers were a happily mixed bag; animal videos, GoodGym itself, hill sprints , sugar, peanut butter, singing, and—the evening's winner—chocolate. That's your January wellbeing toolkit right there!

**A huge welcome to Evie, who joined us for her very first GoodGym session—lovely to have you join us!.

We set off for Larkhall Park, where we regularly support the brilliant volunteers who care for this thriving green space. These sessions help keep the park well-maintained, improve biodiversity , makes the space safer and more welcoming for the community, and ensures it stays somewhere people want to spend time. Plus, the work couple with the good GG vibes is an instant mood boost for us!

There was plenty to do and everyone got stuck in. Tasks included litter picking, bed maintenance, leaf clearing, and shifting two enormous ton bags of soil. This involved a carefully choreographed shovelling method, which turned out to be quite the workout.

We attracted a fair bit of attention while we worked—some curious passers-by, one particularly questioning lady from the pub and a very welcome visit from a bouncing curious golden retriever, which instantly boosted morale by approximately 300%.

By the end, the jobs were done and the task owners were really pleased with what we’d achieved—always a nice finish to a task. On the way back we broke up the run with several fitness stations along the way: squats, single-leg holds, toe taps, and finally a well-earned set of stretches .

• Coming up soon: a Saturday mission at Doddington, followed by a coffee social.
• Next week, we’re back to Age UK Wandsworth to sort out the garden.