Twenty Two buoyant Hackney GoodGymers ran 5.5k to help remodel 2 gardens run by Eco Active on the Kingsmead Estate.

After a beautiful day we were lucky to have a beautiful evening in near ideal running conditions. Being a slightly longer run than normal we set straight off on mass towards the task. After a 5 minute pulse raiser we stopped either side of the the Hackney cycling not very super highway to get our dynamic stretch on. With our bodies loose and mobilised we kept a smooth rhythm on our way to the Kingsmead estate. Navigating our way through Hommerton there was lots of talk about improved running mojo and great to hear a few runners preparing for a race or two in the coming weeks (If you are still looking for a race or want help with your training give me a shout).

We arrived in good time and met the team who run the gardens who were super passionate about their much loved gardens. We split into two groups and got to work turning over soil, weeding flower beds and raised beds. While in garden two there was almost a nightclub style sounds system pumping out tunes to keep the crew motivated. Flowers were planted, gravel was raked, weeds were removed and a huge bag of soil was shifted and carried to create a lovely flower bed then raked so it was as smooth as a long jump pit.

In 40 minutes of impressive work we go so much done and all the members of the garden were so greatful and really looking forward to having us back again in a couple of weeks. A proper GoodGym task was rounded off with a epic race back to base!! The Sexy group lead the way back at an impressive pace, acting as a target in the distance for the Speedy crew to chase down. The pace ramped up after we all crossed Hommerton High street and The Speedy crew to the lead, pushy the pace even harder!! A final push back to the Bakehouse saw us average under 4:30 per kilometre on way back!! Top running by all.

The evening was rounded off by a series of well needed static stretches and a very well deserved round of applause, before we went our separate ways with a job well done!

Next week we are off to St Luke's to deliver flyers around the local estate to promote their community summer fair!! Be great to have you along to run around the estate grabbing some amazing views while helping out a great community organisation!! Please Sign up here

Smooth sunning and running

Joel

Nineteen bouncing Hackney GoodGymers ran 5.5k to Hackney Downs to plant flowers in the HUG garden and clear the Old Park keepers lodge of 10 bags of rubbish.

On a Wild and Windy night in H- Town we welcomed 6 new faces to Hackney GoodGym and showed them how we do things.

We began the evening with a mobilising dynamic warm up where we got our lower body joints and muscles primed for action! We then bust into a series of strength building and core stabilising body weight exercises to get our muscles and joints robust and strong. We then bounced into action with some testing plyometric drills to activate a few fast twitched muscle fibres.

After the action packed start we headed off onto the Hackney back streets weaving our way 2k to Hackney Downs where we met Myra from HUG (Hackney downs User Group). We split into two groups the first began by ferrying watering cans to the garden to soften the flower beds for planting while group 2 headed to the Old Park Keepers Lodge to begin the first stage of regenerating the derelict building to hopefully being a community centre in the the not so distant future.

With both groups in full flow Christmas trees were being planted random single shoes were being bagged up. There were many weird and not so wonderful things found and removed in the Old Park Keepers lodge, a very satisfying task where we made a huge difference in a short space of time! With fence panels uncovering shoes and scorpions while suitcases didn't uncover any body parts but instead more single shoes. A fast and effective clearing pace was maintained and in 35 minutes the whole area was looking virtually pristine!!

In the garden holes were dug and soil was turned while an impressive number of plants were planted to brighten up the garden. In 40 quick minutes all the watering, soil turning and planting was complete and after a quick tidy up we were on our way!

The group chose to run a longer 3.5k route back to base so I added in a few loop de loop missions for those that wanted to increase the pace and distance! Special mention to Chris who was on fire and went on every special mission and lead the group home with a huge sprint finish across London Fields!

As I mentioned Saturday sees the GoodGym Parkrun Tour come to Hackney Downs and with so many of you in great form and fitness it would be great to see you there with many other GoodGymers from all over London and beyond! All the information is here about the Parkrun tour.

Next week we will be heading to Eco Active for a great task in their garden! We will be Digging up bushes, levelling off the ground, topping up raised beds with soil and making woodchip paths with so much to do it would be great if you came along and we had a monster turn out!! So please sign up here.

Silky Smooth Running

Joel

On a light bright Spring evening 21 Hackney GoodGymers ran 4K to the Wilton Estate community garden to perform a variety of physical jobs in the wonderful community garden.

We began the evening with an impromptu task at the E5 Bakehouse with the whole crew ripping and shredding the mountain of cardboard at the Bakehouse to help create a compost pile. A strongly therapeutic task that everyone got involved with and a couple bin bags full of ripped cardboard later the Bakehouse staff were really happy with our efforts.

We then welcomed to the Team some happy new runners for their maiden GoodGym Group run, a nicer evening they could not have chosen. A short pulse raiser to the amphitheatre that is the GG Hackney warm-up area where we congratulated Patrick of a year of monumental GoodGyming, a staggering 183 Good Deeds in 366 days!!! a staggering effort 👏🏻👏🏿👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾. With Hackney Half only a few days away there were many slightly nervous runners preparing for there last few runs before the race. So we got their legs turning over with 4 laps of the Wilton Estate priming everyone's legs with changes of pace between Easy, Race Pace (smooth) and Hard Effort. With the Team well worked out it was time to get to so serious gardening business on the every expanding community garden. We split into 5 pods and got to work weeding, pruning, hoeing, slab laying, water butt building and filling.

With DJ Pat on the decks there was a great vibe on the estate and was really nice to see a few of the estate's residents and their children coming out to join us for a hardworking 40 minutes of gardening action!!

With time ticking we picked up the pace and dominated all the jobs, a small issue with wild Poppygate quickly resolved and an epic Water Butt relay fill from Jack and James it was time to pack away the tools and get ready for some epic Cone Game Action!!

Patrick led the cone action splitting the crew into 3 colour-coded teams. The action was intense and the effort levels were high. A huge shift was put in by all and after a very close sprint relay and a dominant performance in Coney McConeFace Team White were victorious!!

A short warm down run back to base and an in-depth chat about the Hackney Half tactics, preparation and execution saw us on our way home with a really great evening's Running Fun in the bag!

Be great to see as many people as possible on Sunday for Hackney Half whether you're out running, volunteering or spectating come and join the whole GoodGym family for a refuel. All the information on what is going on is here.

Go well on Sunday everyone, trust your abilities and your training! Be positive and give the race your all! Really am looking forward to hearing about all your race stories on Sunday and next Tuesday. Tweet @GGHackney to let everyone know how you went and any pictures.

Next Week we are at the HUG garden for some Williow tunnel landscaping action please Sign up here. As is tradition for me we celebrate our races so we will be heading out to grab a bite to eat and a drink or two post run. Please join us for a bit or a lot of it we would love to have you along.

Until Sunday

Smooth Sleeping, Eating and hydrating

Joel

15 hardy Hackney GoodGymers braved the myriad of weather conditions run 6k to cut in, cut out 8 flower beds in The brand new HUG garden on Hackney Downs.

Following a sprinkling of snow in the day and bright sunshine in the afternoon we knew we would be in for a beautiful yet Baltic evening in Hackney. Meeting at the Bakehouse we got to grips with the new DBS checking then got to it getting mobile in the joints and warm in our muscle fibres. Skipping, squatting, lunging and swinging we burst into life before being expertly lead the 2.5k to the HUG garden on Hackney Downs by Cecilia. We were met by Myra the heart and soul of the garden and driving force behind the project to create a great a community garden and many more projects that will have an uplifting impact on the lives of local people.

We split into pairs with the digger cutting in and digging out the turf or as Myra calls in Landscape Art and the runner carrying the turf at great pace to do Landscape design in the under 5's area of the garden to create an amazing environment for the little ones to explore. With Tom cutting in harder and fast than anyone could imagine there were times when we all stopped and watched Tom in full digging flight in utter amazement!! With supper digging sprint finish we managed to create 8 beautifully shaped flower beds and turf adventure landscape in 40 minutes. The beds will form the base of the garden with vegetables growing as well as beautiful plants in the coming weeks.

A quick rewarm of our running muscles saw us ready to return to base, a swift detour to take back the tools before we split into out regular Speedy and Sexy groups for the 3.5k run back to base. Some really strong running from both groups saw us home in perfect time for a static stretch out and a congratulatory round of applause for a top evenings work!!

Great to see a few signs up for the Hackney Half in 12 days time!! Getting excitingly close now! If you have any questions about race day or the lead up to it give me a shout on email or talk to me next week.

Next week we are off to the Open Barbers to get painting!! Please sign up here for some amazing running fun. We will be doing a little sharpening running session in preparation for race day to.

Good luck to those in the last weeks of training, trust it don't chase it!!

Smooth Running

Joel

Twenty Three Spring heeled Hackney GoodGymers ran 7k or 6k to clear Daubeney Fields of rubbish and fly tipping.

On a super sunny but craftily chilly April evening we we gathered at the E5 Bakehouse ready for some serious running action. Following a dynamic, muscle engaging formation warm up we set about the longer than usual 3k run to Daubeney Fields lead expertly through the central Hackney back streets by Clare. Maintaining a solid pace we worked our way towards the river while talking about earning our post run food rewards. In seventeen and a half minutes of consistent running action we arrived to meet Bruce and his team from Hackney Parks. We donned our protective gloves and grabbed our pickers then split into two units to attack the woodland and remove anything that should not have been there.

Many bags were filled and a lot of weird and wonderful items were removed (some lets say were a little suspicious). The squad worked really hard to complete the task and get the park ready to be regenerated by Bruce and the Parks team with any number of flowers plants and trees in the next couple of weeks. After 35 minutes of perfect picking action we had won and celebrated by splitting into our Speedy and Sexy groups for the run back to base. Jack lead the Sexy group the 3k back maintaining a solid pace while working on the teams endurance. While the Speedy crew scorched through the streets of Hackney zig zagging our way the 4.5k back. We worked our speed endurance pushing our anaerobic threshold to new heights!! 4 two minute intervals followed by a kilometre of lamppost dictatated fartlek action saw us rounding into the final straight for an epic sprint finish.

After a few muscle relaxing static stretching we congratulated ourselves on a top night of running and picking action. Before 10 of us headed out to refuel at our monthly night out.

Next week we head to the Claudia Jones charity for women and families in difficult relationships to totally revamp their outside space!! Please sign up here

Until next week

Smoothly does it

Joel