Group Runs are back with a bang at Good Gym Ipswich with this painting task at Castle Hill Community Centre.

After a hiatus it was great to see former GGers return along with new faces too. Imogen and Bruce came along for their first session sharing their adventures of the A-Z of Park Run. Handy hint: anyone looking to complete the challenge may get stuck when looking for a 'z' initialed location and a trip abroad may be in order...

Returning GGers Lucy brought tonnes of energy and led from the front, Nicole and Natalie shared wild swimming tips (Nicole had also snuck in a cheeky PB in the last few days !) whilst Kerry hit a milestone : 100 tasks completed for Good Gym! Phenomenal!!!! A gold t-shirt surely must be in order for that achievement and commitment...

A freshly painted room and reinvigorated Ipswich Good Gym. Well done and thanks everyone!

An unseasonably warm February day meant we had an almost balmy evening on Ipswich Waterfront for a litter pick on behalf of Rivercare

With our meeting point in the University of Suffolk Waterfront Building being directly adjacent to the area we would be clearing, we headed straight out and began "plogging" immediately covering the floodlit area at the end of the Waterfront - splitting into two groups and meeting in the middle for efficiency.

Hayley was our nominated photographer for the evening and made a much better job of it than the usual bloke!

With the designated area litter picked in a fairly short period (gathering 3 bags of rubbish), the litter pickers were stored and we had time for a fitness mega mix of run, with hills and a strength/conditioning/ balance HIIT session!!

A combination of short and long incline intervals, incorporated into a 2 mile run followed by a super circuit including core strength / balance, plyometric and co-ordination challenges - everyone particularly loved the skater exercise - all with 30 seconds on 30 seconds off for 2 complete rounds.

A fairly short task but a super fitness set - tremendous work from everyone!

Next Monday we'll be visiting a new venue - Stoke High School Ormiston Academy - to help with sanding and painting some benches. Find out all the details and sign up HERE

A big welcome to Laura who came along for her first Goodgym Group Run.

Our task this evening on behalf of Sustrans was to run along a section of Route 51 of the National Cycle Network (Cambridge - Felixstowe) - which runs through Ipswich along the Waterfront, through the town centre and out along the River Gipping heading towards Claydon, checking the NCN signage was clear, clean and visible as well as the route being clear of obstruction.

Due to darkness I made a call that we would follow the route to the river path where it would be too dark to run safely - we'll return to this section later in the year to cut back any overgrowing vegetation to keep the path clear.

Heading out we just followed the NCN blue and white signs for route 51, all of which were in good condition and the route was easy to follow. some of the signage (a mix of fixed metal signs and stickers on lamposts etc.) looked as quite new. We had been supplied with graffiti removal wipes by Maria, the volunteer co-ordinator for Sustrans, to clean any signs if needed but didn't break into the packs at all.

After around 2.5 miles we were on a very smooth path alongside the river with some street lights, these became less as the path progressed and we turned to head back. Taking a roundabout route , we stopped off in the shadow of Portman Road, taking advantage of a floodlit car park for a series of short, sharp intervals before a gentle run back to base.

A little bit of a different run, in that we didn't have a destination as such, but quite nice to follow a signposted route for part of the run, and the signage was very clear and in good condition so there wasn't any "work" to do other than reporting back to Sustrans.

For information or if you want to plan a bike ride (either around Ipswich or further afield) you can see the full National Cycle Network Map Here

Next week we make a return to Brickmakers (Arms) Wood! - find all the details and sign up here