Rain, rain, are you gonna go away?

…No? Well we don’t care because we’re GoodGymers and we run and task whatever the weather.

Yes, a good sized group of 26 runners gathered together for tonight’s two-task effort…

Two tasks: two dedicated, resourceful teams

Task force members Bryon and Lieke had come to the rescue to head up a smaller operation, a new task brilliantly organised at late notice by our regular runner Nikki, helping to prepare and pretty a green space in advance of a new community fun day.

5 runners headed up towards Whitechapel to help offer a makeover to a little green space next to neighbouring Brady Arts & Community Centre, as local teams help to create a Dream Garden ahead of a Community Fun Day.

Meanwhile, myself and the remaining runners headed to beautiful Meath Gardens, where Joanna and Jane met us with the usual warmest of welcomes, and some beautifully planned tasks. We were staking shrubs, and litter picking, and moving mulch in a huge two-team operation.

The runners were dispatched to all four corners of the park working at usual lightning speed (no actual lightning, tho, as the weather had significantly improved, much to our relief).

Mulch was moved, litter picked, shrubs staked…step counts boosted. Yep, it was a calorie-burning, bone-boosting session too.

And before 8, the team from Brady Arts Centre had arrived, and, I’m guessing you’re gonna know their answer to this question I put to them: “Now, would you like to chill for a minute before we start the fitness, or do you want to join the litter-pickers?” And so we had a big crew finishing the litter-picking with not one un-used bin liner left by the end of the evening.

Hopscotch and single leg deadlift-time

And so we said our goodbyes and headed to the centre of the park for tonight’s balance and agility workout session.

This was a combination of agility drills and some balance moves, all doubling up to work lower body in preparation for the Autumn race season, and general summer mileage.

The runners were great. They blitzed all the moves, with seriousness and dedication, and this shows in their improved balance: a reverse-lunge-to-single-leg-deadlift following multiple hopscotch laps is no mean feat. Unless you’re a Tower Hamlets GoodGymer who’s consistently worked on their balance, in which case it’s a walk in the park. Literally.

And then we were stretching, tonight tackling in particular our tight ITBs and TFLs, to hopefully show hips and knees some TLC for the week.

Great big glorious Monday shout-outs

A massive warm GG welcome to our first time runners,Lucy and Hannah. You did so much! You worked so hard! And you were so much fun. Thank you both for your vast contributions and we hope very much to see you again soon.

Thanks from us all to Nikki for setting up and organising a brilliant new task, and for putting us in touch with some wonderful community partners over the months. And thank you to task force members Bryon and Lieke who came forward last week to lead this task and enable it to happen.

A big shout-out to tonight’s back markers Charlotte and Becky who kept us all together at great distance tonight, as we headed out at a speedy pace.

And a big shout out too to Chris who jumped in and led a faster group back to the hotel after our run.

We’re able to offer multiple running speeds, so we really can cater to all running abilities, thanks to wonderful runners like those mentioned above.

And thanks to Chi and Nikki for great pics, and, to finish today, a huge shout out and appreciative pat on the back to Si, who recently reached 50 good deeds, in a pretty short space of time and who contributes a lot to the Tower Hamlets group.

Right, nearly there… But before we head off, two things that must go on your radar…

• Next week, 19th August, on Monday’s run we’re a two-task crew again, heading to a wonderful new task at participatory arts and education charity Stitches in Time, while a second team will be returning to Hollybush to help Margaret and Michael with some more SOS summer gardening tasks. Come and join in the fun, we’d really love to see you!

• And on Sunday August 25th, new Camden trainer Simon is leading a brilliant GoodGym run, a tour of the Docklands, with a pace that’s do-able for pretty much every runner, with a choice of distance. So, if you’re planning on some Bank Holiday mileage and fancy a bit of company, this one’s for you.

Have a great week, everyone, and hope to see you soon.

Warm weather, warm welcome

It was a warm night as we gathered outside our lovely hotel base to welcome new runners, talk through tonight's task and welcome Dani, the new GG trainer for Derby!

After a couple of dynamic stretches, we headed straight out to our task, via a recce of the planters we were going to be tending to on Roman Road. Expertly navigated by Bryon and Chris, and formidably back-marked by Katherine, we made excellent time to our first planter, which set the tone for the evening: we whizzed up Roman Road, identifying which planters needed the most work; those that just needed just a lick of varnish, and areas that were in desperate need of a bit of litter-picking.

And then we arrived at the Fire Station, to be greeted by three of the warmest welcomes from the phenomenal Globe Town Community Gardeners, Joseph, Marco and Jess, who were brilliantly prepped with everything from wire brushes to a scooter (on which to shuttle varnish between planters).

Productive planter work

Two minutes of efficient briefing and we were dispatched: teams of 4 and 5 ran up Roman Road to their designated planters to start blitzing cobwebs, uprooting unsightly weeds, ditching Coke tins and glossing panels.

It was quite a sight to look down Roman Road and see a sea of red t-shirts dotted along this busy street, earnestly at work. Shop vendors came out to film; residents and local businesses came over to thank, and pedestrians smiled. We were appreciated last night. Of course, that's not the driving force for any GoodGymer ever, but it is so much appreciated and very much adds to a sense of community and positivity on the night.

Timings were adhered to and the work was complete by the 10 minute countdown. Last to finish were the painters working on the London Buddhist Centre planter who insisted on finishing the last panel (quite right - "GoodGymer's prerogative").

And so we gathered for outros and pics - and water. Courtesy of the Bethnal Green Fire Station crew (thank you very much - you made our night!).

What a brilliant time, all down to fabulous GoodGymers and our truly, truly terrific task owners tonight - powerhouses of efficiency, smiles and appreciation. We'd love to join you again soon!

Single leg burpees in the sun

So we still had time to run some of our fitness session as planned (with a last minute bit of mileage for our recce, I wasn't sure if we were going to have time for our scheduled workout). Cut a bit short, the runners still managed single-leg burpees, monkey push ups, eccentric lunges and a speedy lap of the Museum Gardens. Way to go. And in 30 degrees.

Monday night shout-out's

Bundles of appreciation for lots of runners tonight.

Thanks to Katherine for brilliant backmarking (and an additional thank you to Katherine, from us all, who attended the Shindig at the weekend, and will be briefing us further soon).

To Bryon and Chris for expertly, instinctively leading the crew to our first planter; and to Dani and Sam for being so hands-on and doing so much, while learning on the job.

And I feel compelled to give a mighty shout-out this week to Polly and Si who opted to take the task of jumping into a couple of tree planters and blitzing the worst litter (in terms of volume and material matter) we have ever seen.

To finish, a HUGE GG welcome to our first time runners, Caoimhe and Jill - well done for a fabulous first run, and we hope you'll come back very, very soon.

Don't miss more fun this Saturday!

On Saturday, we're doing it all again! It's the Tower Hamlets Summer Planting Party, complete with: two tasks, some running and Pilates, and a picnic and the pub.

Come for as little or as much as you fancy - this is YOUR day. Details and sign up can be found here.

And next week, we're back to Weavers Adventure Playground for our first visit of the year! Details and sign up are here.

I would first like to give a big welcome to Chloe, Kate, Rachael, Victor, Lorhaine and Saorla. Hopefully you endjoyed yourself and you will come again. Tonight was a big group of enthusiastic runners looking to do good in the community of Tower Hamlets. The evening was a double whammy with their being 2 task to pick from. The 2 task were flyering in the near by estate about a new performance happening soon and the other was going to Meath Gardens to help clear weeds and rubbish. I would like to welcome the new comers and I hope the treats and the other Goodgymers made you feel welcomed.

"Warm-up"

The group started of with saying their name, number and favourite drink. It seems Gin is the drink of the day with this group We did a nice 5 min warm that involved some squats, lunges, running on the spot, hand to toes and some other hamstring dynamic stretches.

"The Split"

Nikki and Lieke took the 2 Dave’s away from some stair climbs while the rest of the group followed me to Meath Gardens while Kat helped me out by being the Back Marker.

The run was a short one with the group reaching the task without breaking a sweat. We met up with the 3 Meath Garden helpers who then explained the task to us and split us into 3 groups. They all took a corner each of the park to get down and dirty on. The group did well with the time that had and also taking the time to talk to one another and making it feel like a true social group. To push the group at the end I gave them a countdown like the crystal maze to let them know when the task would finish. I can see the competitive side came in because the was ripping out weed like that was gold underneath the soil. It was great work by the team and the difference could really be seen.

"Fitness time"

Meath gardens is one of my favourite places because it has one of the fitness equipment it had there. The group got split up into smaller groups and we each had a go on each piece of equipment. The list of exercise were:

Monkey Bars Plank Sit-ups Jumping over logs Pull-ups Knee to elbows Hangs Inverted pull ups Dips Press-ups 1 lap run.

This helped make the runners aware of what there weakness or strength might be. Looking at all of their faces i can see that everyone tried their hardest. After a final lap round we headed back to the hotel where we stretched and gave each other high 5s.

Extra News: * If anyone is interested in helping out at the blind sport session in mile end then click here for more information.

• If anyone is interested in doing the goodgym Olympics then click here and represent Tower Hamlets. Its always fun.

• If the group is after abit more of an adventure with a fun run then click here.

20 runners gathered outside to warm up for our first daylight Monday run of the year this evening - spirits were high as we ran through a couple of mobility exercises and chatted through tonight’s task.

Parklife

And then we were flying through the streets of Bethnal Green to Victoria Park, beautifully navigated by Tom, Luke and Steve (with the route continually contradicted by me - “Tom, you lead the way. No, not that way. We’ll go this way.” Tower Hamlets GoodGymers’ skill sets include high productivity, resourcefulness, resilience, and, it turns out, vast patience and tolerance).

And so we arrived at the Old English Garden in the centre of the park, to be greeted by Tom, the park’s Head Gardener. As always, Tom had a full quota of kit beautifully prepared, and quickly dispatched the teams to two tasks: litter-picking around the shrubbery, and a large scale weeding operation.

With GG Tom heading up Team Trash, the litter pickers soon blitzed the area and were speedily assigned to their next task: wheeling, shovelling and distributing mulch around the shrubbery.

The time flew and no sooner had we arrived were we downing pitchforks and heading back to the tool shed with the well-used kit.

Still undecided on THE best fitness session for the evening, it was pointed out to me that the tool shed lay next to the running track, so we all whizzed around the newly sanded 400m track before heading back to base.

Quite a lot of running tonight. Well done everyone.

Monday shout-out’s for Team Terrific

A massive congratulations to Martin, who this week reached his 50th good deed. Well done, and it’s brilliant to have you on board our Monday runs so regularly.

Thanks to Liz tonight, for much needed, steady backmarking.

And a big, big GG cheerio to our very own Luke, who this week leaves us to head to Singapore’s shores. Our loss is their gain. Thanks from us all for the huge contribution you’ve made to GoodGym Tower Hamlets, and you will be much missed. Keep in touch!

And the exciting GoodGym week ahead…

Time to balance out the mileage with a Magners, and come on board for a bit of socialising this week:

• On Thursday, it’s the GoodGym Social, in the centre of town, on Tottenham Court Road (and it's Camden’s birthday), so pop in for a cheeky half on your way home.

• …while on Sunday, you’re ALL invited to join GG Tower Hamlets pub quiz team, Let’s Get Quizzical as we ditch tarmac for trivia and head to The Coborn in Bow. (GoodGymers: we need your grey matter. Come and lend a hand, will you).

• And looking to next week, our Monday Group Run sees us heading back to the wonderful Tower Hamlets Cemetary Park to pull-and-prise ivy away from paths and headstones… Say no more.

Until then, have a wicked, wonderful, thoroughly enjoyable week, and see you soon.

27 runners shifted 200kg of mulch a minute this evening, in our very own Vicky Park.

A big operation...

You'd think it was a straightforward task, shifting 20 tonnes of mulch on a February evening in a locked park (or would you, actually, when you put it like that?) but no, much planning was involved in this evening's operation...

Tom , our brilliant task owner, and Head Gardener at the one and only glorious Victoria Park, was well prepared, dividing us into two groups on Monday afternoon, hours before the task, so come 7pm, 26 runners were able to quickly form two teams, knowing exactly what was what.

A lock-in like no other

No sooner had we arrived at the beautiful Bonner Gate than Tom was ushering us into the park,locking the gates behind us , before cheerfully informing us that the mulch had now doubled in weight thanks to the earlier rain. We listened to our health and safety briefing under tonight's full moon, watching the sky do magical things before our very eyes, as we made our way into the huge, dark park...

And so our second bit of running for the night took place, following Tom's truck to the Pagoda area where the runners dispersed into teams: one team shovelling mulch into wheelbarrows, then wheeling and spreading it around the Pagoda garden, with the other team also wheeling, and spreading and digging too, in faraway play areas of the park.

It was quite the operation, with all runners kitted out in hi-vis jackets; floodlights strategically positioned around the mulch, and Yours Truly getting her first experience of a walkie-talkie, "Press to talk, release to listen. Got it (I feel like Jason Bourne)."

Too mulch of a good thing

Usual GoodGymer productivity took over and I was having to prise forks and bins away from the runners by 8.15pm, and we made our way back to the truck to pack up and say our cheerios. Tom cheerfully informed us that, of the 20 tonnes of mulch, the runners, in under an hour, had shifted and spread around half of the 20 tonnes - so, 10 tonnes of mulch. That's around 200kg a minute. Way. To. Go.

"Let's squeeze in a little more mileage"

And so with a beautiful traffic-free stretch of the park still open, task force member Dave led a brilliant little speed session with Tom, with runners expending every last bit of energy in 30 second sprints. Unbelievable.

OM message

And despite running just a few minutes late tonight, we couldn't call it a wrap without cooling down with a stretch, and, as luck would have it, tonight we were lucky enough to be joined by Christina, our yoga teacher runner! Christina agreed to lead our stretching back at base, much to the runners' delight. What an evening. What energy. What a delight for all involved.

Huge, huge shout-out's tonight

So, first off, a big warm welcome to our first time runners, Charlotte, Steve, Nick and Anastasia - what a task for you to have joined. Thank you for wheeling, shovelling and running so hard, and for making such a huge effort all round on your first run.

Thanks to Tom, for, in the absence of a whistle, having the best holler a runner could ask for, and co-leading our fitness session. Thanks to Dave, for planning, inventing and leading our speedwork, and to Becky G for back marking, and again to Becky and Dave, our task force members on the ground tonight, who really do help to run your night so it goes pretty seamlessly (Task Force are involved with all sorts of behind-the-scenes decision making and support, in advance of the run, which allows trainer and task owners to focus on other stuff).

And thank you to Christina, for our lovely flexibility session, for planning and leading at the very last minute!

And tonight, a big thank you to you all: for that energy we all commented on, for finding a locked, dark park bizarrely fun; for being game for anything, for being fearless, and hardworking, and for making such a huge difference to a small team at your local park. You are all amazing, you know.

Moving on to next week

Next week, we’re so excited to be joining the first day of Tower Hamlets’ #BigCleanUp – you can check out the event listing and sign up here.

…And next Sunday, 3rd March, we’re heading to The Coborn on Sunday evening for some pub quiz-ing with our friends at Mile End parkrun. Details of that are here.

Until then, have a glorious week.