Calm after the storm

Wow! How lucky were we with the weather tonight?! After a day of heavy rain and occasional thunder we were blessed with a sunny evening and what a great turn out it was.

Tonight’s line up was made up of Barbara, Belinda, John, Steve together with second timer Daisy (yay, you came back) Paul, Ros, Gill and Nick. Paula also joined us at the task as did our very own snowflake who did a quick reroute after heading in the opposite direction (of course he did!)

Just as we stepped out for our warm up run the rain stopped, the sun came out and we enjoyed a steamy run along the seafront to Byron Road homeless hostel where we were tasked with some gardening.

Girls rule -boys chat

After the heavy rain we were expecting it to be a rather muddy experience but in reality it was perfect weed pulling conditions.

Paula joined us with a huge smile followed by cake man Jay who powered into the drive. Up to this point all the team had thrown themselves into the task but with Jay now in attendance some became a little distracted with his chatter. Naturally the girls remained focused and on point. This is definitely a case of a picture speaks a thousand words. Check out tonight’s selection of photos and you will see for yourselves! I hope you enjoy John's editing on a couple of them too:)

With a lot of jolly banter the pretty courtyard style garden was soon restored to best. With very few tools available Gill wasted no time in taking possession of the secateurs ( of course) whilst the rest of the team weeded, cleared and dead headed. 30 short minutes later and we headed off for our post task walk, run and fitness session.

Hap’pier it didn’t rain

We headed along the seafront with some lamppost sprint efforts to the pier where the team completed a couple of circuits of it before settling at the south end nearest the sea for a bit of fitness and stretching.

With slippery wooden planks underfoot the team were spared burpees and similar HIIT moves so we settled for upper body chest and triceps press-ups against the railings interspersed with squat and lunge rotational stretches.

Is anyone reading this thinking that I have forgotten something in this report?!! Just checking that you are actually still reading …….. so we actually also did 6 or was it 7 sprints on the spot concentrating on high knees and my amazing time keeping.

Starlings generate more than a murmur – wow!

During the sprints we were treated to several fly pasts together with a landing of a murmuration of starlings. Every Monday night at GG creates feel good vibes but tonight this was an extra special moment. The definition of such a spectacle of birds is as follows

*The bird meaning signifies illumination and empowerment together with indomitable spirit and ability to rise above adversity *

This beautifully sums up my focus on fitness and also the ethos that I like to encourage in group sessions.

I bruise easily (Natasha Bedingfield 2005!)

With the spectacle and fitness over all 3 groups headed back for the short walk /run back to Splashpoint.

We finished with some stretches that somehow ended up in a whacking great bruise for Belinda on her ankle when her foot slipped on the hamstring stretch. At this point everyone thought I had lost the plot when I burst into the above song- ha ha

The evening finished with an impromptu visit to the pub for some of us. Jay was beyond excited shouting out ‘Yes, yes YES, this is really going to happen’ as we crossed the road. I keep thinking back on this. It makes me smile a lot.

And in other news……

Happy Birthday Duncan – we raised a glass to you. We hope that you are enjoying Edinburgh

Congratulations to Barbara on a fantastic transformation on her running style. You have absolutely nailed it. Check out that amazing photo of her on the pier.

Let all wish Belinda a speedy recovery from her achilles injury ( and bruise)

Wednesday 28th August for our Caribbean meal out. Who’s in?

Next week we are meeting at Worthing Leisure Centre and will head back to May Close to meet our friends at Breathing Spaces.

Have a great week team :)

Julia xxx