26 people ran 8 km to workout for local community group

It was a fabulous sunny evening that was my first at Hackney at Good Gym – and a sunny greeting from the 25 or so runners that congregated at Coffee Is My Tea.

After meeting a few other newbies and a warm up that got the giggles going with a grapevine-esque leg twister, we set off at a steady pace through London Fields and past the hundreds of BBQ-ers making the most of the weather.

Eager-beaverness meant I ended up with the faster front group of runners who set the pace for a 4km jog through Hackney Fields and onto our destination – an overgrown allotment off Rectory Road.

The atmosphere was upbeat and fun – chatting as we went and commenting on the enticing smell of sausages around us - already a positive revelation in my normal solitary runs.

The eagerness continued as I dished out gloves and the group donned tools to get to work on an intense weeding workout. I’m no gardener so getting green fingered for a good cause was incredibly satisfying.

After group leader Ade got us back into exercise mode with a set of burpees and star jumps we were all set for the return 4k home.

A much steadier pace made the journey back relaxing and I got to chat to Joe, the video journalist who had joined the group for his project on sustainability. We agreed running is definitely more sustainable when it’s not just you and the road.

A friendly, non-competitive environment when you get to actually contribute to a task with a positive outcome for someone or something made this one of the most enjoyable exercise experiences I’ve ever had. It also gives those more serious about training the opportunity to keep up their standards by looping back - groups are broken into a variety of paces accessible to anyone keen to run.

Returning back via the same BBQ packed field, we joked that Good Gym could become Bad Gym as the temptation to swipe a sausage was intense! But we didn’t of course. We instead finished the session with water and a warm down.

The fervent enthusiasm of my first Good Gym got the better of me and I volunteered to write tonight’s blog – but that was actually because this was an inspirational evening where I got to meet some fantastically friendly runners, managed by the brilliantly friendly and motivational Ade and truly give something back. Sustainable exercise at its best. I’ll be back – thank you!

Joanna Robotham

P.S. Please sign up to marshall for Run Hackney's Saturday 5 km event here

Ade