Despite the weather being a complete washout we still had some strong GG stalwarts brave the wet weather to run to Regather and meet with Rachel & Gareth to help get their events space back on track!

On arrival everything was beautifully organized and well laid out ready for us, which meant we could really crack on with the task after a quick brief from Rachel.

We had long and short rollers and brushes at hand to help give the old community event space a new lick of paint and get it ready for welcoming people back to this fantastic community venue for film and music nights to comedy, to maybe even a hummus party hosted by Jono!

After what seemed like no time at all we had gotten around the entire room, even getting on to glossing the top of the stairs!

Sergiu gave us a quick tour of the other spaces at Regather for those who hadn't seen them before and we were generously offered a bottle of fresh organic apple juice from Regathers latest harvest, hot of the press and a prickly pear for those that dare!

It was great to be back with our old friends at Regather and we look forward to coming back again and seeing the events space in full swing again post pandemic!

Until next time, happy running! :)

6 intrepid Goodgymmers turned out on this cold and wintry morning to join a healthy number of Friends of Parkwood Springs (Charly and Rachel having braved the ice at Hillsborough Parkrun beforehand). As well as lots of friendly faces, we were greeted by atmospheric fog, frost and the sound of bell-ringing from the cathedral across the valley.

Today's task was simple. We headed to a lowland area of Heather, which is rare in such an urban environment. We were to remove anything that wasn't heather (I'm happy with anything that doesn't need me to be an expert at plant identification!). The main culprit was birch, which had grown prolifically and 1-2m high in only a year or so. We also stripped gorse, broom and brambles until the area looked a lot more open and the heather now has a chance to thrive.

13 runners ran 2km to clear the cycle path for Sustrans

A bundle of GoodGym runners gathered at the Showroom Cinema last night to enjoy the last of the summer sun and do some good for our friends at Sustrans.

An easy 1km down to the Old Durham Ox pub where we met Craig who was ready and waiting with tools galore. The task? To litter pick and clear the cycle path in that area to make it safer and easier to use. Sustrans is a charity GoodGym Sheffield works with a lot, with the mission to make it easier for people to walk and cycle all over the country. More movement and less cars is better for the planet and better for our health so it's a win win!

Three groups set to work litter picking, lopping and digging back. We ended up with 9 bags of rubbish cleared and Craig was delighted with the difference. According to Craig, last time that area was cleared a lot of needles were found but this time there were none. Hopefully, this means that they're now being properly disposed of either by a cleaning crew or by users, so that's progress!

40 minutes later, with the path looking much more inviting, we gathered for a photo and after many attempts trying to use the 'wide selfie' function on my new phone (massive fail) we thanked Craig and headed off to the Park Hill flats...

... for some hill sprints! Team GoodGym had six minutes to complete as many hill sprints as possible, with squat jumps and balancing thrown in for good measure. We headed back under pink skies for a cool down and stretch at the Showroom.

Keen for more GoodGym? There's a group session happening at Parkwood Forest Garden on Saturday morning 09.55 - 12.30. There are only four places left so sign up to see and work in this beautiful space.

Thanks for a great run! Hope to see you soon :)

Keep running happy,

Lucy J

This week was cause for celebration with both ZOFIA & MIKE completing their 101st good deed with GG!

CONGRATS BOTH AND THANKS SO MUCH FOR BEING SO INVOLVED!

We also welcomed a new runner into the fold, please welcome, support and cheer;

Hannah

With the first group run of Feb being a brisk one with a lot of wind (weather, not flatulence), we set sail after a quick group photo celebrating Zof and Mike's achievements to meet with Sustrans Stalwart Simon who as ever (even with a cold) was committed enough to load up his van with all manner of tools and meet us to volunteer himself and meet with us and give a brief of tonights task...

The site of the Durham Ox is an area we go back to every few months to keep it in order and use for all the users and Simon highlighted this really has been noticed, noted and is appreciated by users and nearby residents alike.

We got straight to task with a mixture of;

• Litter picking
• Sweeping
• Drain clearing

We got to three different sites around the Durham Ox site and collected 7 bags full of litter and made the paths much more presentable and attractive to use.

On route back we made a few stops for some fitness which this week included;

• Clock Lunges
• Star Jumps
• Knee Up's
• Group Piston Squats
• Stair Squats
• Sprints
• Stairs, lots of stairs...

After stretching off we headed inside for some delicious home made lemon cake kindly made by Mike and his youngsters, thanks Mike and family!

Until next week, happy running :)

A HUGE GG welcome to new runner, coming all the way from Peru to check out GGSHEFF....

Alessa

Support her and cheer her by clicking on her name above, welcome to the squad Alessa!

This week was HUGE with so many runners coming out on a brisk Jan eve to do good in the steel city!

This weeks good was to help REGATHER and GORGEOUS GARETH with the planting of 200 spring bulbs around the Regather HQ so that it is beautiful come spring for all visitors and local residents who regularly pass through.

On arrival we split into 4 teams. With one team doing a bit of plogging around the site the other teams were either planting bulbs or coming to do some exercise. After a spell we swapped around with everyone getting a chance to get some exercise as well as exercise their bulb planting skills.

Exercise wise this week we had a go at an EMOM session - Every Minute On the Minute, where we tried to complete 20 reps of an exercise and once complete we had the remaining time up to the minute we were on to recover so you could either choose to smash it out quick and have longer to recover or take a bit longer and lower the intensity of the exercise. Everyone did really well and we got in;

• Press Up's
• Step Up's
• Lunges
• Star Jumps
• Burpees
• Shoulder Taps
• Kick back

Even the local were cheering us on from the high rises!

It's better than watching TV . R.Kenning

Once we were all done we paused to witness the final bulb being planted by Gareth as we all watched on in a circular cult like fashion (we're not a cult, honest....)

Shall we all hold hands? T.Archer

On route back we tried a little team game involving wall sits and ramp sprints, which for sure brought out some competition in some, lovely to see.

Thanks all for a great eve and until next time....

Happy Running :)