Awesome run report written this week by the epic Enrique who we wish a very happy birthday to as well!!

Tasked this week to help the beautiful people of Harlesden Community Garden with a clear away of an overgrown perimeter walkway. It would be a 2.5k chase from base to clear a path, with this lot it’s bound to be a laugh. There were even some excited high kicks upon arrival (Well it was my Birthday) relieved to be notching up ever more years of survival!

So, the middle of May had us in sartorial muddles with her insistence on spots of rain, even slippery puddles. Powering through a well paced 2.5k, we dart through traffic and people on there way. But eventually We’ve arrived. . .

GoodGym Brent we are all relevant! . . .Ordinary people from all around, coming together to pound the ground, running to achieve something sound! The team are smart, funny, kind, some of the best GoodGymers you’ll ever find! Through the naff weather we were wielding spades, or being careful with razor-sharp clipper blades, even taking turns hauling rakes - Ah, the gift of back-aches!

Ellie our Captain, Drill Sergeant and all round amazinger thought (as usual) that this perfect scene was not quite right - not quite LEAN!

Bottom obsessed in a brilliant way, we were taken in two sets PAY! Commanded to complete a cunningly complex combination of crippling SQUATTT exercises!! All set and timed to the beat of J Lo!? Loads of fun - Mo power to yo Bun!

Our valiant efforts for a path of clear view would have been easier without the stench of Nettle Stew!! - That’s a powerful eco-friendly stinky brew!!!! Designed to repel all manner of pests - It’s a genuine wonder the birds don’t flee their nests!

NOTE Harlesden Community Gardens have an open day this Sat so get on down to say hello - Might even be some BBQ food you know!

So, after running hard then working harder it was back at base - A quick tidy then outta the place. With exhaustion causing the group to split we stopped to regroup as we neared RoundWood Park - About ½ way back. Rest time we thought: YAY! Ellie said: NO - NO WAY!

WALKING LUNGES x2 sets of 30 Now this was a real li-Berty!

Genuinely tired - Oh so hurty, what a great way to celebrate being 8 + 30!

See you next time!!!!

A lucky 13 ladies, hauled ass and grass and tons of mass, for the Willesden Town Team's tube Station Garden project!! HURRAAHHHHH

What can I say but WOOOWWWW WOW WOW WOW WOW The Brent team did not let me down this week after I sent out a call for help and requested many hands on deck for this show-stopping task!

Showing up to tackle the big project on hand was a fierce team of females, demonstrating all the girl power under the sun! Although we were missing our lovely regular lads; Dan, Enrique and Samuel, we had no doubt our girly grit would be enough to do the business!

After warm welcomes to newbies; Nic and Alba, the team prepared themselves for the epic journey..... ermmmm okay, it was literally across the street, however, that short stint did not phase me, as I knew what was in store!!

So the amazing community group - Willesden Town team are a collection of local residents who aim to give back and make Willesden a more pleasant place to live, much like us at Goodgym Brent. What a power-house team we make then! So when they requested our help with some heavy lifting and shifting, how could we turn them down?

The task Willesden Green tube station has 4 platforms, 2 for the Jubilee line, and 2 for the Metropolitan. The Metropolitan trains do not stop at Willesden any more. Consequently there are two platforms where the travelling public do not have access to. These platforms have brick planters on, where the town team garden. Last year, for the first time ever Willesden Green entered the TFL underground garden competition TFL in Bloom, and lo and behold, won the first prize, in the "cultivated garden" section. So with the competition coming up again this summer, they want to retain their position at the top of the league.

In order to do this they must develop the gardens and they currently don't have sufficient organic materials to keep planting. Therefore, Willesden Town Team had two dumpy bags weighing a ton each, one of compost/topsoil, and one of wood bark/mulch delivered at the top of the stairs of the tube!! Here's where we stepped in to help Our task for the night was to help them shovel, bag, lift and shift the compost from street level down the stairs to the platforms, ready for the green-fingered workers to set to planting over the next few weeks.

Now when I tell you these bags were big that is no serious understatement, in fact, they were enormous with a combined weight of 2000kg!!! So with the timer set and the girls ready to begin, we set to work and said Soil long to the streets and down to the depths we did run!

The girls worked tirelessly for a solid hour, shovelling, lifting and then running up and down the stairs to make sure we completed the task on time, with a cleared street at the end! And oh my goodness, did they put in some blood, sweat and tears..... okay tears were of laughter, but still!!!

On average each girl ran 10 trips, carrying 20kg a time down the 34 steps from ground level to the platforms!! All done in a perfectly timed hour. WOW!!!! Now that is some serious strength work right there!!!!

We watched as the bags got smaller and smaller and eventually the compost up top, was down below and the clean-up and sweep was the last thing to go! we were even treated to ice cold waters from Nest cafe next to the station, gifted to us by the wonderful owner Omar! Thank you!!!!

Now despite the incredible efforts, we still had some time to kill at the end of the session...... So, what better way to play out the rest of the day than Racing the train of course I'm not kidding!!! The girls steamed their way up and down the platform racing the jubilee line on the opposite side.... and yes.... of course they won!!! A train is no match for these wonder-women, who even had enough puff left to knock out some tempo runs street level to cap off the night!!!

With stretch and rest time upon us, we marvelled at the epic efforts and anticipation of sore quads in the morning because of all those stair runs!!! But hey hoe urban gardening ain't for the faint of heart, it takes real girl power to show this mulch gumption!

Until next time fitness familia!

DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD. INSPIRE

Well it all dried up nicely for our Monday Goodgym in Bexley. Tonight we focused on our running techniques, building our fitness, having fun, and meeting new Goodgymers. And meeting new Goodgymers is what we did. A massive hi5 goes to Sara and Emma welcome to Goodgym Bexley., we hope you loved it. Basecamp Crooklog was virtually empty so we had most the area to ourselves. Having all levels of runners this week, we split up into two teams. One doing a longer loop, with Eileen leading (thanks so much) and one team doing a shorter loop. Thanks Caz for looking after our back group. The beautiful thing about this weeks run is both groups could push to their full potential and no one would be left behind.

There's no better feeling than heading out on to the road with all those Goodgym tee shirts on display, it just feels brilliant.

On heading back into basecamp Crooklog, smiles were a many so we headed strainght into fitness mode. It was time to introduce everyone to burpees 😁 I'm a true believer that fitness should be hard work but real fun and that was the order of this evening. We split into two teams and suddenly it was pure rivalry, all love had disappeared, no team wanted to lose, no team wanted the losers punishment. At tonight's fitness session every part of the body was worked, and worked hard, but guess what, there always has to be a losing team.

I am glad to report it all ended pleasantly, with massive smiles, lots of laughs, and friendly hand shakes.

Well it was that time again, the time where we all go our separate ways, but with the promise of all coming back next week and doing it all again. See ya next week Goodgymers! We've got an awesome task for an awesome community charity.

On the last Monday of the month, GG Brent tackled timber, banished branches, cropped & chopped, then hopped their way to a tasty 6k. All in a days work for the West London tribe. That's definitely what I'd call a Grandville day out POW POW

What a happy GG leader I was to be greeted by the always smiling faces of my delicious gang of Brent beauties this Monday night and can you Adam and Eve it, this week we had not one, not two but three brilliant boys YAYYYYYYY.

Even, the threat of an impending down-pour, was still no deterrent for my fierce force of favourites as we laced up and braced ourselves for the wet and wild whisk over to Carlton Vale for our goodgym antics for the night.

However, to our delight, as we stepped outside base camp, the skies had cleared and a lovely sunset was all that guided us the 2 mile jaunt over to south Kilburn for our terrific task for the night - The chop and pop operation of the Granville Community sites gardens!

So what was it all about then, I hear you cry???? Well, Grandville is this amazing centre, that serves the local community in so many ways. Believing that everyone no matter circumstance has the right to fresh, good quality, nutritious food, they serve their patrons via their community allotments, community cooking nights, classes and feasts and school education programmes. Food for though wouldn't you say

Upon arrival our fantastic host Leslie explained the deeds we had in store for our 45min blast and let me tell you, there were plenty!! The strenuous task of yanking out dead tree roots, the sawing and chopping out of control bushes and the ever so yucky stamping down of the compost Debs and I got our hands dirty with this one. *NICE***

Without further-a-do, the team set to work with magical momentum, wasting no time at all and grabbing all the tools that Leslie could throw at us. Special credit must go to Sam, who with his own bear hands yanked out not one but two massive tree roots, which was no easy Roots Manoeuvre I can tell you!

As the time etched away the team cracked on, with Sean and Dan sawing their way through the devilish nasties of the blackberry spikes. Laura, Sam and Amy the dream Yank and Pull team and Enrique, Debs and Myself busying ourselves with the clear up and stack jobs leftover, but of course not leaving out time for tom-foolery in the bushes!!! Standard antics And after a genuine back-breaking 40mins, the clear up and clear out was upon us and out the gates we did boost, wishing our hosts a fond farewell, with our echoes of See you sooonnnn singing in the air.

I think it's safe to say we we came, we tasked and we conquered that garden (for this week anyway) but there is plenty more work to be done, so we will most definitely be back. Not only to get our revenge on the Blackberry branches, who managed to give me personally one final leg jab on the way out!! OUCH

So with 2 miles left to dash, the team set to running and funning all the way home and with more boys in the mix this week, the boisterousness banter was upped a level, with Enrique and Sam chasing and racing each other all the way home!!

Not wet Hurrah but most definitely wild, thank you team for yet another wonderfully, weird and fun filled week in Brent!

See you next time!!!!

DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD. INSPIRE

Bank holiday Monday, was no rest for the badass, when seven Royal subjects; Tasked and in glory basked, at Queen's Park! POW POW

On the last day of the Eater bank hols, this stupendous crew of seven Brent Beauties, hit-up Willesden with passion and purpose! Tasking for some awesome community groups in the area and leaflet dropping for all of the above including our lovely selves. The golden ticket event being to make a member of the community smile whilst conversing with them and passing the paper!! I of course opted for sharing a moment with a furry kind of passer by in the form of the cutest Pomeranian Pup known to doggy-kind, who paid me all the gorgeous attention i wanted back with yelps and cries of gleeYAY

So, after the 1.5mile dash to our evening's destination - Queen Park, my regal roamers got to grips with the fitness focus of the night - The 1 Mile challenge...!!!!! And with their Easter Egg hangovers to shake off, my speedsters got in line at the starting blocks and......... 3,2,1 THEIR OFF!!

No I'm not even Egg-aggerating * when I say my crew smashed out some *Egg-cellent work (sorry I had to do at least some egg related puns!!) They all absolutely annihilated their PBs and I mean all of them by at least one full minute!!!!!!! Amazing!!!! However, special shouts have to go out to the first three back - Debs with an absolutely epic time of 6minutes and 20seconds!!!! Closely followed by Sam coming in at 6minutes 35seconds!!! And the second half of Sister Sledge; Tabitha, not only rolling in at 6minutes 40, but taking a clean 2mins of her PB from last time!!!!! Absolutely astonishing!!!!!

So with Personal Bests torn apart and energy running high, the team opted for more fitness fun, in the form of a short bodyweight and plyometrics circuit in the park followed by some bandstand planking in support of the amazing Sadhana, who is 40 days into her plank-a-day challenge. And can I just say WOWWWW Sadhana schooled us all with her core strength and ability, which just proves, consistency everyday, gets results!!!

With perfect 1 minute held planks achieved, we had just enough time for some playtime antics of cartwheels on the grass, handstands and photo-ops, because lets face it, GG Brent never miss a chance to get shutterbug happy when the sun and blossoms are out :)

After playtime in the park, there was just enough fuel in our tanks, to chase pavements all the way back to base for our cool down jaunt of 1.5miles. With chatting and laughter in the air (as always) this fitness familia arrived back at base rosy cheeked and full of pride as the achievements of the eve had finally sunk in!!! WOW I mean, this team may be little but we be fierce and tonight we proved that with gusto!!!

Always a pleasure with people that I treasure. Badass and bold, GG Brent - what a team to behold!

See you next time!!!!

DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD. INSPIRE

Well, maybe not the town but an inside shop wall to help Greenwich & Bexley Hospice get there shop refurbishment a step forward. This week I was so pleased to have three new faces on our run and task. Welcome Mavis, Jane and Caz, I really hope you enjoyed yourselves. We certainly enjoyed having you. After signing in we went into our mandatory pre-run chat and warmup. Well done Fidellis for winning the prize of 10 star jumps In our favourite car competition. Serves you right for having expensive tastes 😂. On warming up (remember we warm up to run, not run to warm up) we headed out of base camp Crooklog and straight up towards Welling. There's something quite satisfying about running and dodging commuters as they head home and we head to do our good deed. On arrival we were greeted with smiling faces and refreshing water, thanks Mandy. It's at this point we go from runners to good deeders and got stuck straight in to the task. With a team cutting in and a team rolling , the hardest part for me was stopping the guys painting my beard whiter then what it all ready is. Little did they know pay back would be on our run home. <Little did they know pay back would be on the run home
With the gang doing a brilliant job it was left to our tallest member Fidellis to finish off all the areas at the top. After admiring our professional workman ship and posing for photo's (think we're getting pretty good at that) it was time to say our good byes and head back to base camp Crooklog. With this weeks runners being of all abilities we set a meet up point at Welling Football Club for our first fitness drill. Thanks Eilleen and Janine for looking after the front group, you guys were brilliant as always. As we arrived at Welling FC, pay back for the attempted beard painting was due and it started in the form of wall squats, ouch!! <As we arrived at Welling FC, pay back for the attempted beard painting was due. After a competitive sit off ** we were off again and to **my delight soon came across perfect walls for my wall press ups and tricep dip drills. Payment was due, and the debt was going to be paid in full 😂 After doing our bingo wing destroying exercises it was just a short run back to Crooklog for our cool down and natter on how it all went. Bexley Goodgymers you were brilliant as always. I really enjoyed your company and can't wait to do it all again next week.............. Last but not least Happy Birthday Tanya hope you had an awesome day 🎉

On an evening which was bright, dry and beautiful.... yes that's right.... BRIGHT DRY AND BEAUTIFUL HURRAAAHHHHHHHH spring had definitely sprung when twelve GG bunnys hopped and leaflet dropped their way to 11k. Yay!!

With the task at hand being the bi-monthly all community leaflet drop, usually the fitness vibes that accompanies comes from track attack. However to bring in the new season I decided to spice things up with a newness here too. So, instead of going round and round, we went up and up - hills that is.... but the best hills near by meant we had to bandit our way through to our neighbouring borough of Camden, running 5 jubilee stations on route to boot. All the way to Swiss Cottage and the hill that leads to Hampstead! Pow Pow.

So the 2 mile warm Up turned into a delightful cruise, basking in the last of the sunshine, we whizzed through Kilburn, West Hampstead, up to Finchley Road and beyond to good old cottage of the Swiss. It's safe to say we were working as a team, as no body was left on their..... Toblerone OMG I can't even take Credit for that terrible pun - step forward please Mouse and take a bow!! LOL

On route, as the team paper chased their way along, handing out all the leaflets on route, I on the other hand could not take enough pics. The beautiful blossoms and natural spring colours coming through, beaming out like they were screaming at us "spring has sprung" and it certainly did give us more Spong in our own steps. Glorious!!

Before long we had arrived at check point one - the base of the hill, just behind Swiss Cottage station and with a neat little one mile distance to the station at the top (Hampstead) the team buckled down for a fast paced grind on that oh so steep and taxing incline.

Taxing maybe, but no one paid the price of surrender, as one by one the pack flew into the home straight, just as the last of the light was etching away and the glow of Hampstead tube took over to light our way in(ham)stead.

Back slapping and congratulations of our epic hill dash over, with a swift turn on our heels we were back to it, pacing back down, with gravity on our side this time! Thank good(gym)ness !!

With a speed split emerging and rapid front pack, the team eventually split in two and with Debs and Enrique taking the lead, group one sped off into the night with epic pace. Group two led by me was a Girl Power affair, but with crew love cheering us on, we recharged the old batteries for one final push the last 2miles back to base.... Of course with lots of stops for photo-calls all the way home. Click click flash, the final hurdles we did smash.

And before we knew it the burning lights of walk lane were upon us once more and one final corner turn led us back to the twinkle of The Queensbury and our home once again. Full team recoup, regroup and stretchy stretch, we finished for the night exactly how we'd begun, smiles and good vibes.

A Beautiful night, filled with beautiful people, doing beautiful things. It can only be GG Brent of course!!

See you next week!!

DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD. INSPIRE

Monday-Funday was excitement city, when 9 Brent beauties, set out to run 5miles, do some good and throw out a massive dollop of crew-love all over West London. BOOM

As always, my beaming Brent bevy of beauties awaited me this Monday eve, ready to rock some community love all the way to Stonebridge Park.

New to the mix was - Sabina who my joined ravishing regulars: Sadhana, mouse, Steph, Liz, Amy, Elisa and Debs and after mega announcements, race updates and a sprinkling of Italian lessons from Debs and Elisa, the team wasted no time hot-footing it out the door, to set to work on the first leg of the tour.

With the 2.5miles distance in our sites, I led pace from the front with mouse scooping up the rear. In no time at all we had steamed all the way over from base camp to Dollis Hill, our first marker along the way. Next up, along the north circ, 2nd marker, 3rd and 4th all melting away as we flew past - Sadhana's bridge, Ikea and the Wembley Arch with Debs shouting proudly omg i've run all the way to IKEA YIPPPEEEE

Finally arriving on Pitfield Lane, the whole distance was dashed in 30mins flat, even though the crossings seemed to take a hundred years to go green! This epic time of course also included one brave effort from she-warrior Steph hurting her ankle on route. But like the badass she is, she moaned not one jot and with the help of the magnificent mouse supporting her sister in arms, we all reached our destination for the night - Sufra community food bank, with bags of time to get stuck in and help with the task for the night.

Sufra Community Food Bank, had one request of us this week, shift the massive mountains of soil from A to B, to pack the massive, empty tanks due to be stuffed with veg that would grow, ready for summer plucking. So with shovels and wheelbarrows a plenty we got to work. Confession time........Of course I say 'we' when really the gallant girls did all the back breaking work, while I photographed the epic efforts. Standard!

In 30mins the girls had shovelled, shifted and wheeled 50% of this mountain and managed to pack 4 troffs to the brim AMAZING WORK. Sadhana even had time to complete her planking challenge and pose for some seriously sexy snaps!!

After the work it was full steam ahead, back to base and at full pace. Thank goodness for Mouse who volunteered to lead the last leg, as poor Steph really couldn't run on hers and for the first time in Brent GG history there was an order for an Uber!! But a necessity measure when one of the troops needed a helping hand, or should I say Leg back.

Back at base we regrouped and stretched and hugged out the last of the love for what was an unbelievable team effort, proving goodgym isn't just about spreading love to the community, it's also about supporting and caring for each other and working as a team to help each other along the way too.

See you next time for an even bigger dose of crew love!!

DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD. INSPIRE.