🏃‍♀️ What a BRAMBLE-iant evening we had at Thorlands Gardens! Our superhero Run Leader Tilly swooped in to save the day and lead our merry band of do-gooders on another epic mission. With great power comes great responsibility... and apparently great gardening skills! 🦸‍♀️

We tackled a classic Simon special that really got us digging deep (literally!). Half our crew went absolutely WILD chopping back those unruly brambles in the chamomile garden - talk about getting straight to the POINT! Meanwhile, our leaf-mould ferry service was running at full capacity, transporting precious cargo from the clubhouse pile to join forces with the wood chip mountain. 🌿

It was wheelie good teamwork! 🚐

Tonight's harvest of heroes deserves a special shout-out - we welcomed TWO fantastic newbies to the GoodGym family! Ashleigh and Daniel jumped straight into the action and proved they're absolute GEMS. With fresh faces and fresh energy, we managed to get a MULCH-titude of work done in record time!

The garden is now looking absolutely mint (well, chamomile actually), and we're feeling pretty chuffed with our evening's work. Another successful mission in the books - we came, we ran, we conquered those brambles!

Until next week, keep running wild! 🌱

#GoodGymLambeth #CommunityHeroes #BrambleWarriors

The Great Stockwell Shuffle 📦🏃‍♀️ to find out why we went bad this week check out the Lambeth Insta page!

Date: This Week
Destination: Stockwell Park Community Centre
Mission: Operation Lift ‘n’ Shift Supreme

The Brief

Our magnificent seven (plus a few extras) laced up their trainers and jogged over to meet Nick & Julie at Stockwell Park Community Centre. Little did we know we were about to embark on the ultimate game of “Will It Fit?” - Community Centre Edition!

The Challenge

What started as a simple “moving some donated items” quickly escalated into an episode of “Extreme Decluttering: Volunteers At Large.” Our task? Wrestling with a mountain of miscellaneous mayhem that would make Marie Kondo weep.

The Inventory of Incredulity:

• Fridges (because apparently keeping things cool is so last season)
• Dishwasher (now officially on permanent vacation from dish duty)
• Boxes of books (heavy on knowledge, heavier on our backs)
• Kids’ toys (proving that fun really does weigh a ton)
• Pasta presses (for when you need your carbs really flat)
• Broken keyboards (no longer making beautiful music together)
• TVs (giving us the silent treatment)
• Picture frames (framing us for excessive lifting)
• Scrap plastic (the stuff that dreams are made of… apparently)
• Bean bags (surprisingly un-bean-like in their cooperation)
• And much, much more! (insert dramatic echo here)

The Plot Twist

Just when we thought we’d mastered the art of community centre Jenga, Nick and Julie threw us a curveball: “Oh, and could you possibly carry these two enormous wardrobes to a flat down the road?”

Cue nervous laughter and the collective sound of volunteers mentally calculating their life insurance policies.

Mission: Impossible - Wardrobe Protocol

Armed with nothing but determination and questionable spatial awareness, our heroes Michael, Katie, Jenny, Adam, Paul, Eric, and Jo transformed into human furniture movers extraordinaire.

The real challenge wasn’t the carrying (though our shoulders would like a word) - it was the ultimate test of Tetris skills as we attempted to navigate two massive wardrobes through a front door that clearly wasn’t designed with “wardrobe delivery” in mind.

After much rotating, tilting, and what can only be described as “furniture yoga,” we achieved the impossible. The wardrobes are now happily settled in their new home, probably gossiping about their epic journey.

The Heroes of the Hour

Let’s give a massive round of applause to our absolutely wardrobe-ous crew:

• Michael - Master of the pivot maneuver
• Katie - Queen of “maybe if we turn it this way…”
• Jenny - Chief morale officer and corner-spotter
• Adam - The human measuring tape
• Paul - Keeper of everyone’s sanity
• Eric - Professional furniture whisperer
• Jo - The voice of reason when reason was in short supply

The Verdict

Another successful mission in the books! We lifted, we shifted, we conquered. Our community is a little tidier, one family has some new wardrobes, and we all got an absolutely moving workout.

Until next week, keep running and keep giving!

P.S. - If anyone knows where we can get a degree in Applied Wardrobe Physics, asking for several friends…

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GoodGym Lambeth: Where fitness meets furniture moving, and everyone wins!

🏃‍♀️🌱

Our merry band of fitness-focused do-gooders laced up their trainers and ran straight into the heart of gardening glory this week! We sprinted over to Brixton allotments where the lovely Annick was waiting with tasks that would really grow on us.

The Dirt on What We Did

This week’s mission was all about getting our hands dirty – and boy, did we deliver! We rolled up our sleeves to help build a brand new planting patch, because apparently we’re not just good at running, we’re also ground-breaking volunteers.

Our tasks included:

• Soil Straightening: We smoothed things over (literally) by getting that earth perfectly level
• Newspaper Laying: Proving that we really know how to cover all the bases
• Manure Heaping: We absolutely nailed this crappy job with enthusiasm
• Bathtub Filling: Yes, you read that right – we wheelbarrowed loads of manure to fill an actual bathtub! Talk about a moving experience

Star Performers of the Week ⭐

Eric - Welcome to your first ever GoodGym task! You really dug right in and showed us what fresh enthusiasm looks like. We’re rooting for many more missions with you!

Joely - It’s mint to have you back! After a couple of previous tasks, you’re really getting back into the swing of things. Your return has definitely planted smiles on our faces.

Mikhail - Look who’s back for a Tuesday run! This regular mission hero hasn’t joined our Tuesday crew in ages, but showed up ready to get his hands dirty. Talk about branching out from your usual routine!

Michael - Our legendary 301 task hero continues to be absolutely unbe-leaf-able! With dedication like yours, we’re never stumped for inspiration.

The Bottom Line

Another week, another chance to prove that fitness and community service make the perfect compost – they just work better together! Big thanks to Annick for having us and giving us tasks that were definitely worth our thyme.

Until next week, keep running and keep growing! 🌿

Remember: At GoodGym, we don’t just run circles – we dig deep and make a difference!

The Route: A Berry Good Adventure! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

This week our fantastic crew of do-gooders embarked on another mission to spread joy and burn calories in equal measure! We ran to Holy Trinity to meet the lovely Adam, taking the scenic route through the park where we couldn’t resist a spontaneous 50-yard dash. Because apparently regular running isn’t challenging enough - we needed to add some competitive spirit to really get those heart rates pumping!

Well done Fi!! Perdie sorry about the misbehaving bicycle...:0(

Mission: Operation Bramble Trouble

Once we arrived at the vicarage, it was time to get down to the nitty-gritty (and thorny) business of garden warfare:

Blackberry Bramble Battle Royale - Armed with secateurs and sheer determination, we took on some seriously aggressive brambles that had clearly been plotting garden domination. These weren’t just any old thorns - they were the kind that fight back! Several volunteers emerged looking like they’d been wrestling with a particularly grumpy hedgehog, but victory (and a kilo of berries) was ours!

Path Clearing Champions - We declared all-out war on weeds and moss, transforming a slightly shabby path into something so pristine it practically sparkled. The weeds didn’t stand a chance against our green-fingered army of destruction!

Weeding Warriors - No dandelion was safe as our volunteers pulled, tugged, and uprooted with the enthusiasm of people who genuinely enjoy making things tidy (which, let’s face it, is slightly concerning but utterly admirable).

🌟 LEGEND ALERT: Michael Hits the Big 3-0-0! 🌟

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, we have a genuine superhero in our midst! Tonight we’re celebrating our absolute legend Michael, who has just recorded his 300th good deed with GoodGym!

That’s right - THREE HUNDRED acts of community kindness since he started back in 2017. To put that in perspective, that’s roughly one good deed for every cup of tea consumed during a typical British crisis meeting, or about the same number of times we’ve all said “this year will definitely be different” since 2017.

Michael, you absolute weapon of community spirit, you’ve been smashing it for seven years and show no signs of slowing down. From bramble battles to litter picking adventures, from community garden chaos to whatever weird and wonderful tasks we’ll inevitably stumble into next week - you’ve been there through it all!

Here’s to Michael: proving that being a legend isn’t just about what you achieve, but about showing up week after week with a smile, a pair of running shoes, and an inexplicable willingness to wrestle with hostile vegetation! 🏆

The Verdict

Another week, another successful mission accomplished! The vicarage is looking absolutely mint (pun intended), our step counters are very happy with us, and somewhere in Lambeth, a group of defeated brambles is probably plotting their revenge for next season.

Until next week, keep running, keep laughing, and keep being the kind of people who think spending their evening pulling weeds is actually a pretty decent way to spend time!

Remember: We’re not just working out - we’re working wonders in our community, one terrible pun at a time!