No fitness session this week, so everyone had plenty of time to get there by the stated time of 19:00. But when the nearby church clock struck seven, there were only three of us! Could it be that when teacher's away, her pupils lose all discipline and roll in late?

Actually everyone did arrive quite soon afterwards, and made sure they didn't get put in detention, by working very hard. Louise arrived to find the youth centre deserted, but soon realised we were busy in the back yard. She'd kindly offered to take on the painting task ("baggsie painting"!), but tonight we were concentrating on the leaves.

The cold weather last weekend had us wrapping up warm, but in contrast the trees decided to shed the last of their covering - and the yard was in parts calf-deep in leaves. We hadn't got leaf-grabbers, but we did have rakes and brooms, black bags, a bin, a huge yellow rubble sack, a wheelbarrow and most importantly, the hands of ten GoodGymers!

This time, we had not just to sweep up the leaves, but remove them to a nearby grass area where we made a huge pile for the council to pick up. Kitty caught up with an old friend (one of two sisters), and it was hard to get everyone to finish, when there were still a few leaves on the ground.

But we'll be back before Christmas - when there'll be a social! Sign up for the drink at https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/tower-hamlets-christmas-drink .

And of course there'll be more fun next week when we return to Hollybush (https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/the-big-monday-night-task-back-to-hollybush-estat-for-the-planter-makeover-with-the-teesdale-hollybush-tra).

See you then!

28 hardy souls, turned out to brave the elements today and put on a terrific display of running resilience! Mas and the core team were joined by Simon a former regular and now parkrun ambassador to get everything set up and ready to go. After leading the warm up with a rendition of dingle dangle scarecrow the junior were eager for the off and away they went. The amazing marshals whooped and hollered encouragement as they ran into the wind with great determination. The marshals, timekeeper, token issuer and all the other tasks are what makes these events possible and are all volunteers, so it is a great opportunity for Good Gym to support a local event, in fact there are parkruns all over the UK - so lots of Good Gym mission possibilities.
Once the runners had completed their mission we completed ours and quickly packed away before everything was blown away.
Hurrah for parkrun and until next week....

Ms K was waiting for the gas man to arrive when I knocked on her door bright and early this chilly morning - it seems she's been without hot water for 24 hours or so, which in the current cold wave isn't really what you want to wake up to. She was confident that he would be arriving shortly, and so I left her wrapped up in layers and headed off to get her treasure.

I found it reassuring that in spite of the current temperatures, Ms K still wanted her favourite tub of ice cream, and after a quick diversion to Asda to find the Crisp and Dry, I was soon back at her front door with everything in the bag, including some white chocolate digestives which I'd "recommended" to her during my last shop...(hopefully she likes them as they were on a special deal and so I got her two packs...).

Ms G needed a folding bed with a yellow and white checked cover brought downstairs to her living room. The stairs proved quite a tight squeeze but some excellent teamwork form Sian and Paul carefully relocated the bed. Ms G was really grateful for the help.

The rain started during the afternoon, so it wasn't unreasonable to think it might have fizzled out by 7.

No such luck.

But a great-sized group of GoodGymers nonetheless donned waterproofs and head torches and headed out to Rocky Park, in the heart of the Hollybush Estate, to join Margaret and Ash in the big garden makeover.

Why were we here?

• Margaret and Ash are are part of the Teesdale and Hollybush TRA, an active, productive Tenants and Residents Association working across the two estates. Since 2008, the TRA have transformed 13 disused sites, with the help of volunteers, 'creating a mini Eden where local nature can thrive.'

• There's a big project underway at the moment: the redevelopment of the planters in the communal garden areas, park and allotments. Over the last few months, GG TH Task Force and Margaret and Ash have worked hard to redistribute a whopping 96 tonnes of soil!

• Tonight we were carrying on that tough task - emptying old planters of soil, redistributing the soil, and demolishing the planters (as fun as it sounds).

The teams were divided into four initially, which then became five, spread out all over Rocky Park emptying planter after planter with the rain not taking a break. The bags were filled, to be moved another day ("That's something to worry about another time.") and a lot was achieved in a mere 45 minutes.

With just a small corner of a planter remaining at 7:45, we called it a day, making our way back to the centre to grab bags and leave gloves to dry.

Posing for that all-important final pic, we said our cheerios to Margaret and Ash, tentatively making a plan for a December visit.

The shout-outs

A big shout-out to the whole team tonight, who showed up ready for a big physical task, despite the wet night. And a huge shout-out to Vanessa, who joined for her first ever GoodGym! Amazing work, and we hope to see you again soon.

Next week we're Limehouse-bound, ready to crack on with the painting and leaf-clearing with Kamal down at Ocean Youth HQ.

Until then.

5 Goodgymers made their way to the gardens of St Margaret's House on a clear November evening. Emily (Operations Manager) and John (Head Gardener) helpfully directed us to the tasks that needed doing, primarily giving the ivy bushes a haircut and loose leaf gathering.

Shout out to Jo who was the the first goodgymer on the scene and promptly got to shearing the ivy after a consultation and shampoo (or so I can only assume - I wasn't there).

John arrived stealthily and joined Jo on the job, which was at the very least a two-hander given that it had been a while since the ivy's last trip to the salon.

Soon enough, the darkness drew in (thanks to daylight saving) but it wasn't all doom and gloom - Ilana and Kareem arrived and happily got involved in the ivy/leaf sweeping business.

By the end of the session, the ivy bush was looking very sharp indeed, just in time for the weekend.

In the backdrop of the majestic mulberry tree (which keeps the leaf sweeping trade booming by raining leaves every time the wind sighs) we finished the task by taking a customary group photo.

Before leaving the premises we popped into the chapel which was holding a dazzling exhibition of film noir-inspired block prints, painted ceramic tiles and pots.