Today we are back here for our third visit to this Turning Tides accommodation. It was another warm evening, but sweat, minimal blood (you must take more care Paul!) and no tears saw us continue the transformation from unkempt and dishevelled to neat and tidy. There is still a way to go, but progress is definitely being made

There's no business like grow business

Cutting back and removing waste material seems to be a staple for us, but our GoodGym group is certainly growing. It was great to welcomeSarah to her first group session today. Her raking around the undergrowth and clearing of Ryanstrimmings followed by hedge trimming at the front showed how willing she is to throw herself fully and enthusiastically into the task. Hopefully this will be the first of many for Sarah.

Keeping up appearances

On arrival we were asked if we could tackle the hedge at the front of the property where the overhanging bush and trailing ivy encroached on the pavement. When it comes to cutting things back, you don’t have to ask Worthing GoodGym twice. Secateurs and lopers in hand Paul and Paul attacked to overgrowth with gusto.

The side hustle

Not to be outdone Sarah (old Sarah? Rain averse Sarah? Accessory Sarah - dear reader, if such exists, please edit in your head as you read to get the Sarah you recognise) and Mel attacked the bushes along the side of the parking area with the same enthusiasm. The piles of cuttings grew quicker than any plant could.

Sweeping up appearances

The rest of the team swept, gathered, and carried so we could leave the premises at least as tidy as when we arrived, but certainly much trimmer, both back and front.

Celebrate good times, come on……

Today we were in celebratory mood at Worthing GoodGym. No “Bah Humbug” here; we’re more “Bar? I’ll have a beer…..”.

Achieved a marathon

On Saturday, whilst most GoodGymers settle for a 5K parkrun, our very special RoxyPRoxy (if you know you know, if not you’ve just missed Worthing GoodGym pun of the year!) ran her 3rd marathon. Only ran for 3 hours 50 minutes though. Well done that one!

A marathon achievement

Our main celebration though is focussed onJulia : Worthing GoodGym area activator. Today it was Good Deed 400 for Julia. Amazing! That represents 400 plus hours of time given to support our local community. That’s the equivalent of 10 weeks full time work!

More, much more than that

As area activator for Worthing since it’s launch in March 2017, Julia has been responsible for enabling over 2800 hours of support in the community, building positive relationships with many local organisations. That’s the equivalent of more than 70 working weeks given to improve our local area and the lives of many who need support and care in order to thrive.

FITting in so much more

Julia’s knowledge and expertise has been put to good use over the years, putting GoodGymers through their paces. Burpees became a staple topic of discussion, regular monthly challenges kept us pushing ourselves. Now Julia is training to compete in a European HYROX event how long will it be before we are introduced to some new monthly fitness challenges?

From Julia

Many thanks to John for writing this report and generally organising all my treats tonight - without him GoodGym Worthing wouldn't be aw amazing as it is 👌😍

🌞 GoodGym Worthing, 30th June

On the last day of June, Worthing was basking in glorious sunshine as we returned to a halfway house supporting homeless residents. We were tasked with a front and back garden tidy-up – having previously given the back garden a full makeover on our last visit, this time we turned our attention to the front while still giving the back some finishing touches. The heat didn’t deter our dedicated team, who rolled up their sleeves and got stuck in to transform the space for six grateful residents – one of whom, Adrian, enthusiastically joined us, proving to be a great help on the day.

⚡ Power tools and teamwork

Ryan took on the electric hedge cutter like a pro, tackling the overgrown bushes with gusto and precision. Meanwhile, Pauland Elwere on strimming duties , trimming back the wilder under growth and restoring order to the unruly greenery. Paul later turned his attention to a more challenging task – removing ivy from a tree that was suffocating with it.

✂️ Precision pruning and mighty mowing

Gillybean took the lead on pruning in the front garden and side passage, carefully shaping plants and shrubs to bring out their best in the summer sun. Belinda andMel also tackled the front garden, pulling out multiple debris piles from the flowerbeds and giving the area a much-needed refresh.

Over in the back garden, John gave the lawn a tidy mow doingthe best he could in such dry conditions. He subsequently joined Paul who had turned his attention to dealing with a large, stubborn branch on the evergreen tree out front – what a team effort!

🧹 The tidy-up crew

Megan and Mel were absolute troopers throughout the session, constantly on the move, tidying and clearing the growing piles of garden waste. Mel, ever the step-count champion, kept a keen eye on her fitness goals while making a big difference to the space.

By the end of the evening, the gardens were looking alot tidier, brighter, and far more welcoming for the residents who call this place home. The sun was still shining, and there was a shared sense of pride in what we’d achieved together.

We'll be back again next month to continue the good work.

Next week we will be celebrating Barbara's milestone Birthday as well as a cheeky summer social BBQ - please bring your own food and drink to enjoy.

Powering through the undergrowth

16 dedicated members of my GoodGym team came together to transform an overgrown and unmanageable garden at a residential property supported by Turning Tides, a local charity working to end homelessness. The house currently provides shelter and support to six individuals on their journey toward independent living and stability.

The garden, previously neglected and overrun with brambles, weeds, and overgrown trees , had become a barrier to enjoyment and use for the residents. Our team set out with the goal of creating a welcoming, safe, and usable outdoor space where residents could relax, socialise, and reconnect with nature.

Huge thank you to John who brought a selection of battery operated power tools. If it wasn't for them and Nicks strimmer that I brought along, we wouldn't have achieved nearly as much in the time that we had.

Throughout the hour that we were there, the team completed the following tasks:

Clearing: The team worked quickly to remove thick overgrowth, brambles, ivy and invasive weeds from flower beds and borders. Many thanks to you all that clambered all over and behind the flower beds to achieve this.Sue , fresh back from Krakov was particularly good at this :) Sarah showed off her multi tasking skills by entertaining Mali the puppy together with helping with the clearing !

Special mention to Belinda who delayed her work trip away to come along tonight -this meant a 5.30am start the next day instead.

Lawn Recovery: El and Ryan did a brilliant job strimming whilst John mowed . The combined effort gave the area a much-needed refresh.

Trimming and Pruning: Paul used the power hedging tool and literally ripped through the bush ( not sure of its name ! ) Between him and John they also sawed through overhanging tree branches to improve light and access.Stéphane helped with a bit of branch hanging too!

Another two mentions to Megan and Paula for doing great work and being extremely good company to be around too.

Birthday girl Gillybean did a fantastic job unearthing a concrete path removing weeds and grass and creating space for residents to sit and soak up some sunlight.

Weed did it

The transformation was immediate and impactful. What was once an inaccessible, overgrown plot is now a clean, inviting, and functional garden space. A Resident leaned out of the window and expressed her heartfelt thanks which meant alot to us all. This project not only improved the physical environment but also strengthened community ties, boosted morale among residents, and gave my team a chance to make a tangible difference locally.

To the pub

Some of us headed to the pub for celebratory drinks and cake that Roxy had kindly made. Together with Gills Birthday we had several other personal achievements to celebrate. Huge congratulations to the following

Anne on her 50 Mile run across the downs. Barbara Patagonia Trek Roxy 2 marathons at Brighton and London Mel Cycling adventure up North ( solo and team events)

We are super proud of you all.

Thank you to you all for a fantastic turnout

Have a great week all of you :)

Julia xx

Thank goodness its February

January is always a long month and today we saw a glimmer of hope for longer days with the daylight stretching out just a tiny bit at both ends.

However ,January wasn't all bad! GG Worthing had the most successful challenge month we had ever had ! I had set challenging targets for both tasks and distance ( 65 good deeds and 2500 km) but we managed to plough on through both ending on a scintillating 99 and 2746 respectively. Many congratulations and thank you to each and every one of you that contributed your time and effort. I'm so proud of our achievements 😇❤️

Byron Road

Turning Tides, our local homeless charity offer a hostel at Byron Road and had requested we do a tidy up of the front garden.

Tonight the group split into two groups with Paul Megan and Sarah heading down to the prom for some fitness and JohnAnneRoxyRyan and Paula cracking on with the task. Special welcome back to Paula - we are so pleased you have returned to your GG family 😀

The fitness team did a combination of sprint drills and functional moves to support running - I absolutely know that Paulis going to be taking my name in vain when he wakes up in the morning for his Tuesday bike ride 😅 Both Sarah and Megan and Paul, all agreed that the interval training is not something they would do on their own so if you fancy getting some training in then come along on a Monday evening!

We returned to pitch in with the tidy up where we filled 4 bags of debris. There was pruning , lots of sweeping , weeding and general debris in the bags which Paula and I subsequently dropped off at the seafront bins where the refuse team will pick them up.

Photos done - thank you to Johns phone, we all headed back to our snug homes! I can't wait for light evenings again ☀️

Today we loaded, we travelled, we unloaded, we reloaded, we unloaded again. We moved crates, we filled crates. We dismantled shelves, we moved shelves. We took down tables, we took tables downstairs, we set up tables. We moved more crates and we brought more crates downstairs. Sound exhausting? It was…..

*Sunshine at last ! *

It was a wonderful evening for a visit to Turning Tides Victoria Road hostel. Some walked, some ran and one arrived as a complete surprise to us all ! It was so good to see Beth back in Worthing for her first GoodGym in 2 years ! Lets hope we see some more of this little pocket rocket in the borough again soon.

Also surprising us with her presence was our very own social secretary Tamsin - so good to see you and thank you for your continuing hard work in and outside of tasks :)

It was also good to see Sue Anne and Craig back again tonight after a few weeks break -the warm sunshine definitely brought out the crowds this evening.

We were tasked with putting together garden furniture together with a tidy up of the garden and breaking down alot of cardboard ready for recycling. Sarahand Anne jumped on the chance for some self assembly of the bench and were also joined by John in a supervisory role! Paul Tamsin and Craig assembled the table ( despite lack of tools! )

RoxyGillybean, Daisy and Sue worked tirelessly all evening sorting the wilderness around the borders and rediscovering the raised bed that had been completely obscured by tall weed like bushes.

Meanwhile Belinda and Beth were busily breaking down boxes and sorting between recycling and general rubbish - they somehow found space in bins !

Great job done everybody :) See you next week.

Julia xx