One Monday night, two great runnings communities and three impactful tasks - what better way to kick off the week?

Last night we had the first - but definitely not the last - collab between the fabulous Monday Night Mood Booster run club and GoodGym. With so many smiles and plenty of good vibes right from the off, it was clear it was going to be a great match.

While here at GoodGym we get fit by doing good, the lovely people at the Monday Night Mood Booster run club start the week with an inclusive run around Hyde Park where people connect over a shared love of running. Join the MNMB crew every Monday and then make it a double header by coming along to GoodGym Westminster every Tuesday evening - you'll be buzzing until Friday!

We kicked off the night with some warm ups in a beautifully festive Hyde Park with MNMB's traditional celebration of the past week's achievement. Huge congratulations to Sophia for smashing a new sub one hour PB at the Nike 10km and to Steven and Simon for an amazing run at the New York marathon (complete with a photo job around the route and beers before the finish line - very impressive!).

With MNMB's run ambassadors leading the way, we ran down to St Andrew's youth club. This amazing community hub is the oldest of its kind in the world. It offers young people in the borough incredible experiences and resources, such as music, dancing, martial arts, healthy food classes, residential trips and access to the arts. It is run by Adrian, who greeted us - fresh from the House of Lords - to give us a run down of the three tasks he needed us to complete.

The first job was to tackle the very full garage, creating more space and keeping it organised for the kids. While this got underway, the second group were upstairs to take on the table challenge. Several extremely heavy tables had to be shifted and built which took not only muscle but some strategic thinking. There were some very impressive Ikea skills on display!

Meanwhile the third team were downstairs in the gym sorting out a cupboard brimming with sports gear, including some of the heaviest medicine balls we've ever seen (check out the photos to see who managed a very respectable strongman style lift!)

After 45 minutes of hard work the garage was neat and tidy, the tables were built and put away, and all the sports gear in the cupboard had been carefully organised. It was amazing to see just how much could be done with everybody working together. Great job everyone!

If that wasn't enough of a workout we just had time to take on a couple of challenges which tested our lower body and abs. First was the progressive squat hold minute before we finished with a core triathlon - it was great to see excellent form from everybody despite the groans!

Thanks so much for all the positivity, hard work and the fun and welcoming atmosphere. Special shout out the brilliant Charlie and Marcus for making it happen. It was great to team up and enjoy a Monday night full of good moods and good deeds!

Thanks to Simon for capturing photos of the night, you can check out the gallery here

On a dark and damp Monday evening, GoodGymers gathered at Cranbrook Community Centre - fresh back from weekends as far-flung as Liverpool, Hertfordshire, Rye (in Sussex, not the bread), Argentina(!), and of course, Newham.

Cranbrook’s lovely garden had been completely overtaken by soggy, slippy leaves - turning paths into skating rinks and corners of the garden into no-go zones. Armed with two rakes, a broom, and plenty of optimism, we set to work, clearing and sweeping until the place looked recognisable again. John even spruced up the community notice board, ready to display this season’s offerings.

We joined forces with the brilliant Janet and Eileen, who’ve been helping out at the centre for “over 20 years – I’ve lost track, it’s been so long!” Eileen had previously vowed not to come once it got dark, but the lure of GoodGym proved too strong, and she ended up getting stuck in herself.

After an hour of raking, sweeping, and gathering, the paths were clear, the leaves were bagged, and the community garden was once again safe for all the local groups who use it.

We rounded off the evening with some Alfajores that Caterina had bought back from Argentina (soft, crumbly South American biscuits sandwiched with dulce de leche), although Janet and Eileen, in true east-end fashion, insisted on calling them Wagon Wheels - and to be fair, they weren’t entirely wrong!

See you all next week 🍂