Five wonderful GoodGymmers assembled last night for a thorough litter pick around Finsbury Gardens.

The One Where Sarah Tried (Twice)

The gardens are riddled with mess, we had been assured but at first glance after our arrival, the place looked suspiciously spotless. You know that moment when you arrive, gloves on, litter pickers at the ready, and think: Have we been pre-cleaned? Well, appearances can deceive, and our Goodgymmers are nothing if not determined. Give us a patch of grass and a bit of shrubbery, and we will find rubbish. And sure enough, we did: three whole bags of it, thank you very much.

But the star of the haul was not the crisp packets, the bottles, nor even the mysterious orphaned shoe. No. The true crown jewel of the evening was an old, slightly tragic scooter bravely rescued from an overgrown bramble as if it had been waiting years for exactly this moment.

Naturally, Mark and Paul immediately recreated their BMX-driving, non-helmet-wearing glory days with gusto. Happy to report that despite some questionable driving, no Goodgymmers were harmed in the making of this report.

Meanwhile, James stole the sartorial spotlight with the most important debut of the night: his brand-new red GG T-shirt. Fresh, vibrant, and worn with the pride of someone who has absolutely been waiting for the postman like a kid on Christmas Eve. At one point we’re pretty sure he was modelling it more than he was litter-picking, but honestly? Fair enough. It looked great. All along, Veronika kept us all ticking along and on task with the patience of a saint. Hero.

Special shout-out goes to Sarah, who heroically attempted to join us not once but twice. Unfortunately, the universe , and London buses, had different plans for her. Two failed attempts, two disappearing hopes, one determined Goodgymmer foiled by public transport. We missed you, Sarah. Your perseverance deserves at least half a bag’s worth of credit. Also honourable mention to Ellie, who in true GG Haringey form, absolutely stacked it at her run club and is currently in the sick bin. Heal soon, Ellie.

In the end, Finsbury Gardens was a little cleaner, we were a little happier, and Paul and Mark were a little wobblier in the knees than when we started. A successful evening all round.

Come next week.

7 Goodgymmers got together on the edges of a very dark Lordship Rec to lend a hand to the Friends of Harmony Gardens in creating a safe path into the park

These Girls Definitely Can!

The theme for the evening was reclaiming all public spaces for everyone. And led by the indomitable, if a little directionally challenged, Latoya that's exactly what we did!

Firstly, though, we had a Goodgym task to get on with. Mike from the Friends group met us with spades, wheelbarrows, and mountainous pile of woodchip, and a task to create a safe path into the park from the Broadwater Farm entrance to the the Rec. Reader, we did. 6 of us did about 50% of the work while SuperDave in his usual Energizer bunny mode did about the other 50% by himself. At some point, he wasn't even using a spade to fill up his wheelbarrow!

Once we completed our task, Latoya took over and led us on a fun Cupid Shuffle session in the dark before leading a nice stroll through the dark Rec. Boom.

10 Goodgymmers crashed into the gates at Russell Park for an evening of painting and bonhomie. Highlights of the evening included Gramps absolutely stacking it on the run to task and injuring himself in a few places, and our Sarah's unwitting invitation for a spot of heavy caressing. You had to be there!

Normal service will resume this week at Chapmans Green - come!

12 incredibly haaawwwwt Goodgymmers donned head torches and smiles as they lent a hand at Chapmans Green

Kudos Corner

Everybody make some noise for Beth, Ellie, and Gina who joined us for their first ever Goodgym task and were absolute naturals. They didn't skip a beat and got stuck right in into the evening shenanigans. Rock stars! You can all come again....

... which is exactly what Super James did tonight, returning for his second task ever in row, despite the GGH motley crew's best attempts to scare him away the previous week. Hero!

We also welcomed Mehmet for his first run with us. As the legend that he is, he fitted right in.

Shovel-ready

Our audacious and bodacious crew turned up at Chapmans Green as the last of the day's light was slipping through their fingers but they didn't let that deter them. Oh no! The Friends of Chapmans Green awaited them with a mission to dig out the tree wells in the orchard so the lovely trees can get a good feed ahead of the cold days of winter. With a clear mission in front of them, our Goodgymmers began working like hank marvin honey badgers.

Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Task. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster. Monster.* #NoContext

The Friends group had conservatively put red rings around 4 of the 13 trees in the community orchard and you can see why - the ground was hard, harder than explaining to your friendly Area Activator how to use TikTok without crying in frustration. Nevertheless, our heroes cracked on with gusto and not too much complaining, and we ended up finishing the evening having prepped not four but six trees, ready for a good protein milkshake drink or whatever it is thhat they're getting ahead of the winter months.

The Friends were so impressed that they asked us to come back in a couple of weeks and who are we to say no to such lovely folk, eh?

A good successful night, if I say so myself.

Join us on Weds as we visit Russell Park in Wood Green for a spot of park gate painting.

*You had to be there for that one to make sense. Sorry!

On this slightly chilly September evening Mark was the first to arrive at Blue House Yard, welcoming newcomer James. They were soon joined by Paul, Veronika, and eventually Sarah. It was a short and social run from there to Wolves Lane, where Ed had already taken credit for being the first to arrive.

Wolves Lane is a particular favourite for Goodgym Haringey, as it was the scene of our very first group run. A lot has changed at the site since then, and recently three new buildings have gone up. We were greeted by task owner Alistair, who has worked there for 18 years so had even more stories to tell. We were soon set to work shifting mulch to a spot outside, and watering plants in the Black Rootz polytunnel and the cactus house.

Today's team was so efficient the task was completed in record time, so we had time to flick through Alistair's photo album of the site before ducking into the Palm House to visit the carp and terrapins.