"I was just hooked"

GoodGym runner Beth Hoskins has reached an incredible milestone of 1000 good deeds, but it actually took her almost two years between signing up and coming along to her first happening in 2014.

Beth discovered GoodGym by accident after hearing about a volunteer organisation called Green Gym, and while she loved the concept of combining physical activity with volunteering at GoodGym, she found the concept a little intimidating and spent a long time mulling over her decision to come. It was a starter session that eventually hooked Beth, now aged 42, into GoodGym and she has never looked back.

Like many GoodGym regulars, it took the experience of attending a GoodGym session to see it really is for anyone.

"There was a starter session in Camden", comments Beth, "It was only a ten minute walk from where I work.. it was easy and the trainer was just so lovely and chatty and I was just hooked from then on."

For Beth, she arrived at GoodGym looking for opportunities to volunteer but at the time was trying to get into running and adds,

"GoodGym ticked both of those boxes!"

Beth, a Clinical Scientist working in the genetics laboratory at Great Ormond Street Hospital, averages two Group Runs, two Community Missions or missions and a coach visit every week, and is delighted to be the first GoodGym runner to reach this amazing Good Deeds milestone.

It was a big question for Beth to answer with such an impressive back catalogue of Good Deeds spanning a handful of GoodGym areas (Beth has been a runner with Lambeth, Camden, Tower Hamlets, Southwark, and Walthamstow, and been a visitor at Bristol, Liverpool and Sheffield) but she was able to narrow down her GoodGym history to a set of tasks that really stood out as her favourites.

"Food banks tasks I'd say are my favourite. In Lambeth, we used to go to Vauxhall food bank on a Tuesday night. After they had done collections on a Saturday, we'd go into a room filled with bag fulls of random tins and other things. We would have to weigh it all.. then we'd have to sort it, put everything into the right crates in the right places. Back in the days when you can have a lot of people together on a task like that, 20-30 of us would descend and in 20 minutes it would all be done. It was really satisfying... We also got a lot of reassurance from the Task Owner there that gave us a lot of encouragement and positivity!"

Coach running came later for Beth as she initially felt she wasn't suited to volunteering with older people, but it went on to be a key part of her GoodGym week with regular visits to her coach and regular calls during lockdown. Beth feels fortunate to work near to where her coach lives, meaning she can drop in to see him on the way to a Group Run, and was able to meet up with him outdoors during the later stages of lockdown.

Beth also has some great stories about meet-ups with GoodGym Race Team for events she would not have otherwise experienced including Race The Train and Race the Horse, as well as more traditional 10k and Half Marathon Races! The experience and motivation Beth gained from being part of a group and racing at these events together has as much been part of her GoodGym back story as her many good deeds.

GoodGym also allowed Beth some escape during working full time at Great Ormond Street during the Covid 19 pandemic, as she completed a number of shopping missions during lockdown. Some of these missions were different in how they felt to Beth, in that she often never met the recipient of her good deed such as when leaving shopping on the doorstep of someone shielding. Beth said it was great to walk around and recognise houses knowing that at the other side of the door lived someone she helped someone during such a challenging time.

For Beth, GoodGym has opened doors to places and people but she also feels that every GoodGym group has the same ethos and feeling.

"GoodGym groups contain a real range of different people from different backgrounds and professions. I really like that. I think all GoodGyms are really welcoming. Even arriving as a tourist from somewhere else.. you know before you arrive that you're going to get on with them", comments Beth.

So where does Beth see her GoodGym journey going?

"It feels amazing to reach the thousand. Beyond the 1000 good deeds, of course I will keep going with GoodGym and I'd like to get some fitness back too. Laura at Tower Hamlets helps to keep me going- she is great!"

There's no stopping you Beth, and all at GoodGym salute you.