Morning gang,

Hope you’ve all had a great weekend. I went down this morning but didn’t take any decent photos and got drenched.

Instead, as promised last week, I just wanted to share with you a list of all the free communities around Bondi and the Eastern Suburbs (and I also included a few requiring a small fee). The reason why I’m doing this you may ask? I know a few of the founders of these communities and they all have something in common - they are good souls who invest time and effort to build these thriving communities. This is my way of thanking them for doing so.

There is honestly something for everyone: running, swimming, gardening, meditation, yoga, tennis or even ‘mental fitness’ groups. A massive thank you to everyone who contributed to the curation of this list. To be honest, I had no idea where I was getting into before starting that list.

Here are all the FREE ones listed by category and alphabetical order:

BREATHWORK

• Breathwork by Rory Warnock (@rorywarnock_) - Rory Warnock is a breathwork specialist and organises regular free breathwork sessions. Follow him on Instagram, check out his website and subscribe to his newsletter to be alerted when he organises one.

CYCLING

• All Sorts Recreation Club (@allsorts_rccc) - A cycle club and run club founded by Beau Jones (@sobocollective). Running at 6 am on Tuesdays and Cycling at 5:30 am on Thursdays. Get in touch with them for all the deets.

FITNESS

• Team Murph (@teammurphbondi) - Workout organised by Ben Handsaker aka @abstacker The group meets every Wednesday and Friday at 5:10 am down at the North Bondi bars and 6:30 am on Sundays for a serious workout.

GARDENING

• Transition Bondi (@transitionbondi) - Community gardening and educational workshop. Transition Bondi also organises vegan dinners with interesting guests for minimal costs. It’s all about bringing the community together while learning about transitioning out of a fossil-fuel society. Get in touch with them for all the details.

MEDITATION

• A Space For Being (@a.spaceforbeing) - Weekly community breathwork and meditation organised by Luke Galea down in South Bondi on the concrete path, every Wednesday morning at 5:30 am. Join the WhatsApp Group for all the details.

• Reboot Camp - Sunrise meditation by Matt Ringrose and Mairead Ball from @bondimeditation every Thursday morning around 6:30 am at the yoga wall in South Bondi. Join their WhatsApp Group for all the details.

• The Sit (@thesitglobal) - Sunrise meditation in Bondi every Saturday at 6:30 am in South Bondi (Ramp 1). Feel free to join the local Facebook Group for more info.

MENTAL FITNESS

• OneWave (@onewaveisallittakes and @onewavebondi) - OneWave is a non-profit surf community founded by Grant Trebilco and Sam Schumacher raising awareness of mental health through a simple recipe: meeting up every Friday at 6:30 am in South Bondi (Ramp 1) all dressed up in fluro, to have open and honest conversations and surf with your friends.

• Bondi Beach Babes (@bondibeach.babes) - A women-only group organising free walks, runs, puppy and single meet-ups... You can find more info on their website and subscribe to their newsletter.

• How’s the head (@hows_thehead) - A weekly men's mental health hangout organised by Sean Perception (@seanperception). It’s every Saturday morning around Coogee Beach but the time and location change from one week to another so you need to check their Instagram. It’s all about having a chat, coffee and swimming.

• Silver Salties - A Surf Life Saving Australia program for older Australians, delivered by participating Surf Life Saving Clubs, promoting physical activity, social connections and involvement in the life-saving community. A free weekly Walk & Talk on Wednesdays at 9.30 am from Bondi SurfClub. Check this page and get in touch with Rozanne Green by emailing silversalties@bondisurfclub.com (PS: You don’t need to be part of the surf club, when you register for programs like the Walk & Talk, you get free community membership to the club and insurance for the events).

• Waves of Wellness (@foundationwow) - Founded by Joel Pilgrim (@joelpilgrim) WOW is a mental health charity delivering group mental health support in conjunction with surf therapy. It's either a six or eight-week program to connect with like-minded people and have the conversations and support that you might need at times. Spots are limited per program, and registration via the website is essential. For more information and registration, visit the website.

• When No Ones Watching (@w__n__o__w) - A weekly men's mental health catch-up that takes place every Wednesday at 6 am next to North Bondi Surf Lifesaving Club. Get in touch with them or visit their website for all the details.

RUNNING

• 440 Run Club (@the_440) - A run club founded by Trent Knox (@trentknox) and Todd Liubinskas (@toddliubinskas) that meets every Saturday morning at 5 am down at the Bronte Beach parking. The recipe is simple, it starts with 10 laps of the parking lot and finishes with a dip in Bronte pool to cool off. Highly recommend it to kick off your weekend on the right foot.

• Coogee Run Club (@thecoogeerunclub) - A run club organised multiple times a week, Tuesday 6:30 am for 5k from Coogee to Maroubra, Wednesday 6:30 am for speed around Queens Park, Thursday 6:15 am up to Clovelly, Saturday 7 am in Centennial Park and Sunday 8 am up to Malabar. You can find all the deets on their website.

• Runners In the Dark (@runnersitd) - A run club that meets at North Bondi Surf Life Saving Club most Wednesdays and Fridays at 5 am. They look like pros so get in touch with them for full deets and make sure that you can keep up with their pace.

• Running Heroes (@runningheroesaunz) - A running community/app organising regular local running events around the Eastern Suburbs rewarding users for moving their bodies. Sign-up for the app or check their Instagram bio for all the details.

SWIMMING

• Bondi Penguins (@bondi_penguins) - A swim club every Wednesday at 6.15 am at North Bondi Surf Lifesaving Club with Ins & outs (ie. run and swim).

• Bondi Salties (@bondi_salties) - A swim club organised by Henry Meagher (@hendizzi) and Frank Vargas (@_frankvg) every Friday at 6.15 am at the North Bondi Ramp. They run a lap of soft sand and then swim a lap of the bay. The swim is from North to South Bondi and back; it's roughly 650m each way (~1.3km total) and then hang out for coffee.

• Bondi Wombats (@bondi_wombats) - A club doing Ins & Outs every Thursday at 6:15 pm (for the ones that prefer to work out in the afternoon). The meeting point is North Bondi SLSC. Get in touch with them for all the deets.

• North Clovelly Platypus (@team_platapus) - An all-inclusive run/swim Club in Clovelly every Friday at 5:30 am and a Saturday once a month starting time at 6:30 am. Get in touch with them for all the deets.

• Peoples Biathlon (@peoplesbiathlonbondi) - A free community swimming and running event that takes place every Friday at 6 pm and Sunday at 4 pm. The meeting point is North Bondi SLSC again.

• Spicy Squad (@spicysquad_bondi) - A swim club meeting every Friday at North Bondi at 6:30 am for a swim or dip depending on the conditions and coffee.

• The Crusties (@clovelly_crustoceans) - A swim club every Friday from 6.15 am swimming around Gordon’s Bay and then hanging out for coffee. You can find all the details in this post, including what to bring down.

TENNIS

• Bondi Tennis (@train_at_bondi) - Organised by Matty (@train_with_matty), a social tennis every Friday at 7 pm and Sunday at 10 am at Waverly Park. Get in touch with Matty for all the details.

YOGA

• Coconut Spice Yoga (@coconutspiceyogi) - Regular yoga sessions are organised by Chrissie Alexander (@coconutspiceyogi) in South Bondi between 6:30-7:30 am. Please note that most classes in South Bondi are free but if you wish you can also give a donation. More details on the website.

• Sunrise Social Sydney (@sunrisesocialsydney) - Regular yoga/breathwork sessions organised by Caroline Mc Kenna (@acountydownunder) around Bronte Beach. Please note that some of the sessions require payment. Get in touch with them for all the details.

There are also a lot of other communities that come at a minimal cost:

• Les Gars & Les Filles Cycling Club (@lesgarscc) - Weekly ride around the Eastern Suburbs. You can find more information about their Club and the different type of memberships on their website.

• Conscious Community (@consciouscommunity___) - Weekly meditation and ice bath around Bondi and Coogee. You can find all the details on their website.

• Heaps of gyms around offering a sense of community too, with my favourite one being VRTUS (@vrtusbondi)

Feel free to share the list with your friends, they certainly deserve to see this. My next challenge is to squeeze in as many of these workouts/sessions as I can in a week. Who’s in?

Have a wonderful week,

Cheers,

Amo