Teacher who started a fitness revolution invites everyone to join in
It has proved so successful in Scotland that the 15-minute run, jog or walk around the playground called The Daily Mile is part of the curriculum for 2.5million kids around the world.
And now during lockdown, the former headteacher who created the concept is teaming up with the Sunday Mai l to launch The Daily Mile at Home.
Anyone can do it, f rom pensioners and teenagers to mums and dads with kids and couples fed- up with being cooped up in the house.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a jog with the dog, running laps of your housing estate, a brisk walk to the nearest postbox or playing tig in a nearby field.
Elaine Wyllie, who came up with the idea eight years ago after discovering many of her pupils were not fit enough to run round a playing field, said her 15-minute challenge is a great way to get our once-a-day bout of exercise.
She said: “The Daily Mile at Home is the perfect way to exercise during l i fe under lockdown.
“You can do it from your front door, you don’t need to go to the park or travel to somewhere scenic and, if you are self-isolating or the Government guidelines change again and you can’t go further than your back gate, you can still do it in your garden.”
It’s easy to do. Fifteen minutes of walking or 2000 steps will get you to your mile.
Even under str ict social distancing guidelines, doing The Daily Mile at Home is simple if you stay more than 2m (6ft 6in) from others and exercise alone or with your household group.
And the benefits are greater
When Elaine created The Daily Mile at St Ninian’s Primary in 2012 she had no idea she was creating a global phenomenon.
Her simple allinclusive concept snowballed from a would love to The Sunday Mail different takes see our readers’ at Home so on The Daily Mile to you can tweet pictures email them to @Sunday_Mail or co.uk reporters@sundaymail. the best and we will publish to ones. Or send them co.uk www.thedailymile. than just keeping f it, according to Elaine, 64.
She said: “You’ll know your local area, so stagger when you go out and aim for when it is not as busy.
“It’s also a good idea to wait until you are all flagging before you head out as it will energise everyone and help with the cabin fever which is going to set in.
“Doing The Daily Mile at Home is great for your physical health but it is much more important for your mental well-being.
“It is doable, it’s easy to add into your routine and it gets you out handful of children running or jogging for 15 minutes every day at her school to an initiative in which nearly 2.5million children in 78 countries are taking part and reporting improvements the door at a time when escaping the indoors is more important than ever.
“One-to-one conversations come more easily when you are outdoors walking side by side, so it can lead to people talking about their fears and sharing their worries.
“The reason the uptake in schools and nurseries has been so good is because it encompasses the art of the possible and that is the same at home. It’s simple, can be done anywhere and it is free.
“It is a daily 15 minutes of exercise and in that time folk usually average a mile, which is an easily achieved objective.
“As long as it is always safety first – and doing The Daily Mile at Home is in line with the most up-to- date Government advice – then go for it.”
Ela ine, f rom Fife, was in self-esteem, self-belief and confidence.
It has proved so popular that The Daily Mile Foundation is now a charity run by a team who have overseen the roll-out as far as the US and small states such as Reunion Island.
Schools in Nepal and Dubai are among the latest to sign up. headteacher at St Ninian’s Primary in Stirling when she came up with her concept. She was awarded an MBE in 2018 as a result of her efforts.
She firmly believes that what works for children works for adults too, especially those helping to homeschool children.
She said: “There are lots of ways you can link your 15 minutes of exercise to learning.
“You can simply let the kids lead the conversation while you are out and about or you can set the agenda and say, ‘ Today we are going to look for…’
“Finding nature’s dai ly milestones is a fun adventure – spotting new flowers that have sprung up, noticing animal tracks or commenting on the cloud cover and the position of the sun.
“You can introduce them to the
Beaufort scale, which measures wind force, for example if smoke is rising vertically from a chimney it’s classed as calm.
“It’s also a good idea to use the walk or jog or run as the basis for some story writing.
“When you come back, get everyone to write for 10 minutes and then share your stories. Kids find writing far easier if they have something to write about.
“Kids also love mapping so you could get them to draw a map of their route when they come back and include all the landmarks they passed.”
Mum- of- two Elaine, who is married to former Bannockburn High School teacher John, said her charity The Dai ly Mile Foundation had been inundated with messages from parents saying their children are eager to carry on despite the lockdown.
She said: “We want to be there for families. We have no vested interest and we don’t want to make money.
“We are changing the website to reflect the situation. There will be a page where parents connect to learning.
“We want people to post their experiences to our social media. We want to give the country a routine it is missing.”