Running On The Shy
The club that offers beginners a chance to boost their physical and mental health through running
The Mile Shy Running Club
FOR MANY, traditional running clubs can seem intimidating, and the popular distances – 5K, 10K, half marathon and marathon – are a distant dream. The Mileshy club offers an alternative: a beginner-friendly option that provides not only running advice but also emotional support to its members. The goal is not to run far or fast – although some of its members do both – but to put one foot in front of the other among friends.
It's the brainchild of Jane Wilby-palmer, who knows all about running's ability to transform one's physical and mental health. ‘I had a pretty turbulent time as a teenager, struggling with depression and anxiety,' she says. ‘It got to a point in my teens where I was suicidal and was homeless for a short period.'
Jane's life began to improve in her late-20s and she decided to ‘give running a try', although she was still a 20-a-day smoker. A few years later, at the beginning of 2017, she left her post at a legal firm, retrained as a fitness trainer and started the Mileshy club. It was an immediate success.
‘ Thirty-three people turned up to my first session – which scared me silly,' she says. ‘But it all went really well, and people have just kept on turning up and turning up.'
Indeed, there are now over 100 members of the Sale club and Mileshy clubs in Newcastle and Stockport. What is it about the club that people find so appealing?
‘After a tough few years trying to juggle work and my own family life as well as caring for my dad, who had a stroke nearly five years ago, I decided to take stock and make some positive life choices,' says Dawn Patterson, who joined the club last October. ‘On that first Manchester morning Jane welcomed me to the club, introducing me, and the other newbies, to the existing members, listened to us about our running experience and set us newbies off on our first run. I've made friends, laughed during our crazy warm-up sessions, got cold and wet, slipped in snow, but have loved every minute.'
Michelle Mcrory has had a similarly positive experience. ‘I hadn't run for nine years and had assumed I would never go running again,' she says. ‘I also had a lot of anxiety and knew that running would be good for me, but didn't know where to start. Being able to come to the club and mix with friendly people has made such a difference to my wellbeing.'
Part of the club's success in improving its members' physical and mental health is its focus on the social side of things. Training sessions are often followed by trips to the pub, there are regular away days at parkruns and an inclusive atmosphere that encourages people to discuss more than just their PBS.
‘People do open up when they're at the running club,' says Jane. ‘I think they know when they come to the club, they won't be judged. It helps to deal with things like loneliness.' Jane would, however, like to get more men along to the club. ‘ There are various fitness campaigns for women, like This Girl Can and Run Mummy Run, but mental health in middle-aged men is a huge issue that isn't being addressed,' she says.
In a bid to make the club accessible to everyone, Jane runs Mileshyclub as a not-for-profit, with sessions costing just £2, and has ambitions to roll out branches across the UK. Until then, she has some advice for those looking to get healthier, but worried about how to start. ‘You only live once,' she says. ‘If you don't give it a try, you'll always wonder – and running can improve your life in so many ways.'