Desk to Daily Mile

What is it?

Desk to Daily Mile is a simple plan, aiming to provide a graduated introduction to The Daily Mile. It is designed to take pupils (and teachers!) from little or no physical activity to running The Daily Mile in full in just 4 weeks.

How does it work?

Pupils follow the specified run/walk ratio for that day’s Daily Mile and once completed, fill in that box on the tracker either by colouring it in or adding a sticker. This helps to track progress and can also be useful for remembering where you left off over the holidays for example.

Schools can use the programme in a variety of ways. One is to have a class copy of the programme and follow it as a whole class to help them build up to running The Daily Mile together. This helps to reinforce the inclusive nature of The Daily Mile while catering for a range of fitness levels.

Alternatively, individual pupils can take ownership of the plan, and have their own copy which they track themselves as they go.

If a school uses Sports Ambassadors or Sports Leaders, these pupils could also act as marshals who ‘lead’ the Desk to Daily Mile Group each day, thus improving their own communication, leadership and teamwork skills.

Why do we need it?

Desk to Daily Mile was developed following feedback from teachers that it was often difficult to engage the less enthusiastic pupils who didn’t like running, and that this challenge was a barrier to engaging fellow staff members and getting them to implement across the school. Desk to Daily Mile aims to help remove that barrier.

Pupils who are reluctant to engage often feel that running is not for them and that they are not fit enough. The fear of being compared to their peers often means they simply choose not to engage at all. By providing them with their own plan, they can work at their own level, learn to pace themselves, and to see improvement in themselves over time. This then contributes to improved confidence, and better engagement levels.

The plan also aligns with the free certificates which reward pupils for effort rather than success. Awards include ‘Most Enthusiastic’, ‘Most Improved’ and ‘Most Dedicated’ and can be used strategically to further engage pupils following the plan. These certificates are automatically emailed to the school upon registration for The Daily Mile.

Download your plan template (PDF)