WALK 1000 supplement

#WALK1000MILES2019
100%
say doing #walk1000miles as part
of a group makes it more enjoyable
HOME TOWN
‘I’m not good
walking alone’
“I started doing #walk1000miles
in 2017 and loved how everyone
on the group encourages
everyone else and the general
spirit of togetherness. I wasn’t
an outdoorsy person before,
and I’m not good at walking
alone, so I usually take my
boyfriend with me. But when he
was away I felt like I couldn’t go
out and do more exciting walks
in the wilderness. So I started
a Facebook group where I live
and it turned out there are a lot
of people like me! Bristol Girl
Hikers was born.
The Bristol Girl Hikers –
an unstoppable force!
Charlotte Katherine, 33, from Bristol, didn’t
fancy doing her 1000 miles on her own, so
she set up a group – and now she never need walk alone
(though now she’s confident enough to do that too!).
We went on our first
walk the following weekend.
Nervous, I went to meet the
group at an agreed location
in Clifton. Unperturbed by
the chill of a woodland winter
walk, we headed over Brunel’s
famous bridge towards the
beautiful Leigh Woods. There
was a lot of talk. Everyone was
friendly and it was a big success!
Since that afternoon, the group
has gone from strength to
strength, encouraging many
more Bristol women to get
outdoors at the weekends.
As spring turned into a hot
summer we headed for the
Brecon Beacons and the Four
Falls walk at Ystradfellte. The
group grew as members joined
every week – now we have over
600! We watched the sun set
at Cheddar Gorge, conquered
a Welsh mountain and had so
many great little adventures.
Thanks to #walk1000miles
I now consider myself an
‘outdoorsy person’. And while
I find being outdoors and
getting fit rewarding myself,
doing it with a group of likeminded
women is even better.
It feels quite empowering to be
part of an all-girl group setting
out on an adventure, and there
have been a lot of people who
have had similar feelings.
The camaraderie is great.
I set up the group to find
a few people to go walking
with, so I wasn’t alone. Now
I’ve discovered a new way to
explore the world and what
scares me is all the experiences
I might have missed!
Don’t let fear stop you from
‘putting yourself in the way
of beauty’ (as Wild author
Cheryl Strayed might say).
Join in. Let’s all go together!”
AT WORK
‘A fitter, friendlier, more
motivated workplace’
Donna Lucas
is Group Vice
Principal, of the
Shrewsbury
Colleges Group.
“We’re a large
employer with
600 staff and 10,000 students. There’s
a lot of evidence that social activity builds
strong teams and reduces employee
attrition, and adding walking to the mix
enhances mindfulness and supports stress
reduction. We run a first Sunday of every
month group walk in 2019 as part of our
1000 miles. Everyone says it makes for
a fitter, friendlier, more motivated place.”
AT SCHOOL
‘Motivation has risen’
Northfield Junior School in Derbyshire
turbocharged activity levels by taking on
the challenge en masse – all 140 of them!
Year 3 teacher and PE co-ordinator Toni
Burton said: “All the children, and 15 staff
members, did a mile (or more) every day,
writing down the number of laps of the
playground they complete in their booklets.
The laps are converted into miles and, once
the whole class has added up their total
laps that week, each class competes for
the lead! We’ve seen a significant rise in the
children’s motivation and determination to
achieve high mileage in and out of school.
They can’t wait to tell us where they have
been walking over the weekend!”
DO IT WITH A GROUP
#walk1000miles subgroups
There’s a thriving community of
#walk1000miles subgroups on Facebook
– here’s what some of them say…
#Walk1000miles
Scotland
580 members
Admin Zoe
Furnivall says:
“Our group is
so friendly and
supportive, and it’s easier to connect with
people locally and find out about new places
to walk. At the end of every month I ask the
members to post their favourite Scotland pic
from that month and the one with the most likes
is the cover photo for the next month. This gets
people engaged, sharing photos, commenting,
liking, and finding new places to walk. And
someone gets the cover photo glory!”
#walk1000miles
Walking for
Weight Loss
1300 members
Admin Deborah
Thomley says:
“I love seeing the
success stories and the continuing efforts of
those that are using the #walk1000miles to
lose weight and get healthier. I enjoy running
the subgroup as we all like walking, but we
have something else in common too – in this
case the desire to lose weight. And we are
– hundreds of stone between us!”
#walk1000miles Team
Plalking (litter picking!)
150 members
Admin Roxanne Hawkin
says: “When out walking
I naturally gravitate towards
picking up any litter I see as
I can’t bear to walk past
and just leave it. It was
getting quite overwhelming
how much litter was out
there, though, and it felt
a lonely, never-ending task,
but since meeting other people who do
the same when walking it feels much more!”
uwww.walk1000miles.co.uk/subgroups
48 WALK 1000 MILES 2019
WALK 1000 MILES 2019 49