The plan behind the story · Bored of his usual route, Nigel Beecroft ran every street in Birmingham instead
Eight weeks to colour in your own map
In eight weeks you will have walked or run every street in an area you chose, with a coloured-in map and a diary to prove it. If you are already fit, the same eight weeks cover 150 to 200 streets and set up a whole town.
Why this works
Most exercise plans ask you to repeat something. This one asks you never to repeat anything, which is why people stick at it. Nigel Beecroft began running Birmingham’s streets because he was bored of his usual loop, and told the Express & Star it “became a bit of an obsession”.
There are two pieces of evidence behind it. The first is the ordinary one: the NHS (the UK health service) recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, such as brisk walking, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity, such as running. The second is about novelty. A 2020 study in Nature Neuroscience tracked 132 young adults in New York and Miami by phone GPS for three to four months, and found they reported more positive emotions on days when they moved through a greater variety of places. The link may run both ways, and the participants were aged 18 to 31, so treat it as a reason to try, not a promise.
Before you start
- Check with your GP (family doctor) if you have not exercised for some time, or have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or a joint problem.
- Choose a boundary. Getting going: every street within about half a mile (800 m) of home, usually 30 to 60 streets. Already fit: a ward, postcode district (ZIP code) or small town of 150 to 200 streets.
- Get a map. Print one from any online map, or use a paper street atlas, and buy a highlighter. If you prefer a screen, any GPS running or walking app will record where you have been; Beecroft used Strava.
- Set your rules. His were sensible: every public street, to the end of every cul-de-sac, but no motorways or dual carriageways (divided highways) unless a path runs alongside.
- Safety: start in daylight, tell someone where you are going when the area is new to you, and leave out roads with no pavement (sidewalk).
The plan
| Week | Do this | How often | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (getting going) | Draw your boundary. Walk the streets nearest home that you have never been down. | 3 outings of 15 minutes | Colour them in the same day. Start the one-line diary. |
| 1 (already fit) | Draw your boundary and count the streets. Run or walk briskly through the first 20. | 4 outings of 30–40 minutes | Plan each route on the map first so you do not double back. |
| 2 (getting going) | Work outwards. Do every cul-de-sac to the end. | 3 outings of 20 minutes | A pace that warms you up but lets you talk. |
| 2 (already fit) | Add a long session of 5 miles (8 km) of new streets at the weekend. | 3 short, 1 long | Dead ends make this slower than it looks. Allow for it. |
| 3–4 (getting going) | Go to the far side of your area and walk back through new streets. | 3 outings of 25 minutes | If a street feels wrong, leave it and return in daylight with company. |
| 3–4 (already fit) | 25 new streets a week. Long session rises to 6 miles (10 km). | 3 short, 1 long | Add two strength sessions a week, as the NHS advises. |
| 5–6 (getting going) | Fill the gaps. Try one outing at a brisker pace, or jog between two lamp posts and walk to the next. | 3–4 outings of 30 minutes | That is 90 to 120 minutes a week: most of the way to 150. |
| 5–6 (already fit) | 30 new streets a week. Long session of 7–8 miles (11–13 km). | 4 outings, 1 long | Replace shoes that have gone flat. Beecroft went through four pairs. |
| 7 | Getting going: finish all but the last street. Already fit: finish all but the last five. | As week 6 | Check the map for the ones you missed. There are always some. |
| 8 | Do the last street with someone you like, and mark it. | Once | Beecroft went to his local for a pint. |
If it goes wrong
- Sore shins or knees: cut the next week’s distance by half and walk it. Sharp or lasting pain needs a GP or physiotherapist, not persistence.
- You missed a week: the map does not mind. Pick up where the colour stops.
- A street you do not want to go down: skip it. Your project, your rules.
- Chest pain that spreads or does not ease, severe breathlessness or fainting: stop and call 999 (911 in the US).
Track it
Three things, kept in one place: the map, coloured in; a count of streets done out of the total; and the diary line for each outing (date, minutes, streets, one thing you noticed).
If you record outings with GPS, the website CityStrides was built for this pastime and has counted walks as well as runs since 2015. We could not open its own pages when writing this, so check what it offers and costs before signing up.
What next
Draw the next boundary out: the neighbouring ward, then the town. Beecroft, having finished Birmingham, moved on to Lille in France. Our walking plan for beginners takes a walker further, and how to get active covers what to add.
General information, not medical advice. Check with your GP before starting a new exercise programme.