Training the Mind with MATT WAUGH
Matt Waugh (96–07) talks about the impact sport has on mental health and his new venture to share the positive physical and – much more so – mental health benefits of exercise with the elderly.
Matt’s company, Live More, is part of the King’s 20 Programme, a King’s College London Entrepreneurship Institute. Live More provides direct training for psychiatric inpatients and strives to make physical activity an internationally recognised core treatment for mental illness. Sport is a core part of life at Dulwich. My happiest memories of school are sporting ones. I remember the joy of scoring the winning goal for the U7A football team against Alleyn’s in 1997 in my first ever match for the College. I also remember the agony of having to sit injured on the touchline, watching our 1st XV lose to Millfield in the final of the St Joseph’s Festival in 2007, with the last kick of the game – the third year in a row we had reached the final and lost. The College is so privileged to have the facilities it does, and to be part of a network of sporting schools, whereby boys of all standards, shapes and sizes can compete amongst each other, learn lessons, make friends, excel outside of the classroom, grow confidence, gain humility and most importantly have fun. And if
competition is not for you, you will be able to find something that is. The choice is endless, and endlessly enjoyed. Imagine Dulwich without any sport or physical activity. A cruel thought. Unimaginable. Inhumane. Yet this is the reality faced by many. Nationally, the number of children meeting the recommended amount of physical activity drops by 40% as they move through primary school. Eustace de Sousa, National Lead for Children, Young People and Families, wrote that ‘children who get enough physical activity are mentally and physically healthier, and have all round better development into adulthood’. A survey conducted by Public Health England found that 93% of primary school children like being active. Being active made the majority feel happier (79%), more confident (72%) and more sociable (74%). And this doesn’t change as we get older. On 5 January 46 OAs returned to College to play football against three senior teams. We know the value of enjoyable Our mental and physical health walk hand in hand.
physical activity. The benefits are innumerable and obvious.
I exercise because it benefits me mentally. The evidence base for physical activity both protecting against and reducing symptoms of depression is well established. However, we are not as good at implementing exercise in mental healthcare as we are at Dulwich. This is why I have founded Live More – to support people into exercise who would benefit the most. Very few of us will play elite sport after we’ve left Dulwich, but this is beside the point. When describing why she runs, author Bella Mackie recently wrote: ‘I don’t drink protein shakes or challenge myself with marathons or iron man triathlons. But I will drag myself out in thunderstorms and in the dark, when I’m hungover, or when I’m sad. And I’ll do it because more than antidepressants or counselling or even eating a box of 12 doughnuts on a sofa, exercise is the one thing that has kept me continuously happy during some not very happy times.’
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