Having taken the Queen’s remarkable longevity, good health and work ethic for granted right until the end, might her subjects now appreciate her approach to life? Because through her combination of sheer graft – she received Liz Truss to kiss hands two days before she died – and her attitudes towards health, leisure and emotional resilience, Queen Elizabeth II bestowed on us an invaluable guide to living well. The problem is that most of us haven’t spotted it.

It begins with some obvious don’ts: don’t smoke – the Queen had that lesson first-hand from her father George VI (albeit her sister Margaret didn’t listen). Don’t drink too much: she was fond of an evening martini, apparently, but was never a big drinker, even though the bar would have stayed open at royal command as long as she liked. Next there was don’tget fat: the Queen stayed impeccably trim throughout her reign, which is easier said than done, as evidenced by the millions of weight loss apps and books sold each year.

In her case, keeping fit was achieved in part by the delight she took in her hobbies, whether that was horse-riding (again something that she kept up till the end) or walking her dogs. But there was a moderation to it that many of us lack: she would never have become a gym-bunny or done an Iron Man on Dartmoor.

As well as her leisure pursuits, work also kept the Queen going, and points to another life lesson: don’t retire. Yes, it helps if you have a job that has real meaning, like being the sovereign, but whatever you do – particularly if you can reduce the hours when you need to and the work isn’t too physical – there’s pots of evidence to show that continuing to do some work in older age is good for you. Continuing to feel relevant to the community you live in is also known to be good for longevity and health. Being Queen ticks that box rather emphatically, but there are ways for the rest of us to achieve the same ends.

Underpinning all of these elements of the Queen’s life was her firm Anglican faith, of course. Lucky her, you might think, if you struggle to believe in God or anything else. But going to church is no bad thing, even for the agnostic. An hour a week giving thanks and acknowledging the good in your life – or coming to terms with the bad – is balm for the soul. You don’t have to believe in God for that, although it helps. And if the Anglican God doesn’t float your boat, there are other options available.

As the Queen demonstrated, belief in a greater being (or a greater something) helps to keep things – yourself included – in perspective, and your feet on the ground. If you ask me, this is what accounts for her much-admired humility and the fact that she didn’t take herself too seriously. That’s good advice for everyone, from high-rollers to low. It helps control the blood pressure, too.

Then there’s the Queen’s famous motto: ‘Never complain, never explain.’ If ever there was a bumper sticker waiting to happen it’s that. Perhaps it’s going on Emma Bridgewater mugs even as we speak. I hope so. Be stoic, it says; don’t catastrophise. Don’t do breakdowns on social media or start having a fit in Tesco when the machine refuses to acknowledge your bananas. In other words, choose resilience, and stick with it.

And that, as I see it, is Queen Elizabeth II’s guide to living well: keep the lard at bay, avoid the fags, keep active in body and mind. Be positive. Don’t stop working. Go to church (or at least kneel at something – hug a crystal if you want). Get a dog. Don’t whinge. Wear gloves if you like (as we discovered during Covid, PPE is a fantastic way of keeping viruses at bay). Do all of that, and who knows, if you’re lucky enough to dodge the bullets of cancer or dementia, maybe you’ll get to live a very long, happy and rewarding life, full of meaning and self-worth. Maybe you too can have the chance to meet the new Prime Minister in your final days – and smile about it, with your own teeth.

But is the Elizabethan recipe for wellbeing one that a nation that gets more obese and more anxious by the year will be likely to follow? Not a chance. Could you put it in an app? (‘Number of steps taken over boggy ground; number of pheasants’ necks wrung…’)

Alas, because all the old tweed is so unfashionable, because the buttoned-up approach to life is so out of kilter in an age of performative emoting, Queen Elizabeth II is unlikely to be hailed as a lifestyle guru. We will give centre stage to her many other achievements instead. But her fine example still stands, and we would all do well to recognise it. I think I’ll start by going for a walk.