The UAE is lacing up its collective walking shoes this month in recognition of World Diabetes Day on Monday.
Abu Dhabi’s annual Walk event for diabetes returns to Yas Marina Circuit on Friday for its 10th edition. Organised by the UAE’s Imperial College London Diabetes Centre, in celebration of World Diabetes Day, the five-kilometre-long walk is expected to attract up to 20,000 participants.
Emirati Salama Al Ameri has a very personal reason for signing up for this year’s event.
“Diabetes has directly affected my family as a result of an unhealthy lifestyle and years of eating badly, with both my mother and father diagnosed in the past six years,” she says.
Consequently, Al Ameri’s parents are on permanent medication, but they have also made positive lifestyle changes – her father has adopted a healthier approach to mealtimes, and her mother now makes time for a daily walk.
“I wasn’t particularly health-conscious before, but now that I have two young sons, and with my family diagnosis, I decided it was time to make a change and eat more healthily, as well as be motivated to exercise,” she says.
In the past six months, Al Ameri has started working out twice a week with a personal trainer, but she’s looking forward to the Walk event as an opportunity to come together with the local community and raise awareness of diabetes.
“It’s something that I think really brings people together with a true sense of community and commitment, and I’m so excited to be part of it,” she says.
“I will be going with my husband, who is very supportive and is the health advocate in our family, and I’m also trying to persuade my eight sisters to come along and make an afternoon of it as there are lots of other activities to enjoy.”
The family-focused event kicks off with competitions, entertainment, demonstrations and children’s activities before the walk itself.
#WalkOn – The Walk 2016 will be held on Friday, November 11, at Yas Marina Circuit. Gates open at 2pm; the walk begins at 5pm. Entry is Dh10 for adults, free for children under 16. Register at www.walkon.ae.
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