For the world’s middle classes and upwardly mobile, modern life can be described as both fast-paced and sedentary, often featuring desk-bound jobs, a surfeit of screen time and urban conveniences.
While their benefits are irrefutable, evidence gathered from years of research by the World Health Organisation and medical professionals has found that these factors can contribute to a range of physical and mental health issues, from obesity and diabetes to stress and anxiety.
Modern science and medicine offer interventions, but curative care is sometimes not enough or can be prohibitively expensive. Even when available, these remedies tend to provide temporary fixes.
This reality reaffirms the proverb “prevention is better than cure”. Leading an active lifestyle is an effective way to avert chronic illnesses and boost overall well-being.
This is a truism – again, based on quantifiable data – that is leading policymakers globally to prioritise preventive care. Abu Dhabi, for example, has over the years bolstered early detection programmes, expanded digital health intelligence and advanced public health initiatives, with the objective to help people make informed lifestyle choices.
But as Noura Al Ghaithi, undersecretary at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, wrote in The National last month, lasting change requires creating a physical environment that shapes people’s daily decisions: “people are more likely to adopt healthier behaviours when those choices are easy, accessible and appealing – when workplaces encourage movement, when communities offer active spaces, and when healthy options are visible and enjoyable”.
It is with the idea in mind of improving one’s quality of life, and not just extending its duration, that authorities across the country have unveiled visible and enjoyable well-being programmes.
Last November, the “Walk to Mars” initiative invited residents to collectively log 54 million kilometres, symbolising the UAE’s 54th year, through walking, running, cycling or swimming. The following month, Abu Dhabi inaugurated the Festival of Health featuring close to 150 activities. And with marathons like the annual Adnoc Abu Dhabi Marathon, there’s no shortage of opportunities to get actively involved.
Continuity depends on year-round access to facilities. Hudayriyat Island’s outdoor trails and beaches draw large numbers of people during cooler months. Indoor gyms and sporting facilities, like those at Zayed Sports City, provide refuge from the summer heat.
But despite such opportunities being available, it sometimes takes a big event to inspire people to adopt new habits and change the way they live. For many over the coming days, the Open Masters Games that got under way in the capital last Friday could be that life-changing event.
The Games features more than 25,000 athletes, aged at least 30, from over 90 countries competing in 38 sports, ranging from track-and-field to archery. Under the slogan “United by Sports, Active for Life”, the movement celebrates inclusivity and community, urging participants and spectators alike to embrace it regardless of age.
This and the fact that the UAE is celebrating the Year of the Family, following the Year of the Community last year, should remind its residents that the challenge of staying active can turn into a pleasurable bonding exercise when family, friends or colleagues are also involved – even if this means a few minutes of daily movement.
As Nick March wrote on “Walk to Mars” in The National recently: “To an extent, the enormous target the project imparts is irrelevant. It is the intent and the ambition that matter most.”
As residents and visitors flock to the Open Masters Games this week, the hope is that its scale and enthusiasm serve as a spark that encourages more people to lace up their trainers long after the last medal has been won.
