What are your plans for National Sport Day this year? Are you going to stay home and enjoy your day off being lazy and lounge around at home? or Are you going to get out there and get active? I know there are a lot of restrictions in terms of limited events and safety guidelines but that does not mean you can’t take advantage of the opportunity as it is also the perfect time to think about your overall health and kick start your own healthy lifestyle if you aren’t already practicing. So let’s talk about the various ways you can celebrate NSD but also be enjoy your day-off…
Now before we get into the exciting options to choose from it is really important to remember that you have to practice social distancing, wear your mask when you are around others and to minimise touching others and objects. Even if you are tempted, try not to remove your mask unless you are alone or with close family. So when it comes to planning your day think about spending it firstly with family, it is best to stick together and enjoy your day with them since you are probably staying in the same home and there isn’t much risk if you are together. If you don’t have any family around then I would definitely suggest trying to enjoy it alone or with a maximum of 2-3 people wearing their masks. It is critical to remind yourself that the cases have been higher than usual and we have to be extra careful to prevent anymore restrictions on the country. We all have to work together as a community to try and control the situation and reduce the overall cases.
So let’s move on to the fun part, what can you do next Tuesday? Qatar has so much to offer and the weather is amazing so obviously prioritise opting for the great outdoors if you can; it’s also a good idea to stay away from confined, closed spaces that have poor ventilation during this time such as Doha’s gorgeous Corniche, the inspiring parks around your home, maybe even one of the bigger ones near landmarks or you can even enjoy one of our new cycling tracks that have been popping up all over the country. Again, do not think that you have to be active the whole day just because it’s a sports day, it’s only a national reminder to get active and the day-off is providing you with no excuse to get out of it and to give you the time and motivation to think about your health. Of course it is up to you what you do but you should really take advantage of the opportunity and get a taste of physical activity. Who knows, if you aren’t already you might get addicted!
Another option is staying indoors and keeping it simple. You can easily get a nice home workout done and then enjoy the rest of your holiday knowing that you have been active, improved your health and have been a great role model for yourself, your family and/or your friends. Don’t forget that with the recent events of quarantine so much has been made accessible to those staying at home, so why not book an online fitness class or follow a pre-recorded one online.
The whole message and idea of a national day for sports and wellness is to remind us all to be mindful when it comes to our health and to maintain are overall wellness. That’s why I feel obliged to remind you all that nutrition is a vital part to this balance. Do not think of a day-off as an excuse to go crazy with your diet (this also goes for weekends and post-work evenings). Keep in mind that the food you consume plays the biggest role in your health besides the necessary support of physical activity. To plan an even more amazing day try to plan your food for that day too, there’s nothing wrong with pre-planning, especially when it comes to your own health. Try to hit all the requirements of good well balanced diet with clean, fresh food on that day such as a bowl of fruit, freshly cut veggies, lean protein and some wholegrain carbs.
Wishing you all an awesome National Sport Day 2021 and I really do hope you take the time to enjoy yourself, maintain your health and kickstart your balanced, healthy lifestyle if you haven’t already.
*The author is a wellness advocate and influencer @keys2balance.
Reem Abdulrahman Jassim al-Muftah
