RIYADH: For many, summer in Saudi Arabia is a time to kick back on the couch, turn on the air conditioning and watch other people play sports on TV, with those who dare to challenge this approach often ending up with heat stroke.
However, the Kingdom's running clubs are busier than ever and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Seema Ghannam, who regularly attends Road Runner Club sessions in Riyadh, told Arab News: “You can stay active wherever you are. There is no limit to movement wherever you go because you already have hands, arms and legs. That's what you were born for, to keep moving.”
Riyadh Road Runners, made up of a variety of ages and nationalities, started with a warm-up before moving on to strength training and then running laps around the field. (Provided)
Until recent years, physical activity in the Kingdom was almost non-existent outside of schools and designated football teams. People were put off by the lack of facilities, adequate outdoor spaces and the hot weather. Now, everything is changing. From the growing number of padel courts to the new projects on Sports Boulevard, physical activity is on the rise, and running is no exception.
To find out how these runners manage to maintain their routine in the heat, Arab News visited Riyadh Road Runners, established in 1978, at one of the club's Monday sessions at 7.30pm at the Eid Villas complex. Runners ran laps, climbed stairs, and completed full-body workouts.
The group, made up of a variety of ages and nationalities, started with a warm-up before moving on to strength training and then running laps around the field, focusing on proper technique.
FASTActs
• Until recent years, physical activity in the Kingdom was almost non-existent outside of schools and designated football teams.
• Now, everything is changing. From the growing number of padel courts to the new projects on Sports Boulevard, physical activity is on the rise.
Trainer Amr Hafez has runners break up their runs occasionally with bodyweight exercises and stairs to build endurance and muscle strength. The session ends with a final lap around the entire complex. At the end of a very sweaty workout, runners take a dip in the pool to cool off.
Ghannam, who is also a yoga teacher and swimming instructor, added running to her exercise routine two years ago. She said she likes Hafez's holistic approach to the body, training the abs, hips, glutes and thighs.
“We focus on trying to learn different types of running, how to run, how to place your toes, what shoes you should use.”
Riyadh Road Runners, Eid Villas complex. (Photo by Mayas Al-Ahmadi)
Ghannam said she likes to run outdoors because “you want your skin and body to get used to the temperature.” But to manage the heat, runners should choose the time that is best for them, either in the evening or early morning.
Hafez, a national sales manager at a Saudi food company, has been a coach with the Riyadh Road Runners for more than three years. He has three key rules when it comes to running in the summer. One is to stay well hydrated, two is to control your breathing and three – to our dismay – is high intensity interval training.
The trainer said that when he started running, he used martial arts moves as part of his training, a fitness trick he learned from his first running coach.
Riyadh Road Runners, Eid Villas complex. (Photo by Mayas Al-Ahmadi)
“Runners need to build up all their muscles to have high capacity,” he said. “Combining strength with fitness helps people develop the ability to run long distances.”
Hafez said he used to think running was pointless and was simply a means of punishment when a school coach thought someone was losing weight. He never imagined that he would one day run a marathon or teach others to do the same.
“Most of the team when they started couldn't even run 1k,” he said.
Omar Al-Ansari, coach at the R7 club in Riyadh, has six marathons under his belt. The R7 runs in Wadi Hanifa, where the location offers protection from the heat.
“The tracks are naturally shaded by trees and the breeze from the lake provides a temperature difference of 3-4 degrees compared to the rest of the city,” he said.
Like the Riyadh Road Runners, the R7 emphasizes staying hydrated. “Always run with water, take electrolytes to preserve what is lost through sweat,” Al-Ansari said.
He also advises runners to wear light-colored clothing, finish their workouts before sunrise or after sunset, and choose a garden or wadi as a location or exercise indoors.
“And never forget the sunscreen,” he added.
Many runners told Arab News that there is no longer any excuse to be inactive in the Kingdom.
“We are seeing a wider awareness of the importance of an active lifestyle in the country, and despite our difficult summer weather, there are ways to do so,” Al-Ansari said.
Hafez offered Arab News this simple suggestion: “Start by walking and go from there.”
