GOING NUTS: EXERCISE IS IMMORAL, SAYS SAUDI KINGDOM

Go Figure: After having outlawed all women's gyms in the Saudi Kingdom, Jeddah's health official Muhammed Abdul Jawad told the English-language Arab News "Anyone who violates regulations governing the running of health facilities would be punished severely because this involves people's health."

Ahmadiyya Times | News Staff |
Source & Credit: Elan, elanthemag.com | The Independent, UK
By Aisha Gawad | January 26, 2010

Saudi Arabia is clamping down ... on jazzercise. The Kingdom shut down an all-women’s fitness center attached to a Jeddah hospital this week. Apparently, the government forbids the establishment of women’s fitness centers, condemning women to a future of love-handles and high blood pressure. The demand for such centers is understandably high, so several women’s wellness clubs have opened under the radar. According to news reports, the government has recently shut down two similar women’s gyms in other locations.

Saudi Arabia of course is a severely gender-segregated society. Women may not drive and require the company of male guardians to go practically anywhere. That by itself is a pretty good way to get fat. But why is it that when people want to open all-women’s wellness centers, they are deemed not in line with Saudi Arabia’s moral standards? I mean, it’s a gym filled with ONLY women. It’s not like these ladies are cavorting around the weight machines engaging in lewd acts with some Fabio-wannabe A-rabs. These women are simply seeking out venues to take care of their bodies and health.

It’s no wonder diabetes and high blood pressure are already problems in Saudi Arabia. What is a woman supposed to do for exercise? Run around her living room? Sweep the kitchen floor? Chase after the children? Fitness centers for women aren’t a good idea just because they provide opportunities for exercise (in which case some silly Saudi government official would just tell her to buy a home treadmill); they provide Saudi women with an environment to focus on her mental and physical health. If you’re at a gym, you are, by the very act of being there, making a commitment to your overall wellness. You are saying you care about yourself, body and mind. (I know, I know ... I should have been an inspirational speaker) So what’s so threatening about that? 

Read here: Elan : Exercise Is Immoral Says Saudi Kingdom

Read here: The Independent: 'Illegal' Saudi women's gym shut: media