RIYADH: A government-run Saudi university has launched a campaign to encourage all students and staff members to adopt healthy lifestyles and lose weight, but the program will not offer physical exercise opportunities for women students as it does for the young men, according to university officials.
King Saud University (KSU), the oldest university in the Kingdom with an enrollment of 70,000 men and women, recently started an awareness-raising campaign called “Lose Weight and Win Money.” The program offers SR6,000 to each of the 10 students who shed the maximum weight during the campaign period.
Overweight students have been invited to join a program for regular medical checkups, proper diet guidelines, an exercise regime and weekly evaluation.
The program also offers intensive physical education classes, but only for men.
Mona Saifeddin, one of the university’s staff members, said she was eager to join the campaign and try to win the money. But when she discovered the university had no plans to offer gym facilities and athletic programs for women, she dropped her plans.
“Sport is the key for weight loss and overall health, and this is why I wanted to join the competition. I can diet at home,” she said.
Saifeddin pointed out that women would benefit more than men from these facilities because their movement is restricted. (For example, they can't drive off to a private gym during a lunch break.)
Muhsin Al-Shargawi, director of the cultural activities at KSU, said involving women in sports at public educational institutions is still a controversial issue in society. He added that such matters need approval from several government agencies, which was difficult to get in time for the competition’s launch.
“But things have to start somewhere and social barriers shouldn’t stop us from using alternatives to help these girls,” he said.
The issue of physical education and athletics for women runs roughly on a public/private divide — with private institutions more open to physical education for girls and young women. At least one private women's college, Dar Al-Hekma in Jeddah, offers athletic activities. Some private international schools also offer physical fitness programs for girl students in a culturally appropriate, gender-segregated manner.
Al-Shargawi pointed out that offering physical training for girls requires sports facilities, and the girls’ campus, which dates from 1966, doesn’t have the necessary infrastructure. In the meantime, the university needs to draw girls’ attention to vital health problems, such as obesity, which most students may not be aware of. “So in this backdrop, the university would still promote health and weight loss in a country where at least one in four citizens are clinically obese,” he said.
Norah Al-Qarzaey, a 22-year-old KSU student, joined the program in spite of the lack of facilities because she saw an advantage over other services offered. She learned through the program that she gained 10 kilograms since she checked her weight last. “It's very embarrassing to stand in front of students and staff showing people that I weigh 97 kilos,” she said.
Maram Abdullah, another KSU student, said she wants to lose 37 kilograms. She recognized the problem with her weight after she began studying nursing and learned more about the adverse consequences of obesity. And for her part, she is happy KSU is paying attention to the problem.
“It’s a wonderful initiative by the university to help us lose weight,” she said. “The competition has generated a lot of enthusiasm and challenge.”
Afaf Al-Brekan, the head of student affairs at KSU, said this was the first time the university's women were being invited to such a program. “We are so happy that our program hasn't faced any obstacles when promoting it inside the girls' campus,” she added.
More than 100 young women have registered for the competition. “I think we should carry out the program even if girls have to do exercises off the campus,” she said.
“Most girls follow random diets, which sometimes lead to health problems. Saudis in general have issues with a healthy lifestyle for several reasons. They include a lack of nutrition and health curriculums in schools, and nonavailability of public places where people can exercise without paying money.”
