As the New Year settle in, individuals and groups are preparing to effectively execute their resolutions, with those promoting costless healthy living and fitness not wanting to remain behind, starting their year with brand new plans.
The Walk for Fun group, an initiative by a Morope resident, Moemedi Mokgachane, is one such a group. Mokgachane came up with the idea late last year and it was immediately embraced by more than 60 people in the community who immediately became members. Most of those interested are the elderly ÔÇô those above 50 years old.
The reasons for such a response are simple. Their age bracket, as everyone else, is affected by the modern fast world where people find themselves overfed with various foodstuffs with little or no recreation facilitates to help them tackle their situation by exercising.
This is the group that has owned vehicles for years, with no time to exercise, dealing with more family commitments and having more social responsibilities. Not everyone can afford the gym. So obesity reigns supreme and heart related dieses become common.
Mokgachane says that though they have not met this year, they agreed last year to register the group with the Registrar of Societies. This entails electing a committee.
“I have been taking time to approach possible sponsors and some have shown interest. It is just a matter of registering, forming a committee and things might start running smoothly for us. Those are our first steps this year,” says Mokgachane.
The idea is to come up with a social event, similar to the Sunday soccer that gained popularity during the 1990s, and is more common among men. The advantage of the ‘walk for fun’ initiative is that it will involve all family members. People may walk together along main roads or use dry rivers to walk for a few kilometers.
It is helpful, says Mokgachane, in people group together, share ideas as they walk and in the process relieves those that are oppressed by life calamities.
Once registered and able to raise funds, the group will then aim to expand its ‘healthy living and fitness’ campaign to other places.
And once the group grows around Block One and Mmopane where it started, the members could at some point hire a mini bus and visit a neighboring village to sell them the idea.
“We first start with walking, which will later be followed by maybe a group breakfast. As we discuss and exercise together we might end up coming with ideas that will rescue the underprivileged members of our society,” says Mokgachane.
