During Ramadan, Moroccans and other Muslims like to stay active and busy. But there are still alternative activities you can indulge in at home during the lockdown this holy month.
Rabat – As the novel coronavirus cases continues to increase, the Moroccan government announced it would extend the state of emergency until May 20, just days before the end of Ramadan.
Like Muslims across the world, as part of Morocco’s lockdown measures, residents must avoid leaving the house unless absolutely necessary, wear face masks, follow the confinement laws and other health mandates.
For Muslims who like to be active while fasting for Ramadan, staying cooped up inside their houses may sound unbearable and intimidating at times.
But the lockdown can be an opportunity to learn new things and have fun, as these six activities illustrate.
Learning a new language
Learning a new language can be very advantageous. Not only will it look good on your resume but it will also help you communicate with other people around the world.
Learning new languages can be enriching and stimulating by improving your attention and making your brain function better.
Recent research discovered bilingual speakers are better at performing certain mental activities “such as editing out irrelevant information” and focusing on what is important. Learning new languages can sharpen your multitasking skills and help you prioritize important tasks.
Not everyone has the means to enroll in a foreign language class full time. Luckily new technology makes it less tedious and more enjoyable to learn a new language in the comfort of your home.
Multiple free apps can help you learn a language at your own pace, such as Duolingo, Babbel, and Busuu. You can also learn grammar through the many free course videos available on YouTube.
One great way to learn new languages and kill boredom at the same time is to watch shows or listen to music in the target language.
Watching movies and television series
The lockdown can be the perfect opportunity to catch up on all the shows and movies you have been planning to watch for months now.
Watching films can bring out our emotions, making us laugh and cry, inspiring us, educating us, and entertaining us.
It is important while fasting to disconnect a little from the world and distract yourself from hunger, taking the opportunity to relax with a thrilling movie just on your sofa or bed.
Watching documentaries is also entertaining and informative. They open minds and hearts to fascinating topics around the world and help people stay connected to understand the world better.
Cooking
Cooking is a fun way to help you relax and relieve stress. Cooking for yourself and loved ones can give you the freedom to experiment with food and choose the right ingredients for you.
Preparing fresh food will put much-needed nutrition into your diet and increase your energy and quality of health in the long run.
This Ramadan can be the chance for you to try new recipes to enjoy at the iftar table and create time for making delicious meals with your family.
Cooking also teaches patience and other life skills, such as eating healthily, budgeting, and cleaning.
Embroidery and crochet
Embroidery and crocheting can be rewarding, fulfilling, creative, and relaxing. They help people unplug from the media and connect with themselves by keeping their hands busy, leaving their worries behind.
These activities strengthen coordination, management, emotional, and artistic skills.
Needlework is an inexpensive craft to learn and maintain. Learners can create original artwork or copy from a pattern as decorations in the home.
For embroidery, all you will need is an embroidery hoop, needles, embroidery floss, and scissors. For crocheting, you will need a crochet hook and some yarn.
There are plenty of tutorials and patterns on YouTube and other sites that will help you master the basics of the craft in no time.
Beginners should not worry about making mistakes, and once they gain experience, they will be ready to get creative with more complicated stitches and trickier techniques.
Yoga
During the holy month of Ramadan, eating, and sleeping routines change. Doctors advise anyone who wants to lose weight in this period to maintain a healthy diet and practice light exercises.
The stretches and breathing techniques of yoga make it a powerful yet light exercise with many benefits. Almost everyone can practice it regardless of their age or fitness level.
Yoga helps with anxiety and stress by encouraging relaxation and lowering blood pressure and heart rate. It could also improve sleep for those who suffer from insomnia because of the changes in their Ramadan sleeping schedule.
Yoga targets all the muscles of the body which makes you stronger , increases flexibility, and enhances the function of lungs by deep breathing during the stretches.
This type of exercise also teaches people to take a break from churning thoughts and keep a state of inner calm.
Playing video games
Many people who do not play video games argue they make you lazy, might disturb mental or physical health, and ruin your social life, even if there is a lack of scientific evidence to prove it.
Although anything in excess can be harmful, it is the individual’s responsibility to manage their use of these games. Luckily many studies are discovering how games can be good for us.
According to scholars of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, people who play video games have greater cognitive function and more grey matter in their brains.
This is not surprising given that video games require serious strategy and concentration while navigating a virtual world.
Video games are a great way to distract yourself during the lockdown, and as technology advances, game developers keep creating new content anyone can enjoy.
