By: Vanshita Sethi, SFU Student
With the onset of a New Year, comes a new variant to spoil our plans and resolutions. New Year, New Me is becoming harder and harder to follow through on as we remain stuck in a pandemic. However, if we’ve learned anything in the past two years, it’s finding ways to adapt and thrive in the harshest of calamities. One of the most adversely hit areas is the health and fitness of individuals across the world. Here are our picks of sports to keep your body (and mind) in tip-top shape this year.
- Chess it out!
If Beth Harmon has taught us anything from Queen’s Gambit it’s chess is a game of mind and everyone should have a taste of it. While sports is primarily associated with a play of strength, at the heart of it, any game boils down to a focused, calm, collected, and calculative mind. The game only requires a chessboard and two players, unless you want to take a swing at playing both sides of the board. This year put your wits to the test and embody the sassiness of Beth Harmon while you’re at it.
- Pick up a paddle
SFU houses many table-tennis tables in the AQ, both indoor and outdoor, to encourage students to pick up the paddle and serve to friends. Also known as whiff-whaff and ping-pong, you don’t have to be a professional to play the game. Like chess, it involves two players engaging in a rally by hitting the ball back and forth the table after one bounce until one player fails to do so. Not only does the game improve hand-eye coordination, but it also enhances one’s reflexes. Next time you see an idle table in the university, don’t miss the chance of a ping-pong match.
- Give Hula-Hooping a try
Likely associated with children in playschool, this activity has similar health benefits to aerobic activities like dancing. Hula-hooping only requires a hoop around your waist and is a single-person activity. It helps strengthen core muscles, increases flexibility, and burns calories. It may not be the conventional choice of sport, but this year should be all about trying different, unique, and fun things. Let’s revisit childhood with hula-hooping.
- Indoor Basketball
While gyms and recreational spaces remain closed, the city of Burnaby has many available basketball courts. While it is a competitive game involving many players, it can be played individually as well. Again, one doesn’t need proficiency rather the goal remains to improve fitness for oneself. You could even install a hoop in your garage. There are many games you can play by yourself like Around the World. Simply move to different positions around the net with every sunken shot. The catch — if you miss a shot more than once, you have to restart from your original position.
- Learn a new game: Carrom
Carrom is an Indian origin game that involves a carrom board and a maximum of four players. The board game consists of around 19 circular pieces in three different colours. The objective of the game is to pocket the Queen piece which holds the highest points along with all the other pieces of your chosen colour. Like most board games, it requires focus and precision and helps to exercise one’s mind. The “strike and pocket” game holds a “striking” resemblance to billiards and can be played by people of any age. It has made its appearance in the Commonwealth Games as well.
