Grave Fitness: A Unique Workout Revolution in Zimbabwe

Nelly Mutandwa joins others in Zimbabwe’s Harare cemetery for a daily fitness routine combating non-communicable diseases. With limited gym facilities, they exercise in unconventional locations to manage health conditions. Non-communicable diseases, a growing concern in Africa, motivate many like Mutandwa to adopt healthier lifestyles.

In an unconventional setting, 65-year-old Nelly Mutandwa leads efforts to combat non-communicable diseases in Zimbabwe through daily workouts at a Harare cemetery. This initiative addresses the rising health concerns among older citizens in a country grappling with limited fitness facilities.

Members of the Commandos Fitness Club gather every morning amid grave surroundings for exercises crucial to managing illnesses like diabetes and hypertension. Public health experts are increasingly alarmed as these diseases impact younger populations due to changing lifestyles linked with poor diets and lack of physical activity.

Economic challenges in Zimbabwe have left citizens to innovate where traditional solutions lag. The Ministry of Health reports a significant statistics shift, with non-communicable diseases predicted to surpass communicable ones as leading causes of death. Initiatives such as Mutandwa's are vital for community health promotion.

(With inputs from agencies.)