It doesn’t matter where you are living in the world, but unless you lead at least a decently active lifestyle, chances are that you will age faster and your health will be susceptible to a number of lifestyle related diseases and disorders. If you are an expat living in China and you are going to be in the country for a while, it makes all the sense in the world to try and make your experience an active one, without risking your health. In fact, with the help of the following tips, any expat should not only be able to design a more active and fitter lifestyle for themselves and their families, but they will also end up experiencing China and everything the country has to offer in a safer way.
Go for Hikes
China is a huge country with varying landscapes and there are some magnificent trekking and hiking routes for people to explore all around the country. Take small hiking trips around the place that you are living in, because chances are that there is something to explore near you. Some of the top hiking locations in China are as follows:
- Tiger Leaping Gorge, Yunnan Province
- Li River Hiking, Guilin
- JiuZhai Valley National Park, Sichuan Province
- Shunan Bamboo Sea, Sichuan Province
- Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Hunan Province
- Kanas Nature Reserve, Xinjiang Uygur Region
- Great Wall of China, Huairou District
Exercise Indoors in Urban Areas
Just like the trekking and hiking routes of China are perfect for experiencing the true beauty of China, while leading an adventurous, active life, the urban parks are not generally ideal to get your morning exercise in. The pollution in almost all the major cities of China can be extremely detrimental to the health of yourself and your family if you are not careful. Air pollution is a huge problem in big Chinese cities, so exercise indoors in a gym facility or in your home to avoid inhaling the toxic chemicals from the morning air during your exercise sessions. It is sad, but exercising outside in Chinese cities is a bad idea on most days. Always consult the local air pollution readings and forecasts for the day before going out.
Insure Yourself and Your Family with Medical Insurance
China is a beautiful country, but due to the high rates of air and water pollution in the cities, expats often find it difficult to stay healthy and that can and will increase the medical bills beyond your expectations quite fast. Find a good health insurance choice in China for expats and get your whole family medically covered, along with yourself. It will help you to control your medical expenses and ensure proper medical care for everyone. There would hardly be any money left for those active lifestyle trips in the best parts of China if you are spending all your savings on covering medical expenses!
Ride Your Bike
Unlike in most parts of the western world, people in China encourage bike riding even in big cities because it’s a traditional way to travel everywhere. Wear your pollution mask and ride your bike to work and back every day to not only add an excellent exercise routine to your daily life, but also to save time by avoiding the big traffic jams for which China is infamous. Biking in China is the best active lifestyle choice to save time, money and your health.
As a bonus tip, it is recommended that you practice extra caution while eating and drinking (water) in China because food and waterborne infections are quite common everywhere in the area. However, as long as you take note of everything we discussed, having an active experience in China should not be too challenging.
