Running in Saudi and Life in Al Hofuf

I run in shorts/t shirt, no problems. But then I run at 5 am, so not many people around to see me.

edit: didn't notice you're female.... that's a bit different.
I certainly wouldn't let Mrs Mudman run on her own and if she was running with me she'd have 3/4 length leggings on.

Mudman thanks for the info, I am a male also didn't realize my profile had me marked as a female.  Thanks again.

Living in Hofuf has its unique rewards. It is a big town which is mixed between closed minded, extreme open minded and some who don't care.

There are plenty of places to go for a jog or work out. It all depends where are you going to stay.

My parents are from Al Hofuf and I think you will enjoy the laid back environment that is shadowing the town

I would learn to make use of the tread mill. I'll tell you why: For one thing, your short jogging pants and tank top will be unacceptable and draw negative attention to you if you run outside the compounds.  I like to run, myself. I had to buy some light weight baggy pants that came down below my knees, and run in a t-shirt (which is OK) outside, as I don't even have a compound, so any running I do would be outside in the nieghborhood. With the extra clothing I didn't enjoy my running.  With a treadmill (presumably in a compound either in a gym or in your apartment, if you buy one), you can wear your normal western jogging gear.  Another reason running outside isn't a great idea in KSA, is that you attract curiousity. Saudi's don't run, at least not for exercise. As you jog, you'll notice cars slowing and the occupants trying to talk with you as you jog. I've had children (and adults) stop what they were doing when they saw me jogging past, and they fell in with me and tried to jog with me for a distance. While this seems like fun at first, after a while it comes annoying..all the cars passing by honking, and kids following you around and people, although trying to be friendly, distracting you and making you lose your concentration and rhythm. I've been stopped twice while jogging, by the police. They wanted to see my Iqama, which of course a jogger won't carry. Fortunately, I convinced them I wasn't a bad guy, and they finally drove off both times. Why did they stop me and check me? Because here in KSA the only reason people will "run" is if they did something wrong and trying to get away or someone is trying to do something bad to them, so it attracted the police's attention. Do you really want to carry your I.D. cards with you when you jog? The third reason jogging outside isn't such as great idea is the extreme heat most of the year. During the winter months you can run outside in the day but not now. You would have to wait until the evening and even then it's still an oven.  Having gone through all this experience, I relented and bought a good tread mill and put it in my apartment. If you'll live in a compound, maybe your compound will have a treadmill.  Yes, I know treadmills are boring to run on; however, you'll still be able to wear your western jogging apparel, and if you download some music on an Mp3 and listen to it with a headset, or watch TV while you jog, it's not so bad. I run 7 or 8 km a day most days, so I enjoy it, but I've had to modify my running technique due to the culture, heat, and outside distractions.  I'm not a tread mill person either, but I was compelled to adapt to the local situation to continue my hobby.  Sorry for the long post.

i think if ur going 2 live on a compound u can pretty much do whatever u want bombero36!
i have never been in  Al Hofuf so i really dont know anything about it
i hope u will have good time in KSA

and wow @ Dave's answer i cant believe the police actually stopped you!!

Believe it, Maya.  Someone running attracts attention here. Saudi's don't run unless there's an urgent reason.  Running when you don't technically "have to" doesn't register with these folks here.  Sure, you can do whatever you want to in the compound.  But some expats who work in remote or very small towns don't have compounds, so I had to make a choice of not running or buy a treadmill, or else put up with the shenanigans of the locals.

run in ksa??? you are going to do something dangerous in ksa... Im not speaking about the weather, Im speaking about the cars, you should do it in a safety place otherway you are going to have problem with trafic because in that country the people dont respect that kind of sport.

Dave-KSA wrote:

Believe it, Maya.  Someone running attracts attention here. Saudi's don't run unless there's an urgent reason.  Running when you don't technically "have to" doesn't register with these folks here.  Sure, you can do whatever you want to in the compound.  But some expats who work in remote or very small towns don't have compounds, so I had to make a choice of not running or buy a treadmill, or else put up with the shenanigans of the locals.

I am sorry to hear that
Ooh man another reason to just "love" SA!

i know its off-topic and all but i am sorry i had to throw that out there!

Running on a treadmill is generally insanely boring, free running in Riyadh is possible and i guess Khobar should be the same, but avoid wearing shorts it will get you in trouble with the vice/close minded community..