Healthy Life Becomes a Habit

The “Healthy Life Becomes a Habit” project, initiated by the Universal Sports School “Spartakus” in partnership with the “Volujak” mountaineering society, has recently been launched in the Gacko municipality. This project is designed to offer outdoor sports and recreational activities for young people, aiming to foster physical and mental well-being while instilling values such as responsibility and a deep appreciation for nature. The project is targeted at individuals aged 5 to 30.

Nada Jovović from the “Spartakus” sports school underscores the importance of nurturing a healthy younger generation within society. She explains that the project was initiated with the goal of ingraining a culture of health and well-being in the young population from an early age. “In today’s world of rapid modernization, extensive screen time, and pervasive digitization, we have witnessed the consequences of growing generations who are increasingly alienated, socially detached, and inadequately guided. They have become physically inactive and mentally fragile. These realizations have motivated us to promote the concept of a healthy lifestyle through a variety of activities that reconnect children and youth with nature and with each other, which is of paramount importance,” says Nada.

The “Healthy Life Becomes a Habit” project has received support from the EU-funded Regional Programme on Local Democracy in the Western Balkans 2 (ReLOaD2).

The project’s activities have been thoughtfully structured to create a seamless progression, with each subsequent activity building upon the previous ones. Some of the activities that have already been successfully executed include a running school, workshops focusing on the significance of first aid for safe outdoor activities, sessions on outdoor orientation and navigation, a hiking school, an outdoor fitness training programme, a sports and recreational event known as “Phone-Free Day,” and more. Conversely, the upcoming agenda includes exciting activities such as “Clicker and Elastic Band Games,” two outdoor fitness training sessions, a hiking expedition, an obstacle race, and another running school.

Nada highlights that the response and enthusiasm from the local community towards all aspects of the “Healthy Life Becomes a Habit” project have exceeded their expectations. She comments, “Through our project initiatives, we’re reaffirming that individuals in smaller local communities aren’t passive or apathetic; rather, they lack opportunities to make their leisure time more meaningful.”

Nada goes on to emphasize the project’s broader significance. She states, “What’s truly important is that, following the completion of this project, there will be a significantly larger number of young people and children who will develop a profound appreciation for nature.” Moreover, she anticipates that their families and parents will also spend more time in natural surroundings.