Houston offers a tremendous amount of options to stay healthy and fit if you chose to take advantage of all the offers. Houstonians exercise a lot and in many different ways. They also like to look good and there is abundance of spas and beauty salons.
The city offers lots of recreation. Houstonians and expats enjoy the many parks for walking, jogging, and playing soccer, tennis or baseball. Some of the favorites include Meyer Park on the northwest side, Bearcreek, Bush and Cullen park on the west side, and the very popular Memorial Park inside the Loop off Memorial Drive with beautiful scenery and many facilities, even for speed cycling. There are many tennis courts near neighborhoods, in parks or on university properties and golf is also very popular with golf courses and ranges all over Houston within neighborhoods or combined with country clubs or just by themselves. There are a great number of different fitness centers to choose from for all preferences and the entire family, located throughout Houston. Martial arts is also very popular in Houston, often offered within a fitness center or in a specialized club.
Youth health is extremely important to Houstonians and as an expat, it is easy to meet other parents at kids’ activities. Parents are very involved with their children’s sports activities and the term ‘soccer mom’ is an actual mom driving kids to soccer. It is very popular to be on a team in school and also outside of school – almost every child is involved in some form of sporting activity. There are swim clubs, baseball, football and basketball clubs, among others. If the children don’t come home from school asking to play with their friends on a team, it is recommended to check with the school or other parents for popular sports at the particular school or in the area. There are opportunities for all ages such as little leagues, pee wee leagues before the school-sponsored sports begin. There are also summer programs that kids join, often sponsored by the city and announced in the newspaper.
The city also offers a tremendous amount of beauty salons that welcome men and women. For most Houstonians, personal care is very important and they take very good care of themselves with waxed eye browns, spotless make-up, hairstyles and beautiful nails. Most services are very affordable and many female expatriates, who are not used to so much fanciness, soon become entrenched in the trend of waxing, French nails and almost always perfect hair even in Houston’s humidity.
