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French Traveler Crosses 13 Countries on Foot to Perform Umrah, Pray at Two Holy Mosques

French traveler Mohamed Boulabiar. (SPA)
French traveler Mohamed Boulabiar. (SPA)
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French Traveler Crosses 13 Countries on Foot to Perform Umrah, Pray at Two Holy Mosques

French traveler Mohamed Boulabiar. (SPA)
French traveler Mohamed Boulabiar. (SPA)

French traveler Mohamed Boulabiar spent eight months on a journey on foot to perform the Umrah in Saudi Arabia.

His 8,000-kilometer journey started from Paris and he trekked through 13 countries to reach the city of Madinah. He will then proceed to the holy city of Makkah to perform the Umrah.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) met Boulabiar in the courtyards of the Prophet's Mosque on Tuesday, mere hours after completing his journey through various terrains and enduring numerous weather conditions. Despite the difficulties and dangers, he was undeterred from his goal of reaching the holy sites on foot.

Boulabiar, born in France to a Tunisian father and a Moroccan mother, remarked: "I did not encounter any problems on the road, but the biggest challenge was the weather. I departed in the summer and arrived in the spring, passing through autumn and winter, enduring storms and thunder. At one stage, a snowstorm at the Greek border delayed my trip by a week."

"I walked in temperatures of around 40°C, but thankfully, everything went smoothly. I am overjoyed to be here," he added.

He revealed that this was his first visit to the Gulf, adding that he has received a warm welcome. "People stopped me on the road to offer food and drink. I am immensely grateful to be here and to have completed the journey."

Boulabiar explained that he started preparing for his journey both physically and mentally two years ago. He kicked it off on August 27, starting from the Eiffel Tower.

His trek took him through France, Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Greece, Türkiye, and Jordan, before finally reaching Saudi Arabia.

He relied on a map and essential provisions, slept in a tent and occasionally spent nights in mosques. Benevolent strangers would also sometimes learn of his journey and invite him to spend the night.

"This has been a childhood dream. I yearned to arrive in Makkah on foot, emulating the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his companions," he added.

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Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
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Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)

For many people of a certain age, high school gym class began with reaching for their toes. Then, over the years, we were told it was better to stretch after exercise.

It turns out, both those things can be true, but the differing advice has created some confusion.

Stretching can help make you more flexible, improve range of motion in your joints — and feel good. David Behm, who researches human kinetics at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada, offers this advice on when to stretch and how to do it safely:

Warm up first

It’s almost always good to stretch, but it’s better if you warm up first, said Behm, author of "The Science and Physiology of Flexibility and Stretching." He recommends a light aerobic activity such as jogging, walking or cycling for five or 10 minutes.

Follow that with some static stretching, the traditional way of reaching and holding a position (think back to that gym class). You can then do activity-specific dynamic stretching, in which you warm up the muscles with repetitive movements like leg lifts.

Behm says one minute is "the magic number" for how long to do static stretching per muscle group without fatigue.

Expand your definition of 'stretching'

Should you always stretch before exercising? If it's traditional stretching, not necessarily.

The better question, Behm says, is, "Should people increase their range of motion? Should people have better flexibility? And that is yes, because it helps prevent injuries. It helps with health. But you don’t have to stretch to achieve that."

Resistance training, for instance, can be an effective form of stretching, he said. Doing a chest press increases range of motion in your deltoids and pecs, whether with barbells, dumbbells or machines, so there is no need to stretch beforehand. Just make sure to start with a small amount of weight to warm up and then add more to train.

"You probably don’t have to do extra stretching unless you’re a gymnast, a figure skater, or even a golfer who needs a great range of motion through that swing," Behm said.

Nor do you need to stretch first if you’re going for a leisurely run. Simply start with a slow jog to warm up and then increase the pace.

Don't do it if it hurts

After exercise, "light stretching is OK, as long as you don't reach a point where you're feeling pain," Behm said. Since your muscles will be warm by that point, overdoing it makes you more likely to injure yourself.

Foam rollers can help with muscle recovery and have been shown to increase range of motion as well as stretching.

Do some static stretching before sports

If you’re playing a sport, Behm said, static stretching beforehand helps reduce muscle and tendon injury.

"If you’re going to do an explosive movement, change of direction, agility, sprint, any of these explosive activities that involve your muscles and tendons," he said, "you’re going to be stronger if you do static stretching."

People can especially get in trouble when they go back to a sport they used to play, whether it's tennis, surfing or any sort of team activity.

Also, stretch both sides equally. Lacking flexibility on one side also can lead to injury.

Sounds simple. Why all the confusion? Different studies over the years have either encouraged or discouraged stretching before exercise. Behm says that partly because some studies didn't reflect real-life conditions, or were designed with elite athletes in mind, not regular people.

"If you’re Usain Bolt, it makes a difference," said Behm. Not so much for the rest of us.