Sleeping is the favourite weekend activity - by far - for UAE residents

Call it the effect of the long commute to work, a boss breathing down your neck or the daily school pickup and drops, most UAE residents just want to sleep during the weekend.
 
In an online poll run by Emirates 24|7 news website, sleeping is undoubtedly the favourite activity for the majority of the residents in the country. Forty one of the residents who took part in the survey believe sleep is what appeals to them the most on their days off.
 
“Weekdays are hectic with long work hours and other daily commitments. I try to relax during the weekends and catch up on my sleep. I wake up pretty late and if possible also nap in the afternoon,” said Rameez Jawed, a Pakistani national in the UAE.
 
Many people believe a few extra hours of sleep during the weekend keeps them refreshed during the weekdays but this is not true.
 
Previous scientific studies have shown that this is not the case. An article published in the American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, states that though many people believe they can make up sleep lost during the workweek by sleeping more on the weekend, it’s unknown whether this ‘recovery’ sleep can adequately reverse these adverse effects.
 
But, sleeping long hours is still a luxury for many even on the weekends. Gauri Rathore, a mother of two young children says she would like to sleep more but it is not possible as she still plays the role of a parent even when she is off from work.
 
Next on the list of the favourite weekend activity, that can be tagged as lazy, is spending time on TV, PC and gaming - 14 per cent of the country’s residents like to be couch potatoes in front of a screen when they don’t work.
 
Even though majority of the residents don’t like to flex their muscles on weekends, not all of us are lazy. Fifteen per cent of the respondents believe family visits are the most awaited weekend activity for them and 12 per cent still try to keep the belief alive that Dubai’s national past time is shopping. For this percentage of people, shopping is undoubtedly the favourite weekend activity.
 
This is followed by 11 per cent of people who love to barbecue and 7 per cent who like to indulge in adventure sports. Sadly, it is only 1 per cent of the population who like to attend live concerts.

[Image via Shutterstock]

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