As we have entered the blessed month of Ramadhan, which essentially is about abstaining from food and drinks from sunrise to sunset; a massive chunk out of the day, sounds convincing enough to lose weight. But wait, we have folks around who put on weight despite a month of regular fasting.
So, Ramadhan fasting is a kind of intermittent fasting that is intended to build endurance, and resilience and derive a plethora of physical benefits; the only condition, if done right.
Let’s re-explore and hover around the four cornerstones of healthier fasting. Firstly, beginning with food, we abstain from it for the entire day, but during iftar and following it, we go overboard, stuffing the belly with all sorts of savouries and delicacies. That’s a huge blow to smash anyone’s health and fitness.
Fasting is not just about refraining from food but about giving the body the right amount of sustenance at the right time. If you can devise your eating window wisely as per your health goals, you’ve garnered a righteous approach for a smooth sail.
Start with a few dates, water and some fresh fruits for iftar unlike an attack mode as if you have not had anything for the rest of your life. Go easy for the sake of your stomach which has been off for the entire day.
Have a light meal followed by 30-45 minutes that meets your nutritional requirements with substantial shots of hydration throughout the eating window.
Avoid galloping tonnes of water at once during iftar since you feel quenched and famished; to debar any serious issues such as water intoxication.
For suhoor, have a light meal as per your food preferences along with milk to keep your thirst satiated for longer during fasting hours. Secondly, yet equally important is maintaining good sleep hygiene. Hitting the bed early and getting up early tremendously improves and accelerates your metabolism; that is a highly underrated factor in managing your weight loss goals.
Make sure you are not ruining your fasting benefits by staying up all night aimlessly to spend the day sleeping. No wonder it will bring lethargy, exhaustion and depleted energy levels.
Thirdly, incorporating a workout into your fasting schedule is quintessentially important. If you have been working out during fasting, then keep following it religiously best suited to your body type and timings; whether performing during eating window or non-eating hours.
Some go working out before iftar and that brings incredible results as the body cells run for stored fat to make up for the energy. But that is the time when you are at the rock bottom of energy; if you can pull through go for it. Then for some, post-suhoor hours go well as they have energy stock in abundance to effectively work out and feel better.
Again here, you have the entire fasting day ahead with no refueling with food or water. If that’s not an impediment, keep going. For some, pre-suhoor hours are a match in heaven as after working out they refuel with a suhoor meal and kickstart their fast.
Long story short, there is no one-size-fits-all. Identify your body’s needs and pursue your workout routines accordingly to reap the maximum benefits of working out with fasting.
Fourthly, connection with the Supreme and abstaining from all sinful acts is the epitome of Ramadhan fasting. Lying, gossiping, backbiting, theft, abusing, fighting, getting angry; if persisting with fasting, then we are merely carrying a leaking bucket. Moreover, they are a warehouse of stress, a major roadblock to smash health goals.
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