We’re counting the days to Eid Al Fitr day, and some of us have skipped our daily exercise just to avoid tiredness and thirst when we also do fasting. But some experts say you don’t have to write off your entire exercise schedule during Ramadan. You can still do it safely and sustainably.
Let’s find out how to do that, so you still keep your fit body in the Eid Al Fitr holiday season!
Short Period of Time
The main point of exercise during Ramadan is you need a clear line where not pushing yourself to the limit. The best point of view of doing exercise during the Ramadan period is maintaining what your body needs (not entirely all about the gaining part, in terms of muscles, weight lifting, and so on).
If you exercise on daily basis, then your body also needs to move during your fasting period. We suggest you take a short period of time just to fulfill the needs of your body. If you usually exercise for one to two hours per day, you might want to cut it short to 30 minutes per day.
You also might want to choose a lighter type of exercise. If you love running, try to have a walk in the morning. If you like weightlifting, try to lift it lighter. The main idea is to keep your body moving throughout your entire fasting day without making you feel miserable afterward.
Set The Time
Exercising in a fast condition is not easy for everyone. Especially when you live in a hot tropical country like Indonesia. Setting the perfect time is the ultimate key to keeping your exercise schedule sustainable.
If you always do your exercise in the morning, we suggest you switch your timeline. Try to do your exercise at least 20 or 30 minutes just before the iftar time. Then you can break your fast right after you finish your exercise.
The other benefit of exercising before iftar is you’ll get a chance to hydrate yourself immediately. You can drink right away after your iftar, so your body won’t be under the stress for a longer period of time.
It’s All About Maintaining
Just like we’ve mentioned above, exercising during the fast period is not the ideal time to hit your new personal bests. If lifting 60 kg on a regular day is a piece of cake for you, try to lift lighter because you want to do your exercise safely. Aim to maintain your current fitness level not to break the new personal best. With the limitation of drinking and eating during Ramadan our body needs to adapt to the new condition, and so do you!
Instead of weightlifting, we suggest you focus on bodyweight lifting. If you think your body can handle more weight, then you can slowly add some barbels to your workout.
Weightlifting or Cardio?
There’s no such thing as an ideal exercise to do during fasting because it’s all about your preference. But, if we may give a suggestion it’s good to choose weightlifting (or body weight lifting, where you just use your body mass as the weight to move) instead of cardio.
Why?
Weightlifting or Bodyweight lifting may help you to slow down the process of muscle loss while fasting. Remember, we have limited periods of daily consumption and most of us can’t maintain the amount of protein that our body needs to keep or even grow the muscles. Weightlifting has proven can help to maintain muscles in your body. And bodyweight lifting, like push-ups, squats, or pull-ups, doesn’t require as much as energy as cardio or lifting heavy weights.
On other hand, cardio exercise can easily make you thirsty. And remember our body is prone to get into a dehydrated state during fasting. So, If you never like strength training and hardcore cardio exercise, we suggest you do light cardio instead. Walking is the best option that you can always choose.
Nourish and Hydrate Your Body
Water, carbs, proteins, and fibers are essential for your body including during the fasting period. So remember to always consume the right amount of portion on each of those macronutrients to nourish your body. Drinking water, at least, 8 glasses during Ramadan is also advised so you can stay away from dehydration.
Fasting shouldn’t be your Achilles’ heel to do the exercise. It’s just all about how you maintain your time and body to keep your personal growth intact. So, do you exercise during Ramadan fasting?