7 ways to regulate your workout in Ramazan

Ramazan should be treated as an opportunity to boost your physical fitness and to enhance you spiritually

KARACHI: Ramazan is not a food festival. It should be treated as an opportunity to boost your physical fitness and to enhance you spiritually. Fasting has several benefits and aids weight loss by letting you improve your eating patterns as well as workout routine. Here are a few ways to help you stay active in Ramazan without jeopardising your fast.

1. Reduce the intensity of your workout

If you normally sprint at a fast pace then reduce it to a speed walk. Likewise, for those who do resistance training cut down the amount of weight you lift. The key to staying fit is consistency so make sure that you hit the gym at least thrice a week to maintain your motivation and stamina. “Don’t burn yourself out and then lose motivation and energy leading to your conclusion not to exercise during the holy month”, says Guillaume Mariole, Health Expert and Managing Director at Ignite fitness and wellness.

2. Incorporate some circuit training

The most effective way to burn calories is to do circuit training which burns fat in a short span of time. It involves a fast-paced class where each exercise lasts for 30 seconds to five minutes. You can alternate an aerobic activity with a muscle-strengthening activity. This will help you to build muscles and increase cardiovascular endurance, all in one workout.

3. Workout whenever it is convenient

As long as you are consistent, it doesn’t matter what time of the day you workout. For some, it may be ideal to workout before Suhoor while for others it would be best to exercise after iftaar. “A workout on an empty stomach, having had no hydration since suhoor, is a bad idea. For this reason, I would tell someone to exercise after eating suhoor as opposed to exercising right before iftaar,” says Ali Othman, a certified personal trainer from Chicago, Illinios.

4. Keep yourself hydrated

Staying hydrated during your workout is important as it helps us fight fatigue and prolong endurance. When we sweat, we lose electrolytes which are minerals found in the blood that help to regulate the amount of water in the body.

5. Don’t aim for calorie deficit

Priority should be given to consistency and maintenance during this month. Scott Garett, Sports and Recereational Manager at Body and Soul Health Club and Spa suggests that an individual should partake in at least three 30-minute workouts per week. “By stopping or reducing physical activity during Ramazan, a person’s metabolism could actually decrease and result in burning calories slower than normal,” he says.

6. Check your protein intake

Protein is the building block of the body and is an integral nutrition component when it comes to keeping the muscle mass and helping the body to grow. Hence, for optimum results during Ramazan, it is imperative that sufficient proteins be provided to it when it lacks it the most. “Muscles go into a catabolic state after weight training, meaning they break down, and that continues after the workout. Protein ca help muscles heal,” says Van Asten, a certified exercise physiologist.

7. Aim to maintain and not to gain

Do not aim to set too high fitness standards in Ramazan. Training at high intensity without intake of food and water may cause your body water reserves to become exhausted, putting the body into crisis mode. This is because extra cortisol hormone is released which causes muscles to breakdown and your training to be counterproductive as your fitness levels will decrease. “As a trainer, I try to ensure that I provide a well-balanced workout to all my trainees in order to ensure that they do not compromise their health in Ramadan,” says Arbab Ahmed, fitness trainer at Lifestyle gym.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 24^th, 2015.

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