RAMADAN Nutrition Guide, simple yet effective!
Most frequent question I get about nutrition during Ramadan is: WHAT SHOULD I BE EATING, (and How Much)
So I am going to attempt answering that, kinda short and sweet in this blog post. With as little fluff as possible, something you can easily take action on!
Super short answer is you should be aiming to eat portions that are appropriate for your body size, goals and activity levels. (sorry if this sounds fluffy - if you are in doubt of how much food that is, feel free to drop me a message HERE or drop me an email eikgylfa@gmail.com and I can help you figure that out with individual calculations of your nutrition requirements.)
Common Misunderstanding - Fasting does not mean EAT LESS:
Food is fuel, if you dial back the nutrition and volume of food to much, the energy you get will be less, you will only be half functioning through the day during ramadan, feeling energy depleted and struggling. So even though the timing changes. You should be aiming to intake around the same quantity of food, its just the timing of the meals that changes.
We know that if you are eating less, losing weight and not exercising, you are going to lose more lean mass or muscle mass than you have to, making it difficult to keep the weight off at later stage. There for it’s important to adjust for that with appropriate protein intake and special focus on STRENGTH TRAINING - READ MORE
Worried about your energy levels for training while fasting?
Several of experimental studies of intermittent fasting, people practicing alternate day fasting and fuelling, while maintaining high level of training so scientifically we know this can be done. Its also good to know that many athletes also participate in Ramadan fasting while engaging in high-level performance and competition.
As long as you are eating enough during the allowed daily feeding period you shouldn’t have any concerns about whether they will have enough fuel in the tank, so to speak, to engage in physical activity.
DISCLAIMER:
Know when to break your fast early or not fast at all!
If you have diabetes or another metabolic health condition for which fasting is normally contraindicated you probably already know you are excused from fasting. If you do choose to fast, you should consult your physician and be prepared to break your daily fast if you feel ill or if your blood glucose (blood sugar) levels drop too low. And you should have a way to monitor that available before undertaking any fasting.
Ramadan fasting can also cause harmful hyperglycaemia or high blood sugar levels. This has been attributed to overeating during non-fasting hours as well as diabetes medication dosing that doesn’t take fasting into account and may need adjusting so be mindful about that and consult your doctor.
Onto the tips!
Ramadan Fasting is a opportunity to PLAY with habits and experiment with your body, and here are the 3 big things you can play with, to feel better and get better results.
Nutrition Priorities: WHAT TO CHOOSE FROM!
Variety is the spice of life. And during this month, there is so much abundance of good food available, and literally calling your name!
Eat a variety of foods during the evening. Now, more than ever, your body needs good nourishment to compensate for the stress of fasting. Whole grains, vegetables, fruits, lean protein, healthy fat (fat from plants, like olive oil and nuts)—all of these are important to give your body all the nutrients it needs.
For health, wellness and the goals of losing weight, prioritise eating more veggies, fruit and protein 80% of the time - leaving about 20% room for less optimal choices, sweets, fried stuff and other nipples.
Gorging full on sugary and consuming mostly processed foods can cause weight gain, sluggishness, fatigue and also make fasting the next day all the more difficult.
Instead, try eating fruit and veg and consuming fibre-rich foods as they are digested slower than processed foods and make you feel fuller for longer and help you feel fresh and good! And see below, end of this post great inspiration for some good sources of carbs, protein and fat.
Portion Sizes:
Portion size is important. It takes the body about 20 minutes to register that it's had enough to eat. So don't go overboard with eating during Iftar. Eating mindfully and listening for when your hunger is actually satisfied puts less stress on your body and gives you more energy than eating huge amounts at one time.
My number one trick is to EAT UNTIL 80% FULL, stopping when you feel like you are little bit away from full full - and not feeling uncomfortable.
But fasting messes around with your satiety feeling, so if you struggle with tuning into your satiety you can also use the portion size guide of hands or plate model to help you with getting the appropriate amount of nutrition based of your individual requirements (message me if you are in doubt)!
Don´t Try To "REFUEL":
As long as you aren’t underweight or at risk of falling underweight, avoid trying to “make up” calories or eating as if you were needing to compensate for your fasting window.
Eating 3 normal meal sizes will help you feel more comfortable, get better sleep and even lose weight during Ramadan. For example, you probably shouldn’t be eating twice as much as you normally would at dinner or after dinner. This will almost always result in you feeling poorly.
NUTRITION TIMING:
Eat like a king at Suhoor, a prince at Iftar and a pauper before bed.
You should absolutely enjoy community meals and social time eating and drinking together during Ramadan. However, try to stop eating within two hours of when you plan to go to sleep. This will help you sleep better but also conserve better blood sugar control.
Sleep is so important part of this whole equation, you can read more on tips to get good sleep HERE. But getting enough sleep helps with regulating appetite and sugar cravings, while lack of sleep, and sleep loss are associated with more low and high blood sugar events, uncontrollable cravings, diabetes and other metabolic dysfunctions.
The art of balanced meals and Nutrition Timing.
Mastering this, will help you put together your meals so you feel better. For example simple carbohydrate intake and consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages are proven to affect your sleep in not so good way, so does high fat meals close to bedtime because fat takes the longest to digest and both can give your heart burn and gastric distress when you are trying to get some sleep.
This is not because fat and sugar are bad and you should avoid it all together. But you can place it in a different meal, because that slow digestive quality of fat and protein makes its better suited for the last meal before dawn. For example drinking low-sugar but protein and fruit-rich smoothies or overnight oats with peanut butter or full fat coconut milk before dawn can help to reduce hunger levels during the day. And the higher sugar things are great in your post workout meal, to replenish your energy and get you back on track!
Here Are Some Suggestions to how you can tweak your nutrition timing during RAMADAN, Broken Down Meal For Meal
Iftar: Keeping this meal lighter is a good idea, so you can eat again within 2-3 hours before bedtime and also you plan to Train in this window, if fasted training is not for you.
Have some simple sugars, fruit or 3-5 Dates.
750-1000 ml Water with electrolytes
Coffee
Then
Soup with chicken/beans
Bread or Rice
Stay away from too much protein and fat, since that might upset your stomach and digest super slow and you won´t feel hungry again until…. tomorrow.
Wait 1-4 hours before next meal
2nd Meal At Night: Your typical Dinner / Launch Meal: In A Portion Size that matches your activity levels and goals (message me if you are in doubt here)
Whole grains— See CARBS for inspiration
Fresh vegetables— The More Colours The Better
Protein— See PROTEIN for more inspiration
Healthy fat—See FAT for inspiration
& if you like pick the number one dessert that you crave the most, in small amount. (20% rule)
Sehri (pre-sunrise meal/dawn meal). The last balanced meal that will help your blood sugar remain most stable, which gives you good energy. Try to build it up in the same way, focusing on getting protein and fat in this meal since it will keep you full for longer.
Whole grains—sources include whole grain cereal, whole grain bread, brown rice, and oatmeal.
Fresh fruits and vegetables—check out the produce section for dozens of ideas!
Protein—sources include milk, yogurt, eggs, nuts.
Healthy fat—sources are nuts and olives.
I get the most questions about this meal, so here are some easy combinations in addition to drinking water with electrolytes during sehri:
Oatmeal made with low-fat milk and topped with fruit and nuts.
A bowl of whole-grain cereal and low-fat milk, topped with fruit and nuts.
A piece of whole-grain toast, a boiled egg, and a piece of fruit.
A peanut butter sandwich on whole grain bread and a glass of low-fat milk.
A banana or apple with peanut butter and a glass of low-fat milk.
A bowl of vegetable soup, a piece of whole grain toast, and a glass of low-fat milk.
Whole-wheat couscous salad with mixed vegetables, olive oil, and canned tuna.
Like I started out with saying, see this as a chance to PLAY. It’s important to experiment, to find what works for you. Depending on your sleeping schedule, you may want to experiment with how often and when you eat to keep your energy up.
Here are some visual guides from Precision Nutrition.
Feel free to use these traffic light systems for inspiration on good sources for carbs, protein, fat and fruit/vegetables! I would recommend 80% of your food comes from the green/yellow categories and 20% of your food comes from the Red Category.
When it comes to fruit and vegetables, feel free to eat the whole rainbow!
This was a lot of information,
but I want you to lean in and trust how your body feels. Every person is individual and may feel best with different ways of eating. If you're having trouble with fasting and these tips don't work for you, then feel free to reach out - tell me what isn't working. And together lets find a solution for you.
And last, but not least...
Celebrate!
This is the most joyous month of the year! Enjoy meals with others, exercise goodwill, and be patient with your body and with others.
