What & How To Train During Ramadan?
It’s that wonderful time of the year again for Muslims across the world to reflect, to pray, to celebrate and most importantly, to fast from sunrise until sunset which means no food, no water & no drinks for upto 18 hours. This is a very important season for religious and spiritual reasons.
A big question I often get from the Fitness Junkies is this. How can I carry on with my Ramadan practice and not neglect my daily training & workout routine at the same time?
Because it is important, while celebrating not to forget about the body completely but make sure to look after one’s self during Ramadan & stay healthy. But with the change in habits and fasting for upto 18 hours, the body can only handle so much training volume without breaking down.
That is why my first and most important training tip for Ramadan is to focus your effort, and get really specific on what results you want to achieve. Here are some tips on how you can do that.
First Things First, What Results Are You Looking For?
In a world full of options, and 100.000 different training programs one could follow. Before we start to look at how you can go about adjusting training timings, nutrition ect. It can be helpful to start by setting goals to determine what outcome YOU want from YOUR efforts this month.
Setting goals before deciding what routines to focus on is Kind of like deciding if you want a vanilla cake or chocolate cake before you start mixing the batter or deciding on what kind of cuisine you're into before going out for dinner. With specific goals in mind some of the smaller decisions tend to fall into place and become a duh of course things on your to do list.
Help To Setting Goals That Motivate & Guide You:
When it comes to adjusting your daily training & workout routine, setting goals is the key. In order to be effective, one must determine where his or her efforts should be directed to. Setting goals direct our attention to the important tasks & highlights what needs to be completed. It mobilises our efforts as it enables us to perform in ways that help us move toward what we want to achieve.
There are 3 types of goals we need to be aware of when planning for a whole month like this – Outcome, Performance & Process and allow me to briefly define the 3.
Outcome Goal is the end result, common outcome goals I have helped clients set to keep them on track through Ramadan is to MAINTAIN STRENGTH/WEIGHT, LOSE WEIGHT, INCREASE CARDIO. As you can see it's the headline of what you would like to have achieved at the end of the month.
Performance Goals are the partial components or standards of your outcome goal independent of other variables.This could be losing weight while maintaining muscle mass, lowering body fat with 3%, increasing cardiovascular fitness to be able to run 5 km without stopping or in under 20 min. Maintain strength so you can still squat 5x5 rep @ 100 kg after Ramadan ends.
Process goal on the other hand, is the actions that are needed to be taken to be able to execute the goal correctly. These are the things we are going to be plotting into your schedule and making sure it fits with your RAMADAN schedule. Such as prioritising protein intake in morning and dinner meals, hydrating after fasting, Strength training 4x week after iftar to maintain strength
Now, Let's Do It, Set Yourself Some Goals
Take a moment to write down in notes on your phone or a piece of paper what OUTCOME goal you would like to achieve, by the end of ramadan or maybe you have a bigger outcome goal in mind 6-12 months down the line. This goal should spark some feelings in you, either being scared of it or really passionate about achieving this. If you say it outloud and dont feel anything, it’s very unlikely you will achieve it so pick carefully here.
Once That is clear you can move on to Performance Goals, listing down some part components of your outcome goal that you can focus on achieving while you work towards your goal, these are the weekly/monthly I have to´s your non negotiables.
Once you have an OUTCOME and Performance goals in mind, what you would like to have achieved by the end of Ramadan - then let's dive in and talk Process.
Determine your Process Goals.
Besides from picking a goal that awokes some feelings in you, this is the second most important step. Take time to pause & assess. What kind of training is a non negotiable, and WILL help you achieve my performance goals if done consistently through Ramadan.
For example, if your performance goal is to run a 5 km within 20 minutes, your Process goal should most likely be to run 3x each week.
If you aim to lose weight your process goal should likely be to move a little every day, and eat a balanced diet and avoid too many sweets.
If your Outcome Goal is to get stronger, your process goal should be strength training 3-4 x pr week and making sure you hit your protein targets throughout the week despite fasting.
Take your time and find your 5 KEY THINGS, that will if done consistently bring you the results you want.
1-2x Nutrition things,
1-2x Training things
1-2x sleep lifestyle things that you can do, despite fasting, sleeping weirdly ect.
Write It Down: Determine the specifics and timings:
Determining your timings of your habits is important, especially during Ramadan. It is proven that if you set a specific time for habits you are more likely to be successful at them. Because it's unlikely you will FEEL LIKE IT at the moment.
So if you need to do your training before Iftar to focus on family time and eating at night, write down what days you are going to train, how long and tell a friend.
If you are going to only eat sweets on the weekends, write down what you will be having for dinner and a strategy for what you will do IF the sweet cravings set in at night.
If you are going to focus on your hydration and get up at 4 am to drink water with electrolytes, write down how much water you are going to drink and set an alarm to help you remember.
Find support and assistance where it is needed.
Next step is to reach out and find accountability partners, help and assistance where it is needed. You do not need to know the whole way, perhaps you can only see the first step now and this process has shown you you need help.
This is the point where you reach out ot a personal trainer, nutritionist for services and assistance. Or perhaps your sister to go with you on walks every day before iftar.
We as humans function better when we work with others, and keep each other accountable. With that in mind, I have several of offers for both training and nutrition support during this month.
Here are my programs specially designed for RAMADAN: Both programs come with exclusive 3x 30 min webinars on goal setting, nutrition and sleep to help you tune your nutrition to make sure you are hitting your targets and adjusting your habits. AND weekly Q&A sessions with me to ask questions, troubleshoot and connect with others going through the same journey.
Ramadan STRONG: Strength Training Program: This Remote Strength Training Program that helps you maintain your strength and muscle mass throughout Ramadan. Built up as 4 sessions per week, you can easily do these sessions after a light iftar meal, before your dinner and make sure you won't lose your gains. All the workouts have options and variations for HOME training with simple equipment or GYM option if you are attending a gym this month. . SEE MORE
Ramadan LEAN - Strength + Conditioning Training Program: This Remote Training Program for self-training and is designed with workouts that help you lean out or lose weight during Ramadan last but not least increase your fitness levels. All the workouts have options and variations for HOME training with simple equipment or GYM option if you are attending a gym this month. The workouts are suitable for all abilities, beginners as well as advanced and are FUN. SEE MORE
If you’re interested & really want to make sure you stay true to your fitness goals even during this special season, allow me to help you by joining one of the programs, specially crafted for Ramadan.
Much Love & enjoy this season!
