Ramadan is right around the corner and although it is a beautiful opportunity to get closer to Allah, it also let’s us get healthier. However, we tend to let go of that opportunity by consuming more and more of the unhealthy food. We stack up on frozen items, and as we help ourselves to the tenth serving of samosa and pakora, we tell ourselves that we deserve it after the fourteen hours of fast (more than half of which is spent sleeping – you know I’m right).
As much as I love this routine in Ramadan, I have told myself not to continue with this behavior. I am getting married in three months, InShaAllah, and I need to shed some pounds to look confident in my bridal dress. Ramadan has always been the month, I’ve gained a lot of extra kilos in, but this time, if I can’t lose any, I’m gonna try my hardest not to gain either.
Here’s what I’ve planned for my Ramadan Weight Loss routine that I’m certain is healthy and is gonna work if I go through with it honestly. If you decide to join in, leave a like and a comment.
16:8
Two months ago, I discovered that intermittent fasting worked for me. You can check out my 16:8 diet plan as well. So, basically in 16:8 intermittent fasting, you have an eight hour eating period and the rest of the sixteen hours, you have to fast. During the fast you can drink black coffee or green tea; basically, any zero calories food or drink. This worked best because I’d stop eating at eight and that would give me four to five hours of no food before sleeping (which is always good).
This Ramadan, I have decided to incorporate this method to my routine. However, since the fast starts from Fajar till Maghrib, it’s impossible to continue with 16:8 diet exactly the way it was. So, I have tweaked it according to Ramadan routine, while keeping all the important key points in my mind that help it in working well.
Where I live, we have a fourteen hours fast. I have decided to add an extra hour before and after the fast. Here’s what to do:
Stop eating one hour before you start fasting. This will give you a whole hour of drinking water, green tea and black coffee (if you want) without drinking it all at once, and feeling heavy and uncomfortable later. Similarly, Eating one hour after you open your fast (with a date or salt or water), you can utilize that one hour to pray, and slowly drink your water, and then as that hour has passes you will feel a soft hunger instead of starvation and you can eat a normal amount of food. This technique makes sure that you don’t eat everything all at once because you feel like you’re starving and that you “deserve it”.
The First Drink
I’ve discovered that having lukewarm water with some honey and lemon in it half hour before consuming food every single morning can really help boost your metabolism, and result in faster weight loss. But how to continue that practice in Ramadan? Simple. Just have that drink as soon as you open your fast, then give yourself an hour before eating anything. This will make sure that the drink does its job, that you stay true to your 16:8 diet, and that you stay healthy.
Healthier Choices
Fasting or intermittent fasting (or both) doesn’t mean that it’s okay to consume anything and everything at Iftar and Sehri. For me, I’ve decided to switch my parathas with a simple roti in Sehri with whatever curry is cooked that day, and I’ve decided not to eat any fried food or have soft drinks. Water works fine (you can have lemonade), and fried items don’t really give you nutrition or make you feel full. Instead go for your regular dinner and call it a day.
Timing
What to do in the time between sehri and iftari? It is your eating period, after all. You choose to eat right. Have fruits and salad, and drink plenty of water. You don’t have to have a whole other meal because there isn’t a lot of time between sehri and iftari anyway.
I used to have a lot of tea with my sehri, but since it made me feel bulky (with all the food in my belly and tea on top of it), I decided to switch up the timing. I’ll have my tea an hour before my sehri. This will make sure that I stay fulfilled before sehri, and that I can enjoy my cup of tea in peace (which is essential).
So, timing these things thoughtfully can make it way to easier for you to continue with the Ramadan fitness plan.
When to Work Out
Ramadan has a routine of its own, and most of the times, we don’t really have the stamina to work out as much as we would like to. And that’s okay. Don’t be too hard on yourself. But when you do have the stamina and the time to work out, you must wonder what’s the best time to exercise.
For me, it’s whenever you feel comfortable. However, I’ve chosen two times for my workout routine. Either before opening the fast, or when I’m awake before sehri, I can get sweating, and would be able to drink water in between except for working out while I’m fasting, which would just lower my energy and make me feel light headed. Working out while you’re fasting might even result in more consumption of food, and that too before your one hour mark is completed after Maghrib.
For me, the best thing to do is open my fast with lukewarm water, with honey and lemon. Then offer prayer, take a half hour walk, and then have dinner. Then around two hours before my sehri, I’d workout for another half an hour; nothing too intense, but some yoga, some skipping rope, and a set of any part of the body I’m doing that day (abs, legs, arms, etc.).
So, there you have it! My Ramadan weight loss plan. Hope this post helped you out. Drop below any questions you might have.
Till next time,
Stay blessed.
-Munazza Bangash
Munazza Bangash 