Exercising During Fasting, Pay Attention To The Choice Of Type Of Exercise And Time To Do It

Sports illustration. (Pexels / Julia Larson)

JAKARTA - Fasting for some people is still a scourge to reduce activity and productivity, including for exercising. The classic reasons are certainly different sleep patterns and lack of fluids.

In fact, taking the time to exercise while fasting helps to maintain the body's energy, the mind remains clear and the body's metabolism is stable.

"The holy month should not make you give up on maintaining fitness. Instead, make Ramadan a time to refresh yourself, so you can work out in the gym with vigor after Ramadan", said personal fitness trainer Ahmed Al Sayed reported The National News, Thursday, April 15.

He explained that there are three types of sports that are good for maintaining health and fitness during Ramadan, namely strength, cardio, and flexibility training.

Jogging illustration. (Unsplash / Shoeib Abolhassani)

Ahmed explained, for muscle strength training, the loss of muscle mass will slow down metabolism. Exercises performed to avoid both, muscle loss and decreased metabolic rate.

"Regarding cardio, I recommend a light intensity session, limited to 30 minutes at a slow and steady distance, once every other day. Remember, you will become dehydrated, so your body will use your stored fat as a source of energy, especially if you do cardio exercise before breaking the fast", he explained.

"Also pay attention to warming up and cooling down after exercise. To avoid a drop in blood pressure", continued Ahmed.

As for resistance training, Ahmed suggests choosing exercises that target the upper body before the lower body to avoid dropping your blood pressure during or after.

"The last aspect of fitness to focus on is flexibility to avoid mobility-related problems that you may face, especially when you are exercising normally again after Ramadan and during the Eid holidays", he said.

Illustration. (Pexels / William Choquette)

Choosing the right time to exercise during Ramadan is important. In addition to maintaining fitness, it can also affect your activities. Here are four time options for exercising during Ramadan.

90 Minutes Before Iftar

Light exercise before breaking your fast, means you can immediately replenish yourself with water, and reap the benefits of exercising on an empty stomach.

It is a good idea to do resistance training, repetitions, and low weights, paying attention to stretching. This is also the perfect time to do a brisk walk or just light jogging.

After dinner

Although cardio is difficult to do on a full stomach, about an hour after breaking your fast is a great time to do weight training. On days you plan to exercise after meals, you may want to add a little extra food to refuel your body. And, make sure you drink plenty of water to rehydrate.

11 p.m. - 2 a.m.

Exercising at this time is also good for those of you who are used to exercising at night. After eating, you have a little time to settle down and your body is completely dehydrated. If you manage to rest in the afternoon. Exercising at this time can be beneficial, as it is cooler than during the day. And, after that, you still have a few hours to rest, before getting up to start the day.

3 a.m. - 4 a.m.

For those of you who wake up early, the best time to exercise may be before eating a meal. This way, you will have the energy from the previous dinner, but on an empty stomach. You can hydrate your body during exercise and when you're done, eat some more to refuel. This method will also keep you energized for the day ahead.