Training and nutrition during Ramadan

Check your health first

Islam provides exemptions from fasting for people who are ill, travelling, pregnant, breastfeeding or menstruating, and for older people for whom fasting would be a hardship. Your imam or a scholar you trust can advise on your own situation.

From a medical point of view, speak to your GP, practice nurse or pharmacist before Ramadan if you:

• Have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, especially if you use insulin or tablets that can cause low blood sugar
• Have kidney disease, heart disease or high blood pressure
• Take regular medication that may need its timing or dose changed
• Are pregnant or breastfeeding and considering fasting
• Have a history of eating disorders

During training, stop and break your fast if you feel faint, confused, very dizzy, have chest pain or a racing heart, or show signs of low blood sugar. Islamic guidance allows a fast to be broken when continuing would harm your health. Chest pain or collapse needs a 999 call.

When to train

There are three common options, each with trade-offs. Many people use a mix across the week.

• In the hour or so before iftar. You can eat and drink soon after finishing. Best for light to moderate sessions such as technique work, mobility or easy strength. Avoid long, sweaty conditioning, because you cannot replace fluid until sunset.
• One to two hours after iftar. Break the fast with dates, water and something light, train, then have your main meal. This is usually the best slot for harder strength or conditioning work, because you are fuelled and can drink during the session.
• Late at night or before suhoor. Works for some people, but it eats into sleep, which is already short during Ramadan.

Depending on sunset times, evening classes such as the 6pm and 7pm sessions on the Lycan Strength timetable may fall just before or soon after iftar. Every class is scalable, so tell the coach you are fasting and they can adjust the intensity or volume for you.

Adjusting your training

Treat Ramadan a little like an extended lighter block. Keep lifting, because regular training holds on to strength and muscle, but lower the demands.

• Keep the main lifts but drop a set or two from each exercise
• Work a couple of reps further from failure than usual
• Swap long, hard conditioning for shorter intervals or easier steady work
• Leave personal bests and testing for after Eid
• Take an extra rest day if sleep has been poor

This is a normal and sensible approach, not a step backwards. Our guide to deload weeks explains why lighter periods help rather than hurt long-term progress.

What to eat at suhoor

Suhoor needs to carry you through the day, so it is worth getting up for, even if it is small. Build it around slower-digesting carbohydrate, protein and fluid.

• Carbohydrate: porridge oats, wholemeal bread, chapati, brown rice or muesli
• Protein: eggs, Greek yoghurt, milk, cheese, beans, lentils or leftover chicken
• Fluid and water-rich foods: water, milk, fruit such as melon and oranges, cucumber and tomato
• Go easy on: very salty foods such as pickles, salted crisps and processed meats, which increase thirst during the day

Porridge made with milk and topped with fruit and a spoon of yoghurt, or eggs with wholemeal toast and a glass of milk, are simple options that give steady energy and around 25 to 30 g of protein.

Iftar, the evening and fluids

Many people open the fast with dates and water, following the practice of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Dates are also a practical choice: they provide quick carbohydrate after a day without food. A bowl of soup such as lentil soup is a good next step before the main meal.

Iftar is often a shared family or community meal, and fried favourites such as samosas and pakoras are part of that. There is no need to cut them out. Enjoy some, then make sure the main meal includes protein, carbohydrate and vegetables. Rice or chapati with a meat, chicken, fish or lentil curry and a salad is ideal.

To protect muscle, aim for three protein feeds between sunset and dawn: iftar, a snack or meal after training or Taraweeh, and suhoor. Together these should reach roughly the daily targets in how much protein you need.

For fluids, sip steadily through the evening and night rather than drinking a large amount at once, which mostly passes straight through. A glass of water every hour or so from iftar to bedtime, plus drinks at suhoor, works for most people. Our guide to hydration for training has more detail, and good sleep for recovery matters just as much this month, so a short daytime nap can help if your schedule allows.