How to lose weight During Ramadan? ( Weight Loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting)

Ramadan is a holy month in Islam religion. It is the month of mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. The purpose of Ramadan is the purification of the soul, internal meditation, and regeneration to come closer to the creator of the world, to worship him and to seek forgiveness. During Ramadan healthy Muslims fast from dawn to sunset. Hence it is the best opportunity to follow your religious duties as well as lose weight at the same time. A lot of our readers and youtube channel viewers demanded a Weight loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting. So here we are to provide you all the need information about how to lose weight during Ramadan.

How to lose weight During Ramadan?

While following Ramadan Fasting, During the whole day, you can neither eat nor drink water. This lasts for almost a month. The only time to eat is before sunrise (Suhoor) and after sunset (Iftaar). There is no dietary restriction on what to eat and what not to eat. The only restriction is to eat before and after sunset. Nothing is to be eaten during the daytime. There is total abstinence from alcohol. Even with this change in the diet, an individual’s work routine remains the same throughout the day. Before we see how to lose weight during Ramadan? and the weight loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting, We should know about the changes in the body.

What happens to the body during normal fasting?

• The body uses glucose as the main source of energy on regular days. However while fasting, the body starts getting energy from glycogen. The carbohydrate stored in the liver provides glucose after its breakdown. This lasts for up to about 4 to 8 hours.
• Post 8 hours the body starts breaking down protein to get the energy.
• In the end, the body uses fat as a source of energy. The fats break down into ketones that provide energy.
• It is very much like intermittent fasting.

What happens to the body during Ramadan fasting?

• During Ramadan, an individual starts and ends his day with some food.
• This restricts the body to completely go into starvation.
• Thus the body utilizes only carbohydrates and proteins from body and the breakdown of fats seldom happens.
• The body thus utilizes only stored carbohydrates and proteins.

Reasons why you do not lose weight during Ramadan:

• Less activity and feeling lazy as well as skipping workouts:

Most People fear working out during the fast. Yes, it is best to avoid intense workouts during the fasting periods. However, you can fill up this gap by being active at home or workplace, walking around the available space. Even a 45 mins brisk walk after Iftaar will help you burn calories and lose weight.

• Consuming an enormous quantity of food during iftar:

It is natural to think about food, food, and food all day long while fasting. Hence most of us end up eating huge quantities of food at iftar which might lead to feeling nausea or over-stuffed. This can be the main hurdle between you and your weight loss. Despite the full-day fasting, you will not be able to achieve your weight loss goal.

• Consuming High calorie and high-fat food at suhoor and iftar:

It is not just the quantity of food you eat, but also what’s on your plate that affects your weight loss. High-calorie, fried food, as well as food that does not satisfy your nutritional requirements are all culprits that stand between you and your weight loss.

• Excessive intake of salt:

When you consume a high amount of salt in your diet,  it will not only lead to water retention but also make you feel thirsty during the day.

• Excessive intake of Sugar:

Desserts are the most famous items during suhur and iftar. excess sugar intake will not only deposit in your body as fat, but it will also spike your insulin levels. These increased insulin levels will make you feel hungry more often and you will end up craving more sweets and sugar. It is a vicious cycle.

• Read: What to eat during Ramadan. This is a one-stop guide for general dos and dont’s on the Ramadan diet.

How to lose weight during Ramadan?

Ramadan means skipping regular meals. With meals skipped there is definitely weight loss in the mind. But this is not what always happens. With long hours of fasting people tend to eat more. They binge on high carbohydrates, high fats, and high-calorie foods. This leads to the opposite effect of weight gain. Then how to lose weight during Ramadan? and achieve your dream body?  Intermittent fasting is the key to this puzzle.

What is intermittent fasting?

We have already read in our earlier articles about intermittent fasting. Practicing brief periods of fasting with either no food or significant calorie reduction is known as intermittent fasting. This helps in weight reduction. Intermittent fasting means you eat fewer meals than before. This reduces calorie intake independent of the quantity and quality of food eaten during the meals.  It is a more flexible approach that does not require precise calorie calculations and involves less planning.

What happens to the body during intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting reduces insulin levels to normal which helps utilization of your fat stores. So reducing the insulin levels in the body is the key to weight loss during Ramadan.

What is the difference between Ramadan fasting and intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is almost similar to what people follow during Ramadan. There are not more than 2 meals in a day with prolong fasting between the 2 meals. The only difference lies in the aim and motive behind fasting. One has a religious and spiritual reason and the other is to lose weight. How about if you combine both the purposes and follow a perfect eating pattern?

Weight loss tips to follow during Ramadan:

Eating right, nutritious foods during non-fasting hours has a big role in the health benefits.

• Cooking methods: Chose to use recipes that require steaming, baking, grilling, barbequing instead of frying.

• Incorporate more of the vegetarian diet and select non vegetarian options wisely.

• Adequately hydrate yourselves and replenish body water and minerals.

• Break the fast with warm lemon water or lemon chia water or green juice along with 1 or 2 dates and nuts.

• Include more complex carbohydrates like brown rice, whole-grain flour, quinoa, millets, etc. These complex carbohydrates prevent a sudden spike in blood sugars and provide sustained energy for a longer duration.

• Use whole fruits and vegetables that are rich in vitamins, minerals, and fiber and low in calories. Consider consuming at least two servings of vegetables per meal. It gives fullness that helps to drop in sugar during the whole day.

• At iftar eat high-quality protein with essential amino acids. Include lean protein like fish, skinless chicken, eggs, and low-fat dairy products. You can also replace some of your non vegetarian options with pulses, dals, or sprouts.

• Try and not over-feed yourself thinking that the body will have to fast for long hours.

• Eat slow and chew properly so the body utilizes each and every nutrient available.

• Avoid fried, junk and desserts to gain maximum benefit of fasting during Ramadan. Avoid red meat as much as possible.

Weight Loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting:

Here is a sample of the weight-loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting. This diet plan provides

• 1500 kcal diet plan
• 80 gms proteins

Suhoor (Before Sunrise):

1 glass Kahwa with dry fruits

+ 1 Big Buddha Bowl (Stir-fried soaked Quinoa + crunchy salad vegetable sticks + 2 Boiled eggs + Hummus paste + flax seeds)

+ Walnut Berry Yoghurt 1 Cup (No sugar)

OR

1 glass green juice

+ 1 bowl Date Rice Porridge in milk

+ Grilled chicken

+ 1 Cup Salad

Iftaar (After Sunset):

Break the fast with warm lemon water OR  lemon chia water OR  green juice

+ 1 or 2 dates

+ 2 tsp sunflower seeds + pumpkin seeds + flax seeds ( mix all the seeds together).

Meal options are as follows : 

+ 1 bowl Chicken broccoli stew with 1 Cup brown rice

+ ½ cup Mushroom Tikka masala

+ 1 Cup Vegetable Raita

OR

1 bowl Shirazi Salad

+ 1 Cup Chicken Biryani (brown rice) / Grilled fish with rice

+ 2 – 3 Barbequed Stuffed Egg-plant

+ 1 cup plain curd

Endnote:

A careful selection of the recipes will help fat loss, increased metabolic rate, lower blood sugar levels, and boost the immune system. Healthy eating during Ramadan helps. I hope this write-up on How to lose weight During Ramadan? ( Weight Loss diet plan during Ramadan fasting) helps you. Please subscribe to our youtube channel.