Training while fasting: what I tell every client before Ramadan

You will not build your best year of strength during Ramadan, and you do not need to. The goal is to come out of the month with the muscle and habits you went in with.

Every year around the second week of Ramadan, my inbox fills with the same message: I feel weak, I have stopped training, I will start again after Eid. By the time Eid ends, four weeks off has become eight. The month itself is rarely the problem. The plan, or the lack of one, is.

When to train

For most of my clients the best slot is 60 to 90 minutes after iftar. You have eaten, you have rehydrated, and you are not training on an empty tank. Keep iftar light enough to move: dates, water, soup and a moderate plate, then the bigger meal after the session. Training an hour before iftar works for some people, but only for short sessions, and never in a hot gym.

I cut volume by roughly a third. If a client normally does four sets of squats, they do three, and they stop one or two reps short of failure. Three sessions a week of 40 minutes is plenty. Ramadan is a maintenance block, and treating it like one is what keeps people consistent.

What to eat between iftar and suhoor

Protein is the number that matters most. Aim for 1.6 grams per kilo of body weight across two meals, which for an 80 kg man is around 130 grams. That means real portions: grilled chicken or fish at iftar, eggs, labneh and Greek yoghurt at suhoor. A shake after training makes the maths easier.

Water is the other one. Spread two to three litres between iftar and suhoor, a glass every hour rather than a litre at once. Go easy on the qatayef and the sugary juices; I do not ban them, but I ask clients to have them once or twice a week, not every night.

Sleep will be broken, so protect what you can. A 20-minute nap in the afternoon does more for your training than any supplement. If you have to choose between a late session and seven hours of sleep, choose the sleep.

Clients who follow this usually finish Ramadan within a kilo of where they started, with their lifts intact. That is a win. The ones who stop completely lose two to three weeks of progress, and spend Shawwal getting back to where they were.