THE ULTIMATE MUSCLE BUILDING GUIDE IN RAMADAN

The Ultimate Muscle Building Guide in Ramadan

Fasting during the summer is hard: longer fasts and shorter time to eat, especially since it falls during the warmest summer months this year and the following ones. If you are planning to quit your exercise routine during Ramadan and enjoy your time at home or with your friends, think again! As that might sound nice for a second, it’s kind of a terrible plan. If you let your workout and diet routine fall, you’re going to be stuck with weeks of recovery after that, which may slower any progress towards your fitness goals.

Hope you do decide to keep training though; it’s a great way of keeping your energy levels up and maintaining the same base toward your goal during the holy month. Well, if you’re planning to gain more muscles in Ramadan and need answers to: how to train in Ramadan? When to train? What to eat? And when to eat?  Then this article is definitely for you. We bring you today some tips on how to maintain your diet plans and fast healthier during Ramadan, that when the holy month ends and Eid comes you’ll be looking and feeling great.

Body Building & Mass Gaining in Ramadan

The newest research on fasting has found that despite the fact that you have to eat 4 to 6 meals a day to gain muscle mass, fasting can still increase lean muscle size if you are committed to solid workout and diet plans, and here are some tips that will teach you how:

Stay Hydrated

As soon as you break your fast, concentrate on getting rehydrated first. You are going to be thirstier than you are hungry. By rehydrating first, you are helping to prevent yourself from overeating. Alternatively instead of drinking water just by itself you can break your fast and quench your thirst by adding Xtend BCAAs to your water, as it provides the correct amount of BCAAs and Glutamine with zero gram of carbs and no sugar at all, which helps you rehydrate and also allow you train longer, harder and with more intensity without feeling thirsty the day after.

Eat Like a Professional Bodybuilder

You’ve probably heard the advice that eating small meals throughout the day is how you keep your metabolism active, stave off hunger and control blood sugar, well, Ramadan is not an exception. To maximize the results of your training during Ramadan, try:

• Eat half meal at Iftar that contains a high quantity of complex carbs. This is because carbohydrates and stored glycogen can be converted into ATP (adenoise triphosphate, i.e. energy) faster than protein and fat. Therefore, filling up your glycogen stores pre-workout will mean you’ll have more energy to perform at your best.
• Follow you training with a protein shake. It’s an essential ingredient for achieving optimal progress in physique enhancement and performance. after a workout is one of the best time to get protein into the body, especially in Ramadan, as protein can be delivered to your muscles, to start building and healing the tears caused by contraction during high intense workouts.
• Eat protein bars instead of sweets. Protein bars can be very convenient, filling, and satisfy your sweet tooth unlike Ramadan Arabian sweets which are filled with sugar and lead to weight gain.
• Suhoor should be taken as close to possible to sunrise. We advise you to eat high protein foods such as eggs, cottage cheese and porridge oats. Finally, don’t forget about casein protein, one of the top sources of long-lasting amino acids and proteins which can help you to go that extra mile in the gym and increase strength and power.

Train after Iftar and be Realistic

For most people, the optimal time to train is when it best suits your lifestyle and when you know you can go to the gym with focus, motivation, and energy and Ramadan in not an exception.

Forget six training sessions per week. Train a maximum of 3-4 times a week with a low volume strategy in mind. Start your workout 2-3 hours after Iftar and train only for 45-60 minutes. This exposes your body to a balanced training routine throughout the week, which enables the body to adapt, get stronger and recover faster.

Here’s an example of a common once-per-week workout routine:

Saturday: Chest
Sunday: Shoulders
Monday: Off
Tuesday: Back + Legs
Wednesday: Biceps + Triceps
Thursday: Off
Friday: Off