I’ve neglected the “Body” aspect of “Mind, Body, Soul”. While there are so many spiritual benefits to fasting in Ramadan, we should also remember that this is a time when we are perfecting the technique of “Mind over Matter” by controlling the hunger and appetite of our bodies. So we should also reflect somewhat on the “Matter” part of the equation. Unlike many traditions I don’t believe Islam supports the idea that creating a healthy soul translates to creating an unhealthy body. In fact, I am a firm believer that a healthy spirit can only help rejuvenate the body. So with this spirit of improvement in mind I will employ some of the health and fitness knowledge I’ve gained over the years to outline some beneficial points both for you and me.

Ramadan is not about losing weight, but I find that it is a strong signal of whether I am fasting properly. We may have all heard the sad stories of people who end up gaining weight in Ramadan, and this post may help answer why.

It all comes down to whether you are in the -spirit- of Ramadan? What sort of fasting is it if you are eating, in quantity and calories, than what you would have eaten any other day?

You can easily use these calculators to determine how many calories you burn a day (and it’s always useful to know a little more about yourself, isn’t it?):

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harris-benedict-equation/
or
http://medicine.uchc.edu/departments/facdev/nutrition/cal.htm

When you eat less than these numbers, you will lose weight (and eventually have to recalculate your maintenance). When you eat more calories, you will gain weight. I’ll avoid the specifics of ketogenic (Atkins/South Beach) diets, and it is needless to say there are some aspects of them which are useful as well, but they do not change the overall law of nature: you need to eat less to lose weight.

When fasting most people will be reducing their calories by the mere fact that they have only 4-5 hours to consume food, and they are unable to make up all the calories they would have eaten if they were capable of eating the full time that they were awake.

However, what is common among Muslims today is that they gorge themselves at Iftaar time on fried foods which contain huge amounts of calories, making the person ‘make-up’ any missed calories in those few short hours.

So, tonight, are you going over your maintenance number or not? One easy way to determine this without any math is if you are patting your belly while loosening your zarband / belt (whichever applies).

Another, more foolproof way to determine the answer is to keep track of this information. You can keep estimates in your head or you can use a free website which helps with just that: http://www.fitday.com. Simply make your own custom foods by reading the back of the label and put it in there, or look through their existing database of foods. Then enter your portions and you are done.

Although during the beginning of Ramadan you will be losing a lot of water (this is natural), it is important to realize this is not an excuse to gorge yourself either. You haven’t lost any actual fat yet, even if the scale is saying otherwise. It takes a 3000-3500 calories deficit to lose one pound. If you spread it out, that means if you eat 500 calories less than the maintenance you calculated above you will lose one pound of body tissue in that week.

Tada! The mystery of weight loss/weight gain becomes a lot less mysterious!

Now, notice I said body tissue, not -fat-. This is because when your body begins digesting itself, it rarely distinguishes between fat and muscle.

Muscle loss is a huge problem in our elderly community, so please be aware of this fact for you and your loved ones if you ignore all the rest.

Muscle is something your body desires to get rid of. Biologically speaking, its active tissue, it requires constant food and attention from your body to keep muscle tissue alive. Your body would much rather get rid of muscle than consume its own fat, which sits comfortably on your stomach or thighs requiring little attention.

And here again the -spirit- of Ramadan affects your body as well. Relaxing, sleeping, being lazy through most of the day when fasting really exacerbates muscle loss. Besides, what true type of fast is it if you are unable to remember it at all?

To ensure you are losing weight in a healthy manner, you simply need to send a signal to your body that the muscle you carry is -needed-. And that signal is sent by remaining active. If you have a desk job, there is no need to go to extremes, but do some yardwork, a few pushups, or lift a few weights, this sends a strong signal to your body that the muscle it carries is -needed-.

So keep the spirit of Ramadan alive as well, eat well, be active, and you’ll end up lean and healthy both spiritually and physically.