Special Note - East Africa famine & drought 2011

For all who are in the know, I will be running the Great Scottish Run 2011 Half Marathon next week for East Africa. This takes place in Glasgow and covers 13.1 miles.

I am doing this to raise much needed funds for those less fortunate than ourselves where there is a growing humanitarian crisis taking place. Food is extremely scarce but drinking water is the main concern, as the current water flow is contaminated with disease and insects.

By donating to this worthwhile cause to Islamic Relief, we can all do our bit to ease the suffering of those who need our help the most

Please help

http://www.justgiving.com/iruneastafrica/

Thanks

The Fasting Month of Ramadhan – Keeping your Fitness Levels and Physique In Check !

I’ve been asked many times over the past few weeks on the so called ‘dilemma’ of sticking to an exercise program/routine during the month of Ramadhan. For the benefit of those who aren’t aware, Ramadhan is the ninth month in the Islamic Calendar and the entire month is spent fasting from dawn to dusk, by Muslims all over the world. Now, if you’re seriously into keeping fit, exercising, and weight training especially, you would know how important your meals are.. and therefore the ‘dilemma’. Many fitness enthusiasts, bodybuilders especially, go through a tough time this month because of the fear and reality of losing precious muscle mass because they’re not able to eat as efficiently as they should.

To Muslims out there.. while I read that there are many spiritual benefits to fasting during Ramadhan, I think that this is also a perfect time to exercise/practise your skills of ‘mind over matter’ by being in control of the body’s hunger and appetite. Not easy, I know.. but I believe that a healthy soul/spirit can only help rejuvenate the body, and not bring harm. So, with this positive mindset of ‘improvement’ in mind, here are my thoughts on keeping your fitness levels in check during the fasting month of Ramadhan.

Ramadhan is definitely not about losing weight, but weightloss can be a strong indication of whether you are fasting properly. I’ve heard of people who try to take the opportunity of this month to lose weight.. and although possible, I honestly believe that you’ll have a better success rate and more effective/productive weightloss if you were to attempt it while youre not fasting. I’ve also heard stories of people who end up gaining weight in Ramadhan.. now how do you let that happen? Geez..

What sort of fasting is it if you are eating the same amount/quantity in calories, than what you would be eating on any other day?

You can easily use the calculator at the link below (Use the Basal Metabolic Rate & the Harris Benedict Equation on the page) to roughly determine how many calories you burn a day :

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

Now let’s say that you end up with a daily calorie requirement of 1950 calories. When you eat less than 1950 calories per day, you WILL lose weight. When you eat more than 1950 calories, you WILL gain weight. The overall law of nature does not change : you need to eat less than what you need, to lose weight. Simple.

When people fast, most people would 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 I believe can be common among those who fast today is that there is a tendency for people to gorge themselves with fried foods which contain huge amounts of calories as the person tries to ‘make up’ for any missed calories in those few short hours.

Ask yourself right now.. are you going over your maintenance numbers or not? One obvious way to determine this without even having to whip out your calculator is if you are rubbing/patting your belly and having to loosen your belt after a meal.. you have obviously overeaten. Duhh!

Also, during the beginning of a long fasting period, you may lose a lot of water (which is natural), and therefore important to keep in mind that this is not an excuse to only stuff your face with more food just because your weighing scale tells you that you are lighter… because you havent lost any actual fat yet. It takes a 3500 calorie deficit to lose one pound, and if you spread this 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.

Notice that I said body tissue, and not bodyfat. This is because when your body begins digesting itself, it rarely distinguishes between fat and muscle. This is also known as muscle catabolism, which is the breakdown of muscle mass as a result of injury/immobilisation or poor dieting techniques. If you’ve ever been admitted/bedridden in the hospital for over a week.. you’ll know what I’m talking about.

You would be surprised to know that muscle is something your body desires to get rid of. Biologically speaking, its active tissue and it requires constant food and attention from your body to keep muscle tissue alive… in other words.. its quite a ‘hassle’ for your body to preserve muscle tissue, and your body would rather get rid of muscle than consume its own fat (which sits comfortably on your stomach or thighs or – insert problem fatty area here:_________… hehe – requiring very very little attention).

So here, once again, ‘reckless fasting’ for an extended period of time affects your body because relaxing too much, sleeping all day, and being lazy through most of the day when fasting really worsens muscle loss.

To maintain your physique and gains 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. Yes, in other words, if you’re a fitness enthusiast who wants to preserve your precious muscle mass during the fasting month.. you need to do some exercise at least. If you have a desk job, there is no need to go to extremes, but perhaps try some pushups, chin ups, or lift a few weights to send a ‘signal’ to your body that the muscle you’re carrying.. is NEEDED.

For the hardcore bodybuilder and the fitness enthusiast who wants to keep his/her physique in check, this means that while you won’t be able to pack on any serious muscle mass or make any outstanding progress towards your goals, you will be able to MAINTAIN most of what you have gained so far. So use this month of fasting to get comfortable with your body, your food intake, and hopefully, though not 100 percent – you’ll be able to maintain your fitness level at where it is today. Once the fasting month is over… then, you can go all out once again. Hitting the gym hard the day fasting is over may be a bit dissapointing as you will notice that you wont be in top form.. but it will only be a matter of days before your muscle memory kicks in, and you’ll be exactly where you last stopped.

How do I maintain a basic/maintenance-type exercise routine during the fasting month?
I’d like to point you to a write up found in this month’s newsletter at Fitness First, which can also be read at their website HERE – Fitness First’s Tips for Exercising during Ramadhan.

Some points that I personally feel is great advice is:
- Group Exercise classes as are a great way to stay motivated even when your schedule is not flexible.
- If you can only fit a 45-minute workout into your busy Ramadhan schedule, then make it a concentrated 45 minutes.

So people.. don’t get lazy, or discouraged because it’s the fasting month. Get smart, get active – and stay just the way you are. Happy fasting!

Ramadan - Mending Habits and Developing Character

This article has little or nothing to do with fitness, but is extremely beneficial for mental & spiritual health. Thanks again to Joe Habib and the guys at islamicity for providing this

Saq

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http://www.islamicity.com/articles/Articles.asp?ref=IC0211-1776

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Ramadan is the month of heightened Allah-consciousness, of attaining taqwa (piety), of training ourselves to be the best we can be; a month to initiate improvement of reputation, character and for the cultivation of good habits.
People who try their best to live by the highest values are surely people of integrity and indeed people of moral conscience. What is morality though?
Morality describes the principles that govern our behavior and relates to our behavior at three levels…

·         how we as individuals ensure that we are honest, just and compassionate.

·         how we interact with and contribute to society, as asset or liability.

·         how conscious we are of our accountability to our Creator.

Taqwa in an amoral world
In a world, increasingly amoral, perception is considered reality. How one appears to the world has overtaken the substance of who we really are. Impressions, whether real or fake, are given more credence than it deserves.
Though name, image and reputation are what we perceive of people; character is the essence of the “real self”. Taqwa is in reality character development coupled with God-consciousness.
Character and reputation
Character is not only the face in the mirror, but the real person behind the face. Character evolves from conscience; is sustained by conscience and is developed; piece by piece, with every thought, with every choice, and maintained with consistency and determination. The pursuance of piety begins by making our reputation a reflection of our character. In many people, reputation precedes character and there is a distinction to be made…

·         Reputation is what you lead others to believe you are, character is what you really are -

·         Reputation may be reflected in the combination of your name and your image, character is the essence of your being.

·         Reputation is the wrapping, character the content -

·         Reputation is the outer reflection, character the inner reality -

·         Reputation is made in a moment, character is built in a life time -

·         Reputation may be reflected in what people write about you on your tombstone, character is what angels report about you to Allah -

Changing bad habits

The renowned philosopher, Aristotle, once said; ” You are what you repeatedly do “. Habits are conditioned responses, formed through repetition, until the actions or reactions become second nature; they end up as unconscious behavior, automatic reactions in a particular situation; (e.g. The way you sign your name, the reprehensible habit of cigarette smoking after a meal…)
It was the English writer, Shakespeare, who said; ” First we make our habits, then our habits make us “. Thinking in a particular pattern creates a mental path, the mental path affects our attitude and our behavior, and these reflect our personality and character. In other words, our thoughts affect our attitude which affect our actions which determine our habits which reflects our character which could determines our destiny. The Roman poet Naso Ovid rightly said, ” habits eventually become character “.
Virtues and vices
According to Islam, habits are classified as virtues or vices, as repeated actions that are in conformity with or contrary to the rules of morality. Virtuous character emanates from good habits and good habits emanate from resisting negative temptations. Good habits, unfortunately, seem so much easier to give up than bad habits.
Bad habits are like a comfortable bed; easy to get into but difficult to get out. The chain of bad habits are generally too light to be felt until they are too strong to be broken. Remember though, that every habit; whether good or bad, is acquired and can be developed or disowned. Habits decrease or disappear by abstaining from exercising them and then replacing them. In the words of Roman orator, Cicero, ” consuetudo consuetudine vincitur = habit is overcome/ conquered by habit. Ramadan is an ideal training period for filtering out bad habits, developing virtuous character and is thus referred to by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) as a shield against evil and wrongfulness. We are obligated to nurture our noble qualities; control our passions, our anger and emotions. We are instructed to be considerate, generous and compassionate.
Moral improvement and spiritual rejuvenation
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) referred to Ramadan as a blessed month in which Allah has made fasting obligatory on those who are able; whosoever denies himself of the benefits of that month denies himself many virtues. As we undertake the physical duty and spiritual responsibility of fasting in the blessed month of Ramadan, we reflect on the words of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) who said that the practice of faith will not be correct unless actions are correct and actions will not be considered correct unless the heart is correct.