For those who don’t know, Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar during which practicing Muslims typically fast from dawn until sunset.  Absolutely no food or drink is consumed during this time.  This year I have a client who is observing Ramadan which means that he’ll be following this fast daily for an entire month.  And since Ramadan falls in the summer this year, the days without food and water can be longer than they would be in the shorter, darker winter months.

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I figured that since I’ve had to devise a plan to work with this client to improve his body composition during this time, I’d share the general layout with you so you can see what my thought process looks like in this instance.

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Note that most of my nutrition recommendations are rule based and I don’t typically ask clients to count calories or macronutrients very often unless it is warranted by the situation (i.e., getting extremely lean).  Since this client is a relative novice, adjustments are usually primarily based on portions and food selections to maximize fat loss and spare as much muscle as possible.  Generally speaking, it would be fair to say that I’m aiming for at 1 gram of protein per pound of target weight, but this is emphasized by food choices and portions instead of having him count grams.

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Wake 4:30 AM – Meal containing protein, starchy carbs, fruit and/or vegetable

Target = 60-65 grams of protein

Scrambled egg omlete with peppers, onions

Cottage Cheese with mixed berries

Two slices whole grain toast

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Training 6:30PM – Whole Body Workout

Day 1

Foam rolling, mobility work, activation/motor control exercises

A1: Horizontal Pull #1 (1 x 6-8 warm up, 3 x 10)

A2: Horizontal Push #1 (1 x 6-8 warm up, 3 x 10).

B1: Horizontal Pull #2 (3 x 10)

B2: Horizontal Push #2 (3 x 10)

C1: Lower Body Single Leg Quad Dominant (4 x 10)

C2: Anterior Core Progression - Plank Variation (4 x As long as possible to 1 min max).

Post workout stretching

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Day 2

Foam rolling, mobility work, activation/motor control exercises

A1: Vertical Pull #1 (1 x 6-8 warm up, 3 x 10)

A2: Vertical Push #1 (1 x 6-8 warm up, 3 x 10).

B1: Vertical Pull #2 (3 x 10)

B2: Vertical Push #2 (3 x 10)

C1: Lower Body Single Leg Hip Dominant (Single Leg) (4 x 10)

C2: Lateral/Rotational Core Progression - Side Plank or Pallof Press Variation (4 x As long as possible to 30 second max).

Post workout stretching

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Dinner 8:30 PM – Meal containing protein, starchy carbs, fruit and/or vegetable

Target = 60-65 grams of protein

Meat, rice, salad  (Actual foods subject to cultural habits.  Selections and portions are instructed.)

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Late Meal – Midnight – Protein shake & fruit/vegetable

Target = 60-65 grams of protein

Milk, protein powder, banana

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A few things worth noting….

There is no cardio/conditioning/energy systems work in these workouts because my client is not only fasting without food, but also without water during this time.  Ideally we would meet to train after his dinner, but neither of our schedules allow for this.  My primary goal with training is to spare lean mass during the fast.

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You’ll note that all leg training is unilateral as well.  This is in part because bilateral lifts were too taxing when we tried them early in the fast and also because he lacks the requisite mobility to adequately perform squatting or deadlift patterns.  Given that we’ve had a lot of time to work on hip mobility during the fast and practice the hip hinge I assume he’ll be able to kill these movements next month when the fast has ended.

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Nutritionally, I’m obviously aiming to keep protein intake to levels that will sustain lean mass and I’m not afraid to put in carbohydrates as they’ll obviously be used post-training.  On non-training days I do emphasize that he decrease, but not eliminate, the starchy carb portion at the dinner meal.

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All in all, I don’t think it is rocket science, but I figured I’d just throw it out there so you can check it out.

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What do you think?  Would you do it differently?  Leave a comment and let me know.

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