Fitness and Health in Ramadan
Emdad Rahman
Taj Uddin Ahmed and Nazia Khatun are both fitness coaches. They are also observant Muslims and want to help people have a more fulfilling and healthier life, especially during Ramadan, when Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset.
Taj has many years’ experience of helping people lose weight and get fit. Sport was important for him from an early age when his father died and he turned to male fitness role models as his inspiration. More recently, he started body building, and at the age of 50 he won two championships, having never entered a competition before.
Nazia is an award-winning fitness coach who has struggled with eating disorders and as a Bangladeshi woman has battled with stereotypes of female athletes. She has a vision to represent South Asian women in the fitness industry and help champion mental health in a community that sees mental ill health as a stigma.
Both Nazia and Taj join broadcaster Amir Suleman at Muscleworks Gym in Whitechapel, London, as he confesses that he really struggles with bad eating habits and lack of fitness during Ramadan. He wants to know:
Is it wise to try and keep fit if you are fasting?
Should someone who doesn’t exercise regularly consider starting a fitness regime in Ramadan?
How do you avoid all the delicious food that’s prepared for iftar, which is so much part of social gatherings in Ramadan?
Can exercise help improve your focus when you pray?
Together they discuss practical ways to keep fit and eat well, and discuss why looking after our diet and fitness is not just good for our bodies, but good for our souls too.