UM Faculty of Medicine Lecturer in Surabaya: This is the Best Time to Exercise while Fasting

• 27 Mar
• 2023

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UM Faculty of Medicine Lecturer in Surabaya: This is the Best Time to Exercise while Fasting

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• By Uswah Sahal
• Health
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The month of Ramadan is not a barrier to exercising, in fact exercising during fasting can help the body stay fit as long as it is done at the right time and type. There are lots of benefits to be gained by exercising while fasting, including improving blood circulation, expediting the body's metabolic processes, increasing the body's immunity and reducing the lifestyle habit of being lazy to move during fasting.

Kartika Prahasanti, a lecturer at the UM Surabaya Faculty of Medicine, said that exercising during fasting can reduce or maintain ideal body weight, because when fasting, the body's intake of carbohydrates decreases, so the body burns more fat to be used as energy. In addition, exercise during fasting can also trigger autophagy and autolysis, namely the natural process of destroying damaged cells and replacing them with new, healthier cells.

According to Tika, there are several things that must be considered in exercising during fasting, namely the adequacy of nutrients such as carbohydrates, protein and fat as well as fluids consumed at dawn. Adequate and quality sleep, which is 7-9 hours, is also very important to maintain immunity when fasting. The type and duration of exercise must be adjusted to the conditions of each person.

"The type of exercise recommended during fasting is exercise that can train the heart such as jogging, fast walking to cycling. Strength training such as push ups, sit ups, back ups, planks, squats and so on," said Tika Monday (27/3/23)

In addition, flexibility exercises such as yoga, Pilates or simple flexibility exercises such as kissing the knees or moving the limbs according to the joint space are also recommended so that the body is not stiff and is not easily injured. Of course, the choice of the type of sport must be adjusted to each ability. The recommended frequency of exercise is 3-5 times a week with a duration of 30-50 minutes for each exercise. In accordance with WHO recommendations, that is, the total exercise time in a week is around 150 minutes.

So when is the best time to exercise while fasting?

The first is before dawn. Half an hour before dawn while waiting for the meal to be served, accompanied by quality food, the body will feel fresher for activities in the morning.

The second is before breaking the fast. Someone can exercise 30 minutes before breaking the fast. Sports that can be done such as brisk walking, jogging or cycling with moderate distances. According to him, if this activity is done regularly it will make the body fresher.

The third is after breaking the fast or tarawih prayer. Tika said, after a person consumes healthy food when breaking the fast, it is best to wait until the food is digested perfectly, approximately 1 hour after breaking the fast or it can be done after the Tarawih prayer.

"This time can be used as an option because the body's condition returns to its original performance," Tika concluded.