Retaining Muscle during Ramadan !
Lots of people follow the common misconception that you will lose muscle mass during Ramadan…
What if i were to tell you that you don’t have to and you can hold onto your muscle and get leaner !!!
If you look into scientific studies of different fasting protocols ( which i have ) there is evidence that extended periods of fasting do not necessarily lead to muscle loss
Muscle loss can be prevented by 2 simple things
1. resistance training
2. hitting daily protein requirements
Once you are out of the fasting period you can consume your protein easily in liquid form of in solid food form.
If you consume 2g per kg per day and lift weights you have no concern about losing muscle tissue !
Lets look at an 80kg person, 160g protein per day which coul;d be 40-50g protein in a shake as soon as fast ends followed by a large meal high in protein within 30-60 minutes, another liquid protein drink could be consumed before bed with another 40-50g protein. Just in the 3 feedings you can consume 150g !!!. The next part is the harder part which is to mix another shake or prepare some chicken to eat before the fats starts in the early hours !!
So it is doable to get the protein in and also to train before you break your fast, it doesn’t have to be personal bests in the gym but subjecting the muscle fibres to enough mechanical tension should do the trick
In short,
lift weights towards the end of the fast and eat like a king after using liquid nutrition to make up any protein shortfalls.