The ninth month of the Arabic Calendar, Ramadan approaches and it brings the essence of purity, self-restraint and abstinence with it. While we all know the basic rules of fasting, we often miss out on key points that are supposed to keep us healthy throughout this month, so without further ado, here are a few ways which you can follow to ensure a healthy Ramadan for you and your keens and loved ones:
(1) Eat Suhur
A lot of you may not tend to wake up during suhur and end up fasting without having food during that pre-dawn time. But, it is imperative that you do so, not only from a health perspective, but also from a religious perspective since Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, highly recommend eating this pre-dawn meal before a day of fasting and therefore, it is Sunnah for you to have this meal. If you still cant convince yourself to wake up, remember that you can always take a nap during the day but you can’t eat or drink till iftaar.
(2) Limit Fat Intake
Make sure that you do not intake too much fat during Suhur because fat makes you hot and thirsty and when it burns in your body, your body consumes a lot of water. So, if you intake a lot of meaty fat during suhur, you are going to have a really thirsty fast. Even during the iftar, avoid having greasy and fried food; this is especially applicable for people with heart diseases because fried food after a day of fasting increases the risk of heart attacks or strokes by many folds.
(3) Follow the Prophet’s Golden One third Rule:
Our prophet used to dine by his golden one third rule which dictated that one should not strive to have more than one-third food, one-third liquid, and one-third air in their stomach during a meal. This is especially true during Ramadan when you should not overindulge because doing so during Suhur will make you really thirsty during the daytime and doing so during iftar might make you miss tarawih.
(4) Walk after Iftaar:
After a long day of fasting, most people are inclined towards reclining and relieving their bodies after iftaar. But before you do so, take a short walk around the neighborhood or on your rooftop, the exposure to fresh air will relieve you off stress and make you feel much more relaxed after you relieve your body and get ready for tarawih.
(5) Take a short, afternoon Nap:
Scientists say that only 15 minutes of afternoon nap can get your energy regenerated to do things. If you are a working individual, try and find a quiet place during lunch-time and take a short nap for not more than 20-25 minutes and you will feel a lot more rejuvenated.
