My first Ramadan in Brunei

My first Ramadan in Brunei

(left is after Ramadan)

Hi, I hope you are well. I wanted to share my 30 day journey of how Ramadan went for me, also explaining the challenges faced during this month. Firstly I want to say Salamat Hari Raya to all. I wish you and your family a wonderful EID MUBARAK.

So to begin with things I want to explain that during Ramadan, I tried to remain eating healthy food choices that would get me to lose body fat. I would definitely say I achieved that. However, there was the factor of losing muscle mass which was going to be my biggest challenge.

Before I started fasting, 4 weeks prior I had a fantastic experience with Eddie (personal trainer) who help me grow more muscle than I thought was possible before Ramadan. So thank you so much Eddie. I was eating 3,000kcals daily with my start weight at 66kg

Week 1

My body was slowly breaking down but I managed to maintain gain weight up to 67kg. Was eating around 2,500kcals. The weight gain was more likely to my metabolism slowing down. My energy levels were good 8/10. I was training 5 times per week

Week 2

I dropped my calories by 200g and felt the and noticed the weight going down. I was beginning to get more tired and my general work productivity was decreasing. Energy levels 7/10. Still training 5 times per week in the evening.

Week 3

I am dead on my feet at this time. Lack of sleep and long day. Energy levels are very low 4/10. I am really fighting to train. I am also napping through the day on a daily basis. (not like me at all). This week i trained 4 times

Week 4

Im dead! lol. I living to get by. I am training but with low intensity. I did drop body fat, but due to the levels of my energy levels I was not focused on dropping weight. I needed to keep a balanced food intake help with my energy.

My biggest challenge

Your probably thinking Sungkai....NOPE! The biggest challenge for me was sleep. When you have to work without adequate sleep, because I ate Suhor at 3am. It was mentally and physically tiring. Trying to do my job almost 12 hours a day was tough.

I can understand most Bruneian's biggest challenge would be food control and food selection. So Sungkai would be the biggest obstacle to face, due to it being the first and for most people the biggest meal.

I am a stubborn person, so getting me to Sungkai everyday was not going to happen. Even when I did I may have over ate, but I was picky/selective of what I was eating. I would always balance my other meals after Sungkai so I did not feel I was over eating. 

What I learnt about myself

1. I learnt that I will struggle to hold muscle mass even when I am trying to eat Casin (slow release protein). This will back up my theory about ketogenic diet to grow muscle is not truly efficient. (My opinion). 

2. Sleep is vital, but there is a difference to the types of sleep I was getting.

Deep sleep - I was never really getting into a deep sleep due to getting home late and waking up at 3am. Then waking up at 6/7am most days for work.

Naps - As much as my body needed sleep, I was napping more than I have ever done. Napping throughout the day created greater stress on my body as I was never settled.

So for next year I will try to make more time to sleep.  

3. My metabolism slowing down. If you have wondered why you couldn't lose the weight you wanted,  this is why! Your body slows down how it converts fat to energy. Some people can not understand why even one meal a day still won't initiate weight loss. There you go. 

Tip - Strength training will improve how the body breaks down fat while holding onto the muscle.

4. Eating window  needs to be applied . You want to eat every 2 hours based on your nutritional goals/health. Focus on portioning my meals so I won't feel I have to skip meals.

5. Sungkai's can be expensive. For people who go to out for sungkai everyday will be paying almost $10-$20

My Ramadan routine

So this is a typical day I had during Ramadan

6am wake up

7am start work

12am Nap time

2pm Work

6.30pm Break fast (Protein shake) -This was to prepare me for a workout

7.30pm workout

9pm (Protein shake) - Recovery from workout

10am Drive home and eat (White rice tuna salad)

11am Shower and settle

12/1am  Sleep

3am Suhor meal (Casin shake)

Gratitude

Ramadan is a way you can connect closer to God and really appreciate what you have in life. Below is a list of things I am grateful for:

Sleep

Food

Family

Roof of my head

Good health

I could write a never ending list. If you have anything you can relate to leave a comment below.

Have a great day