Rowing Through Ramadan - with Owais Hammad

Owais Hammad - Second-year economics student Owais is seriously into rowing, and his recent bronze medal at the BUCS Head of the River proves it! This achievement shows just how talented and hardworking he is. On top of that, Owais is deeply committed to his Islamic faith and is impressively balancing his intense rowing training with the observances of Ramadan, demonstrating real dedication and great time management.

Owais (on the right) is joined by two of his squad mates to allow him to train later in the day so he can eat soon after exercise.

For many athletes, maintaining and building on peak performance is a commitment that requires a lot of attention. But what happens when part of that commitment and attention is required elsewhere? Where perfect recovery isn’t assured, and you struggle to hold each session to the high standards they require. As a rower and Muslim this is the question I ask myself during the month of Ramadan in which I, and every other Muslim around the world, must fast from sunrise to sunset. This means a lot of adjusting to my daily schedule and training programme. Splitting my focus between peak performance and the demands of faith. 

Ramadan: The Sacred Month 

For those unfamiliar with Ramadan, it is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar and begins following the sighting of the new crescent moon. It lasts roughly 30 days however this can vary depending on the sighting of the new moon, which indicates the following day is Eid which is a day of celebration. Because of the uncertain length of the month, my coaches have a much harder time figuring out when I can seat race. But I digress, Ramadan is a sacred month of increased worship and self-discipline. The day begins with the Suhoor meal at around 4AM which is breakfast, and this continues until the Fajr prayer at around 4:30AM where the sun rises and fasting begins. It then ends following the Maghrib prayer at around 6PM where the sun sets, and you can have your Iftar meal, which is dinner. 

Fasting vs. Training: The Challenges 

Rowing is primarily an aerobic sport and uses a lot of energy which comes from carbohydrates. Typically, you would be taking in carbohydrates before sessions to ensure you have enough glycogen to complete the training session, but also afterwards to allow your body to have the energy to recover and become stronger after all the training you would have just done. Being unable to eat makes this entire process much harder, tanking recovery and training benefit. Aswell as limiting the physical load my body can take from a single training session. 

Another difficulty with fasting and training is the inability to drink water. Sweating releases fluids and important electrolytes as a mechanism to cool off your body. Not being able to replenish these electrolytes can be detrimental after intense workouts, since it can cause your muscles to cramp up in pain which is never fun. Given I tend to sweat a lot more than most, managing this is especially a challenge for me. 

The third significant challenge to fasting and training is managing my sleep and sleep quality. Going to sleep on a full stomach is seriously uncomfortable. Then having to wake up, stuff your face with food and water, and go back to sleep just doubles down. Sometimes I wake up multiple times before suhoor. Sometimes I can’t fall back asleep after Fajr. Waking up and feeling tired can put a quite a slow start to your day and can cause you to feel weak during weights sessions and make you fall asleep in lectures so its important to get sleeping habits right straight away. 

Adapting Training During Ramadan 

First things first, I need to adjust my training programme. I can’t have my normal 2/3 session days filled with long steady sessions, heavy weights session, and short intense ergo sessions. It’s just not feasible because I can’t recover from it. So, I have to take the angle of, “what can I do?”, and go from there. Zone 2 sessions are easier perform to the correct standard so most of my sessions consist of this. In addition, weights sessions are also quite comfortable because I get time between each set to recover so it serves as a solid choice for a second session. Doing just Zone 2 water sessions and ergos can get quite boring quite quickly, so throwing in some Zone 3 ergos and water sessions like our weekly “Clash of the Clams” battle paddle really helps change things up. I also like doing some cross training with friends as it brings a bit more energy into my routine. All these changes do mean a lower training load, but it plays a huge roll in how I’m feeling and my ability to get on with my day without feeling like I’m melting, also means I can dedicate a lot more energy into the quality of each session and put stronger emphasis on technical focus. 

Owais helped put together one of the RUBC our “What to Eat Wednesday” during Ramadan

Regarding what I’m eating, I target my food around the training I have done or the training I know I need to do. So, if I have a day of 2 steady zone 2 sessions, I’ll have more calories which consists of carby foods for breakfast and dinner. Then where I have a shorter steady session and a weights session, I’d still have my carbs for breakfast but maybe look at taking in a little more protein for dinner for some bonus recovery. As a side note, although carbs are carbs, I find it’s always worth prioritising whole foods over sugary sweets and snacks. I have quite a sweet tooth so ensuring I manage how many hot cross buns I eat is important. This doesn’t mean you can’t have anything sweet; it just means that if you want to ensure the best recovery, you must be eating the right things. Sometimes though, it can be hard to get food in, a trick I’ve learnt over time is keeping some food right at your bedside, so when you wake up at 4AM for breakfast and the clock is inevitably ticking down, you can quickly get some food in if you are feeling a bit too lazy to get out of bed. 

To make sure I’m having enough fluids, when its time to break my fast, I eat a date and drink a bottle of water with 1 or 2 electrolyte tablets in it before I start eating my meal. This routine is to ensure I’m able to replenish my electrolytes as soon as I can. I also sip on water whenever I can and keep a water bottle by my bedside that I make sure to get through when I wake up. I find this is very effective and has really stopped me from cramping up throughout the day. 

Sleep is the trickiest problem to tackle. As ideal as it would be, I can’t go nocturnal since I still have lectures to attend. So, on days where I have early morning training, I sleep as long as I can until Suhoor, then go back to sleep until I need to leave for training. Then depending on when I have to be on campus, I’d either go home straight away and have a nap before my lecture or go to my lecture then go home and nap until iftar. Napping is such a powerful tool, and I honestly think its something everyone who trains a lot should be doing even if they aren’t fasting, given they have the time to fit it in. It can really refresh your day and level your head and I find it stops me from falling asleep in all of my maths heavy modules. 

For any athletes wondering if it’s possible to fast and train during Ramadan – know that it is. The key is to make sure you are eating the right things, drinking lots of water, getting enough sleep, and training enough to strain yourself but not enough to hurt yourself. Do the training you can when you can. If it’s a good day go for that little bit extra, but if it’s not, don’t be afraid to back off a bit. But most importantly, listen to your body and don’t overthink it.  

With how long it’s taken me to finish writing this, it’s going to be Eid pretty soon so Eid Mubarak!