The day is hot and long, many hours left until Iftar, your head is hurting, you’re feeling dizzy and you can’t concentrate. Those are all signs of dehydration. Staying hydrated during Ramadan is tricky, considering that you will have to spend your day without drinking or eating anything. However, there are always tips to balance your water intake and experience gains in performance while reducing fatigue. Water forms 60-70% of our bodies. The lack of it can affect the proper functioning of our bodies. In this blog, Bana Salameh, established dietitian, tells us the secrets to staying healthy and hydrated during Ramadan:
Your body needs at least 6 glasses of water every day, otherwise you’ll spend your days wondering why your head hurts so much and why you often feel dizzy. Moreover, if you’re a sporty kind of person, you will need to drink more than that. The more you exercise, the more water you’ll need.
Getting the needed amount of water is not enough to keep you hydrated the entire day. Say if you drink 8 glasses, all at once, at Iftar, you’ll probably be thirsty by dawn. It is vital here that you balance your water intake. Drink a glass of water every hour or so between your meals to kill the water cravings during the day.
Nobody wants to be breathing fire during a long day of fasting. Fire needs water and so do spicy and salty foods. Water is often associated with those foods, for example, can you imagine eating some spicy chicken or extra salty salad without any water? Therefore, we recommend that you stay away from those foods and replace them with some fruits and vegetables. Watermelon, for example, can do wonders to your hydration! Here are four awesomely delicious and healthy foods for Iftar.
The way you dress does matter in Ramadan, because the way you dress affects the temperature of your body during a hot summer day. Thus, you may want to avoid dark colors and heavy fabrics and stick to the light materials and bright, delightful colors.
