How to lose weight during the last 2 weeks of Ramadan?

CAIRO – 20 April 2022: During the holy month of Ramadan, many people lose control of their weight due to changes in food behavior and meal times.

While fasting all day, some people tend to multiplicity of dishes when breaking fast after sunset, in addition to adding items full of fats and sweets into their dishes.

Continuing this way, many find a clear increase in their weights, prompting some to attempt to lost weight gained in the first half of the month in preparation of Eid el-Fitr (Feast of breaking the fast.)

Almost halfway through the month, the Faculty of Nursing at Helwan University, provided advice on preparing for a healthy diet to lose weight in the last two weeks of Ramadan.

The advice was prepared by Dr. Furat Hussein Mahmoud, Assistant Professor of Surgical Internal Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Helwan University, as part of an awareness campaign organized by the Media Department of the General Administration of Public Relations and Media during the month of Ramadan.

The campaign encourages people to be mindful while eating, and not to follow appetizers of fatty and fried foods and sweets, in addition to avoiding some wrong behaviors and setting a healthy pattern for Ramadan.

This includes:

-       Eating a lot of foods with high nutritional value before starting breakfast instead of appetizers, so we recommend eating a cup of date grain immersed in a milk, and having a break before starting the meal in order to prepare the stomach to receive food after long hours of fasting, and to avoid overeating.  

-       Avoiding soups that contain spices and soups that contain cream and replacing them with light vegetable soups.

-       Eating salad dishes rich in vitamins and minerals after soup, is necessary, and it is preferable to suffice with this amount of food during the Iftar period, provided that the fasting person continues his meal after at least an hour. In this way, the fasting person prepares his stomach to receive food in a sequence.

-       The breaking-the-fast meal must be divided into small meals that are eaten in batches during the evening to prepare the stomach to receive food.

-       Eating light meals between iftar and suhoor (pre-dawn meal) is important, as it is to eat fruits or vegetables, when feeling hungry between iftar and suhoor, to maintain weight, with the need to avoid foods that contain sugar such as: soft drinks.

-       The pre-dawn meal, should include a moderate meal rich in all nutrients for health and the body like: eggs, fruits, low-fat milk or fruit juice, a few grains, and salad. And if one wants to eat some sweets, two Qatayef without sugar or a small piece of other sweets should be enough.

-       Eating brown bread is a preferred alternative to white, in addition to low-fat cheese or dairy products, and vegetable slices such as cucumbers and tomatoes as an alternative to pickles at pre-dawn meal.

-       The quantity of the eaten food is important,  more than a medium-sized piece of lean meat, and regarding seafood, it is a good option, except for some types that contain high calories, such as shrimp.

-       Amounts of sweets should be reduced because they contain very high calories, and fried food should be avoided, and replaced with grilled ones.

-       Eating slowly and chewing the food is a good technique, for the body to benefit from it, and not to overeat.

-        Also it is preferred to not sleep or lie down immediately after breakfast, and to drink an appropriate amount of water necessary at a rate of 2 liters per day.

-       Drinking water in abundance after evening is important.

-       Eating an adequate amount of vegetables and fruits, as vegetables and fruits are among the most important factors that help the fasting person in the digestion process without gaining weight, because they contain an amount of water and many vitamins.

-       Exercising contributes to losing weight, as exercise is the most important element that the fasting person must maintain, and it is appropriate before breakfast, but after breakfast if you want to exercise, you must make sure that it is at least two hours after having the meal and at least two hours before bedtime.