The morning air was still wet with dew as Aling Sumargo tied his\nrunning shoes. In many parts of Jakarta, the fasting month is synonymous\nwith a slower pace, with people choosing to postpone physical activity\nand conserve energy until the time comes to break the fast. Not for this\n21-year-old man, however. For him, a 15-minute jog is a ritual he\nmaintains, even when his stomach is empty and his throat has not touched\nwater since dawn.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really just to maintain my health. Even during Ramadan, we\nstill need to manage our bodies. Because usually when we break the fast,\nwe start with sweet things, and during suhoor we also eat a lot of\nhigh-calorie foods. So I think, to keep things balanced and maintain\ngood health, fasting alone isn\u2019t enough without exercise as well,\u201d he\nexplained.<\/p>\n
This statement came easily, like his steady steps every morning.\nThere is no marathon target, no ambition to build muscle. He simply\nwants his body to feel balanced.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy exercise is just morning jogging, that\u2019s all. Sometimes I cycle\nfor about 20 minutes, but running in the morning remains the dominant\nactivity. I\u2019ve built this consistency since before Ramadan began. Before\nthe fasting month, I was already jogging regularly here. So my stamina\nand physical condition were already developed. That\u2019s why complaints\nlike dizziness or exhaustion after running are almost non-existent\nnow.\u201d<\/p>\n
He limits himself with a timer. Fifteen minutes, no more, no less. \u201cI\nusually set a timer for 15 minutes. So whether I\u2019m fasting or not, the\nduration remains the same. I don\u2019t add to it or reduce it.\u201d This\nconsistency, he says, helps his body become accustomed to the same\nrhythm.<\/p>\n
Why the morning? Not the evening before breaking the fast as is often\nrecommended? Aling has his own reasons. \u201cBecause the morning is quieter\nin my opinion. There aren\u2019t many people around. So I can be more\nrelaxed, more focused on myself. It\u2019s like personal time while jogging\nalone. If it\u2019s evening, it\u2019s usually more crowded or I\u2019m already\ntired.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Aling, fasting and exercise are not two things that weaken each\nother. He feels that whether he jogs in the morning or not, hunger and\nthirst will come regardless. Because of this, running does not make his\nfast feel harder. He has also never experienced excessive dizziness or\neven considered breaking his fast after exercising.<\/p>\n
Rather, he experiences the opposite. His body tends to feel more\nenergetic and lighter after movement, despite having an empty stomach\nand a dry throat. There is a sense of freshness that emerges, something\nhe believes he would not gain if he chose not to exercise at all. He has\nbeen building this habit since six to seven years ago, around 2019.\nSince then, exercise has become part of his Ramadan routine that is\ndifficult to abandon. Now, when he skips jogging during fasting on any\ngiven day, there is an odd feeling, as if something is missing from his\nday.<\/p>\n
He also feels the benefits are real. \u201cI find that I rarely get sick.\nAfter Eid, usually many people start complaining about high cholesterol\nor elevated blood sugar. I don\u2019t experience that. Alhamdulillah, my\ncondition is still healthy.\u201d So when the holiday arrives and the dining\ntable is full of dishes, he is not overly haunted by worry. \u201cYes,\nbecause it\u2019s helped by this exercise habit. So there\u2019s a balance between\neating and activity.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Aling chooses the quiet morning, Ade Ruhanda, this 33-year-old\nman, is quite familiar with the dusk hours. This private sector worker\ncontinues to run four times a week during Ramadan. His schedule does not\nchange, only the distance is slightly reduced.<\/p>\n
\u201cActually, my running schedule hasn\u2019t changed during the fasting\nmonth, it\u2019s the same as usual\u2014four times a week. Only the distance is\nslightly shorter compared to regular days,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
For Ade, running is not merely exercise, but a routine that would be\na pity to stop. \u201cThere are several reasons. First, running has become\nroutine. Second, it would be a waste if the training I\u2019ve been doing\nstops during fasting; it would feel like starting from scratch again.\nThe last and most important reason is to train endurance and accustom\nmyself to exercising with a very low blood sugar level because of\nfasting. But still running with low intensity and without pushing\nhard.\u201d<\/p>\n
He admits to being inspired by a video from Dr Tirta mentioning that\nthe best time to exercise is before breaking the fast. Since then, he\nhas chosen to run in the late afternoon, just before the Maghrib call to\nprayer. \u201cBecause running in the evening before breaking the fast can\nincrease endurance if done consistently. Your body becomes accustomed to\nrunning in low-sugar conditions. After I practised this, my body felt\nmuch better and my mood improved.\u201d<\/p>\n
Besides running regularly, he also makes time for strength training\nand weightlifting at least once a week to prevent injury. The intensity\nof his training remains controlled to avoid excess. Initially, he\nadjusted his exercise schedule with his work rhythm at the office to\navoid exhaustion. However, over time, this habit seemed to form its own\npattern. Without needing to be forced, exercise feels already\nautomatically scheduled and easier to carry out.<\/p>\n
He once imagined his body would feel extremely weak when exercising\nwithout eating and drinking. The reality was different. As long as\ntraining was not forced, his body actually remained comfortable. Even\nafter breaking the fast, he felt more freshness compared to days without\nexercise.<\/p>\n
The change was actually visible in his breaking-the-fast habits. If\npreviously he was more tempted by sweet drinks, now he tends to choose\nelectrolyte drinks to help his body recover after running, rather than\nimmediately consuming sweet dishes like fruit soup.<\/p>\n
For him, exercising while fasting has a direct impact on daily life.\n\u201cSo more refreshed and mood improves.\u201d He also finds that he does not\ntire easily and sleeps more soundly. \u201cMy body still feels light and my\nmind becomes calmer.\u201d<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/when-fasting-does-not-stop-running-1772358913", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }