Victorian Institute of Sport Strength and Conditioning Coach Farhan Juhari has been coaching some of Victoria's best elite athletes whilst also celebrating the Islamic holy month, Ramadan.
Fasting whilst working in an elite training environment can often present with some unique challenges.
In this piece, Juhari shares his experiences of what it's like coaching elite athletes whilst not being able to have food or drink from sun rise to sun set.
"Generally heading into Ramadan, I will use a couple of the weeks prior to start preparing my body. Rather than going straight into it on day one with no food and no water, I ensure that I start limiting myself on the days leading into it. This always helps me prepare for it.
I actually find one of the best things to do is work, as it often forces me to forget that I’m thirsty or hungry. I always ensure that I structure my days throughout this month, as I know that the front end of my days is usually a lot easier than the back end.
My meal before sunrise will often get me through the morning. Whereas I know that the second half of my day, particularly after midday, after everyone has had lunch and their energy spikes, mine starts to drop significantly. So, I just like to ensure that I get majority of my work done in the morning and do my tasks that require less thought and energy towards the back half of the day.
The best thing about working at the Victorian Institute of Sport is everyone talking about it being a family, so we’re always talking about the diversity of the organisation and the inclusiveness, so I’m very fortunate to be working in an environment where there are so many people supporting me throughout the day.
One of my co-workers, Jono Wallace-Smith, is very culturally aware, it’s fantastic, he is always checking in on me and making sure that I’m not burning myself out during this month, or that I’m not having a rough day.
It does get quite challenging during the month, particularly having no water, as you’re just constantly dehydrated, but I’m very fortunate that the organisation that supports me throughout the month. I’m also grateful that we have a strength and conditioning traineeship program and that during this time I have been able to rely heavily on his help.
At the end of the day, the program is not about me, it’s about helping athletes to have the best chance of preparing for their competitions.
So, for me, because I have done it, year in year out, it’s second nature, and I just push through, it’s certainly helped with my resilience.
Interestingly, recently I have found that when I went for a run around Albert Park lake with the Para Winter Sport group, it actually made me feel better after the run for the rest of the day, than I did before it.
For tips on how to keep your body fuelled during Ramadan, click HERE.
