J Sport Med Phys Fit
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J Sport Med Phys Fit · Jun 1992
Body composition and energy metabolism in resting and exercising muslims during Ramadan fast.
Muslims abstain from food and drink from dawn to sunset during Ramadam, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. The purpose of this study was to examine the changes that occurred in body composition and both resting and exercise metabolism during a 4 week Ramadan fast. Subjects consumed an average of 1220 kcal each day during Ramadan and lost a significant 1.92 kg body weight. ⋯ Consistent with this is first week 1.13 kg body weight loss with no change in percent fat. First week Ramadan tests showed a significant decrease in VO2max with a return to the pre-test levels in the last week. The lower resting afternoon VO2 suggests that during Ramadan the body's metabolism slows down during the day in order to conserve its energy stores, however, exercise economy as measured by submaximal VO2 in mk/kg/min is not affected.