About a week before Ramadan, I was participating in a #RunChat while simultaneously submitting an assignment with my sister at 11:59PM for our Database Systems course that included an E-commerce website with multiple view points. So my mind was half in running mode and half pls-this-coding-assignment-better-not-play-with-me-and-better-work-the-way-it's-supposed-to.

During this #RunChat, RoadiD was partnering and at the end RunChat would choose 2 winners to be gifted with a Roadid as long as you answer the questions they ask with the hashtag #RunChat. Once I submitted my sister and I's Database Systems assignment, I received a notification over on Twitter that I was one of the winners!

What is ROADiD?
RoadiD ensures that you're safe on the road. It's essentially a little stainless steel faceplate with your information on it in the event that if something happens to you (FAM WE AREN'T DR. STRANGE WE CAN'T SEE THE FUTURE) then whoever is nearby will know exactly who to call. Well, obviously 911 but also they can look at your RoadiD and call the family member's number you have engraved on it.

RoadiD actually began when one of the founder's went out for a run, ended up getting hit by a truck, and ended up in a ditch. That's when this idea of always having an ID on the Road came alive (See what they did there?). As a solo runner myself I'm pretty sure my mom always worries about me, she often calls me as I'm on the track or running on the road just to check up on me and see that I'm okay.


Which RoadiD did I get?
I got the wrist Elite, pin-tuck (I have a small wrist so I asked how many holes there were just to be sure it wouldn't slide right off me! Pin-tuck is the way to go if you also have a small wrist!) with a Rose Gold faceplate and blue band.


HOW DOES IT FEEL ON THE WRIST: 1 Mile Run in 71°F | 21°C

For this short run, I pined it to the 3rd hole and ran at a 8:12 pacing and finished the mile itself in 8:08. It felt really nice and light weight - nearly forgot it was there! In terms of sweat build up, since it was a cool 71°F | 21°C there wasn't any sweat build up underneath the band.

HOW DOES IT FEEL ON THE WRIST: 1 Mile Run in 90°F | 32°C

For this run, I also pined it at the 3rd hole and unlike the previous run, there was sweat build up underneath the band. This gave me a cue I needed to put it on a little looser instead of kind of having it hug my wrist like an extra layer of skin I don't need. I ran this short run with a pacing of 8:37 and finished the mile itself in 8:34.



HOW DOES IT FEEL ON THE WRIST: 2 Mile Run in 80°F | 26°C

Learning from my previous run, I pinned it at the 4th hole to allow my wrist to breathe a bit more as I ran. And this was a success! No sweat build up! I was building up my endurance after not running for a while so my pacing was 9:12 and I finished the two miles in 18:25.



HOW DOES IT FEEL ON THE WRIST: 200M | 400M | 600M in 63°F | 17°C

This was a surprisingly cool day and as a result, even though I was going fast through my sprints, there was no sweat build up as I pinned it at the 4th hole. At the 4th hole it's lose enough to allow my wrist to breathe and not allow sweat to build up but also secure enough for it not to slide right off my wrist.

For transparency here's the list of my workout that day:



2 X 200M (mile pace)

800M split up:
600M at 5K pace
200M at mile pace

400M at 5K pace

800M split up:
600M at 5K pace
200M at mile pace

400M at 5K pace

me being very confused on how I should be posing for this photo aka me in my natural habitat

MY VERDICT ON THE ROADiD: It's extremely light weight and you don't really feel it as you're running (as long as you pin it at the right hole, there won't be sweat build up).  I 10/10 recommend solo runners, even group runners, cyclists, sport-human-whatever-sport-you-do to take a look into getting one - it's great to have all your information at easy access in the event that something happens to you someone will be able to contact your family member.

Not feeling something to add on your wrist? 
They also have Necklace Id's, Shoe/Ankle Id's, and Sidekick Id's (to put on your apple watch!).

Have a four legged running friend?
They also have Pet Id's!

Have a little kid that also loves to run?
They have Kid Id's too!

I'm covering contact info by the way!

I like to think that my mom feels a little bit better knowing that I have this form of ID on me all times while I'm running, even when I'm not running it's just something I toss on my wrist out of habit! On my RoadId, which I've covered the numbers of my family members of course, I also included a quote. On their website, some people also include Bible Quotes, any quote that you want you can put it on! There's a limit of 26 characters per line though so! choose that quote wisely!

Have you ever heard of RoadiD? Do you exercise often?

p.s: I wasn't paid to write this or anything like that, I just won the giveaway and felt like doing a review on it!




Ramadan has just ended on June 15 - I hope everyone who celebrates also had an amazing Eid full of celebrations with their families - and y'know what that means? It's back into my running training schedule time! I've drafted my entire schedule for the next 8 weeks and I'm just so excited to get back out there and start running again.

For the month of Ramadan, I didn't run at all because well, ya girl was fasting (no food no water) and putting running into that equation was not going to happen. I used to run a bit before breaking my fast (first meal of the day when the sun is set) but decided not to do that this year.

Did I maintain my fitness? Did I throw my nutritional habits in a closet and lock it for the duration of Ramadan?

Well, let's start question by question.

Did I maintain my fitness?
YES! For the first week of Ramadan I took off of exercising to get me into the zone for Ramadan. For the following three weeks, every day after nightly prayers* at the mosque at around 1AM I'd be doing ab and full body workouts from Lucy Wyndham-Read.

I did a mixture of:
1. AT HOME WORKOUT 10 MINUTE ABS - with standing ab exercises and tips on how to properly lose belly fat.
2.  7 DAY CHALLENGE - 7 MINUTE WORKOUT TO LOSE BELLY FAT - HOME WORKOUT TO LOSE INCHES - START TODAY
3. LOSE BELLY FAT - HOME HIIT WORKOUT - SUITABLE AS BEGINNERS WORKOUT -  NO EQUIPMENT NEEDED

And as a result, I actually felt I had more energy throughout the day as I was fasting.
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* = Are you confused on what Ramadan is & what I mean by Nightly Prayers?
I wrote a blog post on Ramadan - you can read it here: Crash Course: Ramadan

A great video I came across by Jenna Chia on the science of Ramadan, if you're interested:
Why Fast For Ramadan? My First Experience
In it she answers the questions:
What happens to your body when you fast?
Why do Muslims Fast?
How it's been for her to fast for the first time?
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Did I throw my nutritional habits in a closet and lock it for the duration of Ramadan?
HAHA no! When it came time to eat, I only snacked on fruits and some almonds & cashews. I sometimes feel I can be a bit strict on myself, though. The days leading up to Eid is usually filled with baking cookies - y'know how in Christmas there's sugar cookies, gingerbread cookies etc.? Yeah, so we have stuff like that too - cookies only made during Eid!

A little bit here and there won't be the worst thing on the planet, but inner me needs a lot of convincing to eat a single cookie. Inner me needs to sit down and eat an ice-cream and chill with a few date cookies.

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I wrote an article for AMALIAH Magazine on being kind to yourself & tips on healthy eating:
Weight Loss & Healthy Eating Starts With Viewing Yourself Differently
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I went on my first run this week - a short mile to get my body used to the movement of running again. Something that I worried about before Ramadan was my pacing. Before Ramadan started, I was running three miles at a quick & steady pace and I was afraid I'd have to start over & all that endurance building was going to get chucked under a rug.

I even mentioned to my family and friends that Ramadan came at the worst time for me because I was progressing, getting faster, and becoming stronger. My mind viewed Ramadan as something stopped my progress, a block that stopped me from running for a month. As I went for my first run since the end of Ramadan, I realized how wrong and closed minded my thinking was. I thought of Ramadan in such a negative way because I was worried about my pacing per mile.

On this run, I ran this mile faster that I ever did the month previously, got a new 1K PR at 5:03, and actually felt pretty strong as I ran. There were a few thoughts running through my mind. God gave me the strength to go faster, my will to run comes from Him, my dedication to my training schedule comes from Him yet here I was, throughout the month of Ramadan doubting Him. 

Where do I get my speed from? Where do I get my dreams that sometimes feel like boots that are 3 sizes too big from me? Where do I get my strength day in and day out? Him. 

This run was an eye opener to how closed I viewed myself and my running. With faith in God, anything is possible and when that faith falters everything kind of crumbles as a result. I have plans, but also I know that God is the best of planners and he will lead me to the path I am meant to go down.


My running and self belief derives from my faith and that is something that this Ramadan has taught me - trust Him and all will fall into the place it is meant to.

I want to clarify: I say this as a religious person, if you are not religious I hope you haven't taken any offense to this post.

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Do you exercise? Do you run? HOW'S IT GOING FIT FAM LET YA GIRL KNOW