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RB Leipzig Suleman Sani Turns Ramadan Fasting Into a Performance Advantage
How RB Leipzig’s Suleman Sani Turns Ramadan Fasting Into a Performance Advantage
When the Bundesliga schedule collides with Ramadan, most people imagine a clash: elite-level football on one side, no food or water from dawn to sunset on the other. For RB Leipzig forward Suleman Sani, it’s the opposite. Fasting doesn’t fight his football – it sharpens it.
“It’s all about having the mentality that you can do it,” he says. “Playing football and training during Ramadan is not an easy task, of course. But for me, I don’t find it difficult, to be honest.”
This is how Suleman balances spiritual focus with high-performance demands – from 3 a.m. wake-ups to 4 p.m. kick-offs – without losing his edge on the pitch.
Preparing the Body – and the Mind
In the weeks leading into Ramadan, many athletes radically change their training or nutrition. Suleman keeps it simple. There’s no drastic new regime, just a steady shift in mindset and routine.
“Ramadan is really important for me,” he explains. “During this time, I think I just have to adjust. It’s just all about having the mentality that you can do it.”
The calendar occasionally gives him a boost, too. Winter fixtures, with earlier sunsets and cooler temperatures, make the transition smoother.
“Especially during winter it’s easier for me, because sunset is earlier and the weather isn’t too hot,” he says. “So I don’t have a problem where I need a super intense system to adapt.”
Instead of reinventing his training, Suleman focuses on:
- Consistency in workload – staying close to his usual intensity so his body doesn’t get shocked when fasting starts.
- Gradual sleep adjustment – getting comfortable with shorter, broken sleep so early Suhoor wake-ups don’t feel like a sudden hit.
- Mental rehearsal – reminding himself that he’s handled this before and can do it again.
A Matchday in Ramadan: From Suhoor to Final Whistle
A typical fasted matchday for Suleman starts hours before sunrise.
He wakes for Suhoor, his pre-dawn meal, then goes straight back to rest.
“I sleep after Suhoor,” he says. “After that, you wake up and you have to go through your day, stay focused, keep your routine.”
On Bundesliga matchdays, kick-off might be around 4 p.m. That means:
- Early morning: Wake for Suhoor, eat, hydrate, and return to sleep.
- Late morning to early afternoon: Rest, stay off his feet as much as possible, save energy for the game.
- Pre-match window: Gradually switch into game mode, focusing on sharpness rather than heavy physical load.
- Post-match: Only after the final whistle does he break his fast, then refuels and recovers.
“For me, my typical day during Ramadan is just: after Suhoor I rest a lot until match time,” he says. “After the game, I go and break my fast and chill.”
The key is energy conservation. He uses the hours between Suhoor and kick-off to protect his legs and his focus, so that by the time he steps on the pitch, the deficit from fasting isn’t what defines him.
Suleman Sani Turns Fasting Into a Performance Advantage
© Red Bull
The Suhoor Formula: Light, Liquid, Long-Lasting
When you’re about to go without food or water for most of the day, the instinct is to eat big. Suleman does the opposite.
“I don’t eat a lot during Suhoor,” he says. “One thing about Ramadan is once you eat it feels like getting a strong injection of food and you’re immediately full.”
To avoid feeling heavy at training or on matchday, he leans on a light, mostly liquid approach.
“In Nigeria there’s something called Pap and I love it,” he explains. “It’s like an oat cereal paste and it’s not heavy but it’s very filling, and I have it with tea.”
His Suhoor strategy in performance terms:
- Light but filling – Pap gives slow-release energy without that heavy, bloated feeling.
- Mostly liquid – easier to digest, gentle on the stomach, and helps with hydration.
- Simple, familiar foods – no experiments, which means no surprises for his body when he’s already pushing it.
It’s a reminder that elite nutrition doesn’t have to look complicated. For Suleman, a traditional food from home doubles as a modern performance tool.
Managing Sleep: Tired but Targeted
The hardest part of Ramadan for many athletes isn’t the food – it’s the sleep. Late nights, early Suhoor, and a full training schedule can quickly add up.
“You wake up for Suhoor at 3 a.m. sometimes or 4 a.m.,” Suleman says. “After that, you only need like 20 or 25 minutes to eat. Then you have training – five, six, seven, maybe eight sessions in a week. So the rest time is just in between.”
That means his sleep is rarely perfect. Instead, he focuses on managing fatigue, not eliminating it:
- Fragmented sleep – core sleep at night, then shorter naps during the day.
- Rest between sessions – using every gap to lie down, switch off and recover, even if it’s just for a short window.
- Mental resilience – accepting that he’ll feel tired, but not letting that dictate his attitude.
“Sometimes you feel like you want to just sleep all day,” he admits. “You don’t want to do all the training, nothing – just rest, because it’s not easy. But you have to push through.”
That line – you have to push through – could describe most elite sport. Ramadan doesn’t change who Suleman is as an athlete; it just adds another layer of discipline.
Quiet Spirituality, Strong Focus
Suleman’s approach to Ramadan is deeply personal, but on the surface, it looks a lot like high-level performance culture: routine, reflection, and staying centred under pressure.
He uses the month to reset his mindset:
- More time to reflect – long, quiet hours between meals become space to think, breathe and mentally declutter.
- Sharper priorities – with energy limited, he’s forced to decide what truly matters each day: training, recovery, and key personal rituals.
- Inner calm – the rhythm of fasting and breaking fast brings a structure that keeps him grounded when the season gets intense.
That spiritual focus doesn’t compete with football; it supports it. When he steps onto the pitch during Ramadan, he’s not just physically prepared – he’s mentally aligned.
Recreating Home: The Power of Community
Growing up, Suleman’s favourite part of Ramadan wasn’t just the food. It was the atmosphere.
“The most important thing for me is the spirit when we break our fast,” he says. “I usually do it with my family. We eat together, laugh together, have fun together, and you feel a sense of community.”
Competing in Europe means he can’t always be at home in Nigeria, but he still tries to recreate that feeling in his own way – sharing iftar with teammates or friends whenever he can, keeping that sense of connection alive.
That community energy matters. It turns a demanding routine into something uplifting – a reminder that he’s not doing it alone.
Suleman Sani Turns Fasting Into a Performance Advantage
© Red Bull
“You Can Do This”
By the time the Bundesliga whistle blows in the middle of Ramadan, Suleman Sani has already won a different kind of battle: with his schedule, his sleep, and his own limits.
“It’s all about the mindset,” he says. “Maintaining that mentality can be very difficult, but you just have to prepare and tell yourself you can do this.”
For Suleman, fasting isn’t a barrier to high performance. It’s another arena to compete in – quietly, daily, before anyone sees him on the pitch.
