The day of Ashura has come and gone, and many Shia Muslims have now turned their attention to the day of Arbaeen on Aug. 25 — and the long, annual pilgrimage that marks that day.
Every year on Arbaeen, the 40th day after the martyrdom of Imam Hussain ibn Ali (a.s), millions of pilgrims walk towards the burial place of the Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH&HF) grandson in Karbala, Iraq.
The Arbaeen Walk — one of the largest annual pilgrimages in the world — traditionally starts in the city of Najaf, where the Prophet’s (PBUH&HF) cousin and successor Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (a.s) is buried.
From there, pilgrims walk about 80 km to Karbala. The walk is roughly double the length of a marathon (about 42 km long), though pilgrims often split the walk across multiple days.
Unlike marathons, where society’s fittest compete in a race, the Arbaeen Walk sees people of all ages, cultures and sizes walking together for a greater spiritual cause.
The goal of the walk is not to finish first, but to connect on a greater level with the Ahlul-Bayt (a.s) — especially their women, children and Imam Ali Al-Sajjad (a.s), who were taken captive and forced to walk from Karbala to modern-day Syria.
Still, it is a long walk with significant challenges, so it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for the difficult trek. So what changes can Muslims make in their lifestyle to better prepare their bodies for this year’s journey?
To answer that question and more, we’ve turned to Saarah Ajwani. She’s a certified personal trainer who runs the wellness blog Wellness By Saarah. She recently returned from a religious trip to Iraq, and she spoke to The Athletic Ummah about the fitness and diet tips pilgrims can implement into their lives ahead of this year’s Arbaeen walk.
Here’s part of our conversation with her.
The Arbaeen walk is about 80 km. That’s double the length of a standard marathon. So what are physical challenges that someone might face during the Arbaeen walk?
The heat is the biggest challenge right now. … I just came back from [Iraq] as well. Now I understand the heat is crazy. It’s something we’ll never experience here.
I think everything revolves around the heat. You kind of focus your walk based on “Is it hot today? Is it not hot?” … It comes with adapting to a different climate that you’re just not used to.
I think another challenge is the clothing. … You have to dress appropriately for the weather.
Wear lots and lots of breathable materials. If it’s sunny and during the day, [wear] a visor or a hat, sunglasses, lots of sunscreen. Remember all those basic things because that all [protects against] the heat exhaustion, the heat stroke, which you definitely want to avoid.
Like you said, we don’t experience this heat here, but in order to train for it, any suggestions on how to replicate those conditions here?
In terms of replication, I think one thing to remember is that because there’s so many people, you get that adrenaline rush. … Obviously, it’s nice that you have the support of everyone. That makes it a little bit easier to bear the heat because everyone’s doing it together.
[But] if you’re training for it here, I would recommend going out for walks during the day, kind of acclimatizing to walking longer distances. So what I would recommend to start out, like, a goal of maybe a couple of kilometres and kind of build your way up, just to build your stamina.
And then, obviously, some strength training as well, focusing more on the lower body. Just to build those muscles because it’s a lot of walking. I saw that path, it was not fully paved … so it was very rocky.
Good footwear is a good one. So if you’re getting a good pair of shoes, I would recommend getting them here [and] walking with them to kind of break them in.
In terms of what we did actually in Iraq was [we drank] a lot of electrolytes. [Make] sure you have all that … on hand, always squeezing it into your water bottle. I got the little serum or squirt things, but you can get lots of different variations, either tablets or the squeezy bottle.
Sometimes you don’t think you need it, but it’s so important just to have it to replenish your electrolytes [and] make you feel a lot less tired. [Have] your vitamin C on hand in case you get sick. Like, always just be prepared in terms of that.
I just want to expand on a couple of things that you said, like strength training and lower body exercises. What kind of strength training exercises would be beneficial for someone who’s preparing to do this walk?
I think the first thing to start off with is definitely just starting to walk. Walking at different inclines, going on height hikes is really good. Just get your body used to going on different walks, different inclines and stuff.
I think that’s really important just to start off because … I know a lot of people dismiss walking as it’s not an exercise, but it is actually super important just to build your stamina a little bit.
If you have any cardio machines, cardio machines are great just to build up your stamina because 80 kilometres is not a joke. It’s a long time, so you do need to have that stamina.
I think one thing to remember … is make sure you pace yourself for the walk. So obviously like, don’t overdo it. It’s not a race. You just have to make sure you pace yourself. You know your body the best.
In terms of strength training, I would recommend a lot of lower-body [exercises]. Use free weights or if you have machines, use machines like press squats, lunges, calf raises — all things that will help your full lower legs.
Stretching is super, super important … at all times. Definitely [stretch] before you start your training, so you’re warming your muscles up properly, not injuring anything. … Even stretching before you start the walk, just so you prevent those ankle rolls or any injuries.
What are some common mistakes, people make when they train for long-distance walks like this, and how can they avoid them?
Sometimes, we get super excited about everything and then we overdo it before we actually make it to the walks. … It’s great to have that excitement, but I think we have to pace ourselves and not overdo it before because you want to have optimal strength for the walk.
A few weeks before [the Arbaeen walk], make sure you don’t overdo it. … Don’t focus on training for the walk so soon before you leave for the walk so that your body’s well rested.
I think rest is probably the main thing. Just make sure you’re well-rested. … I feel like people just do too much, and then you’re just so tired and so sore before you even make it to the walk.
Again, the adrenaline rush will help you. You don’t have to make it to 80 kilometres before you actually do the walk. If you can make it to even a 10-kilometre walk, it’s still amazing.
Plus, you’re breaking it down. People do it in 2 to 3 days. It’s not like you’re doing it in one go. So just make sure that when you’re tired to stop.
They have all these mawkibs (places to recuperate along the Arbaeen walk’s path.) They have all the rest stops. So take advantage of those. Make sure you do use them, don’t power through.
Switching gears to nutrition. … What nutritional strategies can be adopted leading up to the walk?
Just eating high protein, high energy foods, not a lot of processed food, not a lot of sugar. … Obviously, [we] don’t want to feel tired during the walk. We want to have as much energy as we can get.
So a lot of high protein, lots of lean protein like chicken, beef, lamb. Everyone eats fish. And then lots of fruits and vegetables. Of course, we were so lucky. We’re in the summer right now so we can take advantage of all the seasonal foods we have, which are full of nutrients and keep us nice and energized.
Definitely cut down on all of the desserts and all the sugary drinks that everyone drinks in the summer. I think just sticking to water is very important and starting to acclimatize the electrolytes, especially when we’re training.
You kind of start it into a habit now and you’re used to it then and you remember to do it.
How would you recommend people stay motivated, not just while training but also during the walk?
In terms of motivation, I think you have to think of your purpose. Why are you doing this?
I think you have to remember it’s not just something you’re doing, it has a very deep meaning to it in terms of. It’s not just something you do to say, “Hey, I did it.” It’s more like … you’re remembering Imam Hussain (a.s), you’re remembering the Ahlul-Bayt (a.s), you’re remembering their struggles [and] everything they did.
You have to have that in the back of your head, that you’re doing this for a purpose and you’re doing it as a tribute to them and everything they’ve done for us.
You have to remember that you’re not doing it for other people. You’re doing it for a greater cause. Hopefully, that motivates people.
Q&A has been edited for length and clarity. Headline image credit: en.abna24.com