Individualised dietary strategies for Olympic combat sports: Acute weight loss, recovery and competition nutrition

Abstract

Olympic combat sports separate athletes into weight divisions, in an attempt to reduce size, strength, range and/or leverage disparities between competitors. Official weigh-ins are conducted anywhere from 3 and up to 24 h prior to competition ensuring athletes meet weight requirements (i.e. have 'made weight'). Fighters commonly aim to compete in weight divisions lower than their day-to-day weight, achieved via chronic and acute manipulations of body mass (BM). Although these manipulations may impair health and absolute performance, their strategic use can improve competitive success. Key considerations are the acute manipulations around weigh-in, which differ in importance, magnitude and methods depending on the requirements of the individual combat sport and the weigh-in regulations. In particular, the time available for recovery following weigh-in/before competition will determine what degree of acute BM loss can be implemented and reversed. Increased exercise and restricted food and fluid intake are undertaken to decrease body water and gut contents reducing BM. When taken to the extreme, severe weight-making practices can be hazardous, and efforts have been made to reduce their prevalence. Indeed some have called for the abolition of these practices altogether. In lieu of adequate strategies to achieve this, and the pragmatic recognition of the likely continuation of these practices as long as regulations allow, this review summarises guidelines for athletes and coaches for manipulating BM and optimising post weigh-in recovery, to achieve better health and performance outcomes across the different Olympic combat sports.

Height categories as a healthier alternative to weight categories in taekwondo competition

“…While grappling sports like judo and wrestling involve the manipulation of an opponent's body mass, striking sports like TKD and boxing consist of techniques based on one's own body mass movement. So in these sports where specific techniques for scoring are not necessary to move or displace the opponent's body, perhaps a different body mass between athletes is not the main distinctive characteristic (Reale et al, 2016(Reale et al, , 2017. In addition, studies like that by Estevan et al (2012) and Falcó et al (2011) reported that athletes of different official weight divisions do not generate impact forces which are significantly different.…”

“…This weight categorizing is very common in most types of combat sports and martial arts, with the aim that athletes compete against opponents with similar physical characteristics, making the fights more equitable. However, combat sports athletes usually aspire to fight in a lighter weight category than their normal weight during the training period, in order to get some advantage over their opponents in terms of body mass, size, strength, and agility (Franchini, Brito, & Artioli, 2012;Kazemi, Rahman, & De Ciantis, 2011;Langan-Evans, Close, & Morton, 2011;Reale, Slater, & Burke, 2017).…”

“…However, in striking sports as TKD, the techniques used do not necessarily include manipulation of the opponent's body mass, but rather specific techniques are based on one's own body mass movement. Thus, some authors point to this practical difference to affirm that body mass plays a less important role in striking sports (Reale, Slater, & Burke, 2016;Reale et al, 2017). Also, transferring the initial idea to kicking sports, perhaps the generation of different kicking forces (power) between athletes with different body mass can be a possibility, because they have more mass to accelerate.…”

“…Height is generally considered as advantageous in kicking combat sports, especially in TKD (Bridge et al, 2014;Reale et al, 2017). Theoretically, a longer lower limbs becomes a longer lever to generate more power in kicking techniques, and a longer striking distance than the opponent provides advantage in order to reach the scoring area (De la Fuente & Gómez-Landero Rodríguez, in press; Kazemi, Waalen, Morgan, & White, 2006;Markovic, Misigoj-Durakovic, & Trninic, 2005).…”

Effects of caloric restriction on anthropometrical and specific performance in highly-trained university judo athletes

“…We herein argue that rapid Weight loss clearly meets all three criteria and, therefore, should be banned from the sport [42], Considering that these health-threating methods are more commonly used by lower level athletes, specific education programs should be directed to them [43]. In a recent review, Fagerberg [44]discussed the negative consequences of restricting calories too severely, [45] this review summarises guidelines for athletes and coaches for manipulating BM and optimising post weigh in recovery period, also to achieve better health and performance outcomes across the different Olympic combat sports.…”