Self-reported methods of weight cutting in professional mixed-martial artists: how much are they losing and who is advising them?

Abstract

BackgroundSimilar to other combat sports, mixed martial arts (MMA) includes divisional weight classes. The purpose of our research was to further investigate the amount of weight professional MMA fighters lost prior to weighing in for competition, their methods used to cut weight, and their sources of advice on how to cut weight.MethodsThis survey was administered to 92 male professional MMA athletes. The survey questions included duration of overall weight loss prior to competition, methods of weight-cutting, and their sources of advice regarding weight cutting.ResultsWhen comparing the number of methods of weight cutting with the source of advice, those who received their advice from social media used slightly more methods of weight cutting (M = 4.86, SD = 1.27) than those who did not (M = 4.02, SD = 1.55); t(90) = − 2.53, p < .05. MMA athletes that used the help of a registered dietitian nutritionist also reported using the least amount of methods for weight-cutting than any other category (M = 3.84, SD = 1.67). Those that used teammates and did not use a registered dietitian nutritionist used slightly more methods (M = 4.46, SD = 1.41) than those who used a registered dietitian nutritionist.ConclusionsThe findings of this study report that professional MMA athletes do undergo rapid weight loss through various methods to make weight for competition. This study adds evidence to the literature that most professional MMA athletes undergo RWL for competition without the guidance of a registered dietitian nutritionist. It is unclear what the effect of using a registered dietitian nutritionist may have on an MMA athletes’ ability to reduce weight in a safe and effective manner. Future research should seek to investigate if employing a registered dietitian nutritionist may lead to a higher rate of success for MMA athletes to make weight, and help reduce adverse risks of RWL.

Pre-Competition Weight Loss Models in Taekwondo: Identification, Characteristics and Risk of Dehydration

“…The most common weight loss strategy was maintaining a negative energy balance (through limiting food intake and/or increasing physical activity). Similar conclusions were drawn from studies involving athletes from other combat sports: box, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wrestling, judo, Muay Thai/kickboxing and mixed martial arts [2,[34][35][36][37][38].…”

Less Aggressive Weight Making Practices in Combat Sport When Recovery Time is Limited: Weight Loss Practices of Pencak Silat Athletes in Singapore

“…It is essential that registered dietitians are involved in this process as they are qualified to advise proper fuelling and weight loss. Similar to previous studies [1,7,9,13,19,24], registered dietitians were found to be an underutilised resource in this group of Silat athletes. Access to registered dietitians for sport-specific weight loss advice is limited as many countries lack sport dietitians.…”

“…Cut off scores to indicate the It is notable that in the entire sample of 102 Silat athletes, only 24.5% engaged in pre-competition weight loss compared to the > 90% prevalence reported in other combat sports [9,13,19,28]. Remarkably, only 4% of the current sample engaged in acute weight loss compared to 30% reported by Park et al [19]. Furthermore, the use of risky weight management practices such as laxatives, diet pills and vomiting were uncommon.…”

“…Although a higher RWLS is indicative of more aggressive weight management, one limitation of the questionnaire is that a linear relationship cannot be assumed between the score and the degree of harm [2]. Cut off scores to indicate the It is notable that in the entire sample of 102 Silat athletes, only 24.5% engaged in pre-competition weight loss compared to the > 90% prevalence reported in other combat sports [9,13,19,28]. Remarkably, only 4% of the current sample engaged in acute weight loss compared to 30% reported by Park et al [19].…”

Acute Effects of Supervised Making Weight on Health Markers, Hormones and Body Composition in Muay Thai Fighters

“…These practices differ across each sport, depending on the distance between the weighting procedure and the match, so the RWL could start 2–3 days before the competition and the RWG could last from 1 to 18 h [ 8 ]. It has been reported that combat sports athletes have performed this practice at least once in life [ 9 , 10 ], but this methodology is also known among amateur fighters and it is applied from two to eight times per year (personal communication and experience within the Italian Muay Thai and Italian Boxing federations). The goal of cutting weight is to be able to compete in a lower-weight category than one of the regular season, which would translate into a physical advantage; notwithstanding, scientific literature has demonstrated a reduction in sports and psychological performance after drastic RWL and RWG [ 8 , 11 ].…”