The Current State of Weight-Cutting in Combat Sports
1
Centre for Exercise and Sports Science Research, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, WA 6027, Australia
2
Performance Support—Physiology and Nutrition, New South Wales Institute of Sport, Sydney Olympic Park, NSW 2127, Australia
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sports 2019, 7(5), 123; https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7050123
Received: 17 April 2019
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Revised: 20 May 2019
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Accepted: 20 May 2019
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Published: 21 May 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tackling Performance Challenges in Martial Arts and Combat Sports)
In combat sports, athletes are divided into categories based on gender and body mass. Athletes attempt to compete against a lighter opponent by losing body mass prior to being weighed (i.e., ‘weight-cutting’). The purpose of this narrative review was to explore the current body of literature on weight-cutting and outline gaps for further research. Methods of weight-loss include energy intake restriction, total body fluid reduction and pseudo extreme/abusive medical practice (e.g., diuretics). The influence of weight-cutting on performance is unclear, with studies suggesting a negative or no effect. However, larger weight-cuts (~5% of body mass in <24 h) do impair repeat-effort performance. It is unclear if the benefit from competing against a smaller opponent outweighs the observed reduction in physical capacity. Many mechanisms have been proposed for the observed reductions in performance, ranging from reduced glycogen availability to increased perceptions of fatigue. Athletes undertaking weight-cutting may be able to utilise strategies around glycogen, total body water and electrolyte replenishment to prepare for competition. Despite substantial discussion on managing weight-cutting in combat sports, no clear solution has been offered. Given the prevalence of weight-cutting, it is important to develop a deeper understanding of such practices so appropriate advice can be given.
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Keywords:
Combat sports; weight loss; martial arts; weight cutting; hydration; thermoregulation
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
MDPI and ACS Style
Barley, O.R.; Chapman, D.W.; Abbiss, C.R. The Current State of Weight-Cutting in Combat Sports. Sports 2019, 7, 123. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7050123
AMA Style
Barley OR, Chapman DW, Abbiss CR. The Current State of Weight-Cutting in Combat Sports. Sports. 2019; 7(5):123. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7050123
Chicago/Turabian StyleBarley, Oliver R., Dale W. Chapman, and Chris R. Abbiss. 2019. "The Current State of Weight-Cutting in Combat Sports" Sports 7, no. 5: 123. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7050123
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