Wrestling is a sport that requires athletes to compete in weight classes. Before the season even begins, all wrestlers go through a body fat test. This determines the lowest weight class that a wrestler can safely go down to. Therefore, NO WRESTLERS on our team are, or ever will be, required or allowed to lose an unsafe amount of weight. With this in mind, getting to a specific weight class is sometimes suggested by a coach but NEVER required. In the end, this decision lies with the wrestler and parent(s).
Even though the body fat test is performed, making weight can still be a challenge. It should NEVER require a wrestler to dehydrate or starve themselves for multiple days. The most beneficial thing a wrestler can do to get down to their weight class is to increase their metabolism. The best way to increase metabolism is to increase activity level. Being at practice every day helps along with waking up early and getting your heart rate up in the morning and also in the evening after dinner and studying. When a wrestler starves themselves, they are actually slowing down their metabolism because their body is trying to conserve calories instead of burn them. Eat a larger breakfast either before or after your morning workout…..DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST. Eating a larger breakfast not only kick-starts your metabolism, it also gives you all day to burn off those calories versus eating a large dinner and then going to bed. Drinking water also promotes a faster metabolism and is the single most effective way to stay alert in classes. (Wrestlers often starve or dehydrate themselves to make weight because they are too lazy to wake up and get a workout in before school, or too lazy to get a run in after dinner in the evening.) I know of ways to help wrestlers lose weight quickly, but those methods cause irritability, whininess, and poor performance. It is more beneficial for them to maintain a disciplined diet at all times versus using the yo-yo method of getting down to weight quickly and then ballooning way back up enormously over their weight class.
A common complaint of maintaining weight through the season is that it will stunt the growth of the wrestler. This can’t be farther from the truth. My best example of this is a former wrestler named Austin Schafer. He wrestled at 94 pounds as an 8th grader, 112 pounds as a 9th grader, 140 pounds as a 10th grader, 160 pounds as an 11th grader, and 189 pounds as a senior. He is currently wrestling at Oklahoma State University and he is the starting heavyweight (weighs about 250lbs) for the Cowboys. Austin maintained his weight each season, and then at the end of the season, his body went through a natural growth spurt and the NEXT season he moved up weight classes accordingly. Looking back to Austin’s freshmen year when he wrestled at 112 pounds, I remember some parents who were fearing we were going to stunt Austin’s growth by having him wrestle at such a low weight class. The truth is that Austin did not really hit puberty until later in high school and continued growing in college. Some wrestlers do not see such a large growth spurt during their high school career as Austin did, but it is never the fault of maintaining a weight class during wrestling season, instead it’s due to puberty and genetics.
The day of weigh-in carries a few different rules compared to a wrestler’s everyday routine. On the day of a weigh-in it is ok for a wrestler to strictly regulate food intake and fluid consumption. Their nutrition to compete will come from yesterday’s meal anyway. The goal on the day of weigh-in is to make weight and then rehydrate and eat a small meal before competition. During this stage, it is common for the wrestler to become a bit irritable and at times whiny. Mothers of wrestlers are the ones who bear the brunt of this whininess and the natural reaction is to want to help their baby as he cries that he is starving and dehydrated. (I have been in this sport A LONG TIME. I have NEVER had a wrestler hospitalized for dehydration and I’ve never had a wrestler starve to death.) This whininess is never more exaggerated than the first time to make weight for the season. Once they get through the first weigh-in, most wrestlers buy into the process of high activity levels and good nutrition…………these are wonderful lessons of discipline for a healthy lifestyle, long after their days of wrestling are over. The process of maintaining their weight also develops mental toughness. If keeping a disciplined diet causes a wrestler to want to quit and give up, then that is a sign of mental weakness. All of these young men are going to face trials far more difficult in their lives than maintaining a healthy diet. I want to repeat that NO wrestlers on our team are having to or will ever have to lose an unhealthy amount of weight. However, based on poor choices, there will be times that your son seems to be losing too much weight because he has refused to follow the correct, disciplined process and has put himself in a position of starving and dehydration to make weight.
NUTRITION TIPS
-Choose water compared to other drinks (no soda!).
-Choose grilled or baked foods vs. fried foods.
-Choose whole grain/whole wheat foods.
-Choose white meat and fish vs. large amounts of red meat.
-Choose fruit when you want something sweet vs. candy.
- Stop doing drugs and drinking alcohol.

With disciplined nutrition and a high activity level, wrestlers can (with work) successfully, and safely get down to the weight class that they desire to wrestle at. For some, the descent can take longer, especially if coming from a sport like football. I love the sport of football, but I also know that football rewards players based on size, the bigger the better. The problem with this philosophy is that the sport of football does not distinguish between good weight and bad weight. An example of this is former wrestler Cooper Coil. Cooper came to wrestling after football season weighing over 190lbs, but his body fat test showed him to be over 30% body fat. This is a very unhealthy body fat % especially for an active, teenage boy. Cooper changed his diet to a disciplined one that included early morning workouts before school and after-practice runs. After the Christmas break, Cooper began wrestling in the 160-pound weight class. But, he didn’t do it all at once. It took time, and more importantly, discipline with his diet and workout regime. The same holds true for a wrestler desiring to move up a weight class. Proper nutrition and working out with weights is a must. Former wrestler, Derek White wrestled in the 119-pound weight class as a freshmen and the following year when he began to hit a growth spurt, he knew how important it was to become stronger. His senior season he wrestled in the 195-pound weight class and was a state champion and named the 6A wrestler of the year. What’s even more amazing is that his body fat % at 195-pounds was lower than when he wrestled in the 119-pound division his freshmen year. This was due to puberty but also his work ethic to put on “good weight.” Like football coaches, I too encourage wrestlers to get bigger, but I stress that it needs to be good, healthy weight. (muscle) The truth is that the upper weight classes are never as deep as the lower weight classes, therefore a bigger wrestler can be more successful, but just getting big isn’t the secret, just like losing weight has to be done correctly, so does gaining weight.

In conclusion, losing, maintaining, or gaining weight correctly is a difficult process………it’s hard…….but that’s what makes wrestlers different.