Wrestlers cut weight: Coach preaches healthy methods
By Jonathan Starkey, Milford Chronicle
MILFORD – Last Thursday, Milford High School wrestler Nate Fleming did not go to lunch.
At least twice a week, Fleming passes up on food to keep his weight down for an upcoming wrestling match.
On this occasion, Fleming had to make weight for the Glasgow Invitational the next day.
Fleming, who wrestles at 125 pounds, weighed 129 and found himself in a position familiar to most anyone who has ever wrestled.
He had to lose four pounds in one day.
How would he do it?
“I’ll bundle up in sweatpants and a sweatshirt and run, just keep moving, “Fleming said.
He said he would consume nothing more than water that night.
Fleming denies himself food until after he weighs in at 5:30 p.m. the next day.
“If you do it (don’t eat) for more than two days, it will affect you, “Fleming said.
But abstaining from food for a day doesn’t affect his performance on the mat.
Julie Garey, a registered dietician at the Milford High School wellness center, disagreed.
“I have students tell me all the time that it won’t affect performance, but it does, “she said.
“If you don’t eat, you will feel tired and sluggish, and doing it long term can destroy your metabolism.”
Garey said the human body recognizes that it is starving and slows its metabolism to retain necessary nutrients.
“Over time this can cause you to gain weight, and there is already a problem with obesity, “Garey said.
She said the wisest way to lose weight is through exercise and a correct diet.
Milford wrestling coach Don Parsley said that is what he preaches to his team.
“Diet and exercise is the right way to lose weight, no matter what you are losing weight for, “Parsley said.
“But we all know that some kids are going to do it their own way.”
Parsley said weight loss takes discipline and sometimes kids give in.
“It’s hard for kids when they sit down to lunch and someone has three lunches for themselves and they can’t eat anything, “Parsley said.
So wrestlers give in and eat, he said, and then pay for it later.
“I have kids that come in on Monday for a Wednesday meet more than five pounds over, and that’s tough, “Parsley said.
Four to six pounds over weight is too much, Parsley added, especially for wrestlers in lower weight classes.
It’s not as difficult to drop that weight for someone who wrestles in a higher weight class, he said.
Jared Ingram, who wrestles at 189 pounds for Parsley’s Milford squad, said cutting weight is not really a problem for him.
He said he was two pounds over for a recent match, but he can drop that weight easily.
“I just work out and jump rope after school, “he said.
But for someone wrestling at 125 pounds or less, cutting weight can be a big problem.
Fleming said he wrestled at 112 and 119 pounds and meeting weight requirements is harder in those lower classes.
Two years ago, the state began testing body composition to counter unhealthy weight-loss methods among wrestlers.
No wrestler can compete with a body fat content less than 7 percent, but there is an exception. If a wrestler is already under 7 percent and has a note from the doctor, he can wrestle.
“This is a great tool for a coach, “Parsley said.
For example, most wrestlers would not be able to move from 119 to 112 pounds because they would drop below the 7 percent line.
Still, Parsley said, 10 percent is optimum.
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