Cutting Weight for Olympic Weightlifting VS Wrestling

First, let me qualify what I mean by cutting weight. I am not referring slowly losing weight responsibly over a long period of time, I'm talking about deliberately losing weight over a short time in an effort to make a particular weight class for competition. Cutting weight isn't really a healthy habit to get into and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone! But to be honest, I have cut a number of pounds during my time as a competitive wrestler.

Running the Tough Mudder 2012

It appears as though I am attracted to sports with weight classes. When I retired from wrestling, I swore that I would never cut weight again, yet here I am - cutting weight for an Olympic lifting competition. As a result, I have become reacquainted with LSD. What is LSD you ask? ... Of course I am referring to "Long Slow Distance" runs, something that I (and many former wrestlers) absolutely hate.

I am definitely not a runner. At just under 5'6 and sitting at approximately 170 lbs, I do not have the physique of a long distance athlete. In fact, I have the swagger of Stay Puff marshmallow man! My running is not efficient and I never feel comfortable regardless of the distance. Yet, I do it anyway (and complain for most of the way!).

I have begrudgingly run many, many miles for the purpose of weight cutting. In wrestling, you cut weight in an attempt to gain an advantage by being the largest competitor in a weight class. Wrestlers often cut water weight through dehydration and then weigh in on an empty stomach to officially weigh JUST under the maximum for the weight class. Additionally, wrestlers weigh in the night prior to the competition and therefore have a minimum of 12 hours (sometimes 17 hours) to refuel, rehydrate and regain your strength prior to competition.

Blizzard Beatdown Crossfit Competition

In weightlifting on the other hand, you actually want to be the lightest athlete in the weight class. If 2 competitors lift the same amount of weight during a competition, the athlete who weighed the least during the official weigh in is crowned the winner. Additionally, weigh ins for weightlifting competitions occur only 2 hours in advance of the   start time. ONLY 2 hours from weigh ins to competition time! As a result, I realized that my standard go-to of cutting all my water weight in the sauna is no longer an option.

When I decided to begin competing in weightlifting, I didn't want to cut weight. I feel much more comfortable with oly shoes on my feet and a barbell in hand rather than trotting along with runners. My first weightlifting competition was in December of 2012 where I competed in the heavyweight division (75+ kg). I hadn't checked my weight once prior to the day of competition and then I arrived and weighed in at 75.6 kg. If only I had known my weight, I could have cut that 0.6 kg and competed in a lower weight class! As a result, I lost to a competitor in my division who weighed in at 96 kg (as there is no maximum weight in the heavy weight class)!

This time around, I wanted to be more prepared and that included cutting weight. Since I registered for the 2014 Toronto Pro Show, I have been watching my diet and hitting the LSD runs 3 times a week. Now that I am a few days out from weigh ins, I have cut out all of my normal starchy carbs and as result, I am beginning to get a little grumpy. If all works out as planned, I will be weighing in at something LESS than 75 kg (165 lbs) on Sunday morning. Toronto Pro Show, here we come!