Cutting weight is a common practice among MMA fighters to meet the weight class requirements for their fights. The process of cutting weight involves losing a significant amount of water weight in a short period of time to make weight for the fight. Here are some common methods that MMA fighters use to cut weight:
- Dehydration: Fighters often reduce their water intake and use saunas, hot baths, or steam rooms to sweat out excess water weight.
- Dieting: In the weeks leading up to the fight, fighters may restrict their calorie intake and reduce their intake of carbohydrates, fats, and sodium to lose weight.
- Exercise: Fighters often increase the intensity and duration of their workouts to burn more calories and lose weight.
- Diuretics: Some fighters may use diuretics, which are drugs that increase urine production, to quickly shed water weight.
- Weight-cutting supplements: Some fighters may use weight-cutting supplements that can help reduce water retention and boost metabolism.
It’s worth noting that cutting too much weight too quickly can be dangerous and lead to dehydration, kidney damage, and other health issues. That’s why it’s important for fighters to work with a qualified nutritionist and medical professional to develop a safe and effective weight-cutting plan.
The last paragraph of that article “It’s worth noting that cutting too much weight too quickly can be dangerous and lead to dehydration, kidney damage, and other health issues. That’s why it’s important for fighters to work with a qualified nutritionist and medical professional to develop a safe and effective weight-cutting plan.” is by far the most important.
We’ve been selling saunas for over 4 decades, and advise customers to never use their sauna as a weight loss tool. People have died using a sauna for weight loss, and some have died as a result of dehydration or heat exhaustion in a sauna without even trying to use it for weight loss.
Saunas have a myriad of great health benefits, both physical and mental, weight loss really isn’t among them. We understand that many fighters/boxers/wrestlers use saunas as a means to an end to cut weight. Just be aware it’s only water weight, and will come back as soon as you rehydrate yourself, which is very very important. Failure to do so can lead to death, especially if you’re combining sauna bathing with other alternatives above such as diuretics.