Weight cutting for Mixed Martial Arts is the practice of losing approximately 6-10% of a fighter’s bodyweight, largely through dehydration. Fighters cut weight to gain a size advantage after rehydrating.
Weight cutting is a controversial subject in combat sports because it requires you to cut weight so you can weigh in at the division limit 24 hours before the fight. Experts claim that 24 hours is not enough time for the organs, especially the brain to fully rehydrate. This leaves fighters more susceptible to getting knocked out and even brain damage.
Now that IV re-hydration has been outlawed post USADA, fighters are even more vulnerable to the effects of bad weight cuts. However, the practice does not seem to be going anywhere soon. This is how its done.
1. Long-Term/Gradual Weight Loss
Typically fighters get 8-12 weeks notice that they will be fighting. This gives them plenty of time to start shedding excess body fat. This phase involves eating a clean, balanced diet with a calorie deficit.
A fighter that weighs way above their weight class can find this period grueling. Fight camps are notoriously difficult on the body and mind, sometimes training 2-3 times a day. Add a caloric deficit to that equation and fighters are in a world of pain.
This is why it pays to stay in relatively good shape in the off season. Fighters have better long-term success when they don’t balloon up between fights.
2. The Weight Cutting Process (5-7 days out)
Fighters begin the grueling final phase of weight cutting about a week before the fight, sometimes even a little earlier. In this phase fighters reduce overall intake to burn remaining body fat.
Fighters cut carbohydrates to less than 50g a day because water binds to glycogen. Depleting these stores can lead to about a 2% drop in weight.
Fighters also may switch to a low-fiber, low-residue diet 48 hours before weigh-in. This reduces fecal mass in the intestines shedding some weight by clearing the digestive tract.
3. Fluid Manipulation (The “Water Load”)
The water load phase is when fighters drink large amounts of water (2-3 gallons daily) for several days. This “tricks” the body into down-regulating the hormone aldosterone. This causes the body to flush out more water through frequent urination.
Water intake is then drastically reduced to zero or small sips roughly 24 hours before the scale. The fighter is now putting the body into a type of “flush mode.”
4. Active Dehydration (Final 24 Hours)
This is the dramatic part we all see in the countdowns to fights. Fighters use: saunas, hot Epsom salt baths, or sweat suits during light exercise to force out the remaining fluid. Fighters sometimes use a combination of techniques like laying under hot towels in combination with a sweat suit.
Fighters have also cut all salt intake about 3 days before this to minimize water retention. This is considered the most dangerous part of the weight cut. It is the point where fighters are the most depleted of water and nutrients.
5. The Weigh-in and Re-hydration
Fighters must weigh in approximately 24 hours before their actual fight, typically between 9am-11am. It is at this point that fighters begin the hard job of replenishing everything they’ve lost in a short amount of time.
They use high sodium/electrolyte drinks to ensure water is actually retained by cells and they consume high-glycemic carbohydrates to restore glycogen energy for the fight.
Some fighters don’t waste a minute and immediately begin refueling right after they weigh in.
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