Department of Kinesiology, California State University, Long Beach, Long Beach, CA, USA.
Fitness & Integrated Training Laboratory and Sport Studies & Sport Psychology Laboratory, Long Beach, USA.
J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2019 Nov 12;16(1):52. doi: 10.1186/s12970-019-0320-9.
Similar to other combat sports, mixed martial arts (MMA) includes divisional weight classes. The purpose of our research was to further investigate the amount of weight professional MMA fighters lost prior to weighing in for competition, their methods used to cut weight, and their sources of advice on how to cut weight.
This survey was administered to 92 male professional MMA athletes. The survey questions included duration of overall weight loss prior to competition, methods of weight-cutting, and their sources of advice regarding weight cutting.
When comparing the number of methods of weight cutting with the source of advice, those who received their advice from social media used slightly more methods of weight cutting (M = 4.86, SD = 1.27) than those who did not (M = 4.02, SD = 1.55); t(90) = - 2.53, p < .05. MMA athletes that used the help of a registered dietitian nutritionist also reported using the least amount of methods for weight-cutting than any other category (M = 3.84, SD = 1.67). Those that used teammates and did not use a registered dietitian nutritionist used slightly more methods (M = 4.46, SD = 1.41) than those who used a registered dietitian nutritionist.
The findings of this study report that professional MMA athletes do undergo rapid weight loss through various methods to make weight for competition. This study adds evidence to the literature that most professional MMA athletes undergo RWL for competition without the guidance of a registered dietitian nutritionist. It is unclear what the effect of using a registered dietitian nutritionist may have on an MMA athletes' ability to reduce weight in a safe and effective manner. Future research should seek to investigate if employing a registered dietitian nutritionist may lead to a higher rate of success for MMA athletes to make weight, and help reduce adverse risks of RWL.
与其他格斗运动类似，综合格斗（MMA）包括分区体重级别。我们研究的目的是进一步调查职业 MMA 战士在称重参加比赛前减轻的体重量、他们使用的减重方法以及他们获得减重建议的来源。
这项调查针对 92 名男性职业 MMA 运动员进行。调查问题包括比赛前整体减重的持续时间、减重方法以及他们关于减重的建议来源。
在比较减重方法的数量和建议来源时，那些从社交媒体获得建议的人使用的减重方法略多（M=4.86，SD=1.27），而那些没有从社交媒体获得建议的人使用的减重方法略少（M=4.02，SD=1.55）；t（90）=-2.53，p<.05。使用注册营养师的 MMA 运动员也报告说，他们使用的减重方法比任何其他类别都少（M=3.84，SD=1.67）。那些使用队友而不使用注册营养师的人使用的减重方法略多（M=4.46，SD=1.41），而那些使用注册营养师的人使用的减重方法略少。
本研究的结果报告称，职业 MMA 运动员确实通过各种方法快速减轻体重以参加比赛。这项研究为文献增加了证据，表明大多数职业 MMA 运动员在没有注册营养师指导的情况下进行 RWL 以参加比赛。目前尚不清楚使用注册营养师可能对 MMA 运动员以安全有效的方式减轻体重的能力产生什么影响。未来的研究应该探讨聘请注册营养师是否可能导致 MMA 运动员成功减重的比率更高，并有助于降低 RWL 的不利风险。
