Takedown Report

Wrestling’s better because weight cutting has improved

y Bryan Van Kley
Do you ever think about how much wrestling has changed and improved over the years? Coming up on my 50th birthday soon, maybe I’m showing my age by starting a column like that! I’m incredibly proud of how our sport has grown and evolved in regards to overall participation numbers and respect in the at-large sports community. Attending USA Wrestling’s Junior Nationals and seeing over 8,500 participants, including 2,245 girls reinforced this.
However, there are moments I cringe when talking to non-wrestling people about the sport; they have that look of disgust and lack of respect when it is brought up, immediately referencing some wrestling friends in high school starving themselves and being miserable.
As wrestling people know, the sport has made huge jumps forward by a healthier approach towards weight management on the youth, high school, and college levels with one and two-hour weigh-ins as well as hydration testing that helps decrease the drastic last-minute cuts which used to be commonplace.
When I was wrestling in high school and college in the early to mid 1990s, weight cutting was a rite of passage. Actually, it seemed it was even a measuring stick as to your dedication and discipline. I weighed 162 pounds as a senior and cut 27 pounds down to 135 the first semester before Christmas. With the scales in our wrestling room located between the gym and the classroom area of our high school, my teammates and I would check weight several times throughout the day between classes. Weigh-ins then were at 7 a.m. for an evening meet, so you could rehydrate during the day of the dual, but of course you still didn’t feel strong that night.
We’d practice wearing a hoodie (or two), sweatpants, and a stocking hat. A majority of our focus was the scale instead of getting better. As you can imagine, by the time the end of the season came around, there was a part of us that couldn’t wait for it to be over.
As a senior, I made the 135-pound class six times before Christmas. Despite plans to go up to 145, I wanted the option to be able to try to make state at 135. The rule then was you needed a minimum of seven weigh-ins at the postseason weight you chose. So, that meant making weight one time after our Christmas-break vacation to California.
My brother who also wrestled and I worked out a number of times while on break and carefully watched what we ate. … more at … https://www.win-magazine.com/2025/08/28/van-kley-wrestlings-better-because-weight-cutting-has-improved/

September 7, 2025 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | fitness, wrestling