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The Chronicles of Cassio -- Chronicle 6
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Cassio Pero
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Oct. 6, 2006
Off the mat my teammates know me as outgoing and comedic. Those same teammates will also tell you I am irritable at times. All of the above characteristics are true. The number one cause of irritability from wrestling is cutting weight. In one of my previous chronicles I talked about how wrestlers get down to their leanest body mass, having a low percentage of fat. Well, the truth is, losing fat and getting to your leanest body mass is the worst part about wrestling. There are many sacrifices you make to get your body in the best physical shape for competition. We're forced to give up some of our favorite foods, or decrease the amount of intake of our favorite foods drastically. Susan Kundrat is an educated nutritionist who speaks to our team at the beginning of every season. Kundrat knows a lot about nutrition, and specifically about nutrition for maximizing performance in wrestlers. She is a great addition to our program and provides us with nutrition packets to guide us through our season.
Having a strict diet is important because when you get down in weight, you want to have energy to compete an hour later. Boxers and UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) fighters weigh-in the night before, then eat and drink as much as they want going into the fight the next day. Wrestlers weigh-in then have to be prepared to compete within an hour or two. This means, we cannot gorge food and drink because our digestive system won't be able to handle it and most importantly we would not be prepared to compete. I cannot stress enough the importance of dieting in collegiate wrestling. By dieting and training, your body gets used to working hard while your weight is low. When it comes time to compete, the body has already been trained for the occasion.
Weight control cannot be done overnight. In order to get to lean body mass, you have to consistently eat high protein foods, vegetables and fruits. My favorite desserts are chocolate chip cookies and banana pudding. My favorite foods are pizza and fast foods. During the season I sacrifice those delicious greasy cheeseburgers and French fries and substitute them with chicken breasts or fish with vegetables. Eating healthy is never fun for me. Why, you ask? Because I don't get to eat cheeseburgers and chocolate chip cookies! When I step on the scale for weigh-ins I have to be 141.0 or below--141.1 or 141.3 is considered over weight and I wouldn't be allowed to wrestle (its called making scratch weight).
This chronicle is not going to bring justice to how weight cutting affects wrestler's lives. Nor will this chronicle bring justice to how hard it is to wake up in the morning, weight train, then attend classes all day--while being alert and focused, then go to wrestling practice to train and end the evening doing homework and studying for exams. When it gets a few days before weigh-ins, all these tasks are done while being a bit hungry and thirsty to say the least. I thought I was crazy for being a wrestler. But if you think being a student-athlete is easy, then you might be crazier than I am.
Dad, the chicken and fish are getting expensive. I don't know why, but the prices are increasing like gas prices. Please send me money a.s.a.p. Love you.
If any wrestling alumni happen to read this, Coach Jim Heffernan needs you to call or email him updating your career status. Thank you all. If you're not a wrestler, attack your favorite food and dessert with reckless abandon. Enjoy.
