7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
1/13
How To Lose 20-30 Pounds In 5
Days: The Extreme Weight
Cutting and Rehydration SecretsofUFCFighters99 CommentsWritten by Tim Ferriss
Topics: Physical Performance
The following is a guest post by Nate Green, who works with Dr. John
Berardi, nutritional advisor to athletes like UFC champion Georges St.
Pierre (GSP).
This is the first of two blog posts entailing extreme physical
experiments. Absolutely no performance enhancing drugs of any kind
were used.
Part 1 this post details exactly how topfighters like Georges
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
2/13
St. Pierre rapidly lose 20-30 pounds for weigh-ins.To refine themethod, Nate performed this on himself, losing 20 pounds in 5 days.
The unique part: Dr. Berardi and team measured key variables
throughout the entire process, including the last rehydration phase. As
Berardi put it:
We used GSPs exact protocol with him [Nate]. The idea was that by doingthis with a guy who didnt actually have to compete the next day, we could
measure all sorts of performance variables that youd never get with an
athlete about to fight.
Part 2 the next post will share how Nate used intermittentfasting and strategically planned eating to gain 20 pounds in 28
days, emulating a fighter who wants(or needs) to move up a weightclass in competition.
Cautionary Note on Part 1
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)fighters put it all out in the open for the world
to see: they kick, punch, laugh, cry, and bleed in front of thousands of
arena fans and millions morewatching at home.But even if youre a hardcorefan who knows all the stats, theres
something behind the scenes that youve probably never seen in full:
world-class weight manipulation
Done right, it can significantly increase a fighters chances of winning.
An athlete will artificially lower his weight for pre-fight weigh-ins, then
show up to the actual fight 10, 20, or even 30pounds heavier than hisopponent. Its a game changer.
Done wrong, it can make even the toughest guy lose his edge and
probably the fight. Theres serious risk of organ failure if done
haphazardly.
Even though boxers and wrestlers have been manipulating weight in
this fashion for decades, it has the air of illicit activity. And though its
legal in MMA competition, you should *never* try this at home or
without medical supervision. Excessive dehydration can kill you.
Cutting weight has no place in real-world dieting or behavior.
This is NOT an article on sustainable weight loss or healthy living.Rather, its a fascinating look at how far athletes and scientists will go to
manipulate the human body for competitive advantage.
Heres how it works
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
3/13
Enter Nate
Imagine this: Its Saturday night and youre a top-rankedMMAfighter
who just stepped into the cage to fight for the 170-pound Welterweight
Championship.
Question:How much do you weigh?
The answer may seem obvious: 170 pounds, right? But if you followed
the steps of extreme weight manipulation, the real answer is that you
weigh somewhere between 185 and 190 pounds. Thats 15-20
poundsmorethan the cutoff weight of 170.
24 hoursbeforeyou stepped into the cage, however, you did in fact
weigh 170 pounds. You had to. Friday night was the official weigh-in
where you and your opponent both stripped down to your skivvies,
steppedon the scale in front of the judge, and prayed that the numberon the scale hit 170or lower.But once you stepped off that scale it was a race to gain weight.
I find this kind of physiological puppetry very interesting. Most of us
regular guys have a hard time gaining or losing just 5pounds at a time.But the top combat athletes can lose up to 30 pounds in just
5
daysleading up to the fight. Then they can gain nearly all of it back in
the 24 hours between weighing in and going toe-to-toe.
They do this to gain a massive competitive advantage. In other words,
the bigger guy who retains more of his strength, agility, and endurance
will likely win. The guy who weighs in at 170 and thenfightsat 170 often has a worldof hurt coming his way.Thats why Anderson Silvaarguably the worlds bestMMAfighter normally fights in the 185
-pound class even though he actually weighs
215 pounds. A few days before he fights, Anderson cuts 30 pounds to
make weightthen gains most of his weight back in 24hours in time forhis fight.
Georges St Pierre arguably the worlds 2nd best fighternormallywalks around at 195 pounds. He ends up cutting 25 pounds to make his
170 pound weight class, and then gains 20 of it back beforehis fight.Sneaky, huh?
Just how do these guys do it? And what does this rapid weight loss and
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
4/13
weight gain do to their performance?
My Extreme Weight Manipulation Experiment
Im lucky enough to be friends with Dr. John Berardiand MartinRooney,two guys who regularly work withUFCathletes.
Recently, I told them I wanted to see what cutting weight was like.Is itreally possible for a regular guy like me to drop 20pounds in a few daysthen gain all of it back in 24hours?And if it was possible, what would itfeellike? I heard cutting weight was
one of the hardest things fighters do throughout their career. Was I man
enough to handle it? Or would I give up when things got tough?
They agreed to help me cut 20pounds in one week, and then put it allback on again in 24hours.Nervous doesnt even begin to explain how I felt.
The Smart Way To Cut Weight Fast
Before pics. Full of water and feeling happy.Now extreme weight manipulation can go horribly, horribly wrong. Even
a lot ofUFCguys dont know how to do it the smart way. Instead, they
put their bodies in real harm by doing stupid things like taking a lot of
diuretics, not drinking any water, skipping meals, wearing trash bags
while exercising (sometimes in the sauna) and generally being idiotic.
They lose weight, of course. But they also lose energy and power and
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
5/13
develop one bad temper. None of which helps during fight time.
With the help of Dr. Berardi and Rooney, I decided to take a smarter
route, instead of putting my health in serious jeopardy.
I started at 190.2pounds and had 5days to lose 20pounds.Heres a breakdown of the nutritional strategies we used the sameone Georges St Pierre and other eliteMMAfighters use before a bigfight. (Remember: we know this because Dr. Berardi is Georgesnutrition coach).
STRATEGICALLYDECREASEWATERCONSUMPTION
Dropping weight fast is all about manipulating your water and sodium
levels.
For a fighter who wants to cut weight quickly and safely, heres how
much water he would consume in the 5days leading up to his weigh-in:Sunday2 gallons Monday1 gallonTuesday1 gallonWednesday.5 gallons Thursday.25 gallons FridayNo water till after weigh-in at5PM.
As you can see, the amount of water starts high with two gallons and
decreases with each day till hes drinking hardly any water on Thursdayand Friday.
This is to ensure their body gets into flushing mode.
By drinking lots of water early on, the fighters body will down-
regulatealdosterone, a hormone that acts to conserve sodium and
secrete potassium.
And when he suddenly reduces the amount of water he drinks in the
middle and end of the week, his body will still be in flushing mode,meaning hell hit the bathroom to pee a lot even though hes hardly
drinking any water.
What happens when you excrete more fluid than you take in? Bingo!
Rapid weight loss.
DONTEATMORETHAN50GRAMSOFCARBSPERDAY
Since one gram of carbohydrate pulls 2.7grams of water into the body,its important for fighters to keep their carb intake low.
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
6/13
By doing this, they also deplete muscle glycogen (a source of energy)
and keep their body in flush mode.
DONTEATFRUIT,SUGAR, ORSTARCHES
These are carbs that should be avoided entirely while cutting.
EATMEALSTHATCONTAINALOTOFPROTEINANDFAT
Fighters have to eatsomething. Since theyre avoiding carbs, Dr.Berardi advises them to load up on high-quality protein like meats, eggs
or a vegetarian sources of protein. Its also the perfect opportunity to eat
lots of leafy vegetables (like spinach) and cruciferous vegetables (like
broccoli and cauliflower).
Georges St Pierre normally has his meals prepared by a private chef sohe doesnt even have to think about this stuff or make decisions.
Recommended reading: heres an entire article detailing GSPs trainingdiet.
DONTEATSALT
Since the body likes to hold on to sodium (which will hold on to water),
dropping salt helps the fighters body flush water out.
CONSIDERANATURALDIURETIC
This step isnt always necessary, but it can help when youre getting
down to the wire and still need to lose water. Opt for a natural diuretic
like dandelion root, but wait until the last 2 days to use it.
TAKEHOTBATHS
We sweat a lot in hot environments. However, we sweat the most in hot,
humid environments. Since hot water offers both heat and 100%
humidity, fighters lose water quickly by taking hot baths and fullysubmerging everything but their nose for 10minutes at a time.SITINTHESAUNA
This is the finishing touch to flush the last few pounds of water and is
only used on the last few days leading up to the weigh-in.
The Weight Cut Schedule
So if we take all of that and break it into a weekly plan, it looks like this:
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
7/13
SUNDAY
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Proteinand Fat: As much as you want in 3 meals Water: 2 gallons Salt: NoneMONDAY
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Proteinand Fat: As much as you want in 3 meals Water: 1 gallonSalt: NoneTUESDAY
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Proteinand Fat: As much as you want in 3 meals Water: 1 gallonSalt: NoneWEDNESDAY
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Proteinand Fat: As much as you want in 3 meals Water: 0.5 gallonSalt:NoneSauna in afternoon
THURSDAY
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Proteinand Fat: Asmuch as you want in 3 meals Water: 0.25 gallonSalt:NoneSauna in afternoon for 30minutes, hot water bath at nightFRIDAY(WEIGHIN AT 6PM)
Carbs: Less than 50 grams per day. No fruit, starches, or sugars.Protein
and Fat: Eat 2 very small meals until weigh inWater: None till weigh-inSalt: NoneSauna until weight is met(Note from Tim:You can download the entire weight-manipulation planthat Nate used here: Weight Loss and Rehydration Protocol.)
What It Feels Like To Cut Weight
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
8/13
Dry as a bone and none to happy about it.So that all looks fine on paper. But what does it actually feel like to gothrough it?
One word: Hell.
I started my cut on Sunday at 190pounds. Heres a quick rundown ofwhat it looked like.
SUNDAY 190POUNDSI carry a gallon water jug with me wherever I go, which makes me feel
ridiculous. But I have to make sure I get my two gallons of water in.
Overall, though, I feel fine. It actually doesnt seem that difficult. Im not
sure what the big deal is.
MONDAY 187POUNDSIm starting to miss the taste of salt. All of my food is bland. Now Im
drinking one gallon of water instead of two. Still not that bad.
TUESDAY 182POUNDSI go to the bathroom 13times in one day. A new record, I believe. AndIm still drinking a gallon of water.
WEDNESDAY 179POUNDSNow Im down to half gallon of water per day, which means I have to
ration it out, which feels weird.I have a little with breakfast, a little withlunch, and a little with dinner. Its definitely not enough water.
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
9/13
My mouth is dry. I feel dehydrated. Im drinking straight espresso
instead of drip coffee because it contains too much water.
In the evening, I try my first hot water bath. I generally enjoy baths, but
this ones different. My apartments water doesnt get as hot as Dr.
Berardi wants it to be hot enough to cause moderate pain but notburn your hand so I fill two pots and a kettle with water, put them onthe stovetop until they boil, and pour them into the bath tub.
I get into the bath and immediately regret the decision.
10 minutes later, Im lying naked in the middle of my living room trying to
catch my breath. My eyes are rolled back intomy head. My entire bodyfeels like a giant heartbeat. I want to drink some water, but cant.
This is starting to be less fun.
THURSDAY 175POUNDSI am a zombie. A zombie who sits. Mostly in the sauna or on the couch.
In the sauna I watch beads of sweat collect on my skin. I see my
precious water run down my arms and chest and legs and know that I
wont be able to replenish any of it when I get out.
I only have .25 gallons of water to last me the entire day. Im ready for
this to be over.
FRIDAY 169.7POUNDSAT 5PMI look sick, very sick.
I spend the last 30minutes before the weigh-in in the sauna and drinkfour sips of water throughout the entire day
What Cutting Weight Does To Performance
OK, Ill save you the restof the journal entries and share someperformance data.
While the fighters are tested in competition, no one has ever really
documented how much strength or power they lose by dehydrating. (Or
how much strength and power they regain after they get all their weight
back.)
So we decided to check.
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
10/13
And it turns out, losing 20 pounds in 5 days is not conducive to being
strong, powerful, or agile. (Surprise!) I couldnt jump as high, lift asmuch weight, or run as fast or as long as I had just a week before
during our baseline testing.
POWERTEST:VERTICALJUMP
Baseline: 31.7 inches After Dehydration: 27.6inchesSTRENGTHENDURANCETEST: 225-POUNDBENCHPRESS
Baseline: 15 reps After Dehydration: 5repsENDURANCETEST:MAXTIMEONTREADMILL
Baseline: 3 minutes and 14 seconds of sprinting at 8mph with 6%inclineAfter Dehydration: 1minute and 28seconds of sprinting at 8mphwith 3%inclineIts no wonder these guys try to gain all their weight back immediately
after weighing in. Theyd be screwed if they didnt.
Speaking of which
The Smart Way To Gain Weight Fast
OnceUFCathletes cut weight and weigh-in, theyd never be able to
perform at a top level. (Which is obvious from my less-than-stellar
performance in the gym).
So what do they do next?They gain as much weight as humanly
possible in 24 hours.
Heres how they do it. (And how I did it, too.)
DRAMATICALLYINCREASEWATERINTAKE.
According to Dr. Berardi, the body can absorb only about 1 liter (2.2
pounds) of fluidat maximumin an hour. So he advises the fightershe works with to not to drink any more than that. Instead, he tells them
to sip 1liter (2.2pounds) of water per hour.However, the fighters wont retain all that fluid. In fact, probably about
25% of it will be lost as urine.
So, heres the math for someone like Georges St Pierre:
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
11/13
9liters (20pounds) of water to get back.11liters (25pounds) of fluid between Friday weigh-in andSaturday weigh-in to get it all back.
24 hours in which to do it. 8 of which hell be sleeping and 3ofwhich will be leading up to Saturday weigh
-in.
This leaves 13total hours for rehydration.So as soon as Georges steps off the scale, he literally slams a liter ofwater and carries the bottle around with him, refilling it and draining it
every hour until 3hours before his fight. (There isnt a bathroom in thecage.)
EATASMUCHCARBOHYDRATE(ANDPROTEINANDFAT)
ASYOUWANT
Nows also the time for fighters to load up on carbs and pull all the water
theyre drinking back into their muscles. It also helps them feel more
human and look less sickly. (Something I definitely experienced duringmy super-hydration phase.)
Dr. Berardi has his fighters eat a big meal directly after they weigh in.
He doesnt restrict calorieshis athletes can eat as much as they wantin that meal as long as its healthy food like lean meats, sweet potatoes,
rice, and vegetables. (Gorging on junk food is a bad idea.)
Then on Saturday (fight day), Dr. Berardi has his fighters eat a
satisfying amount of healthy food in a few small mealsleading up to thefight.
ADDSALTTOEVERYTHING
Since sodium helps the bodyretain water, fighters are encouraged toadd extra salt to their meals.
Heres what my super rehydration schedule looked like:
The Weight-Gain Schedule
FRIDAYAFTERWEIGH-IN
Carbs: Eat as much as you want in one meal after weigh-in and
testingProtein andFat: Eat as much as you want in one meal afterweigh-in and testingRehydration Beverage: Drink 1 liter of water mixedwith 1/2 scoop of carbohydrate/protein drink for every hour youreawake. (We used Surge Workout Fuel.)Salt: Salt food
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
12/13
SATURDAY
Carbs: Eat satisfying amount in four meals before weigh-inProtein: Eatsatisfying amount in four meals before weigh-inRehydration Beverage:Drink 1 liter of water mixed with 1/2 scoop of carbohydrate/protein drink
for every hour youre awake but stop 3hours before testing.What Gaining Weight Does To Performance
Back to normal-ish.First things first: Personally, I ended up gaining 16.9 pounds back in 24hours. Not bad.
But the real question: How much strength and power do you really gain
when you super-hydrate?
Answer: A lot.
While I didnt perform as well as my baseline (when I did all the
performance tests before I started the experiment), I gotreally
close.
Which means that even though I put my body through a week of torture,
it was almost 100%.
And I totally annihilated my performance numbers from just 24hoursbefore when I was sickly and dehydrated.
I ran faster and longer, jumped higher, and lifted more weight for more
reps.
POWERTEST:VERTICALJUMP
7/30/2019 How To Lose 20
13/13
Baseline: 31.7 inches After Dehydration: 27.6 inches Re-hydrated: 29inches
STRENGTHENDURANCETEST: 225-POUNDBENCHPRESS
Baseline: 15 reps After Dehydration: 5 reps Rehydrated: 12repsENDURANCETEXT:MAXTIMEONTREADMILL
Baseline: 3 minutes and 14 seconds of sprinting at 8mph with 6%
inclineAfter Dehydration: 1 minute and 28 seconds of sprinting at 8mph
with 3% inclineRehydrated: 3minutes and 25seconds of sprinting at8mph with 6%incline
Lose Weight. Gain Weight. Fight.
For anMMAfighter, this is about the time when hed be getting ready to
step in the cage and fight, which means its about the same time youd
turn on the TV and see him in his corner, jumping up and down, getting
psyched and ready for battle.
How much does he weigh?
Its safe to say at least 10-30 pounds more than the weight class hes
fighting in.
And now you know the secret to extreme weight manipulation,
something 99.9%of guys who watch MMAwill never know.Pretty cool, right?
If you have questions, please put them in the comments and Dr. Berardi
and I will do our bestto answer them.###
Nates not done yet. Next well havePart 2How To Gain 20 Poundsin 28 Days: The Extreme Muscle Building Secrets ofUFCFighters.
For more about Nate and his work on building muscle and gaining
strength, check outScrawny To Brawny.