Ep.17 David Nolan: Weight cutting strategies for strength & combat sports

The Health Scientist Podcast

David Nolan is based at Dublin City University where he coordinates research examining nutritional & exercise interventions targeting the preservation of muscle mass and function in older adults while also undertaking PhD studies focused on weight-cutting protocols in strength sports. On top of this he is head of performance at the Rugby Academy Ireland and a research officer for Aplyft as well as being the head coach and educator at Synapse Performance & hosts the Synapse Performance Podcast.

David graduated with a 1st class honours degree in Sport & Exercise Sciences from the University of Limerick. He has previously worked in a clinical exercise setting with MedEx Wellness & as a strength and conditioning coach with Kildare GAA amongst other teams & individuals. David has an avid interest in research and recently completed contracted research for Food for Health Ireland in the area of nutrition research, based in University College Dublin.

Dave's Instagram

Synapse Performance Website

Synapse Performance Podcast

In this episode we cover:

• The importance of weight making in strength and combat sports
• Long term and acute strategies commonly applied to cut weight
• Different body compartments from where weight can be lost such as fat mass, body carbohydrate, body water, food residue etc.
• The science behind water cutting
• Surprising, real examples of major weight loss in the week leading up to a competition
• How time to weigh-in varies between sports and has a major effect on the weight cutting strategy used
• The importance of the regain phase between weigh-in and competition
• Optimal strategies for fluid and carbohydrate regain
• The potential effects of weigtht cutting on performance
• The health risks associated with severe weight cuts
• The many dogmatic practices that are used in weight cutting and the risks associated with the belief that a weight cut has to be hard.
• The importance of self experimentation in weight cutting