Physiological Perturbations in Combat Sports: Weight Cycling and Metabolic Function-A Narrative Review

Combat sports athletes seeking a competitive edge often engage in weight management practices to become larger than their opponents, which ultimately includes periods of gradual weight loss, rapid weight loss, and weight regain. This pattern of weight loss and regain is known as weight cycling and o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Metabolites 2024-01, Vol.14 (2), p.83
Main Authors: Lebron, Modesto A, Stout, Jeffrey R, Fukuda, David H
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Athletes
Body weight
Combat sports
Dietary restrictions
Energy
Exercise
Females
Flexibility
Insulin
Insulin resistance
Leptin
Long-term effects
low energy availability
Martial arts
Medical research
Medicine, Experimental
Metabolic disorders
metabolic flexibility
Metabolic rate
Metabolic syndrome
Metabolism
Physical fitness
Physiological aspects
Physiology
Social aspects
Weight
Weight control
weight cycling
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Summary:Combat sports athletes seeking a competitive edge often engage in weight management practices to become larger than their opponents, which ultimately includes periods of gradual weight loss, rapid weight loss, and weight regain. This pattern of weight loss and regain is known as weight cycling and often includes periods of low energy availability, making combat sports athletes susceptible to metabolic dysfunction. This narrative review represents an effort to explore the metabolic perturbations associated with weight cycling and outline the short-, medium-, and long-term effects on metabolic flexibility, function, and health. The short-term effects of rapid weight loss, such as a reduced metabolic rate and alterations to insulin and leptin levels, may prelude the more pronounced metabolic disturbances that occur during weight regain, such as insulin resistance. Although definitive support is not currently available, this cycle of weight loss and regain and associated metabolic changes may contribute to metabolic syndrome or other metabolic dysfunctions over time.
ISSN:2218-1989
2218-1989
DOI:10.3390/metabo14020083