4 ms·

I think the best place that this is illustrated is in the UFC. When they banned rehydrating through IV's (I read they test for it by checking for by products o

by nscalf 9y ago

I think the best place that this is illustrated is in the UFC. When they banned rehydrating through IV's (I read they test for it by checking for by products of rubber in the blood, which presumably would have come from running liquid through rubber tubes into the arm) we expected to see the entirety of the sport move up in weight classes. It was not a big secret that everyone was cutting large amounts of weight to gain an advantage on naturally smaller opponents. There wasn't a large scale shift in the fighter's weight classes though. They just swapped to oral rehydration. One of the big concerns from this change though is that some doctors are claiming you don't rehydrate fully in a short period of time this way. Fighters weigh in the day before a fight, so they're peak dehydrated roughly 24 hours before they fight. There are claims that it takes the brain many days to fully rehydrate after a weight cut if you're not using IV's, so people paying attention in the sport are really worried that brain injuries are going to start going up.

adrianN 9y ago
What would be a plausible mechanism for a faster brain rehydration using an IV? To me it seems that once the fluid is in the blood stream, it doesn't matter anymore which way it entered. It certainly doesn't take days for ingested fluids to reach the blood.
rsync 9y ago
"One of the big concerns from this change though is that some doctors are claiming you don't rehydrate fully in a short period of time this way. Fighters weigh in the day before a fight, so they're peak dehydrated roughly 24 hours before they fight. There are claims that it takes the brain many days to fully rehydrate after a weight cut if you're not using IV's, so people paying attention in the sport are really worried that brain injuries are going to start going up." I have always been skeptical of this notion that rehydration takes hours or days or whatever. First of all, practical experience shows that mucus, urine, sweating[1], etc. very quickly revert to full hydration. You can go from dark yellow urine to clear urine in less than two hours. Second, what mechanism could there possibly be to restrict water absorption in your body while dehydrated ?[2] I don't think you could slow down rehydration if you tried to[3]. Your body doesn't have to digest it and it can transport nearly immediately outward to every tissue (as evidenced by nasal mucus production which reverts as quickly as your urine color does). I think it's just bro-science and it's surprising that it is so persistent (I have heard it in the gym, at basic training, in the fire service, etc.) because immediate, practical evidence contradicts it. [1] I am not talking about heatstroke, etc., which are separate issues. [2] The only thing I can possibly think of is stuffing yourself with very absorptive food prior to rehydrating ... which would be odd. [3] Assuming normal water with normal mineral content. Obviously, distilled water will cause problems.
LeifCarrotson 9y ago
It seems that the ban would be more effective if, rather than banning a specific rehydration method, they banned the process of cutting weight through dehydration. A cheap urine refractometer costs $25 - you can grab one yourself on Amazon if you like - and would tell you whether the athlete at the scales was dehydrated (and also give you a urine sample to check for other banned substances). Sure, then athletes might show up to the scales hungry, but that's more healthy than sweating. And by 'they', sure, the UFC could make a big change...but where this really needs to start is the high-school wrestling mat, where you have kids establishing a culture of 'grit' as defined by running in hoodies. I haven't been a wrestler myself - I was a track kid in high school - but I can vividly remember swiftly passing our varsity wrestling team during winter training on the indoor track in our gym. They shuffled along in their uniform, heavy sweats, fists bunched up to their chests (from too much bench pressing and curling and not enough triceps/lats work) while I wore nothing but some short shorts and was dripping with sweat anyways. UFC fighters are appropriately compensated and informed of their risks. High school kids are not. State wrestling finals for my state are in two days. It's 11:45 here, so right this minute, a lot of kids are just wrapping up their lunch and some of the best wrestlers across the state are going back to class hungry and dangerously thirsty - on purpose - so they can make weight this weekend. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2555772-weight-cutting-solving-the-biggest-problem-in-combat-sports http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2555772-weight-cutting-so...
- shkkmo 9y ago
  I remember the wrestlers in my high school carrying water bottles in classes before competitions that they would spit in throughout the day for that little bit extra weight drop.

by nscalf 9y ago

adrianN 9y ago

What would be a plausible mechanism for a faster brain rehydration using an IV? To me it seems that once the fluid is in the blood stream, it doesn't matter anymore which way it entered. It certainly doesn't take days for ingested fluids to reach the blood.

rsync 9y ago

"One of the big concerns from this change though is that some doctors are claiming you don't rehydrate fully in a short period of time this way. Fighters weigh in the day before a fight, so they're peak dehydrated roughly 24 hours before they fight. There are claims that it takes the brain many days to fully rehydrate after a weight cut if you're not using IV's, so people paying attention in the sport are really worried that brain injuries are going to start going up." I have always been skeptical of this notion that rehydration takes hours or days or whatever. First of all, practical experience shows that mucus, urine, sweating[1], etc. very quickly revert to full hydration. You can go from dark yellow urine to clear urine in less than two hours. Second, what mechanism could there possibly be to restrict water absorption in your body while dehydrated ?[2] I don't think you could slow down rehydration if you tried to[3]. Your body doesn't have to digest it and it can transport nearly immediately outward to every tissue (as evidenced by nasal mucus production which reverts as quickly as your urine color does). I think it's just bro-science and it's surprising that it is so persistent (I have heard it in the gym, at basic training, in the fire service, etc.) because immediate, practical evidence contradicts it. [1] I am not talking about heatstroke, etc., which are separate issues. [2] The only thing I can possibly think of is stuffing yourself with very absorptive food prior to rehydrating ... which would be odd. [3] Assuming normal water with normal mineral content. Obviously, distilled water will cause problems.

LeifCarrotson 9y ago

It seems that the ban would be more effective if, rather than banning a specific rehydration method, they banned the process of cutting weight through dehydration. A cheap urine refractometer costs $25 - you can grab one yourself on Amazon if you like - and would tell you whether the athlete at the scales was dehydrated (and also give you a urine sample to check for other banned substances). Sure, then athletes might show up to the scales hungry, but that's more healthy than sweating. And by 'they', sure, the UFC could make a big change...but where this really needs to start is the high-school wrestling mat, where you have kids establishing a culture of 'grit' as defined by running in hoodies. I haven't been a wrestler myself - I was a track kid in high school - but I can vividly remember swiftly passing our varsity wrestling team during winter training on the indoor track in our gym. They shuffled along in their uniform, heavy sweats, fists bunched up to their chests (from too much bench pressing and curling and not enough triceps/lats work) while I wore nothing but some short shorts and was dripping with sweat anyways. UFC fighters are appropriately compensated and informed of their risks. High school kids are not. State wrestling finals for my state are in two days. It's 11:45 here, so right this minute, a lot of kids are just wrapping up their lunch and some of the best wrestlers across the state are going back to class hungry and dangerously thirsty - on purpose - so they can make weight this weekend. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2555772-weight-cutting-solving-the-biggest-problem-in-combat-sports http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2555772-weight-cutting-so...

shkkmo 9y ago
I remember the wrestlers in my high school carrying water bottles in classes before competitions that they would spit in throughout the day for that little bit extra weight drop.