Here is a brief summary of the new WIAA rule for weight management
· Each wrestler must establish a certified minimum wrestling weight prior to wrestling any interscholastic matches starting with the 2007 - 2008 wrestling season.
· No wrestler will be allowed to establish a certified minimum wrestling weight until they have successfully passed a hydration test
· Once the wrestler has established a certified minimum wrestling weight he or she may not wrestle below their established minimum wrestling weight. i.e. if a wrestler's certified minimum wrestling weight is 120.4 lbs then they may not wrestle below the 125 lb weight class regardless of how much weight they may lose during the season.
· No wrestler will be allowed to wrestle if their body fat percentage (%BF) is below 7% (males) and 12% (females) at the time that the certified minimum wrestling weight is established without getting a doctor's waiver stating that they are normally below the minimum %BF and that it is safe for them to wrestle.
· Wrestlers who's %BF is below the acceptable %BF will have their minimum wrestling weight set at their actual weight at the time of measurement and will not be allowed to wrestle at any lower weight class. This means if you are under 7% or 12% BF and your weight at the time of certification is 113.6 lbs the lowest weight class you will be allowed to wrestle at is 119 even if during the course of the season your weight drops below 112 you will still have to wrestle at 119 or one weight class above.
· As part of the certification process a weight loss plan will be established for each wrestler who's %BF is above 7%(males) or 12%(females). A wrestler may not lose more weight per week than is established by their plan.
How will minimum wrestling weight be established?
Starting no sooner than 2 weeks prior to the start of the high school wrestling season wrestlers may have their minimum wrestling weight established.
A WIAA assessor will administer a hydration test. If the wrestler passes the hydration test then he or she will have their %BF determined using skinfold calipers and a set of equations. If a wrestler does not pass the hydration test then they will not be allowed to have their minimum wrestling weight established and will have to wait a minimum of 48 hours before taking the hydration test again.
Once the %BF of a wrestler has been determined, their minimum wrestling weight will be determined using the following formula:
([1 - (% BF/100)] x current weight) / 0.93
For Example:
established as follows:
([1 x (15.4/100)] x 161.6) / 0.93 = minimum wrestling weight
([1 x (.154)] x 161.6) / 0.93 = minimum wrestling weight
([.846] x 161.6) / 0.93 = minimum wrestling weight
(136.7) / 0.93 = 147 lbs. = minimum wrestling weight
Once a wrestler's minimum wrestling weight has been established, a weight loss plan for the wrestler will be established. Each wrestler who's %BF is above 7% will have an individual plan put in place which will determine how long it will take to get to their minimum wrestling weight. All wrestlers have until week 11 of the wrestling season to get to their minimum weight and establish the lowest weight class they can wrestle for the post-season.
Below is the weight loss plan for our 161.6 wrestler in the example above.
The wrestler would be allowed to lose 1.5% of their total body weight (2.4 lbs) each week up to week 11 of the season until they got to their minimum wrestling weight of 147 lbs.
|
Week |
Actual Weight |
Lose Allowed |
Target Weight |
Weight Class |
Comments |
|
10/29 |
161.6 |
2.4 |
161.6 - 2.4 = 159.2 |
160, 171 |
|
|
11/5 |
159.2 |
2.4 |
159.2 - 2.4 = 156.8 |
160, 171 |
|
|
1 11/12 |
156.8 |
2.4 |
156.8 - 2.4 = 154.4 |
160,171 |
1st Practice |
|
2 11/19 |
154.4 |
2.4 |
154.4 - 2.4 = 152 |
152, 160 |
|
|
3 11/26 |
152 |
2.4 |
152 - 2.4 = 149.6 |
152, 160 |
1st competition |
|
4 12/3 |
149.6 |
2.4 |
149.6 - 2.4 = 147.4 |
152, 160 |
|
|
5 12/10 |
147.4 |
.4 |
147.4 - .4 = 147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
6 12/17 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
7 12/24 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
8 12/31 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
9 1/7 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
10 1/14 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
11 1/21 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
152, 160 |
|
|
12 1/28 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
154, 162 |
League (+2lbs) |
|
13 2/4 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
154, 162 |
Regional’s |
|
14 2/11 |
147 |
0 |
147 |
154, 162 |
State |
This wrestler can start wrestling in the 152 weight class starting in week 2 of the regular season and need only wrestle 1 match at that weight to qualify to wrestle at 152 for the post season. No additional weight loses for this wrestler will be allowed after week 6 of the season.
WIAA Decision - http://www.wiaa.com/policy/execbd/05decboard.pdf
Last but not least here is the link to the NWCA Weight Management Information page - http://www.nwcaonline.com/sportscience.cfm