Impact of the Magnitude and Duration of Weight Loss Procedures in Combat Sports Athletes: A Systematic Review
4 affiliations
- 1Facultad de Medicina y Ciencias de la Salud, Departamento de Ciencias Biomédicas, Área de Educación Física y Deportiva, University of Alcala, 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Spain
- 2Department of Sport Physiology, Boroujerd Branch, Islamic Azad University, Boroujerd 6915136335, Iran
- 3School of Sport Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Complutense University of Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
- 4Grupo de Optimización del Entrenamiento Deportivo (GOPED), Department of Human Motor and Sports Performance, Sevilla University, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
Abstract
Background: Weight manipulation is standard practice in combat sports to compete in lighter divisions, but the thresholds of duration and magnitude impairing performance remain unclear. Objectives: To evaluate the effects of progressive (PWL) versus rapid weight loss (RWL) across three magnitudes of body mass (BM) reduction, moderate (<5%), aggressive (≥5% to <10%), and extreme (≥10% BM), on performance in combat sport athletes. Methods: PubMed, Medline, Scopus, Scielo, and SportDiscus were searched for interventions published from January 2000 to 30 September, 2025. Two independent researchers performed screening, data extraction, and quality assessment (PEDro scale). Results: Twenty reports corresponding to 18 independent studies met the inclusion criteria (mean PEDro score 5.30; fair quality), comprising 363 unique athletes (322 men, 41 women). Extreme weight loss (≥10% BM) via PWL was associated with impaired technical skill, decision-making, and mood profile, although this evidence was derived from only three independent samples. Aggressive RWL (≥5% to <10% BM) through acute dehydration reduced maximal strength, power, and sport-specific fitness in several but not all studies, with deficits still present 24 h after the weigh-in. Moderate reductions yielded heterogeneous findings, with impairments of mood, balance, and resting maximal voluntary contraction in some reports and no significant effects in others. Conclusions: Effects appeared graded by the magnitude of BM reduction, but the evidence is unevenly distributed, and no study examined extreme RWL. Findings should be interpreted with caution.
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BibTeX
@article{illescasquiroga2026impact,
title = {{Impact of the Magnitude and Duration of Weight Loss Procedures in Combat Sports Athletes: A Systematic Review}},
author = {Román Illescas-Quiroga and Alireza Naderi and Juan José Ramos-Álvarez and Alberto Pérez-López and Raúl Domínguez},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/nu18213474},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3474},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Impact of the Magnitude and Duration of Weight Loss Procedures in Combat Sports Athletes: A Systematic Review
AU - Román Illescas-Quiroga
AU - Alireza Naderi
AU - Juan José Ramos-Álvarez
AU - Alberto Pérez-López
AU - Raúl Domínguez
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/22
JO - Nutrients
DO - 10.3390/nu18213474
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3474
AB - Background: Weight manipulation is standard practice in combat sports to compete in lighter divisions, but the thresholds of duration and magnitude impairing performance remain unclear. Objectives: To evaluate the effects of progressive (PWL) versus rapid weight loss (RWL) across three magnitudes of body mass (BM) reduction, moderate (<5%), aggressive (≥5% to <10%), and extreme (≥10% BM), on performance in combat sport athletes. Methods: PubMed, Medline, Scopus, Scielo, and SportDiscus were searched for interventions published from January 2000 to 30 September, 2025. Two independent researchers performed screening, data extraction, and quality assessment (PEDro scale). Results: Twenty reports corresponding to 18 independent studies met the inclusion criteria (mean PEDro score 5.30; fair quality), comprising 363 unique athletes (322 men, 41 women). Extreme weight loss (≥10% BM) via PWL was associated with impaired technical skill, decision-making, and mood profile, although this evidence was derived from only three independent samples. Aggressive RWL (≥5% to <10% BM) through acute dehydration reduced maximal strength, power, and sport-specific fitness in several but not all studies, with deficits still present 24 h after the weigh-in. Moderate reductions yielded heterogeneous findings, with impairments of mood, balance, and resting maximal voluntary contraction in some reports and no significant effects in others. Conclusions: Effects appeared graded by the magnitude of BM reduction, but the evidence is unevenly distributed, and no study examined extreme RWL. Findings should be interpreted with caution.
SN - 2072-6643
ER -