A scientist by trade, I’m a very curious individual and I enjoy a good challenge. (I would totally work in research, but ain’t nobody got funding for that.) So when a good friend of mine asked me if I would consider water cutting down to the next weight class for a meet, I said LET’S DO IT. CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. After determining my average daily water and sodium intake, she sent me a thorough spreadsheet on how to manipulate water, sodium, carbs, fiber, and caffeine throughout the week. At first glance, I thought, “no problem, this will be fine,” but it wasn’t until I started loading up my cart at Woodman’s with cases of water did it truly hit me how much water I was going to have to consume during the day AT WORK. When people ask you when the storm is coming, that’s when you know you’re in over your head.
**Please be ready to laugh and be mildly horrified at the lengths I went through to drop 7.5 pounds in 6 days.**
Sunday
Morning weight: 132.2 lbs.
Water intake 8L/Sodium intake 4400mg/Carbs 180g
Thoughts: This is fine. I can do this. It’s all good. Everything is all planned out.
Evening weight: 138.2 lbs.
Monday
Morning weight: 132.0 lbs.
Water intake 10L/Sodium intake 4400mg/Carbs 135g
Thoughts: How the HELL am I supposed to drink 10L of water at work? I forgot how much I love salt. Wow, am I glad I wear scrubs to work. This doesn’t seem so bad, everyone must think I’m just really thirsty. Gotta pee… AGAIN.
Evening weight: 136.2 lbs.
Tuesday
Morning weight: 131.0 lbs
Water intake 10L/Sodium intake 2200mg/Carbs 135g
Thoughts: Everyone at work must thing I’m pregnant because I’m spending half my life in the bathroom. This doesn’t seem like enough salt for all of this water. How am I not done with my water for today yet?! Peeing this much is getting really annoying.
Evening weight: 136.0 lbs.
Wednesday
Morning weight: 129.2 lbs.
Water intake 10L/Sodium intake <500mg/Carbs 90g
Thoughts: I am drowning. And peeing. And drowning. And peeing. I WANT MY SALT AND CARBS BACK.
Evening weight: 135.6 lbs.
Thursday
Morning weight: 128.0 lbs
Water intake 3L/Sodium intake <500mg/Carbs 90g
Thoughts: …I hate everything. Just give me some water.
Evening weight: 130.0 lbs.
Friday
Morning weight: 127.4 lbs
Water intake 1L/Sodium intake <500mg/Carbs 45g
Thoughts: Is this what dying feels like? I’m pretty sure my body think it’s dying. Is it 7am on Saturday yet? I just need some water. Wow, low sodium peanut butter tastes awful. How is my body still able to pee right now? THERE’S NOTHING LEFT.
Official scale check: 127.8 lbs/58 kg*
Final evening weight: 126.6 lbs
*At this point, I was overweight by 1 kg. JUST ONE KILO. Things got a little crazy after that. I had to resort to sour candy (never again) and cinnamon gum. We live in an apartment, so our hot water heater isn’t the best and we ended up BOILING water to put into the bath tub to get the water hot enough. Yes, boiling water. By the end of the night, we closed the vents in every room but the bedroom, turned the heat up to 80 degrees and I bundled up in my thickest pajamas under 5 blankets determined to sweat it out.
Meet Day
Morning weight: 124.6 lbs
OFFICIAL WEIGH-IN: 124.8 lbs/56.6 kg
Thoughts: I MADE WEIGHT! Now what? TIME TO LIFT ALL THE THINGS.
And there you have it, folks. Proof that you can drop from the middle of the 63kg weight class to the 57kg weight class in 6 days. On meet day, I kept all of my openers the same was what I was expecting to hit in the higher weight class. This water cut didn’t have any negative effect on my performance and even though I didn’t hit a PR on squat (that’s another story), I did manage to tie my best competition bench and pulled 137.5kg (FINALLY) on the platform. I improved my Wilks and my overall ranking is better as a 57kg lifter vs. a 63kg lifter. During the course of the week, I learned that you can, in fact, live off of chicken and avocados, and that low sodium peanut butter is the worst.
So would I do it again?
Yes. Maybe not in a heartbeat, but I would do it again. I’m never touching Warheads candy again though.
Thank you Kelley Sherwin for helping me make it through this crazy week! I couldn’t have done it without your knowledge and expertise!
Finding Fit 