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At one time, wrestlers purposely dehydrated to lose weight rapidly and make weight categories. Fortunately, this practice is decreasing, but it still occurs. Wrestlers dehydrated in many ways. Some exercised in hot rooms, often while wearing rubber suits in an attempt to sweat off water. Others simply did not drink any fluids or eat foods high in water. Still others lost water by spitting in a cup all day. And some took diuretics (water pills) to increase urine output. Unfortunately, a few wrestlers used a combination of these methods to reduce body water, lose weight, and make weight categories. None of these practices is recommended. Using them in combination is especially dangerous. Dehydration poses both short- and long-term dangers to your health. In the short-term, your body's cooling system can't work properly and you can overheat, suffer heatstroke, and possibly die. Long-term, repeated episodes of dehydration can be damaging to your kidneys. The most common outcomes of dehydration are poor endurance and poor performance. Some athletes mistakenly believe that after purposely dehydrating their bodies, they can rapidly rehydrate and almost immeditaley regain optimum performance. While drinking plenty of fluids is the right thing to do after becoming dehydrated, it may take many hours before your body completeley rehydrates and you can perform your best.
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Sports and Nutrition—The Winning Connection Don't Let Your Diet Let You Down
| The Pregame Meal Planner |
