Wrestling Proves to be an All-Day Struggle

Many people see High School Wrestling as a sport where athletes give their all during grueling practices and many matches and scrimmages. As the new season is starting up, however, some of the hardest times lie outside the mat. Wrestlers have to cut their weight down as much as they can to make it into lower weight classes. The lower the weight class, the smaller their opponents will be and the more of an advantage they will have. Sophomore Brandon Henley, who wrestles for RHAM High School, said "... I am 158 and I need to get to 154 so I'm eating healthier and working hard during practice." He went on to say that if he did not lose weight and wrestled at the 160 pound class, he would be wrestling against naturally 170-pound teens that cut their weight down.

Some wrestlers have to put immense amounts of energy into cutting their weight. Alex Stratton, a sophomore and wrestler at RHAM High School, cut down to a 103 pound weight class in a matter of a few weeks. His weight before the season was around 114 pounds. Alex said he spent days training hard and dramatically cutting down his food intake to shed the pounds he needed.