Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34906212›Full record

ArticleBMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation2021

Weight cycling in combat sports: revisiting 25 years of scientific evidence.

Nemanja Lakicevic, Diba Mani, Antonio Paoli, Roberto Roklicer, Antonino Bianco, Patrik Drid

Abstract readLetter
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
20citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

20 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  15. Premature Death in Bodybuilders: What Do We Know?Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2023
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Nemanja LakicevicSport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, University of Palermo, 90133, Palermo, Italy. lakinem89@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9628-0606
Diba ManiDepartment of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
Antonio PaoliDepartment of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, 35122, Padua, Italy.
Roberto RoklicerFaculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Novi Sad, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia.
Antonino BiancoSport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, University of Palermo, 90133, Palermo, Italy.
Patrik DridFaculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Novi Sad, 21000, Novi Sad, Serbia.

Funding

Provincial Secretariat for Science and Technological Development 142-451-2094
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAs combat sports are classified by body mass, many athletes engage in rapid weight loss (RWL) prior to competition so they can gain an advantage over lighter opponents. Following the weigh-in, athletes engage in rapid weight gain (RWG), whereby some athletes have been able to compete up to three weight categories greater than the official division weighed in at.

resultsAlthough the impact of weight cycling on performance remains equivocal, robust scientific evidence indicates serious acute and chronic negative consequences on physiological and health-related parameters. Still, weight cycling remains highly prevalent in combat sports, and interventions to limit or stop this cultural norm are recommended.

conclusionsWeigh-ins for combat sports should be transitioned to take place closer to the start of competition. This reduced time and access to engage in RWG will cut down, if not completely prevent, weight cycling. These rule changes that aim to benefit athlete's health and promote fairness must be made at the international level, which will promote them at those levels below, as well, given qualification protocols.

Indexed as

Martial artsMetabolic healthRapid weight gainRapid weight loss

Identifiers

PMID34906212
PMCPMC8670259

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.