Wrestlers Starving For Glory: Boys Sacrifice Health to Lose Weight

He stands with a clean-shaven head and lean body hunched over the scale, hoping to see that the couple ounces of perspiration have made some difference in his weight.

Each season, wrestlers lose weight, or "suck weight, "by dieting, running and practicing in sweats, and eventually dehydrating themselves on the day of a match. By weighing in lighter before matches, some wrestlers are given an opportunity to wrestle at the varsity level, while others gain a competitive edge over lighter opponents.

Sometimes if it is the couple of ounces that make a difference, wrestlers will go as far as shaving their heads, starving themselves, running in plastic sauna suits during lunch period or spitting constantly to lose water weight prior to the weigh-in.

"Two years ago, when I had to lose a lot of weight, I used to run before school, before practice, after practice and at home,"said Marcus Obarra ('00). "I used to run about 10 miles every day."

"I'm torn," said Athletic Director and Head Coach Carl Schroers. "I hate to see the pain on their faces and yet I also know that they are creating discipline."

According to coach Schroers, there are three key points in the Iolani wrestling philosophy of losing weight: 1) For the overweight wrestler, it's always good to eat healthy, lose some weight and stay in shape, 2) For the talented wrestler who does not have a spot on the varsity team, fewer pounds could earn him a position 3) Each member does it for the benefit of the team.

"It's worth it because when you lose weight properly, you feel stronger in the lighter weight class, "said Ken Kakesako ('00), a defending state champion and co-captain of the Iolani wrestling team. "It's a sport only for crazy people, "he said, "but it's worth it."

"You definitely want to wrestle at the level that you can compete at, "said Clayton Schroers ('00), another co-captain who has already lost about 10 pounds since the beginning of the season.

Last year, according to coach Schroers, three college wrestlers died because they were trying to lose more than 10 pounds in a few hours. They suffered from kidney failure after severely dehydrating themselves.

High school wrestlers, however, do not take the sport as far. "Studies have shown that there are no long-term effects of starvation for these wrestlers as long as their diet is restored,"said Mr. Schroers. "And you can guarantee that David [Miyasato ('00)] will have chubby cheeks once the season is over."

During practice, coach Schroers said that the wrestlers shed approximately four pounds of water, but they replenish their supply with lots of water and Gatorade throughout the school day.

The exception is the day of a match, when some wrestlers do not drink water, eat only light snacks and run in sweats if it is necessary to lose more weight. "If the wrestler does not make the weight, he simply can't wrestle,"said Miyasato, who has to lose about five more pounds to wrestle in the 112-pound weight class.

Throughout his coaching career at Iolani, Schroers has never heard parents complain about the health of their children. "It's difficult for the boys, but if they do it correctly, then it's OK,"said Ms. Joanne Miyasato, the mother of David Miyasato.

According to Mr. Schroers, if a parent is uncomfortable with the weight loss, the wrestler will not lose any weight for the sport. "We never forced a kid to lose weight. Each kid and parent has a choice,"said Schroers.

"I'm not totally for it,"said Leatrice Kakesako, mother of Ken Kakesako ('00) and Brent Kakesako ('02), "but since they will do it anyway, I want them to do it the healthy way."