“Dieting is a huge part of the sport of wrestling,” said Wilkes Wrestling starter Jake Dimarsico.

“A lot of the time, wrestlers struggle with their ‘gas tank,’ which is a term wrestlers use to describe their endurance in matches,” he said. “This is because they cut a lot of weight very close to a match.

“You can make your life and season a lot easier if you diet the right way and allow your body to remain hydrated,” Dimarsico said.

Although dieting is a main focal point during the season, Dimarsico and many other wrestlers don’t normally watch what they eat all year round.

Dimarsico said, “a lot of the players wait until the first day of the season to turn their diets around.” Dimarsico was cutting a lot of weight for his senior  season, therefore he started June 1, nearly a month after the spring semester ended, so he could be ready for Oct. 10, the start of the 2017-2018 season.

Senior Nicholas Racanelli said, “I keep track of my diet all year but it is definitely more strict in season than out of season.” He mentioned that six months of holding weight off and eating light is strenuous and he feels it is definitely okay to treat yourself in the off season to foods you normally wouldn’t consume in season.

“Individuals who plan on losing weight need to do it in a healthy manner which excludes meals high in fat.” said Racanelli.

Dimarsico described their in-season diet as very strict, sticking to mostly fruits, vegetables, a few carbs for energy, grilled chicken and plenty of bananas.

Sometimes, wrestlers take an unhealthy route of dropping a few pounds, too.

“I track everything  I eat,” says the senior starter, Dimarsico, using the app called “MyFitnessPal”.

Dimarsico was able to drop 27 pounds, starting at 160 and currently weighing in at 133 lbs. “I feel amazing,” he said.

The beginning of maintaining a strict diet was difficult for Dimarsico, as it is for most people. “You have to remain disciplined and it will soon become a habit,” he said.

“As long as one is committed to their plan, they can lose weight safely and healthily,” Racanelli added in.

“It is definitely hard to stick to a strict diet as temptations are all around. Friends are always asking to go and eat out at delicious places, especially with holidays in the months of November and December,” said Racanelli, which is prime time wrestling season.

“Wrestling is a sport of sacrifices. Wrestlers have to give up things in order to succeed,” said Racanelli.

Considering dieting plays a gigantic role in a wrestler’s performance, Dimarsico still believes nothing is harder than preparing to step onto a mat to wrestle another human in a seven minute match.

Racanelli believes that the right work ethic alongside the right diet regime are necessary to make weight, but from his perspective, dieting may indeed be harder than actually physically working out simply because it directly correlates to how you will perform. A poor diet will result in feeling bad while working out.