Two days out from an open tournament in Menlo Park, freshman wrestler Christian Garcia needed to cut nearly ten pounds.
Garcia competes in the 125-pound weight class. But that’s not standard for his typical bodyweight.
“Right now I’m fighting out of 125 (lbs.), and I’m probably walking around at like 134 (lbs.) during the week, and then I’ll slowly drop down,” Garcia said, ahead of the Feb. 7 bout.
When Cal Poly wrestlers prepare for a match, they go through a series of intense practices and workouts to sharpen their skills. Some players, like Garcia, have to go through a serious transformation before they hit the mat on match day.
Head Coach Jon Sioredas explained how the cutting process intensifies over the week, with athletes cutting portions and checking their weight multiple times a day.
“When you get about a day out, you start to take out the water. So normally, at that point, your last workout or two you just won’t hydrate. If you do, it’s very minimal — getting a little bit of electrolytes, but not a ton,” Sioredas said.
Meanwhile, practice doesn’t stop. Wrestlers must power through grueling training on the cut.
“It is definitely a little hard,” Garcia said. “But honestly, I think it’s just more mindset and having faith, and just keep pushing forward.”
In practice, his wrestling partner is the nationally-ranked junior Koda Holeman, who also wrestles in the 125-pound weight class. Garcia wore a hoodie, expecting a light practice, but his coaches had an intense practice of one-on-one matchups planned.
“I knew if he wore that sweater the whole practice, he wasn’t going to be able to wrestle. When you start trying to cut weight, and you’re worried about sweating instead of wrestling, you’re not going to be able to go out there and compete the whole time,” Holeman said.
Older, more experienced wrestlers often match up with younger ones to help them train. Here, Holeman offers Garcia support, but not sympathy.
“No, there’s no pity for people cutting weight, to be honest,” Holeman said. “It’s part of the sport.”
That sentiment is shared by most wrestlers, but that doesn’t mean they are left on their own. Leading up to match day, coaches guide players’ nutrition, hydration and sleep to set them up for success.
“If you do it properly, it will not negatively affect your performance,” Sioredas said. “You can get down to weight and then fuel back up and be ready to go. So, Chrissy (Christian) does a really good job,” Sioredas said.
“Our coaches give us kind of what we need to do. But at the end of the day, it’s up to the person to choose the right decisions, you know, outside of the wrestling room,” Garcia said. Prior to Cal Poly, his dad helped him with his weight management in high school, which set him up for success at the collegiate level.
As of March 3, Garcia has never missed weight.
“I think I’ve always been pretty good at it just because I always want to wrestle,” he said. “I kind of like the feeling, because then when I drink water, I feel amazing. And I just love that feeling of chugging water afterwards.”
Garcia’s process seems to be working. He went on to win the Menlo College Oaks Open tournament.
With each tournament win, Garcia moves closer to joining the experienced members of the wrestling team in more competitive tournaments. Sioredas believes that eventually Garcia will be a contributor.
“Being a first-year freshman, there’s a ton to learn. For someone like Chrissy who works that hard, it’s not a matter of if. It’s a matter of when. So, we’re pretty excited for him,” Sioredas said.
This story originally appeared in the March printed edition of Mustang News. Check out more stories from the issue here.