Wrestling is one of the toughest sports you could ever play throughout your high school career. Scholastic wrestling takes dedication. It is extremely physically demanding. 

While having to drop weight pre-season and during the season. It becomes difficult for athletes, with excessive fatigue and muscle soreness. They can lose up to an average of 4 to 5 pounds in a week. They do this through calorie restriction, fasting, and many other ways of dehydration methods. Many athletes feel as if this is the hardest part of wrestling. 

I interviewed Bracken Christensen. This is what he had to say about cutting weight; “Being a heavyweight, keeping or especially cutting weight is one of the most challenging things being a wrestler because there are so many temptations outside of actual training and conditioning.” Christensen believes cutting weight is one of the downsides of wrestling. 

With the many positive things that come with wrestling, there are barriers and challenges you have to come through. Wolfe Beckley commented on this topic. He adds that everything is difficult. The mental training is unnecessarily hard, and having to move a lot of force is very challenging. 

Like all sports wrestling has its benefits. With that both being mental and physical.

Wrestling sharpens your mind. Wrestling involves being exceptionally focused. Not only will you be on high alert your mental health will be improving by the day.

You get full-body workouts that include cardio and lifting weights. You have more calorie burn, and higher endurance with increasing strength!

There are many exciting moves and rituals before a match. Wolfe Beckley states, “I mostly just warm up, and hop around.” Before a match, nerves are high. You have to be focused and determined. If you aren’t sharp with your skills or even have the slightest bit of doubt that will make the match go south. It is very challenging to preserve strength this way. Bracken Christensen loves the sport, his favorite move is the ankle pick. 

While I interviewed Coach Colucci, wrestling coach here at Pahrump Valley High School, he explained how important it is to be tough while also showing hard work and determination. While interviewing Colucci, he was asked who his biggest wrestling inspiration was and why. Colucci states “ Coach Rieger, hard work and toughness.” Colucci continued to add about how important it is to be determined and work hard. He believes that is the most important factor in wrestling. 

Wrestling is a very old sport, with its long history, it dates back to the dawn of civilizations. Coming from the Greeks, it was a training tactic formed to help with combat. Being recognized as the oldest competitive sport. Wrestling used to be in the Olympics but due to lack of popularity, they took the sport out. 

Wrestlers have many battles to fight and many use wrestling as a way to cope with mental health. The next you see a wrestler in the hallway at school give them a shout-out. Let them know they are doing a good job and boost their confidence!