WIAA changes to wrestling, 1/2 lb per day rule is gone

[DocWrestling]

Has the WIAA agreed to the same whole process.  I still get a kick how we need to have coaches follow a 31 page protocol for a "weight management program".

Can't wait for the "skin lesion management program".

[bulldog]

Bulldog/Nat,


The rule is being followed:  you can not wrestle in a weight class that is below the 1.5%, it does not state you can't weigh in below that number but rather you can't accelerate your weight loss to wrestle at that weight faster.

In fact, the rule is set up that will penalize your attempt to wrestle at a lower weight if you don't weigh in right at your target or below, same as we had under the old rules.

Bigoil...1.5% is not going to a lower weight class. It is a weight management rule. If I weigh in at 120 (I wish) I can safely and heathly lose 1.8 lbs in the coming week. I should be managing my weight and not dropping 5 lbs.  But according to a previous example, I could weigh in at 113 and that would be fine. I could not wrestle at 113 but nobody really cares that I lost 7 lbs in a week.

How am I penalized in my attempt to wrestle at a lower weight if I don't weigh in right at my target or below? The only penalty is if I weigh in above my target because that resets the weight loss calculations. But no concern about the wrestler who is loosing too much weight too fast. He just can't wrestle at the lower weight.

Maybe I am missing something and maybe someone can answer this question "Why was the 1.5% rule put in place"?

If you say "to get in compliance with the NFHS" then the follow-up question is "why did the NFHS put the rule in place"?

[npope]

You guys are just talking in circles. If you open the link I provided from Georgia and read it you will see how it is being tracked. Each weigh in is entered by the coach. If a wrestler is heavier than where he is suppose to be to get to a given weight on a given date then the date that he can wrestle at that lower weight is recalculated based on his current weight. There is no incentive to be lower than your plan.

I am not sure people are saying that it can't be tracked (although some might argue that it is a pain) as you indicated. Rather, some are saying that it isn't being tracked effectively nor being enforced.

But I agree, there are multiple issues being circulated in this thread and that adds to a lack of communication among posters.

[ELG]

Bulldog- wrestlers will be "penalized" for dropping too much weight and not being at their target weight or slightly below by the fact that they will be dehydrated and not fully energized. There is no benefit to getting down to the lower weight before you can actually wrestle at that weight. SO let's say I am wrestling 138, making my way to 132. It will take me 3 weeks to get to 132 by the 1.5% rule. If I drop straight to 133-134 the first week I will be at a disadvantage weight wise. I will need to continually be below the planned weight or the plan starts all over.  If a kid is making a drop to the next lowest weight class and is considerably below his "planned" weight their will be no penalty as long as he is hydrated and has eaten. The problem is that everyone is use to dropping 5-10# per week, even with the 1/2# per day rule. Because yes the 1/2# per day was not implemented by all coaches from on weigh in to another.Once we get over the mentality of cutting as much as we can as fast as we can the 1.5% rule will be beneficial to the wrestlers. It will take 2-4 yrs in my eyes for everyone to get into the right mindset for this. Possibly the 1.5% rule was put into place to help the kids from yo yoing their weight. As far as tracking this that will be easy. I enter all of our competitions on trackwrestling after each dual/tournament. I wish all coaches would do this as well but that is a different topic. The way that Georgia does it is as follows. I enter he dates of all our competitions on track. As I am entering the results of the competition I enter the actual weights of each kid that weighed in. Track will give me a report of the weight class each kid can wrestle at for our next scheduled competition. I print this off. I bring it with me to our next competition. At the conclusion of weigh ins, the coaches exchange the weigh in sheets  ( as is currently done) .At the same time I give the opposing coach the sheet I printed off showing each of my wrestlers min. Weight class he can wrestle that day. Not their min. weight but rather weight class. If theirs a discrepancy it is dealt with before they wrestle. At the end of the competition you repeat the process. It may seem like a lot of work but it really will not be. The more I find out how other states are doing it the more I like it. It is a lot more transparent. Just like all jobs coaching has changed over the last several years and like in all other jobs you need to change along side it. Again, I am using Georgia's current setup as my example. I do not know how WIAA will set it up but would hope it would be similar. For all you guys out there complaint how the 1/2# per day rule is useless, can't be tracked, etc. I agree with you. This looks like a good answer to me.

[padre]

We can't even get more than half the coaches to enter track results. Main reason I've heard is because they don't have the time which I find ridiculous anyway. 

The whole explanation on it regarding dropping too much, staying on course for a weight, etc. is making it seem even tougher to monitor than I first anticipated. Not sure if it is heavily monitored in other states either but can pretty much guarantee it won't be here since someone stated only the coach of the team will really know what weight they can be at and other teams are not able to monitor.

The only way I've ever seen the 1/2 pound per day enforced is when a coach knew other coaches had weigh in sheets to show what their wrestler could weigh the following week...which was generally only used around regionals.

And again...I have witnessed a wrestler being questioned and the ref said to take it up with the WIAA...but also had at regionals kids leaving weigh in area during weigh-ins and running in sweats well past the time alotted...so yeah I'm pretty weary of any enforcement of the rule.

[bulldog]

ELG...I understand what you are saying but "penalized" is a strong word for your scenario of cutting too much weight. It really isn't a penalty. The penalty is actually in the case where you don't cut too much weight because if you weigh in above your lowest possible weight the scale "resets" at the higher weight and the time frame to get down to your lower weight is stretched out longer. There is no advantage to taking it slow to get down to weight and no real penalty to dropping more weight then the rule says an athlete should.

Because nobody is enforcing the rule

Nobody has replied to my question why the .5 lb per day or the 1.5% per week rule was put into place...so I will answer with what I believe. I believe it is because wrestlers are cutting too much weight too quickly and it is viewed as unhealthy. I don't think the WIAA/NFHS put this rule in place with the intent that if a wrestler drops too much weight too fast they will be penalized because they will be at a weight disadvantage with their opponent.

I am thinking they put this rule in place to eliminate or reduce unhealthy and unsafe weight loss practices by wrestlers.

I am guessing some doctor or nutritionist said 1.5% per week is healthy amount of weight for athletes ages 15-18 to lose. That professional determined 1.5% was the magic number. Not 1.6%. Not 2.0%. Thus if the athlete loses 1.6% he is actually cutting too much weight and is placing his health at risk. That wrestler goes out and competes and gets hurt. Who is going to be held responsible? (Liable?) The parents? I doubt it...parents don't see the weigh in sheets before a meet. They are not consulted about what weight class Johnny will wrestle that evening. Will the school's athletic waiver cover it? The waiver basically states that you are aware of risk competing in sports. But the weight loss risk is different now because the WIAA has specifically said 1.5% weight loss per week is the RULE and the wrestler who got hurt was below that...the coach knew it and still put the wrestler in the line up. The rule indicates 1.5% per week is allowed...no more...less is okay but no more.

So the coach of the injured athlete says "it takes too much time to keep track of all this weigh management stuff". That may be a potential suit for negligence if you got a sharp (slick) lawyer and a pissed off parent because Johnny's season is done.

I agree, my scenario is probably a rare case or worse case scenario...but I am guessing the Jake Calhoun and the Jeff Reese cases were also considered a worse case scenario as well. I would not be the person telling that to Jeff Reese's folks. The NFL concussion lawsuits...20 years ago nobody ever considered this would happen. So what happens in a few years if a slick lawyer gets a group of wrestlers together with eating disorders or health problems and is able to prove the WIAA instituted rules for safe weight loss but coaches ignored the WIAA rule? Or the WIAA didn't provide enough specifics about the rule?  That would be detrimental to HS wrestling and HS sports.

And I know all these points don't make a difference because nobody is going to enforce this rule or challenge the WIAA to define the rule. And the WIAA will stick their head in the sand and offer a vague "The rule is 1.5% and nobody should be cutting more then that" answer when questioned.

Until someone gets hurt...then there will be a lot of finger pointing and the NFHS and WIAA will impose more stringent rules that coaches feel are unenforceable.