Exploring Weight Loss Methods Among Male Combat Athletes and Their Psychological Ramifications

Combat sports athletes are classified by their weight to ensure compatible matches in terms of size, strength and agility. Many athletes lose weight just before the fight to participate with lighter weight opponents. This study uses a correlational research design, with purposive sampling to select 300 male combat athletes from Karachi and Hyderabad. Data collected via a Urdu questionnaire with seven sections: (i) Demographic Information Questionnaire (DIQ), (ii) Sports Specific Information (SSI), (iii) Weight Loss History (WLH), (iv) Weight Loss Methods (WLM), (v) Physical Challenges during Weight Loss (PCWL), (vi) Psychological Challenges during Weight Loss (PSCWL), and (vii) Sources of Information about Weight Loss (SIWL). The results show a significant negative correlation -.450 of Weight loss techniques with Psychological wellbeing and a positive correlation .653 between Physical Health and Psychological Health. It is concluded that there is significant impacts of Weight Loss (WL) methods on psychological well-being of combat athletes.