When I made the decision to drop down to lightweight, I wanted to do it as safely and efficiently as possible. I inquired w/ a nutritionist, but after consulting w/ my team, I decided to handle it myself. I’m not an expert in nutrition, but I am an expert on my body. How exactly I do some things, I don’t really know, I just know that I do them. I take bits and pieces from what I learn (if you know me, you know I ask a TON of questions), and apply them to my situation.

I’ve been cutting weight for 20 years. Back in high school, my brother and I would get two pounds under, and that was just enough for Little Ceasar’s Pizza and a Pepsi…not the best, but it worked. In college, all I cared about the night before a match was a 20 oz. Pepsi. I could go on forever.

Now that I’m older, and the stakes are higher, I’ve gotten a lot more efficient in this process. The day after my last fight, I started my journey to lightweight. It’s been a daily process, not one meal or snack I put into my body has been uncalculated. I’m not eating 100% clean, but I am getting it done. I’ve even learned to cook through this process.

Today, I made the cut, and I weighed 155.8.

So, on the other side of lightweight, I am ready to go. Start a fresh career at a new weight. I don’t expect it to be smooth sailing. Everyone will be out to get me. A lot of people will hope for me to fail. I’ll have my ups and downs. But at the end of the day, I’m the one looking in the mirror, and I like the skinny, bushy-haired fella that I see.