Making the cut

CEDAR RAPIDS - When Xavier junior Chris Lembeck starts preparing for the wrestling season, it includes lots of hard work and little food.

'I have not eaten a true Thanksgiving or Christmas meal since I was in sixth grade,” Lembeck said.

Wrestling season began a month ago and Lembeck hopes his preparations get him back to the state tournament, where he finished fourth at 132 pounds.

Lembeck, who started the season at 147 pounds, begins his seasonal diet by cutting back on junk food and candy. He also will practice almost everyday, running, lifting and, of course, wrestling.

'My goal for the beginning of the season is to be 138 pounds, but closer to the end of the season be back to 132 pounds,” Lembeck said.

Now that the season has started, Lembeck has a set diet to make sure he makes weight each week. On Mondays and Tuesdays, he eats a banana for breakfast and a turkey sandwich and a little bit of water for lunch. Water weight is where most of our weight comes from, so Lembeck has to watch how much he drinks.

For dinner, he eats about a palms worth of meat.

Wednesday is a cut day when wrestlers try to lose as much as possible. On Thursdays, Lembeck basically eats nothing until he weighs in for competition. He weighs in on Saturdays for tournaments.

After the Saturday tournaments, he feasts.

'The most weight I have gained in one day is 12 pounds,” Lembeck said.

On Sunday nights, he will do a light workout to lose some of that extra weight. Then the process repeats.

The Saints wrestle at Dubuque Wahlert on Thursday, then host the Doug Philipp Duals on Saturday.