Claudia Gadelha Reveals She Used To Cut A Ton Of Weight

Weight cutting is one of the most crucial, and in most cases grueling, aspects of mixed martial arts today, but in the case of No. 1-ranked women’s strawweight Claudia Gadelha it’s apparently got a whole lot easier.

In a recent a recent media scrum in Brazil, Gadelha spoke on how her tumultuous weight cut has become a lot more bearable, and her new dieting habits:

“I don’t cut much weight anymore,” Gadelha said. “”I learned that by losing much weight, I also lose performance inside the Octagon, so I’m staying lighter now.

I learned to eat better, so I live on a diet now. I don’t go out of my diet a day now, not even on the weekends, because I have to be around 126 pounds to cut 13 or 15 pounds before the fight. No more cutting 22, 33 pounds for me.

“I think it’s already tough for a male athlete, and it’s even worse for a female athlete. It’s bad for your performance on fight night, so I’m living on a diet so it doesn’t become an issue in the future.”

Gadelha is currently set to step back inside the Octagon for a title shot against Polish knockout artist Joanna Jędrzejczyk live on FS1 at The Ultimate Fighter 23 Season Finale (TUF 23 Finale), at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 8, 2016.