MONDAY, June 20 (HealthDay News) -- To offer guidance to athletes, coaches and parents, the National Athletic Trainers' Association has issued a new set of guidelines for safe weight loss by athletes.Gymnasts, wrestlers and boxers often feel pressure to lose weight to boost performance, but the drastic methods they sometimes use -- including strictly limiting calories and intentional dehydration -- can be dangerous to their health, experts warn.
They include: using body composition assessments to measure lean body mass versus fat; gradually shedding no more than 1. 5 percent of body weight a week; eating a balanced diet that includes all food groups; and losing weight under the supervision of nutrition, health and weight management experts.
In the performance sports -- gymnastics, dance, ballet -- they have this huge responsibility to not only do a performance but to look good while they are doing it, said Paula Sammarone Turocy, lead author of the guidelines and chair of the department of athletic training at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.
NATA has produced this video that highlights athletic trainers working as physician extenders.
