Differences in weight loss practices and perceptions between medalists and non-medalists in national-level adolescent Sanda athletes

Han, X, Hou, J ORCID: 0009-0007-6781-6644, Langan-Evans, C ORCID: 0000-0003-1120-6592, Weldon, A ORCID: 0000-0001-5762-332X, Washif, JA ORCID: 0000-0001-8543-4489, Lakicevic, N ORCID: 0000-0001-9628-0606, Wu, Y, Liu, S, Li, M, Jiang, H and Zhong, Y ORCID: 0009-0005-9672-8067 (2026) Differences in weight loss practices and perceptions between medalists and non-medalists in national-level adolescent Sanda athletes. PLoS One, 21 (9). ISSN 1932-6203

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Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to compare weight loss (WL) practices and perceptions between medalists and non-medalists among Chinese national-level adolescent Sanda athletes. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among national-level adolescent Sanda athletes using the Rapid Weight Loss Questionnaire (RWLQ). One hundred and sixty-four participants completed the questionnaire, with 158 valid responses obtained. Athletes were categorized as medalists or non-medalists based on their competitive achievements. RESULTS: Overall, 79% of athletes (n = 125) reported intentional WL. In unadjusted analyses, three nominal associations were observed, with medalists reporting greater habitual WL%, greater habitual WL% during the 9-60 days prior to weigh-in, and lower habitual WR/WL before competition than non-medalists. However, none remained statistically significant after Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate (FDR) adjustment. No statistically significant difference were observed for the other WL practices and perceptions variables (all p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: WL practices and perceptions were similar between national-level medalists and non-medalists. Although three nominal associations were identified in the unadjusted analyses, none remained statistically significant after Benjamini-Hochberg FDR adjustment. The present findings therefore do not provide robust evidence of systematic differences in WL characteristics according to medal achievement. The high prevalence and substantial magnitude of WL observed in this population warrant attention, particularly among adolescent athletes.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Humans; Adolescent; Athletes; Female; Weight Loss; Male; Cross-Sectional Studies; Surveys and Questionnaires; China; Perception; 32 Biomedical and Clinical Sciences; 4206 Public Health; 42 Health Sciences; Humans; Adolescent; Athletes; Female; Weight Loss; Male; Cross-Sectional Studies; Surveys and Questionnaires; China; Perception; General Science & Technology
Subjects:	R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine
Divisions:	Sport and Exercise Sciences
Publisher:	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date of acceptance:	9 September 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	5 October 2026
Date Deposited:	05 Oct 2026 15:19
Last Modified:	05 Oct 2026 15:19
DOI or ID number:	10.1371/journal.pone.0359088
Editors:	Amatori, S
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29611

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