Athlete's Guide to Making Weight, The

Moving up or down a weight class? Switching positions within your sport? Competing in a new league or level? Are you big enough, quick enough, and strong enough?

Elite athletes understand the impact that body weight and composition have on performance. Gain too much, and lose that all-important first step. Drop too much, and risk being overpowered by the opponent.

In The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight, renowned sport dietitians Michele Macedonio and Marie Dunford have analyzed today's top athletes, competitive trends, and positional demands across 21 sports to help you determine—and achieve—your optimal competitive weight.

Assess body composition, nutritional requirements, and your current training program. Then follow the customizable meal plans for a personalized approach to maximizing performance.

Whether you need to add muscle and mass, lose body fat, or control water weight, The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight will help you reach your goals without sacrificing safety or performance.

Michele Macedonio, MS, RD, CSSD, LD, a nationally recognized dietitian and board-certified specialist in sport dietetics, is the team dietitian for the Cincinnati Bengals and Cincinnati Reds. A freelance nutrition writer and editor, Macedonio has authored many nutrition articles and educational materials and has contributed chapters to Sports Nutrition: A Guide for the Professional Working With Active People (third edition) and Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals (fourth edition). She has spent 25 years working on the nutrition of high school, collegiate, and professional athletes and other active people. Macedonio, a frequent lecturer, is the owner of the consulting firm Nutrition Strategies. She is also an active member of Sports, Cardiovascular and Wellness Nutrition (SCAN) and the recipient of their 2007 Achievement Award. She holds master's degrees in health sciences education and nutrition from Case Western Reserve University. Macedonio lives in Loveland, Ohio.

Marie Dunford, PhD, RD, is a freelance nutrition author and editor of nutrition education materials, including textbooks, consumer books, online courses, continuing professional education courses, and magazine and newspaper articles. She is coauthor of the textbook Nutrition for Sport and Exercise and editor of Sports Nutrition: A Practice Manual for Professionals (fourth edition). A former professor and chair in the department of food science and nutrition at California State University at Fresno, Dunford has extensive experience with NCAA Division I athletes. She is an active member of SCAN and recipient of their 2006 Achievement Award. She received a PhD in education from the University of Southern California and a master's degree in home economics from California State University at Fresno. Dunford lives in Kingsburg, California, and is an avid tennis player.

"Michele Macedonio has dedicated her career to improving the lives of young competitors through nutrition. I refer all my athletes to Michelle and The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight for solid nutrition plans that help them develop to their potential."

Scott Goodpaster BS,CSCS
Owner and Director, Cincinnati Functional Fitness

"Over the years, I've learned just how much nutrition and body weight influence athletic performance. In The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight, Macedonio and Dunford examine not only the demands of the sport, but the position played, to provide a clear plan for maximizing that performance.""

Rudi Johnson
Detroit Lions
Pro Bowl Running Back

"Michele Macedonio has been instrumental to my success as a professional athlete. She didn't just give me a diet; she showed me how playing at the right weight maximizes speed, agility, quickness, and strength. In The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight, Macedonio and Dunford show you how to achieve your ideal weight for peak athletic performance and Pro Bowl play."

Landon Johnnson
Linebacker for the Carolina Panthers

"The programs in The Athlete's Guide to Making Weight have helped me add 30 pounds of muscle. I wouldn't be playing college baseball without these programs."

Evan Schweinfest
Xavier University Baseball Team