Olympic judo gold medalist and MMA star Kayla Harrison revealed the intense regimen required for her to make the 135-pound bantamweight limit in the UFC. On a recent episode of the Pound4Pound podcast, Harrison disclosed that she normally walks around at 160-165 pounds and has to do two hours of steady-state cardio daily to get down to fighting weight.
“I’m not naturally a 135 pounder,” Harrison explained. “I sit around 160-165 pounds and I have 136 pounds of lean mass on my body. So in order to get my weight down to within striking range of 135 pounds, I have to implement slow steady state cardio.”
This cardio routine involves walking for 2 hours, biking for 2 hours, or swimming at a moderate intensity with her heart rate around 130 beats per minute. Harrison does this in addition to her regular MMA training sessions.
“It’s not hard, my heart rate’s about 130, but I just have to walk for 2 hours or bike for 2 hours or swim,” she said. “It’s boring.”
Harrison also employs intermittent fasting, not eating until the afternoon most days. She gradually built up to 120 minutes of daily cardio over a 12-week period leading up to her UFC debut against Holly Holm.
The Olympic champion noted this was a major lifestyle change, as she hadn’t weighed 135 pounds since she was 16 years old. However, she credits the intense regimen with dramatically altering her physique.
“It changed my entire physique,” Harrison said. “The fat just came off and I was like that’s really all I got to do is walk.”
While challenging, this disciplined approach allowed Harrison to successfully make weight and dominate in her UFC debut. As she prepares for her next bout against Ketlen Vieira, Harrison continues to employ this grueling cardio routine to compete at the highest level in the bantamweight division.
