Meet our fighters – Daniel Schuardt

DOB: 19 January 1996
Height: 185cm
Weight: 97kg (normal weight) 86kg (fighting weight)
Core disciplines: MMA, Wrestling and BJJ (blue belt with 3 stripes)
Fight record: 2 wins, no losses (amateur)

How did you get started in training?

I got started into training after watching UFC and looking deeper into the intricacies of grappling and chokes. After a little research of my own, I realised that BJJ was for me. I was 15 years old and 113kg, so it was a good time for me to get into training!

As far as the other disciplines of mixed martial arts, I started wrestling when my old school closed down and moved to Extreme. This add-on of wrestling drastically improved my ground game. When MMA classes started at Extreme, I found I could hold my own against most good guys because of the level of my grappling but it was obvious that striking was the weakest link. Now, after working really hard on my striking, I am comfortable in all elements of MMA!

What motivates you to get in the ring?

The thing that motivates me to fight is simply the pleasure I get out of putting myself to the test and feeding my addiction to the endless puzzle that is mixed martial arts!

What does a typical weekly training regime look like for you?

MON: 6-7pm Wrestling, 7-8pm Thai Boxing, 8-9pm MMA + 5km run
TUE: 6-7pm Boxing, 7-9pm BJJ
WED: 6-7pm Thai Boxing, 7-8pm BJJ, 8-9pm MMA
THU: 6-7pm Sparring, 7-9pm BJJ
FRI: 6-7pm Wrestling, 7-8pm BJJ + 5km run
SAT: 10-11am Wrestling, 11-1pm BJJ
SUN: Rest

Describe your diet:

I generally use a seafood diet most of the time! I see food and I eat it (ba-dum-tsss!)

Nah, but in all seriousness, when I’m training hard but not fighting for a while, I eat HEAPS of food! I generally try to eat clean, but I don’t go crazy about not having luxuries when I’m not fighting in the foreseeable future!

When I am fighting and need to start getting my weight down, I work around the principles of the IIFYM Diet (calories in, is less than calories out). I usually start dieting more strictly around 1 and a half to 2 months out from a fight.

MMA athletes often compete at a weight that is much less than what they normally walk around in.
Describe your “cutting” method, leading up to a fight:

The cutting method which I use a week before a fight is basically a toned down version of George St Pierre’s cutting diet.

A week before the fight, I cut out all carbs and salts. Throughout the next 6 days, I eat 3 meals a day with as much protein and fat as I like! Then the cool part comes…when the body gets flooded with lots of water, it down-regulates the production of aldosterone (a hormone which acts to conserve sodium and secrete potassium). In short, it makes you get rid of a whole bunch of the things that will keep you hydrated. Then when you take the water out of your system and don’t replace the electrolytes, you get massive weight reduction! So keeping in mind the diet, through the days of the week I drink;

– 8 litres on the first day
– 4 litres on the second and third day
– 2 litres on the fourth
– 600 millilitres on the fifth
– On the day of the weigh-ins, you take in as much water as you can (as long as you don’t go over your competing weight)

With this diet, I have been able to lose 6 kilos within just 1-3 days of a fight without using saunas or hot baths! Pretty neat stuff!!

Who is a fighter you’d one day like to face and why?

I don’t really have a specific fighter who I would like to face… But I think stylistically speaking a good wrestler who can strike would match up to be a pretty sensational fight! I’d love to watch that, so in my mind that sounds good!!!

What do you get up to when you’re not training?

When I’m not training I pretty much chill out through the day, watch movies and maybe play playstation! 

What are your career predictions for 2015?

I’d love to go at least 3-0 as a professional this year 🙂