"I developed an eating disorder" - Paul Felder opens up about the long-term effects of weight-cutting

Recently retired UFC lightweight Paul Felder opened up about the impact that repeatedly cutting weight has had on his health over the course of his career.

Felder had previously hinted that weight cuts heavily impacted his eating habits. He has now revealed that he developed an eating disorder because of cutting weight ahead of fights.

The Irish Dragon' was a constant presence in the UFC lightweight rankings throughout his career and put on multiple impressive displays of heart, grit and determination in the Octagon. Paul Felder's fights against Dan Hooker and Edson Barboza are a testament to his ability inside the cage.

Paul Felder's advice for the next generation of MMA fighters

In a recent interview with Niall McGrath, Paul Felder was asked what would be the biggest piece of advice he could give to an up-and-coming mixed martial artist. Felder replied:

"Save your brain, take care of yourself. Don't leave the fights in the gym. Train smarter, train hard, especially with the cardio. Make sure you are in motherf-ing in for this sport. Because that will break you. That will break you every single time, I don't care how good you are. If you're not in shape, the other guy will win unless you knock him out. Get in shape."

Paul Felder also spoke about one of the issues that plagued him throughout his career: weight-cutting. He had the following to say on the matter:

"Like I said on some of these other interviews, one of the things I wish I had done, and my God, you've seen it in full effect when I'm not on the disciplined side of things. I used to get really big. I used to have a really poor diet because I would cut so much weight. And then when I was able to eat, I would eat everything and want to drink everything."

Paul Felder developed an eating disorder because of cutting weight

The weight cut would eventually become such an issue to Felder that he actually developed an eating disorder as a result of it.

"I always trained, that was never the issue. But I developed an eating disorder over the years, where it was either 100 percent dieting and cutting weight, being disciplined or 100 percent being an a-hole... I would sit weeks after the fight and I would just buy like three candy bars in the middle of the day," revealed Paul Felder.

"I would just eat three candy bars and then eat a pint of ice cream and then drink a few beers. I just couldn't have it for months and months so when I got it, I wanted to have it all," added Paul Felder.

Paul Felder believes he developed an eating disorder due to years of weight-cutting; offers advice to younger fighters after officially retiring from competitive MMA competition #UFC 📺 | Full Interview w/ @FelderPaul & @NiallMcGrath4 ⬇️ https://t.co/tHY2SAlUjX pic.twitter.com/nTQdNovrRM

— Talking Brawls (@talkingbrawls) May 28, 2021

Please spend 30 seconds to answer this survey so that we can better understand how to serve your MMA needs.