Top MMA nutritionist refuses to buy Valentina Shevchenko's 'no-water' policy: "You won't develop mental toughness by unnecessary suffering"

It didn't take long for Valentina Shevchenko to court controversy with her stint as a coach on 'The Ultimate Fighter' season 32, this time drawing the disapproval of nutritionist Jordan Sullivan, also known as 'The Fight Dietitian' on social media, for her 'no-water' policy during training sessions. The policy is self-explanatory.

Shevchenko does not allow her fighters to drink any water during training sessions, believing that it causes them to focus on their exhaustion. She further opined that this will help them develop a champion's mindset. Sullivan, who has worked with champions like Leon Edwards and Alexander Volkanovski, disagrees.

The nutritionist took to his Instagram page to share a video countering Shevchenko's arguments with his own.

"Say you give me two Valentina's and I dehydrated the f*** out of one of them and kept one properly hydrated and made them both train for a year. Who is better in a year's time? Physically, the non-dehydrated, because they will get more quality training time than the dehydrated one. "

Not only did he argue that a well-hydrated Shevchenko would reap more benefits from training than a dehydrated Shevchenko, but he also opined that it would also be better for the development of mental toughness, contrary to the former 125-pound champion's beliefs.

"Mentally, they're probably way tougher as well, because despite what most people think, you don't develop mental toughness by unnecessary suffering, but by doing the thing [training.]"

Check out Jordan Sullivan's thoughts on Valentina Shevchenko's hydration policy:

Fighters tend to be unconventional with their training and preparation. Former UFC light heavyweight champion and Shotokan karateka extraordinaire Lyoto Machida once stunned the MMA world by revealing that he drank his own urine, which he believes has medicinal benefits.

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Valentina Shevchenko has drawn attention to 'The Ultimate Fighter' season 32 for other reasons

Valentina Shevchenko's controversial 'no-water' policy isn't the only action she's taken on The Ultimate Fighter 32 that's drawn significant attention. She gifted members of her own team and UFC CEO Dana White with bullet talismans meant to serve as good luck charms for the fights ahead.

Check out Valentina Shevchenko gifting her team bullet talismans:

The bullets are an homage to both her nickname, 'Bullet,' and the fact that she is a trained markswoman who often visits the shooting range. Whether her good luck charms and training-based policies will have any long-term positive effects on her team's TUF journey remains to be seen.