San Diego Chargers outside linebacker Melvin Ingram, the team’s first-round pick back in 2012, has only played in 13 games over the past two seasons. Making sure that he is in tip-top shape approaching the 2015 season, Ingram decided to lose some weight. Now 20 pounds lighter after spending part of the offseason working out in Miami, Ingram had this to say about his current body condition (via the San Diego Union Tribune):
“Being at 260 or 265, 266, wasn’t working. I felt quick but I kept getting injured. You’ve got to nitpick at your own body, your own self, your own game. … I felt like playing lighter would be a better thing for me. The lighter you are, the less stress it is on your body, the less stress it is on your knees, your hips, your joints or your ankles, your toes — everything.”
The Chargers really need Ingram to rebound from the injury plagued past two seasons. In the nine games that Ingram played in 2014, he totaled four sacks and 21 tackles. A more agile Ingram further exclaimed:
“I feel it’s going to be a whole different explosion, a whole different Melvin. I feel like that 260-Melvin is gone.”
Weight changes impact players in different ways. However, it sounds like Ingram is confident that his weight loss will improve his game. Let’s just hope he remains healthy so that all his hard work and conditioning don’t go to waste.
Photo: USA Today Sports