(NOAH) Noah's Manabu Soya transforms his body to win the N-1...in an exclusive interview, he reveals his "extraordinary feelings for this year" at the opening at the Yokohama Budokan on August 4th.
July 25th 2024
Pro Wrestling Noah's midsummer ultimate showdown "N-1 VICTORY 2024" will kick off on August 4th at the Yokohama Budokan. This years N-1, will be the 6th, with 16 competitors in total, 8 in each A and B Blocks. League matches will be held from the opening match at the Yokohama Budokan to the Aichi Nagoya International Congress Centre on August 25th, and then culminating on September 1st at the Edion Arena Osaka 1st Stadium in Osaka. The championship match will be between the winners of Blocks A and B.
Sports Hochi interviewed Manabu Soya, who created a sensation at last years N-1. With his midsummer success, he reached the point of challenging for the GHC Heavyweight Championship held by Kenoh at the Ariake Arena on January 2nd of this year, but after the Yokohama Budokan event on March 14th, he had surgery for Cubital Tunnel Syndrome, and was forced to miss over four months. Soya confessed that the reason he decided to have surgery was because he was going to participate in the N-1, and he spoke passionately about his feelings for the tournament.
On the eve of the tournament, he won the N-1 RUMBLE, and made a big splash by defeating Katsuhiko Nakajima in the opening match, but was defeated in the finals by Go Shiozaki, who tied with him in points, and shed tears of regret.
"Looking back at that time, I think there was a different between myself and Go Shiozaki. It was the difference in the amount of wrestling experience. Go Shiozaki's stamina, experience...I was shaken when I was shown a side of myself that I hadn't expected"
He spoke of his regrets from a year ago, but his performance in the tournament made him leap forward, and he even made it to challenging for the GHC. Although he was unable to reach the belt, the content of his performance in the tournament pushed Kenoh to the bring, and proved his further evolution. He decided to have surgery right after he was expected to make a leap forward.
"About two years ago, my left elbow became numb, and my grip strength weakened to the point that I couldn't even open a plastic bottle cap by myself. Even so, I continued fighting, and taking care of myself with massages and such, but then the same numbness appeared on my right side, and I thought "This is bad...". The doctor at the hospital told me, "You have no choice but to have surgery. If you leave it, it will only get worse".
So he decided to go under the knife. The reason behind this was the N-1.
"It is to participate in the N-1. I apologize for the convenience, but I asked to miss matches in order to participate in the N-1. That's why I am more determined than last year to do this year".
The surgery took about two hours, and was completed without incident. After two days of hospitalization, he concentrated on rehabilitation training. While he was absent, he made a decision.
"I can't do anything while I'm resting, but is there something I can do while I am absent? I thought about it and decided to change something, and for the first time, I decided to transform my body".
Soya turned the disappointment of missing matches due to injury into a daily challenge to remodel his body. He thoroughly researched various training methods and dietary restrictions distributed on "YouTube" and began a body transformation. He did not set specific numerical goals such as weight or body fat percentage, but aimed to "get six-pack abs".
Each person has a calorie consumption rate per day, so I tried to limit the calorie intake of food to less than that. My calorie consumption is 3,000, so I kept my meals below that. However, I learned that if I restrict myself too much, I won't be able to keep it up, so I didn't worry about the number of meals, and there were days when I ate only three or four".
Specifically, he cut down on carbohydrates.
"I saw on YouTube that cutting down on carbohydrates is not good, so I tried to reduce the amount of food I ate. I love rice, and up until now I've been eating two bowls of white rice in a ramen bowl for one meal. I've cut it down to 300 grams. At first I thought it wasn't enough, but I didn't feel that hungry. I think humans are surprisingly adaptable".
He also paid attention to the side dishes.
"I ate a lot of chicken breast. Also, fish is high in fat, and when absorbed it increases metabolism, so I started eating it. Up until now, I've been eating whatever I want that looks delicious, so I wasn't interested in that sort of thing at all, but this time, I learned about what foods are good for you, and what foods are not, and I started to pay attention to the ingredient lists. Also, I learned a little bit about what effect eating certain foods has on the body."
His wife, female pro wrestler, Koharu Hinata, also helped him in his body transformation.
"She ate the same food, so she lost weight too".
He also changed his training method.
"Until now, I was lifting heavy weights ten times, but instead of doing ten repetitions in one, I tried to do twenty repetitions with a weight I could handle, and then I changed my method to do twenty repetitions in a row, and then three sets of twenty repetitions. I also changed my abdominal exercises to using a roller".
After about three months of "body transformation", he lost 10kg, and went from 108kg to 98kg, and his goal of getting ripped abs was a success. It's all for the sake of winning the N-1. This year, strong opponents from NXT, from the world's largest promotion, WWE, will be participating.
"I'm looking forward to it because I'll be competing not only against Japan, but also against the world."
He will use his absence to his advantage in the opening match on August 4th, where he will face Kenoh, whom he lost to in January.
"I will challenge the opponent I must overcome with a different mindset, not just in appearance."
A professional wrestler's battles are not limited to the ring, but also take place in places that cannot be seen. Soya fought with himself during his days away from the ring. The N-1 is proof of the way of life of a professional wrestler.
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