I understand that not everyone spends their 4th of July watching dozens of people cram their stomachs full of 60+ hotdogs (I don’t either for that matter but 1 million other people did – there’s even a professional league), but it’s always interesting to see what happens at the annual Nathan’s Hotdog Eating Contest each year at Coney Island. If you hadn’t heard, the longtime champion, Joey Chestnut, lost to newcomer Matt Stonie who ate 62 (SIXTY TWO!!) hot dogs in ten minutes to Chestnut’s 60.

Now, I’ve got quite the appetite, and people that have seen me eat wonder how I’m able to eat as much as I do. I’ve even tried my hand (or would it be stomach?) at a few “food challenges” before, but the idea of eating (if we can call it that) 62 hotdogs and buns in ten minutes is mind boggling even to me. Give me a full day and I still probably wouldn’t be able to do it. This got me thinking, just how do these professional eaters do it?

Continue reading “Deconstructing: Competitive Eating” →