How do Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest eaters train?
http://www.si.com/onsi/athlete-lifestyle/news-feed-page/posts/nathans-hot-dog-eating-contest-eaters-training
Matt Hazzzard, who previously competed in the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, detailed what it takes to prepare yourself for the big event. As you may expect, the eaters are tearing through hot dogs in the months leading up to the event.
"By the time July 4th rolls around, I’ll have eaten over 1,200 hot dogs in preparation," Hazzard told Men's Health.
It doesn't stop there. The eaters must work on expanding their stomach capacity and finding a way to push themselves through "the wall." This is a term you hear in distance running, where the athletes feel like their bodies are shutting down and they can't go much further.
For the eaters, it's when their stomachs tell them it's time to shut it down.
"Competitive eating can be broken down into three fundamental components: eating speed, stomach capacity, and willpower," Hazzard said. "On a daily basis, I’ll train my stomach capacity by drinking large volumes of water (2+ gallons) in a very short period of time (~10 minutes). On a weekly basis, I’ll cook up a bunch of hot dogs and do a full 10-minute practice run.
"This helps to improve speed/technique and build the mental fortitude necessary to push through the proverbial ‘wall’ and continue to down more hot dogs when your body is screaming at you to stop."
The closer the eaters get to competing, the grosser it all becomes.
As you can imagine, eating as many hot dogs as possible in 10 minutes requires your stomach to be empty. You also want to ensure your digestive tract is clear because, well...
Hazzard said, "About 36-40 hours before a competition, I will transition to an 'all-liquid' diet to ensure my digestive tract is as empty as possible to allow more room for stomach expansion. I drink protein shakes, Gatorade, and fruit juices.
"It’s important to make sure you’re still getting enough calories heading into the contest because eating as fast as possible for 10 minutes straight in hot, humid conditions requires a surprising amount of energy and is physically exhausting."
Hopefully it is all worth it.
Da gals down at da NTC train fer dis contest, too ... but, they train a lil' differently ...
The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted. ~ D.H. Lawrence
| 