But then as soon as I got on stage (at Nathan's contest in '05), I loved it and got hooked. It sucks when your plate is empty and others are just getting started. "For a while, I was really self-conscious because I loved to eat so much and so fast. He admits that he didn't want to go because he was so shy but went anyway because of a free casino hotel. Before that Independence Day, Chestnut revealed his eating gift felt like more of a curse. "My mom would get mad at me for eating too much because we needed to leave leftovers for when my dad came home from work."Ĭhestnut said it was his brother who signed him up for his first hot dog eating competition in 2005 while he was still a student at San Jose State. "I was the biggest eater in a family of six," a smiling Chestnut said. Nathan's has found a way to everybody's inner child."Ĭhestnut's childhood is one he's found himself looking back on as he reflects on a career that includes world records in chicken wings, Big Mac hamburgers, gyros, tacos, doughnuts and ice cream sandwiches, among others. "We all have fun memories of some type of eating contest growing up. "The hot dog contest is sort of a sweet spot, it's innocent and happy, and because it's paired with the red, white and blue, I think that's why people love it. "The Fourth of July is a day where everybody can be proud to be an American and put all the other negative stuff aside," Chestnut said. He's shown up pounding his chest with enthusiasm at Coney Island over the years, inspiring a connection between the fans and the guy with usually a shy personality. But so do marathoners after they've done the same."Ĭhestnut's glass-half-full demeanor and competitive edge are part of what has defined his character. "Just because I do something inherently unhealthy, I still am pretty healthy overall," he said. "I feel like garbage before fasting and after eating the hot dogs because I've pushed my body to the limit. Chestnut said what he does is indisputably a sport, citing what he puts his body through. Sign up for our sports newsletter: All the sports news you need delivered right to you!Ĭhestnut's legacy, partially detailed in the 2019 30-for-30 documentary, "The Good, the Bad and the Hungry," is one that's challenged people's perceptions of professional eating. I love hot dogs! It's hard for me to imagine a day where I'm not in a Nathan's contest."Ī sport?: Should hot dog eating hero Joey Chestnut be included in greatest 'athlete' debate? I love competition and hope people out there can love what they do as much as I love competitive eating. Just like construction workers and carpenters can't lift things in their careers, it works the same way with food when your bodies get older. If Tom Brady can play in his 40s, I can make it to my 40s doing this. "I've still got a lot left," Chestnut said. While Chestnut is determined to eclipse his own 2021 record of 76 hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes, he's also keen to stare down the twilight of his own career. What's the longevity or shelf life for a hot dog-eating typhoon? The second prime is when their mind and knowledge is at its best, where you know your body and how to practice less but be just as prepared. Their first prime is when their body is the best. "I'm still going for 80," Chestnut told USA TODAY.
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