Hot dog! You think you pigged out this 4th of July

July 5, 11:09 AMNutrition ExaminerCarol Bardelli

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Chicago style hot dog.

Competitive speed eaters are a rare breed. They train to overeat. While Americans as a whole tend to overeat from time to time for various reasons, then tend to feel guilty afterwards, these overeaters do it for the thrill of competition.

Yesterday, Joey Chestnut won the Nathan's hot dog eating contest by eating a record 68 hot dogs. Eating, or should we say gobbling, two hot dogs at a time, Chestnut crammed the bunless hot dogs into his mouth and barely bothered to chew. He gulped, forcing dogs down his throat in record time. Then he dipped the buns in water after the hot dogs were gone, and swallowed the wet bread. Not appetizing, yet totally fascinating to watch.

Although some professional eaters report being physically uncomfortable after speed loading mass amounts of food in short amounts of time, many report not feeling full or satiated even after eating so much their stomachs are distended. Doctors believe years of overeating has deactivated their ability to feel full. This may be a clue as to why many obese people report never feeling full.

These unusual competitive eating "athletes" are a thrill to watch. They take pride in doing the very thing that makes many of us cringe. We know too much overeating is bad for us. And when we do it, like many do on a holiday like the 4th of July or Thanksgiving, we tend to compensate the next day with exercise and calorie cutting. These pros may take a few days off from their stuff fest, but usually return to training in a short time. And training for them means eating vast amounts of food as fast as they can, and often.

While physicians fear this sport can damage competitors' health over the long run, only a few retired competitors have complaints. They have become obese after retirement. But the new breed of competitive eaters report regularly exercising to offset their strange diets. Legendary competitive eating champion Takeru Kobayashi is a regular gym goer and weight lifter who sports a trim physique.

While overeating occasionally is a mood booster and does no long term damage, it's not a good idea to overeat on a daily basis as competitive eaters do. This isn't a sport we want to see go amateur on a large scale. Over consuming vast amounts of food regularly for any reason is not a desirable lifestyle for the average Joe or Jane. Not to mention the potential damage it can cause to your health and waistline.

Takeru Kobayashi battles a huge Kodiak bear.

Hot Dog Eating Contest 2007

For more info: International Federation of Competitive Eaters