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Joey Chestnut won the 2021 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest after eating 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes.
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After the game, he said he started sweating, and people said it smells like hot dogs.
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Chestnut also told Insider that it takes two full days for you to start feeling normal after a game.
Joey Chestnut has won the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest 14 times, breaking his own record in 2021 by burning down 76 hot dogs and sandwiches in 10 minutes.
But what exactly happens to his body after the match?
“Most people feel really bloated and tired after Thanksgiving,” Chestnut told Insider. “It’s kind of like that, except very, very much.”
Chestnut revealed how he’s recovering from a big game and why he still can’t get enough of hot dogs (which he loves to eat with Cheez Whiz).
Right After Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, Joey Chestnut Is Always ‘Sweating Like Crazy’
“People have told me they can smell the hot dogs,” Chestnut said. “I really can’t, but the sweat afterwards, it feels sticky and greasy. My girlfriend says it smells different.”
After he’s done with his interviews—which help Chestnut “focus and stay calm”—he heads back to his hotel for a much-needed nap.
“After that, I’m insanely exhausted,” he said. “And usually my first thing is either I’m thirsty or I want to go to sleep. Usually I take a nap as soon as possible.”
It’s always around four o’clock after the game when ‘nature takes its course’
“It’s natural,” Chestnut said. “If you eat a lot, you go to the bathroom.”
But Chestnut always makes sure he goes “super-empty” into the match with the help of a two-day cleanse consisting only of water and lemon juice.
“My body knows it will digest a huge amount of food very quickly, so I make sure it’s easy to digest,” he said. “Most people, when you eat food, it takes nine to 10 hours to really digest it. After I do a cleanse, it goes fast.”
Chestnut said it takes two full days ‘before you start to feel normal again’
“It’s tough on the body, you can’t get around it,” he said.
But that hasn’t changed Chestnut’s love of hot dogs, which he still eats when he’s not training or competing.
“Runners, they look like they’re going to die at the end of a marathon, but they still love to run,” he said. “And I love a good hot dog.”
Chestnut’s favorite hot dog toppings are mustard and raw onions, but he also loves adding Cheez Whiz to his frank.
“Some people are so snobbish and I’m like, ‘Dude, Cheez Whiz is delicious,'” he said. “Cheez Whiz and Grilled Onions – it’s kind of Philly cheesesteak. Oh my gosh, it’s amazing.”
“I’m not one of those hot dog purists, I even put on ketchup every now and then,” he added. “I put kimchi on a hot dog, it was really good. Cream cheese tastes really good there too.”
Eating competitively can be hard, but Chestnut isn’t going to stop anytime soon
“As long as my body cooperates, I can see myself doing it for years to come,” he said. “And one of these days someone will come – an absolute boss, man or woman – and challenge me, and I’m looking forward to it.”
“I love the competition and it’s still exciting,” he added. “Even if I get beaten, it would be very hard to walk away.”
Read the original article Insider