10 Competitive Eating Achievements Not To Be Tried At Home

Often find that your eyes are bigger than your belly? Most of us do, but for some brave and rather questionable souls across the world today, overeating is not something to be avoided but instead to be celebrated and indeed rewarded. Talking about the countless competitive eating contests out there, of course. We’ve all heard of the local hot dog eating contest set up by amateur groups looking for a little light entertainment at the weekend, but for those looking for something a little more impressive stomach-turning, this selection of the top 10 professional eating achievements might serve as food for thought. Pun definitely intended!

More of an addition or an ingredient to most of us than a foodstuff to chow down on in its own right, cheese has nonetheless found its way into the ranks of competitive eating alongside the more conventional staples – albeit in sandwich form. As of now, the world record for grilled cheese sandwich eating is held by a Mr. Joey Chestnut, who in 10 minutes somehow managed to down no less than 47. And yes, there really is a world record for everything these days.

Yes, butter. Not butter used in an item to be eaten, but plain and simple salted butter. Even the very best friends and closest family of Don Lerman would likely have looked at him differently for the rest of his life, albeit a perhaps modestly shortened life, after he chomped down seven quarter-pound sticks of pure butter in a little less than five minutes. And yes, the question on everyone’s lips up to this day is why? For massive kudos and cholesterol all in one day?

Moving now on to something most people would likely be happy to eat in reasonably large quantities… donuts! Of course, we’d also likely be limited to how many we could get down our necks in eight minutes. Maybe two or three if feeling really greedy? Heavyweight competitive eater Eric Booker went considerably more than one better by swallowing up 49 in 8 minutes; a record that has now stood for almost a decade. I certainly will not be the one to attempt to break it, and neither should anybody else.

A guilty pleasure of mine but nothing other than canned hell to much of the world, SPAM is often seen as something that would be eaten with apprehension even in small quantities…so why on Earth would anyone want to quaff the stuff on a titanic scale? No answer to that particular question but this is exactly what Dick LeFevre did, munching down on six whole pounds of the chopped meat treat directly from the tin in 12 minutes. His bragging rights are often the subject of debate.

An old favorite that was once again brought back to the big leagues of professional gluttony, the World Chili Eating Championship is now held each year in Washington DC on Columbus Day. And what better way to celebrate such a momentous occasion? This year’s winner was a name already featured on this list; Mr. Joey Chestnut himself who along with destroying grilled cheese sandwiches at a record pace is also able to gobble down chili to the tune of no less than two gallons in six minutes. His reward? $1,250 in cash, which should just about cover the antacid bill.