You don’t win a taco-eating contest. You DOMINATE it.
That’s right, champ. Winning ain’t enough here at Fuzzy’s Taco Shop.
Tacos are the best food in the world, but even the best food in the world isn’t easy to scarf down at record-setting speed. Most people eat one, two, three, maybe even four tacos when they come into our place. But we don’t normally see our guests eating 15 tacos in a five-minute span (nor do we advise they try).
However, if you think you have what it takes to enter a taco-eating contest, we want you to be prepared, because we care. We really do. It’s not just a matter of a stretchy stomach. It involves your mind, body and soul. Here’s what you need to do:
Stretch Your Stomach
Some people think winning a competitive eating contest means you should starve yourself. Then when the time comes, you attack the food like a famished wolf. That’s not how it works. When you don’t eat, your stomach shrinks and you actually eat less at a sitting.
You can expand your stomach by drinking copious amounts of water throughout the day. DO NOT do it all at once, as there can be serious consequences.
Japanese competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi is rumored to sit at a sushi bar and cram in more than 100 rolls in one sitting just to keep his stomach inflated. (You can try the same approach with Fuzzy’s tacos, just sayin’.)
Feast on Fiber
Fill your diet with high-fiber, low fat and water-filled foods like pineapple, celery and cabbage. The longer these items take to digest, the more they stretch out your stomach.
Train Your Brain
When you eat, your stomach sends messages to your brain that it’s full.
Ignore this message.
Practice denying this natural response by continuing to eat through the urge to stop. Fuzzy’s jumbo burritos seem like a perfect way to practice, don’t they?
Find Your Strategy
The best way to eat quickly is to compact the food into the smallest form you can before scarfing it down. Some people dunk the food in water; others eat the meat first then cram the bread in. Do a little research to determine what’s right for you.
Drink Water
When the competition begins, make sure to have plenty of water at the ready. It lubricates your throat and helps you gulp the food down. Be careful, though, as water also takes up much-needed space.
Ignore Your Buds
Your taste buds, that is.
This is a competition! Just mash the food up quickly and get it down your gullet. There’s no time to stop and savor the moment. Which leads us to…
Keep Going
Pacing is everything. You must keep up the pace!
If you start to slow down, your body will begin to slow down as well, making it harder to keep going. Just like other forms of exercise, the harder you push, the farther you’ll go.
You should be good to go if you follow these handy-dandy-taco-eating tips. Just remember: Please taco responsibly, so no one gets hurt.
Stop by your nearest Fuzzy’s Taco Shop to train today!
