From 2008 to 2012, Man versus Food was a ratings
powerhouse for the Travel Channel, and it made the show's host, Adam Richman, a household
name. It highlighted the world of competitive eating
and some of the most famous diner food challenges, all through the eyes and stomach of an amateur. You either loved it or loathed it, but there's
a lot you might not know about Adam Richman and the show that gave him his big break. Doctor's approval Richman never formally trained as a competitive
eater before he landed the Man v. Food gig. In fact, before he ate food for money, he
was an actor and Yale drama school graduate who appeared in numerous bit roles. Because of his eating inexperience, Richman
checked in with doctors ahead of time, saying in a 2010 live chat with ESPN:
"I went to specialists ahead of time because I wanted to start with a baseline of good
health, versus correcting bad health down the road." Richman may have discussed the risks with
his doctors, but that didn't stop him from packing on the pounds during the show's four
season run. Fewer meals, more workouts Richman frequently skipped meals leading up to challenges to increase his eating capacity,
but in a 2009 interview with 411 Mania he said that because of the tight production
schedule it was sometimes difficult to prepare the way he wanted to before a challenge. "If I do have a day off I don't eat, or eat
very minimally, and I drink a lot of water and club soda to keep my stomach stretched
and full and to keep myself hydrated." It isn't just the way he handles meals before
a challenge though. He continued:
"The most important aspect is that I work out like a beast. I work out like a beast the night before and
the morning of." "I lift things up and put them down…" They can't all be favorites In 2015, Richman did an "Ask Me Almost Anything" chat on Reddit and spilled the beans on some
of the things fans have been wondering for years, including his favorite and least favorite
challenges. While his favorite challenge was Humpy's Alaskan
Alehouse's Kodiak Arrest, his least favorite was a challenge he faced and failed at Munchies
420 Cafe in Sarasota, Florida. Unlike the episodes that see Richman plow
his way through gargantuan meals, this was the smallest challenge on the show : 10 little
chicken wings. "These are 'fire in your hole wings.'" Richman had to eat 10 wings in 20 minutes
without drinking milk. He got through two before tossing in the towel. Richman says it was his least favorite challenge
not because he failed, but because he said the owner allegedly cheated by surprising
him with dangerously spicy food. Heat vs. quantity Most of Richman's challenges fall into two categories: heat and quantity. But which is worse? Turns out, it's complicated. Apparently heat challenges are easier if the
dish uses whole peppers instead of pepper extract. With extract, it's just heat for the sake
of heat, instead of a flavor-filled heat. He told The Guardian:
"A good spicy challenge strikes a balance between flavor and fear." Quantity challenges are also apparently no
big deal as long as they don't have a lot of starchy ingredients. It's the fried foods, the fries, and the potatoes
that make these more difficult. "I'm going to be honest, I can't put another
bite of this meat in my mouth." "Truly a sucky experience" Although Richman's least favorite challenge reportedly involved cheating, the worst challenge
he's ever done was a smothered and covered breakfast burrito. In this case, Richman shared during his ESPN
chat that the seven-pound breakfast burrito wasn't his only nemesis. "I was extremely sick with a 101 fever, a
bronchial and sinus infection. Add to that I hate chunks of ham and green
pepper in food and that dish had both. Truly a sucky experience." "I was dying earlier today. And then I died. Now I'm dead." Birthday suit photo shoot It's funny to think the dude who would do competitive eating challenges while wearing
a T-shirt, flannel, and a jacket would bare it all in a magazine, but Richman wanted to
show off his newly fit body in UK's Cosmopolitan in June 2014. He was proud of the spread, saying:
"To go from hating the way I looked to being a Cosmo centerfold is a profound honor." He added that that suddenly being seen as
eye candy was a nice experience. Richman's infamous rant After retiring from Man v. Food in 2012, the Travel Channel was set to debut Richman's
next endeavor, Man Finds Food, in the summer of 2014. But the plug was temporarily pulled on the
show after the newly-svelte star used the now-banned hashtag "thinspiration" on Instagram,
a tag that is often used by the pro-anorexia community. Richman went on a tear after users called
him out on its use. During his rant, Richman not only used obscenities
to refer to people, but went so far as to encourage self-harm among those who were calling
him out. Months later the show finally found its way
to the Travel Channel, but was renamed Secret Eats with Adam Richman for the second season. Why Richman really retired Rumors swirled after Richman retired from Man v Food, but he told The Guardian that
the decision to retire from Man v Food was all his, not the network's. "The simplest way to put it is to say that
the spectacle diminishes over time." Richman added that he wanted to be ahead of
the game, and quit before it got too boring. Rumors that he stepped away from the show
for his health also circulated, but Richman told the BBC not only was that not the case,
but he was shocked at how many "sick people" wanted to believe he'd been forced into retirement
by illness. "But I'm not sick! Let me prove it to you?" Popularizing the food challenge If you've ever thought, "I can do that!" while watching Richman down a massive amount of
food, you can give it a try. There are thousands of food challenges out
there and according to Food Challenges, a site that strives to list them all, that's
thanks mostly to Man v. Food. Between 2008 and 2015, more than 2,300 food
challenges popped up across the US. It goes farther than that, too. More than 15 countries have also adopted the
idea that stuffing yourself silly can be entertainment. Thanks to the popularity of Man v. Food, you
can now find food challenges across Britain as well as in Thailand, India, France, Sweden,
Australia, and Belgium. "Hahaha!" Thanks for watching! Click the Mashed icon to subscribe to our
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