MUNCHIES introduces FUEL, a new series dedicated to the high performance diets of athletes. We follow Byamba, current world sumo champion, through his average day of consuming 10,000 calories. In and out of the dojo, Byamba shows us how to shop, cook, and eat chankonabe- a Japanese stew eaten by sumo wrestlers to pack on the pounds. Itadakimasu!
In this episode of FUEL, a new series dedicated to the high-performance diets of athletes, we follow Robert Oberst—aka Obie—one of America’s leading professional strongmen, holder of the American record in the Log Lift, and eater extraordinaire. In an average day, Obie consumes 15,000–20,000 calories to power himself through hours of punishing training. From the gym to the kitchen, Obie shows us the kind of fuel he needs in order to stay at the top of his sport.
Rapper Riff Raff is on tour—and is set on fueling his body the right way. After a series of dietary mishaps on his road to getting buff, Riff Raff decides it’s time to make a change. He adds a serious workout regimen to his tour schedule and is focused on gainin' weight and feelin’ great in hopes of becoming 240 pounds of pure muscle. (Soon after we filmed, he announced that he's training with Hulk Hogan to become a WWE Wrestler.). But there'd better be barbells and lots of lobster if he’s going to reach his fitness goals and become the Neon Icon he’s meant to be. Don’t be fooled—he’s still set on his quest to get even bigger, faster, and stronger. Watch out for those pythons in the meantime…
Welcome back to FUEL, a series dedicated to the high-performance diets of athletes. In this episode, we follow the UK's international pro bodybuilder Rene Campbell, who eats the same high-calorie meal every three hours, seven days a week—and that’s just in her "off season." We spend a day with Rene as she cooks up two weeks’ worth of chicken, rice, and eggs; stocks up on her supplements; and shows her male training partners how it’s done at the gym.
In this episode of FUEL, Canadian Olympic Snowboarder Ross Rebagliati embraces his infamous past and embarks on a new venture. Ross Rebagliati was once embroiled in unchartered controversy at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano where he won gold and then tested positive for cannabis in the first-ever snowboarding giant slalom event. In the end, there was no infraction of the rules and his gold medal was reinstated. Fast-forward to today where cannabis culture and legislation has drastically changed; Ross is now the go-to guy for cannabis in athletics. He openly helms a thriving cannabis company, which is a direct nod to his past: Ross’ Gold. Ross whisks us around Whistler showing us how he’s fully embraced and integrated cannabis into his life and diet. Consuming cannabis helps to fuel his body by increasing his appetite, essentially giving him the Munchies and enabling him to consume the calories he needs to actively perform and function as a faster and stronger athlete.
Robert Oberst—aka Obie—is one of America’s leading professional strongmen, the holder of the American record in the Log Lift, and an eater extraordinaire. In an average day, Obie consumes 15,000–20,000 calories to power himself through hours of punishing training. From the gym to the kitchen, Obie showed us the kind of FUEL he needs in order to stay at the top of his sport. We asked this strongman with a heart of gold to take a peek into your YouTube comments, from the funny to the downright mean. And despite his good nature, he won't hold back. Let’s go!
We follow Randy Santel—world-class professional eater and proud owner of foodchallenges.com—during his month-long European tour where he takes on a new food challenge everyday. In London, Randy dominates Meat Liquor’s Triple Chilli Challenge in a matter of minutes; then, he travels to seaside town Portsmouth to devour the Wicked Waffle challenge. But behind the gastro glory and YouTube fame, the life of a pro eater can be a lonely one.
In this episode of FUEL, we follow weightlifting champion Morghan King during her six-day-a-week routine of consuming clean proteins and vegetables to ensure her competitive status at the 2015 World Championships and beyond. At a 105-pound competing weight, she is one of only a handful of women on this planet who can "clean-and-jerk" more than double their body weight. We’d like to see you try that.
Running continuously for over 100 miles in mountain terrain takes a different kind of athlete—and a different kind of diet. Through years of training as an ultra runner, Timothy Olson has taught his body to become "fat-adapted," using fat from animals and plants to fuel him through feats that seems superhuman. In this episode of FUEL, we examine how Timothy's food regimen benefits his performance.
John Joseph is a very well-known figure in both the hardcore punk and vegan communities. As lead singer of legendary New York hardcore band Cro-Mags, he's used his status and platform to spread the word about the benefits of plant-based diets and PMA (positive mental attitude). What not a lot of people know about John is that on top of being an active touring musician and author, he also competes in the Ironman triathlons. These brutal tests of endurance consist of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run. To say a lot of training and diet go into competing and finishing an Ironman would be an understatement. We follow John as he prepares for an event in Boulder, CO to see what fuels a plant-based endurance athlete under such intense training.
In this episode of FUEL, we head to new heights following professional rock climber Alex Honnold, whose jaw-dropping, free-solo climbs (no ropes) have cemented him as one of the most revered and respected climbers in the world. Set in stunning Utah, Alex takes us along as he trains and preps for an upcoming expedition in Angola, Africa. We follow him to unique climbing destinations; Maple Canyon for cobble climbing and an intense alpine scramble up the south ridge of Mount Superior with fellow dirtbag climber James Lucas. Before setting off for Angola, being a self-professed lazy cook, Alex shops for vegan snacks and drops by Gnarly Nutrition in search of light, tasty, and travel-friendly food to keep him powered up and at a high fitness level. It’s clear, no matter what Alex scarfs up, that by following his own brand of a healthy middle ground, the sky’s the limit.
In this episode of FUEL, we follow undefeated professional boxer Jessie Vargas as he prepares for a career-defining fight against Timothy Bradley, Jr. The goal? Not a pound over 147. We traveled to beautiful Mount Charleston, Nevada to join Jessie’s high-altitude boot camp in preparation for his interim WBO welterweight title fight. Guided by boxing legend Érik Morales and nutritionist Cicilio Flores, Jessie endures long runs, calorie-counting, and closed-door sparring rounds in his pursuit of boxing history.
The burly boy is back! On this episode of FUEL we caught up with the Peach Panther himself, RiFF RAFF and his crew on the Vans Warped Tour to check in on his weight gain over the past year. Living by his motto of “gaining weight and feeling great,” RiFF has bulked up thanks to his diet of ribs, Banana Twinkies, and Shirley Temples. Follow RiFF and his entourage on tour, as they taste all the treats the west coast has to offer and get bigger and burlier than ever.
Behind the elegance of ballet dancer Theresa Farrell is an athlete to the core. In this episode of FUEL, we follow Theresa as she drops half a pound a week, working towards her performance goal weight for the upcoming ballet season with American Contemporary Ballet in Los Angeles, CA. Theresa has honed her diet down to a science by keeping meticulous records, eating pre-packaged meals, and doing lots and lots of calculations – for her it’s a simple numbers game of calories in versus calories out. This precise calorie counting gives her the peace of mind to maintain her focus on training and long days of dancing, hiking, stretching, and icing. Whether she’s having a midnight bowl of cereal or a 5 A.M. corndog, Theresa has it all calculated, so when it’s time to take the stage, she knows that her body will be ready.
On this episode of FUEL, we try to keep up with jiu-jitsu and MMA fighter, Kron Gracie. Meat free for more than a year, Gracie’s diet is anything but typical for a fighter. Follow along as Kron fuels himself through the brutal days of training that have made him so dominant on the mat. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, into the legendary Gracie family, fighting came second nature to Kron. He followed in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps, advancing through the ranks of jiu-jitsu before his MMA debut in 2014. Known for keeping his cool under pressure, Kron earned his nickname “Ice Cream Kron,” but you’d be hard pressed to find this fighter snacking on ice cream these days. He relies on light, natural snacks and lots of liquids to power himself through daily mini-triathlons, followed by hours of leading his students through jiu-jitsu training – all before eating his first solid meal of the day.
Meet Jason Caldwell, an adventurer and long-distance rower and find out what he eats during his 41-day unassisted rows across the ocean.
Meet Olympic runner Brenda Martinez in Big Bear, CA and learn about how she’s adapted classic Mexican cooking to the high-mileage lifestyle.
From skydiving to flying in a wingsuit, we talk to Roberta Mancino about what she eats in order to do aerial stunts for movies.