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!"
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