Sumo Wrestlers - What do they eat?

Sumo Wrestlers have a heavy lifestyle in many ways. But I wondered what it takes for them to reach and maintain their massive weight. So I decided to find out a bit more about the typical diet these giants are on. The results are very interesting.

To start with, an average Sumo Wrestler consumes up to 10.000 calories per day. That is a huge amount of calories, when comparing it to the calories intake of a normal person, which is around 2000 calories. This means on a weekly basis we are talking about 70.000 calories!! To understand how much this actually is, just have a look at the following examples:

Now let’s have a look at a typical diet of Sumo Wrestler. The main dish on the Sumo menu card is Chanko Nabe. It’s a stew with many vegetables, meat, fish, tofu and includes tons of protein. It’s actually a very healthy dish, and a Sumo Wrestler would typically eat two large plates per day. On top of that, they eat a lot of rice; up to 5-10 bowls per day. During the meals, alcoholic beverages, such as beer are being consumed. This reason for this is that the consumption of alcohol during meals result in a quicker increase of fat.

Meet Byambajav Ulambayar, who is a Sumo Wrestler from Mongolia. His typical day starts off with a 5 hour training session on an empty stomach (Sumo Wrestlers don’t eat breakfast). After his workout it’s time for a massive lunch that mainly includes Chanko Nabe, lot’s of rice and a couple of beers. Then it is time for a long siesta in order for his metabolism to slow down, and also for the calories to settle. After another training session in the afternoon it’s time for dinner. This time the menu includes Fried mackerel, udon noodles, and salads, accompanied by a few beers. . After dinner, he hits the bed, as the next morning he needs to wake-up early for his training session.

Interesting to know it that many Sumo Wrestlers start their own Chanko Nabe restaurant after their retirement. In fact many wrestlers cook well, because it is one the first lessons they must learn to become part of Sumo society.