This is How the World’s Strongest Man Eats 12,000 Calories in a Day

Brian Shaw didn't become the reigning World's Strongest Man without consuming the calories necessary to build that much muscle. Shaw, who has captured the title four times, is a mean eating-and-training machine, who's taken a studied approach to prepping his body for the demands he imposes on it. A dietician, Shaw explains, has helped him cook up a daily meal plan that is far beyond the appetites of any regular man. Every meal, he says, is packed with protein and carbs, resulting in a truly staggering 12,000 calories per day.

However, just because it's tasty, doesn't mean it's easy. Eating, he says, is the hardest part of his job. It's constant, dawn-to-dusk battle to pack in the calories necessary to be a champion. In a video for the supertraining06 YouTube channel, Shaw spent a day with their camera crew, and broke down everything he's eating to reach his daily calorie goal.

To start off his day, Shaw takes in a bowl of cereal, eight eggs, and a spoonful of peanut butter. In this video, Shaw chooses the time-tested classic Cinnamon Toast Crunch. All in all, his breakfast works out to about 1,200 calories.

Shaw doesn't consider himself a culinary wizard, but he does share a tip to cooking eggs the right way: "You don't want to cook them too long," he says. "In a big quantity, they're easier to eat if they're not too hard."

An 80-gram protein shake, granola bars, and more peanut butter. Indeed, with that much protein powder, he needs a bigger shaker just to get it blended up. That's roughly 1,100 more calories in the bank for Shaw, and it's not even noon.

Ground beef, angel hair pasta, and red sauce, all to the tune of 2,200 calories. Here, Shaw expounds on the benefits of grass-fed beef, and we're with him.

An almond milk, blueberry, and peanut butter protein shake. Shaw quickly gulps that down, and before you know it, he's already consumed another 1,000 calories. His running count is 5,500 total.

93 per cent lean ground turkey with jasmine rice and broccoli. How does he do it? That's 1,400 more calories for Shaw.

Here, Shaw throws us a bit of a wild card. Normally, he says, he would consume more beef, potatoes, and some asparagus. However, because of some experimentation with his diet, he and his trainer are seeing if a meal heavier on carbs will help him with his training tomorrow. So, he orders up some Italian takeout and hunkers down. Strewn across breadsticks, pasta, and meat, Shaw shovels in 3,400 calories.

It's the last supper for Shaw, and he ends the day with a treat: four slices of cheesecake, and one more 80-gram protein shake. It all adds up to 1,650 calories, bringing Shaw's final count to just over 12,000 calories. Feeling ambitious? Try this diet on for size.

For an even more detailed breakdown, watch the video below.

World's Strongest Man - Full Day of Eating (12,000+ calories)

This article was originally published on MensHealth.com

This is How the World’s Strongest Man Eats 12,000 Calories in a Day

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