Ted Walther made a valid comment of FaceBook asking if the No Diet Diet is how Sumo Wrestlers get gihuge (yes that does say gihuge, its my mum's made up word, a combination of gigantic and huge that she genuinely thinks exists).
To get that big a sumo wrestlers diet and lifestyle is critical but despite what people think its not just eating lots that creates the results, its how you do it and the other things you do as well. It is achieved via vigorous training, eating and sleeping strategies rather than just a mass indulgence in food.
So, what do they do? Unlike my suggestions they try to consume as much as possible whilst damaging the metabolism as much as possible (they want to slow everything down so they can store).
The largest meal is eaten prior to sleeping
Sumo wrestler's consume 20,000 calories a day, which they split into two supersize meals of 10,000 calories. Remember I found it oh so hard to manage 6000 and it sent me hyper (both hyper thyroid and hyper active as I just couldn't stop moving). By sleeping after a meal of 10,000 calories a sumo wrestlers body is able to process them slowly and is unable to burn of the energy via movement, heat and all the other things associated with a high metabolism.
They skip breakfast (like many of you no doubt)
Dr. Wayne Callaway, an obesity specialist at George Washington University confirms that skipping breakfast both triggers overeating later in the day and also causes a drop in metabolism. Remember I said the body needs a consistent supply of energy not large gaps.
The drink beer with meals
The good old empty calorie, masses of calories that not only add up the total but also spike hunger (yeah that's why they often offer you a free drink in restaurants while you wait for your table. If they're cheapskates they'll do the same trick using bread)
Not only do they have no nutritional value yet provide a mass of energy (which the sumo will attempt to store by sleeping), it also depletes they body of minerals (particularly calcium) meaning that hunger is yet again spiked as they body scavenges for the missing minerals. When you eat a food your body expects the minerals to be there, if they aren't then it sends a message asking for more food. This is how food processors get people consuming lots of junk. Drop a few minerals out and watch them chow down. The same applies to artificial sweeteners, the body registers sweetness but can't find anything so sends a message for more. Genius if your selling processed food, not so good if your attempting to cultivate a healthy body. One food company even brags about this in their tag line..."once you pop you can't stop".
They exercise in the morning before eating.
Yeah yeah, I've heard it all before, "exercising on an empty stomach burns fat". How idiotic does that sound? You take an unhealthy body that has a lowered metabolism to protect itself from the uncertainty it faces with regard to food intake. Suddenly you decide that jogging before breakfast is a good idea, and you think that your body will release those precious fat stores that its been keeping ready for when you do something this stupid. Wrong wrong wrong!! Exercise does increase metabolism, but and its a big butt, without the energy required to do this movement it will lower your metabolic rate in the long term. This is because your body tries to conserve as much fuel as possible by rationing what's available. Make sense?
Nap time after lunch
Now I'd happily have a nap after lunch like little Daisy my daughter does, but if I managed to eat 10,000 calories in one meal I'd hope that my healthy metabolism would be fired up and have me hyper active trying to burn of what it didn't need. Sumo wrestlers reportedly sleep for four hours post lunchtime.
How do they consume 20,000 calories a day?
Chanko-nabe is a Japanese stew and contains large quantities of protein sources such as chicken, fish and tofu. Interestingly I've had a Paleo dieter recently who started of well on his diet initially but in the two years following as his metabolism started slowing he became a mini sumo, not good considering he was a PT. Protein in excess has an effect of slowing the metabolism (especially muscle meats). However theirs no doubt it takes dedication to eat this much food. 6000 was a lot for me and the effects weren't great but I doubt even I could manage 20,000. We don't need 20,000 a day and our bodies would struggle to process it all, but equally we need more than 1800 or whatever is recommended by the low calorie club. What you need is exactly or slightly more than your requires.
Hopefully this little post may make it more clearer if your current lifestyle has aspects of sumo training in it. Do you skip breakfast, drink empty calories, exercise when you're clearly not ready for it or even eat your largest meal just before bedtime.