2nd Place = First Loser

After listening to all of sports media relish over Joey Chestnut winning his 11th Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, something hit me: 2nd place in that contest, has to be the worst feeling in the world.

Don't get me wrong. Finishing in second place in any sport has to be a tough pill to swallow. It could be the Atlanta Falcons, blowing a 28-3 lead in the 2017 Super Bowl, or the University of North Carolina Tar Heels losing on a buzzer beater to Villanova in the 2016 National Championship.

People talk about the defending champion, for a majority of the next year, and it's a daily reminder for you what could have been.

There's always been the jokes how people would prefer to finish 3rd than 2nd due to the nature of being the first loser.

I get it. It goes back to the point of some athletes saying, only one person, or team, is happy at the end of the year. Only one team has a successful season.

If you played a sport growing up, or have been in any sort of competition, you know the feeling of losing; the thrill of victory, and agony of defeat.

Now picture yourself at Thanksgiving, with all the food on the table. Maybe you put on a pair of stretch pants, because you know you're going to stuff your face. Food is consumed, and then people fall asleep on the couch watching football. I can still see my dad doing that as I grew up.

It is the feeling of eating so much that you're going to be sick. The last thing we want to consider is food. I sometimes will mentally prepare myself for the amount of food I'm going to consume. I'll try to avoid big meals as I prepare to stuff my face and enjoy a home cooked meal, on a special occasion.

We've all be there, and you know what I'm talking about.

Major League Eating, brings this two feelings together into one big gluttonous wave of emotions. If you don't win - and even if you do - the feeling your body is going through would be rough.

You've just devoured food, like Carmen Cincotti eating 45, to Chesnut's 74, hot dogs in the 2018 edition of the competition. A likely upset stomach, and the realization your name will garner little attention for the next 365 days.

74? 45? I'm lucky if I can eat 2 hot dogs, maybe 3.

Losing in most sports, I think would take time to recover mentally. But, competitive eating? That brings on a different kind of physical torture, that I don't think many can understand.

2nd place is never a desire. But, the punishment you're putting the body through in a set amount of time? I don't think it's worth it, and I'll never understand the appeal of competitive eating.

If you're interested, or just flat out curious, check out: www.majorleagueeating.com to see the ridiculous records that are held, for more than just hot dogs.