Competitive eater Kobayashi says health, lack of hunger caused retirement [Video]

May 24 (UPI) — Health issues and an overall lack of hunger are the main reasons Takeru Kobayashi decided drop the his buns and hot dogs and retire from competitive eating, he announced on Netflix.

Kobayashi estimated on the streaming service’s documentary, Hack Your Health-The Secrets of Your Gut, that he ate at least 10,000 hot dogs during his career. His wife, Maggie James, said he has sometimes gone days without eating and that his body is broken.

“I am Japanese, but I’ve eaten like an American,” Kobayashi said. “I think that’s what damaged my body.”

The 46-year-old was a six-time winner of the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, winning those crowns consecutively from 2001 through 2006.

Known as the “Tsunami” and Godfather of Competitive Eating,” Kobayashi also held records for eating other foods, including meatballs and Twinkies.

He nearly doubled the hot dog eating record in 2001, when he scarfed down 50 in 12 minutes. He broke his own record the next year, when he swallowed another …