The sport of strongman essentially requires its athletes to eat well beyond the caloric intake of non-strongmen. Often ranging in the 300 to plus-400-pound range, the giants who lift Atlas Stones and heavy logs offset the Herculean weights with their body mass and a lot of strength training.
Since cutting weight is not the goal for strongmen as competition approaches, eating challenges or colossal cheat meals are reasonably common. Still, when the reigning two-time World’s Strongest Man (WSM) Tom Stoltman and his brother, the 2021 Europe’s Strongest Man (ESM) champion Luke Stoltman, share a video on their YouTube channel wherein they consume a 20,000-calorie meal, it still warrants an eyebrow raise and a turn of the head.
We’re going to go through as many of the brunch meals as we can.
On July 25, 2022, the Stoltman brothers ate a 20,000-calorie breakfast at the Hillhead Cafe in Tornagrain, Inverness, Scotland. Check it out below:
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The opening meal was the “Summer Breakfast Bowl,” which appeared to be a small bowl — well, small in the hands of the 6’8″ tall Tom Stoltman — of lemon curd, granola, and mixed berries, paired with a cup of coffee. The brothers followed that up with giddy excitement for buttermilk pancakes, maple syrup, bacon, creme fraîche, and a berry compote.
2,500 calores…this 20,000 is going to be easy.
What is usually a YouTube channel chronicling the training and day-to-day adventures of the Stoltman brothers as they prep for elite strongman contests slowly morphed into an ASMR watch party of forks clinking on plates and soft grunts of pleasure while chewing fluffy hotcakes.
I feel like we’re just warming up.
Although an appetizer and full breakfast might be plenty for a regular Scottish civilian, the Stoltman brothers reached for the menu to see what meal was next: smoked salmon, eggs, and avocado puree drizzled with lemon. The freshness of the seafood was enough to stun Luke Stoltman into apparent euphoric silence. The camera panned down a few moments later to see an empty plate.
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The Stoltman brothers were happy classifying everything they’d consumed thus far as starters. The main event came in the fourth dish, “The Tornagrain,” which consisted of a poached egg over steak and tomatoes adorned with thick-cut bacon.
With so much meat in the front half of the dining excursion, the Stoltman brothers dabbled in the vegetarian part of the menu, running back the vegan variation of “The Tornagrain.” The spice level caught both men off guard, but they still crushed the whole plate. Their breathing started to feel a tad bit labored as eating five full breakfasts in one sitting with the grand finale to come is no easy feat.
“The Breakfast Sharing Board” was the final course, which was more-or-less a sampler of all the meals they’d just eaten — oats with strawberries, pancakes with syrup and bacon, and granola bars with raspberries. About halfway through, Luke’s eating appeared to be more labored, while Tom still seemed in his comfort zone. Despite Luke’s struggle, they made it through the entire breakfast menu at Hillhead cafe.
Both Stoltmans are scheduled to compete next at the 2022 Shaw Classic at the Budweiser Event Center in Loveland, CO, on Aug. 13-14, 2022.
Featured image: @stoltmanbrothers on Instagram
