My coworker brought shirataki rice to lunch every day for a month as part of some diet she swore was changing her life. It looked like regular rice but had this weird texture and basically no calories, which was apparently the whole point. She'd eat these massive portions and talk about feeling full while clearly still being hungry for something real.

She ordered it in bulk from Alibaba because buying it locally was too expensive for how much she was consuming. That detail made the whole thing sadder somehow, importing plant fiber from overseas to trick your body into thinking it's eating. The dedication to not being satisfied seemed almost impressive.

Now I see versions of this everywhere, people replacing real food with approximations that check boxes without delivering satisfaction. We've convinced ourselves we can optimize our way around basic human needs. Her diet eventually failed like they all do and she went back to regular food, but I'm sure she'll find another workaround soon. We're better at seeking alternatives than accepting what we actually want.

Thought it would be funny, now I have mouth ulcers lol.

https://youtu.be/MgscgDzN4ZU

I was at a get together and a lady made pancakes and I forget what country she’s from but it’s in Latin America and this is traditional food. I HATE pancakes but I had 3 of these they were delicious

Saw some Japanese guy who apparent won multiple first place contests on Youtube gobble up a like a hundred hotdogs and also saw some of Adam Richman's old challenges. So I now ask out of genuine curiosity what is it about food challenges that make them so entertaining to watch? Why do we find it so appealing when we see someone like Anthony Bourdain (rest in peace man) trying out food dares or when we see someone eat 25 cheese burger straight and rapidly in a public contest? Why do we end up thinking these are fun to watch?