If you’ve grown up eating bacon and sausage for breakfast, a Japanese morning meal can be refreshingly light. Generally consisting of a slice of grilled fish, small bowl of white rice, miso soup, and some vegetables, Japan’s take on the most important meal of the day will give you enough energy and nutrients to kick-start your body while leaving out excess fat and calories that can have you ready to crawl back into bed for a nap.
But not everyone in Japan has such a modestly sized breakfast. In fact, pro wrestler Manabu Nakanishi’s breakfast looks more like dinner…for a family of four!
In all fairness, the 48-year-old Nakanishi is by no means a little guy. New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the outfit he’s currently attached to, lists his height and weight at 186 centimeters and 120 kilograms (6 feet 1 inch and 264 pounds). On top of having such a large frame, Nakanishi still wrestles professionally, meaning his lifestyle is one of regular an intense physical activity, and thus that his body needs plenty of fuel.
So that’s why his Saturday breakfast looks like this.
朝だ白河!泊まりは青森あぁ腹へった!お待たせしました復活モンスターモーニング∞感謝の気持ちで☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/aYJHHia1yd
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) September 5, 2015
Nakanishi himself refers to the spread as the “Monster Morning,” and on this particular day it looks to consist of two giant salads, ham, sausage, kabocha (Japanese pumpkin), lotus root, a rice omelet, croquettes, multiple plates of fruit, and roughly an entire bag of bread rolls.
The Monster Morning seems to be a pretty regular ritual, too. The above picture was tweeted on September 5, and the very next day, Nakanishi shared this photo of his table.
▼ Check out the cornflakes on the bottom left.
朝だ青森弘前アサゲ!ジャムに見えたぜ真っ赤な筋子!しじみの味噌汁からだいい!感謝の気持ちで∞モンスターモーニング☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/OAYpKGxeCu
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) September 6, 2015
An the spread for the next day, September 7?
朝だ青森弘前🍎試合は八戸🐟絵面は変わらずモンスターモーニング∞感謝の気持ちで☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/40CPFPr2zG
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) September 7, 2015
Honestly, with all this variety and quantity, we expect Nakanishi has to chase off packs of travelers daily when they mistake his kitchen for their hotel’s buffet line.
▼ Especially when he’s having curry, a Japanese hotel staple.
朝だ新潟🔥試合は高崎!米どころのモンスターモーニング☆感謝の気持ちで☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/viWTK1Q9AP
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) July 10, 2015
▼ Udon noodles (bottom left) make their first appearance, along with fried chicken and a pile of five hard-boiled eggs.
朝だお腹減ったぜモンスターモーニング!感謝の気持ちで高松うどんアサゲ☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/KXs9k9lYVe
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) May 4, 2015
And while Nakanishi looks to have a definite fondness for Japanese dishes, he’s not entirely averse to mixing in some Western food, like these waffles.
▼ Which are, ironically, mini-sized.
朝だ食べるぜ🍛🍔試合は鹿児島県姶良市!しばしの別れだ博多の街よ!九州アサゲのモンスターモーニング☆感謝の気持ちで∞いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/mNykmIgAC9
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) April 27, 2015
But as crazy as it is to see that a single meal for Nakanishi requires more plates than my wife and I have in all of our cupboards, there’s one other thing that stands out: The guy is extremely conscientious about eating his vegetables. Seriously, go back and take a look. Almost every meal has at least two plates that are nothing but veggies.
朝だサラバだ熊本!試合は大分こんやも燃えるぜ!感謝の気持ちで食べるぜモンスターモーニング☆いただくドン&おはようドン(^o^)vo(^o^)o((o(^∇^)o)) pic.twitter.com/NVl274VWDl
— 中西学 Manabu,Nakanishi (@nobitokun) April 29, 2015
After all, even when you’re eating several times more than an average person, the food pyramid scales proportionally.
Related: Manabu Nakanishi Twitter
Sources: Irorio via Hachima Kiko, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Twitter/@nobitokun
Insert image: New Japan Pro-Wrestling


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