Apparently, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt is not much of a fan of Chinese food. But he had to eat during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, so he loaded up on what many nutritionists consider to be “junk food” -- McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets. In his autobiography Faster Than Lightning, the world champion runner explained how he ate 1,000 McNuggets -- about 100 per day -- while easily winning multiple gold medals. “At first, I ate a box of 20 for lunch, then another for dinner,” he’s says in the book. “The next day I had two boxes for breakfast, one for lunch and then another couple in the evening.”
Three gold medals and 47,500 calories:
- McDonald's says that each McNugget has 47.5 calories, 4.5 grams of protein, 3 grams of fat and 90 mg of sodium.
- London-based nutritionist Caroline Farrell says the nuggets weren’t all bad. “As an athlete, you need a lot of protein, and chicken is a great source.” But she frowns on anything deep-fried.
- Bolt’s least favorite food? Broccoli. But he eats it, usually with yams, some form of meat, and Jamaican dumplings.