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Nevada woman sets ice cream eating world record at Indiana State Fair

Miki Sudo, a competitive eater based in Las Vegas, creamed the competition at the Prairie Farms World Ice Cream Eating Championship.
/ Source: TODAY

On a hot summer day, we know it’s pretty easy to polish off a whole pint of ice cream in one afternoon. We’re not sorry, it’s delicious! But one competitive eater has put our small indulgence to shame.

Miki Sudo, a champion competitive eater based in Las Vegas, Nevada, ate 16.5 pints of ice cream in just six minutes over the weekend at the Prairie Farms World Ice Cream Eating Championship in Indianapolis. The contest was sponsored by Major League Eating, the same people who put on the annual Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest.

Before Sudo’s victory, the previous record was 15 pints in 6 minutes set by Joey Chestnut, the competitive eating champ who won this year’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. Sudo pocketed a cool $2,000 prize for her brain freeze-inducing ice cream victory.

For those keeping score, that’s about 2.75 pints per minute. Pretty impressive.

But anyone who has ever eaten an ice cream cone a little too fast knows that brain freeze is a real, and truly uncomfortable, experience. So how do you avoid it?"A person experiences brain freeze when the roof of their mouth suddenly drops in temperature. If you eat slowly, you can generally avoid brain freeze," Sudo, who also holds the women's division Nathan's Hot Dog championship title, told TODAY Food. "Obviously, speed is crucial in competition, so I eat in a way that the ice cream barely touches the roof of my mouth," she added.

That's not to say it wasn't an uncomfortable experience in some ways. "Brain freeze wasn't a problem, but after consuming over two gallons, I could definitely feel the temperature drop in my stomach!" Sudo shares.

As a self-confessed ice cream fan, Sudo admits it's possible to have too much of a good thing. But does she need a break? Nope! "I love all types of ice cream, and sorbet, and frozen yogurt, and milkshakes! With so many flavors and varieties, I never get tired of ice cream!" she said.

Of course, you won't find her putting away dozens of pints at every sitting. A balanced diet is actually key when you're a competitive eater and, in between competitions, Sudo says it's important for her to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

"Luckily, some of my favorite foods are fresh fruits and raw vegetables, but as a competitive eater, dieting alone isn't enough. I do a lot of cardio and work out about five times a week at the height of the competition season," Sudo says.