Internet Celebrates 'Chicken Guy' Who Completed 40-Day Rotisserie Challenge

A Philadelphia man has conquered a unique feat in the culinary world after completing an epic challenge to eat an entire rotisserie chicken every day for 40 consecutive days.

Alexander Tominsky achieved social media notoriety after rising to the challenge but told Newsweek he will "never eat another rotisserie chicken" again after going through the experience.

The 31-year-old server shot to fame after Twitter user mikeyil stumbled across a flyer stapled to a telegraph pole in Philadelphia advertising the grand finale for his meat-eating exploits.

"COME WATCH ME EAT AN ENTIRE ROTISSERIE CHICKEN," the flyer read. "NOVEMBER 6TH WILL BE THE 40TH CONSECUTIVE DAY THAT I HAVE EATEN AN ENTIRE ROTISSERIE CHICKEN. 12 O'CLOCK NOON. THE CHICKEN WILL BE CONSUMED ON THAT ABANDONED PIER NEAR WALMART. THIS IS NOT A PARTY."

Included alongside the invite was a series of pictures showing Tominsky consuming a rotisserie chicken in a variety of locations. "The rest of the country will never understand the enduring spirit of Philadelphia," mikeyil wrote alongside the tweet.

It didn't take online sleuths that long to track down Tominsky, who had been sharing pictures of his chicken eating exploits to Twitter through the 40-day challenge. Mikeyil's tweet, meanwhile, earned nearly 10,000 retweets and over 118,000 likes, thus ensuring there was a sizable turnout for Tominsky's final rotisserie chicken.

While eating chicken every day may not be to everyone's tastes, registered dietitian Mary Wirtz reckons there could be weight loss benefits to a diet of this kind.

"Chicken is composed mostly of protein, which takes longer to digest than carbohydrates such as rice or bread," she explained to The List. "If you struggle with a hearty, persistent appetite throughout the day, lean-cooked chicken is a great way to keep your hunger under control."

Tominsky reckons he lost about 15 pounds eating rotisserie chicken every day but stresses he "did not need to lose" weight before he started.

He said the daily consumption of the chicken was something that "just happened organically" and "just seemed like the right thing to do."

"I knew there was something special happening so I stuck with it," he said.

Although Tominsky admits to having competed in an egg eating contest a few years back, that was nothing compared with what he went through here. "About 20 days in, my body started to change," he said. "Cramps, dizziness, constant heartburn. I think from the sodium."

Despite hitting the wall at what was the halfway point, Tominsky said he "had to push through" as "there was no other option." His final chicken proved to be a memorable one, consumed in front of an awestruck crowd on a Philadelphia pier. Tominsky described it as a "great motivator" to keep going.

"I was happy to see a great turnout," he said. "It was nice to consume the fowl by the water and around people that wanted me to consume it to completion."

Despite achieving what, to many, must have seemed impossible or at the very least implausible, Tominsky has no plans to repeat the feat and would advise others off doing the same.

"I will never eat another rotisserie chicken," he told Newsweek. "It's not fun and your body will not be happy. Be prepared to be uncomfortable."

While he had yet to eat anything since his chicken exploits, Tominsky said he did celebrate his achievement with a well-earned beer or two.