Mouths crammed with hot dogs. Tears streaming down pie-smeared faces. Stomachs stretched to the bursting point. These are the less-than-savory images that "competitive eating" conjures. But MSIs new mobile app will change that. Download Chew or Die and you can start challenging your friends—and yourself—to eat healthier.
Chew Or Die is a food challenge app that encourages users to make small changes to their daily food choices. Regularly eat pepperoni pizza for lunch? How about trying veggies on top instead? Ok,you’ve got that down… now why not dare your Facebook friends to out-veggie your pizza?
So how do you start a food fight? Pick a food challenge in the app—such as “Spinach Samurai” or “Produce Throwdown”—and come up with a dish that fulfills that challenge. This could mean anything from finding a crazy new way to eat raw spinach to tracking down a mystery fruit. Then, snap a pic of your food with your mobile device and share it in the app, or on Twitter and Facebook if you choose.
Other users of the app get to judge your photo and whether or not you fulfilled the challenge. But keep in mind, they can also rate qualities of your food like portion size, food choice, and creativity, so the the better—and more creatively—you eat, the better you’ll do. Completing challenges will earn you badges like “Meatless Master” that you can show off on Facebook. Plus, viewing and rating other users’ wacky food pics is just as good as taking challenges yourself—youre bound to get some great food ideas from other people, just like theyll get some from you.
And thats the goal. Developed with the help of a nutritionist, Chew or Die is all about getting people out of their food ruts and trying new foods—quinoa, anyone?—or preparing familiar dishes in new and interesting ways, both of which are key to eating healthier.
The app was also created with the real world in mind, so you dont have to make a special trip to a specialty foods store to get in the game.
Just remember: tofu dogs may be healthy, but cramming 12 in your mouth at once is still a choking hazard. Please eat responsibly.