Keiko Nakano (born January 8, 1968), famously known as Bull Nakano, is a multifaceted Japanese personality who has excelled as a professional golfer and former professional wrestler. Her journey in the world of professional wrestling began in her teenage years with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW), where she adopted the intimidating ring name Bull Nakano.
A Storied Wrestling Career
Rise in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW)
At the young age of 15, Nakano embarked on her professional wrestling career with the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) organization. By 16, she had already captured the AJW Junior Championship in 1984, which led to her ring name being changed to Bull Nakano. In July 1985, she achieved another milestone by winning the AJW Championship, a title she would hold for three years.
Nakano solidified her status as a heel by teaming up with her mentor, Dump Matsumoto. Together, they won the WWWA World Tag Team Championship in August 1986. After Matsumoto's retirement, Nakano continued her tag team success, winning the WWWA World Tag Team Championship twice more with Condor Saito in 1987 and Grizzly Iwamoto in 1988.
As a singles competitor, she showcased her skills by winning the 1988 Japan Grand Prix tournament in June. The following year, in June 1989, she defeated Mitsuko Nishiwaki to claim AJW's All Pacific Championship, though she lost the title to Noriyo Tateno in November. In January 1990, Nakano emerged victorious in a tournament final to win the vacant WWWA World Heavyweight Championship, holding the title for almost three years before losing it to Aja Kong in November 1992.
Expansion to North America
After leaving AJW, Nakano ventured to Mexico in June 1992. There, she became a finalist in a 12-woman battle royal and ultimately defeated Lola González to become Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre's first World Women's Champion.
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She then made her way to the United States and competed for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Debuting as an associate of Luna Vachon, Nakano competed against the WWF Women's Champion, Alundra Blayze in August 1994 at SummerSlam, but failed to win the title. Nakano eventually defeated Blayze for the title on November 20, 1994, in Tokyo at the Big Egg Wrestling Universe event. Among her defenses was a victory over Kyoko Inoue in March 1995 in the semi-main event of AJW's Wrestling Queendom Victory show. Nakano's title run lasted for approximately five months, until she lost it back to Blayze on the April 3, 1995, episode of Raw (in a match taped weeks prior) ending her reign at 134 days. The rematch occurred in the wake of Wrestlemania XI the night before.
In 1995, Nakano participated in a New Japan Pro Wrestling event in Pyongyang, North Korea, which set a record for attendance at a professional wrestling event with 150,000 spectators. At the event, Nakano and Akira Hokuto defeated Manami Toyota and Mariko Yoshida. Later that year, she competed at World Championship Wrestling (WCW)'s World War 3 pay-per-view event, teaming with Akira Hokuto to defeat Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki.
Nakano, managed by Sonny Onoo, continued her feud with Blayze, now known as Madusa, at WCW's Hog Wild event in August 1996. Madusa defeated Nakano in a match with the stipulation that she was then allowed to destroy Nakano's motorcycle. Despite their on-screen rivalry, Madusa has since praised Nakano as "a good-hearted person" and an "incredible talent," acknowledging that they had some of her best matches together.
Retirement and Later Appearances
Due to injuries, Bull Nakano retired from professional wrestling in 1997. On January 8, 2012, Nakano produced her own professional wrestling event, titled "Empress", which saw her recreate her most famous matches with her old opponents.
In a surprising turn, Nakano appeared at RISE 6 on December 1, establishing herself as a villainess by attacking Melissa and aligning with wrestlers Kris Wolf, Dynamite Didi, and Kikyo to form a modified version of Nakano's heel faction, Gokumon-To.
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Transition to Professional Golf
In 1998, Nakano transitioned to professional golf. She participated in the Futures Tour Qualifying Tournament in Florida in November 2004, finishing in 250th place out of 251. The following year, she finished in 261st place out of 271, failing to qualify for the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).
Bull Nakano's Reflections on Her Career
In a series of interviews on her YouTube channel with various women’s wrestling stars, Bull Nakano shared insights into her career and the wrestling world. One particular interview with Manami Toyota, a high-flying and beautiful wrestler often considered a once-in-a-generation athlete, revealed interesting perspectives on their experiences in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW).
Manami Toyota's Early Struggles and Rise
Toyota recounted her early days, moving from Shimane province to Tokyo and struggling to communicate due to dialect differences. She mentioned that every time she spoke, others would laugh at her accent, which was highly stressful for a 16-year-old. Toyota admitted that she almost quit once early on but felt guilty for thinking about quitting so soon after her family's support.
Despite the poor treatment at times, Toyota felt she had done everything in Zenjo and was ready to move on. Both Nakano and Toyota fondly remember their time in the company, joking about Zenjo being like a religion, with the Matsunagas as the leaders.
Toyota shared that the office had little expectations of her when she arrived, despite doing well in training. She was looked at as the least promising of her class for the first year or so, which motivated her to work even harder to surpass them, eventually winning the 1990 Grand Prix.
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Tag Team Wrestling vs. Singles Wrestling
Toyota expressed her preference for singles wrestling, stating that she has a personality that doesn’t really mesh well with others. She talked about having constant arguments with Yamada while they were teaming. Nakano also talked about big fights breaking out in front of everyone.
Retirement Thoughts and Injuries
Toyota reflected on the mandatory retirement at 25 rule, saying that it’s not the worst idea, as she was at her best in her early 20s and that after 25 injuries started to become more serious. She also shared stories about her spectacular botches and how she always healed much more quickly than most.
Freedom Force and Bullying
Nakano and Toyota discussed Freedom Force, which was supposedly the group where all the bullying victims were put. Toyota laughed, stating that she was under the impression that it was the faction of “goody-goods.”
The Legacy of Zenjo
Nakano and Toyota's conversation highlighted the complexities of Zenjo, from its harsh training to the camaraderie and challenges faced by its wrestlers. Their reflections offer a glimpse into the world of Japanese women's professional wrestling and the experiences that shaped their careers.
Bariatric Surgery and Weight Loss: Insights into RYGB
While Bull Nakano's personal journey doesn't explicitly involve weight loss surgery, her story as an athlete and public figure intersects with the broader topic of weight management and health. In the context of obesity and metabolic diseases, bariatric surgeries, particularly Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB), have emerged as effective interventions for sustained weight loss and the resolution of associated health issues.
The Rising Prevalence of Obesity and Metabolic Diseases
The prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome is rapidly increasing, with projections indicating that more than half of the adult population will be overweight or obese. This strong correlation between obesity and the development of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other disorders has made it a major health concern.
Current Treatments and the Effectiveness of Obesity Surgery
Current treatments for obesity target both energy intake and expenditure and include lifestyle changes, surgery, drugs, and various remedies. However, many of these treatments have limited effectiveness, with typical weight loss being less than 10%. Obesity surgery, particularly RYGB, has proven to be the most effective treatment for sustained weight loss, often resulting in a loss of up to 50% of excess weight.
RYGB and Gut-Brain Signaling
RYGB implicates gut-brain signaling through vagal afferent and hormonal mechanisms as an important factor in the development and prevention of obesity. The potential mechanisms leading to the beneficial effects of RYGB are complex and involve various organs and communicating pathways.
The Complexity of RYGB Mechanisms
The effects of RYGB extend beyond the gut-brain axis, involving the gut-adipose tissue, gut-liver, gut-pancreas, and gut-muscle axes. The immediate surgery-induced changes within the gut directly or indirectly alter hormonal and sensory neural signaling to these other organs. The brain acts as a key recipient of these signals, orchestrating changes in food intake and preference.
Multiple Loops in Information Flow
The information flow from the primary surgical effect to the ultimate functional consequence involves several loops. Changes in food intake and composition further alter gut functions and signaling to the brain and other organs. Circulating signals also reach the liver, pancreas, white and brown adipose tissue, and muscle, influencing substrate utilization and energy expenditure.
Challenges in Identifying Critical Changes
Given the complexity of these mechanisms, identifying the critical changes that bring about the beneficial effects of RYGB remains a challenge.
Adaptive Responses and Energy Expenditure
One of the fundamental problems with dieting-induced weight loss is the induction of adaptive responses, including hypo-metabolism and increased appetite. However, after RYGB-induced weight loss, the reverse appears to happen, with reduced appetite and increased energy expenditure relative to the weight lost.
Phases of RYGB-Induced Weight Loss
Typically, three phases of RYGB-induced weight loss can be distinguished: an initial phase of rapid weight loss due to severely reduced energy intake, a second phase of slower weight loss after food intake returns to near-normal levels, and a third phase characterized by either stable body weight or slow weight regain.
Loss of Fat Mass and Normalization of Leptin Levels
Loss of body weight after RYGB is mainly due to loss of fat mass, with a proportionately smaller loss in lean mass. The loss of fat mass is accompanied by a complete normalization of plasma leptin levels, indicating the loss of all excess fat mass.
Decreased Energy Intake and Altered Meal Patterns
Available data suggest that decreased energy intake is the major cause of the observed weight loss after RYGB, particularly during the early post-surgery period. Studies have shown a substantial reduction in calorie intake during the first few days after surgery.
RYGB surgery leads to decreased meal sizes and slower eating rates. Liquid meal size is reduced significantly, and meal frequency increases, suggesting that the initial hypophagia is due to an inability to consume beyond a threshold volume and speed.
The Role of Dumping Syndrome
The dumping syndrome, characterized by severe nausea, light-headedness, flushing, and diarrhea, is a common occurrence after RYGB, particularly with sugary foods. Aversive effects of fatty foods have also been noted, with many patients consciously avoiding them.
Neural Activation and Vagal Afferent Signaling
RYGB surgery can lead to exaggerated neural activation in the dorsal vagal complex and paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus after ingestion of a given size meal. This exaggerated vagal afferent signaling may be at the origin of reduced meal size and may even act beyond individual meals to reduce total food intake.
Changes in Food Preferences
RYGB surgery has been reported to change food preferences in human subjects. Some patients show heightened acuity for sweet taste, while others develop aversions to certain foods.