How many calories a day

**RandyRhoads** · 08-14-2013, 07:40 PM

So i'm trying to start my 220 mile journey Monday. Got my food for half of it. One pack for the first 9 days, and mail myself another at the half way point for the next 9 days. The problem is rationed out I will get 5-600 calories....a day...

Now I know I wont die in 18 days. But where is the line between this really sucks and oh sh*t i'm in danger hurting my body and can't walk out?

**Oddmott** · 08-14-2013, 08:35 PM

I think you want to find a way to get your cals up to 1000 per day minimum. On flat terrain and with a slow pace you could get by, I guess, but you'll definitely start feeling "off".

When I trek long distance (my longest is 320kms) it's often through very scrubby, hilly (not mountainous) terrain. It's a lot of up and down, speeding up and slowing down and it plays hell with my system when i really limit my nutrition. I'm 6'4", 250lbs and anything less than 1200 cals on a 10 hour hiking day leaves me reeling; as dizzy and weak as if I were drunk.
If I have to scramble to put together a more weatherproof shelter at the end of that day, I really feel the effects of the reduced energy.

Cheapest and lightest may be some of the new water additive packets. Some offer calorie kicks, others essential nutrient boosts. You could consider mixing both.

With just 600 cals, by day 12 most folks are going to be getting tired and sloppy. Which often leads to mistakes and injuries.

**Oddmott** · 08-14-2013, 08:50 PM

Some other suggestions for easy to pack cal-boosting foods (that don't spoil quickly) are:

- Oily fish like sardines
- Peanut or Olive oil (2000 cals per cup!)
- Macadamia nuts or Sesame seeds
- Plain old peanut butter
- High quality dark chocolate (500 cals per 100grams)
- Most dried pastas (don't need sauce if you have fresh peppercorn and a good peanut/olive oil)
- Dehydrated bananas
- Lard (I use it liberally by throwing spoons of it in soups/stews/broths, coating meats, etc)
- Smoked salmon (3oz can have up to 200 cals and if smoked well it can last your entire trip)
- Meal replacement shakes that can be mixed with water (15 of these won't weigh much, but can save your butt on days you feel weak)
- Carnation Condensed Milk (100 cals per tablespoon)
- Eggs (everyone thinks they have to be refrigerated, THEY DON'T! Just wash & dry their shells and then oil them and wrap in cling wrap and pack carefully)
- Brown rice (heavy by the sack, but it doesn't take very much to add to your evening meal, 200 cals per cup of COOKED brown rice)
- Coconut Milk (a power food, just 200 cals per cup, but TONS of other health and nutrient benefits)

If you can add 4-6 of the lighter items in this list, you should be able to get close to the 1000 cal/day mark.

**Cast-Iron** · 08-14-2013, 09:09 PM

Randy, here's a link to a body weight simulator. You can plug in your gender, height, age, weight and activity level and it should be able to calculate the amount of calories necessary to maintain your present weight or maybe shed a few extra if you'd like. Trying to accomplish this trek on five or six hundred calories a day seems quite risky. Your call but at least make an informed choice. Good Luck!

http://bwsimulator.niddk.nih.gov/

**RandyRhoads** · 08-14-2013, 09:16 PM

Thanks for all the good info. Ill see what I can squeeze in but I'm sure my pack is already over weight.

With my curren lifestyle and weight lifting I eat 2500-3000 cal a day and still can't gain weight.

**Oddmott** · 08-14-2013, 09:32 PM

Oh Randy... no way man. If your body is accustomed to getting 2500+ calories per day with intense physical activity... you simply cannot just switch that off and put it through the trek.

I think your most intelligent and easiest solution is to simply plan for more frequent resupplies. Instead of 2 or 3, plan for 5 or 6.

I was bed/couch ridden with an illness 2 yrs ago. My body was used to 3000 cals per day and alternating cardio & weights workouts. The illness limited what i could eat and as a result i was down to about 600-700 cals per day. Even with minimal exertion, i was messed up by that dietary reduction.

**bacpacker** · 08-14-2013, 09:43 PM

I know I couldn't get by on 600 cal. per day while hiking. I've tried some low numbers for 3 day trip on real ultralight hikes. by the second day I was feeling like crap, third day was rough. Like has been mentioned you will be more suceptable to injury from any number of reasons. If you get in a bad situation and aren't at near normal energy and clearly thinking could make things worse quickly.

I would suggest at least carrying a jar of peanut butter and some meal replacement shake mix with you just to add some cal's. 18 days on that little amount of food is not going to go well with your body under heavy exertsion.

**BENESSE** · 08-14-2013, 10:23 PM

Here are some suggestions from an Ultra runner. Those guys really burn some calories, and IMO are the ultimate "torture test" of what might work on long treks.

http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Fueling_in_an_Ultra

I love this idea:

"Peanut Butter and Honey – My adaptation of PB&J, mixed together and put into a squeeze tube. Easy to digest, easy to eat and very high calorie density, provides carbohydrates, fats and Protein. Good stuff."

"M&Ms, Chocolate – Combining sugar, fat and a stimulant; what more could you want? "

**BENESSE** · 08-14-2013, 10:27 PM

Also:
http://firstendurance.com/2013/03/05...-running-race/

Most of these runners swear by EFS liquid shot...worth carrying IMO.
http://www.amazon.com/First-Enduranc...fs+liquid+shot

**RandyRhoads** · 08-14-2013, 11:44 PM

Thank you all, ill be doing some adding. Weighed in my pack at surprisingly 30 pounds. Even though its ultralight with loong miles I know I can easily add 10 pounds. Hell that ain't even half a ruck.

**canid** · 08-15-2013, 05:31 AM

It's been my experience that when exerting myself for less than a few weeks, vs periods of what I call my usual laziness, I can roughly double my caloric intake and tripple the fat.

If you're active enough to burn 3000 cal in a day, you probably don't need to add a thing, unless you're a very large guy. Lot of muscle-mass? It's very expensive to maintain.

**crashdive123** · 08-15-2013, 06:13 AM

Originally Posted by canid

It's been my experience that when exerting myself for less than a few weeks, vs periods of what I call my usual laziness, I can roughly double my caloric intake and tripple the fat.

If you're active enough to burn 3000 cal in a day, you probably don't need to add a thing, unless you're a very large guy. Lot of muscle-mass? It's very expensive to maintain.

I think you may have missed the part where he said his packed food would give him 500-600 calories a day, which would be a drop from his normal 3000.

**BENESSE** · 08-15-2013, 07:54 AM

One last thought, RR. Whatever you do, you'll probably expand less energy than say, an ultra runner so taking an inspiration from what they eat to fuel up might not be a bad idea. A lot of them also swear by power/nutrition bars and there are a boat load to choose from. They don't take that much space but the right one can really make a difference.

This article sorts it all out and I found it helpful. I haven't done anything like what you're about to embark on, but in my more strenuous (shorter) treks I don't like to cook along the way and prefer handy food that can be consumed on the go. So power bars and "gels" are real convenient, and in your case, might give you that added caloric boost, you'll no doubt need.

http://www.runnersworld.com/other-ge...rs?page=single

p.s. can't wait to hear how it all goes, after you come back!

**Oddmott** · 08-15-2013, 08:06 AM

Make sure to take an okay pocket cam to document the trip. Daily pics of yourself are fun to look back at later to see the rapid change in your mass and vigor.

**Rick** · 08-15-2013, 08:41 AM

Look at your food and see what part of it you can drop. Cardboard and other kinds of packaging might shed some unnecessary weight. You might repackage some of the food into zip lock bags for example if it won't spoil or go rancid.

**Oddmott** · 08-15-2013, 09:19 AM

One of my favorite tricks is to sew extra cargo pockets onto my pants. I usually sew 4 extras, 2 on the calves and 2 on the rear thigh, lower than where my butt/legs connect with seats.

I really start to notice extra weight in my pack, but extra weight strapped to my legs goes completely unnoticed for some reason. In those extra cargo pockets is where I tend to add either bulky & light items that take up key space in my pack (med kit, etc) or extra food items like the meal replacement shake packets, bags of trail mix, etc.

**finallyME** · 08-15-2013, 09:33 AM

Your goal should be a minimum of 3600 calories a day, and about 1.5 lbs of food a day.
Here is a website you need to see. http://thru-hiker.com/articles/
http://thru-hiker.com/articles/pack_light_eat_right.php

**RandyRhoads** · 08-15-2013, 12:15 PM

That's a lot of food to pack.

All the food is packaged in ultralight vacuum sealed plastic.

Damn.

I have a gopro To socument.

This is going to cost a lot...