View Full Version : Nutrition

01-09-2005, 14:17
I am concerned about my nutrition on my thru hike. I will be taking a multi-vitamin, but what other ways can I make sure that I get a balanced meal and the proper nutrition without adding a lot of weight to my pack.

01-09-2005, 14:39
1) Wheat germ. It's absolutely loaded with biologic-origin vitamins, easy to find in groceries, doesn't need refrigeration for days after opening, and if you buy it in bags instead of jars, very light weight. I add a sweetener and milk (sugar or aspartame and powdered milk) to a cup of WG. The toasted type has a less strong taste, but is a tad less good for you.

2) Wild rice. NOT the 10% WR Uncle Ben's garbage, but the real stuff ($1.99 a pound on sale in Minnesota grocery stores). It takes a while to cook, so you'll only want to cook it when you have a campfire going, rather than using an alcohol stove or the like as a heat source.

3) Buy 100% whole-wheat bread instead of "took most of the nutrients out and replaced them with worthless starch" white bread like Wonder or Colonial. Also use whole-wheat noodles for pasta (Tuna/Hamburger helpers, spaghetti, etc.) instead of ones made of white flour for the same reason. Try not to buy Ramen noodles, either; white flour, plus palm oil, which is seriously saturated fat.

4) Dehydrated spinach flakes. Lots of vitamins and some protein; get it at places like http://www.waltonfeed.com/ .
(They sell lots of other good stuff too.)

5) Oily fish, like salmon in the foil packs, or some sardines.

6) Your first night out from town, always bring a pound of frozen brussel sprouts or broccoli to be part of your meal. In cold weather hiking, when it will keep longer, you can bring even more of these.

7) Fresh asparagus keeps for several days in all but the warmest weather. Buy a bundle of it in town to cook the next day.

8) Liver is weird stuff that I don't advise eating too frequently (it's the body's filter organ), but nonetheless it has high levels of certain nutrients. Right before you leave town, once a month or so, buy a half-pound or so of it to cook that night, wrapped VERY well so it doesn't leak.

9) Stay away from lard, Vienna sausage, Spam, coconut anything, Crisco, and most margarines (the Finns make an expensive one that is good for you); they are bad ideas nutritionally. Go with olive oil, and maybe a little butter instead.

That will get you started on some ideas you may not see elsewhere.

01-09-2005, 14:48
I heard cous-cous is good to eat on the trail.

hey, here is a great site by some thru-hikers from my neck of the woods, www.tomecek.com (http://www.tomecek.com) featured in this weeks issue of Velocity.

01-09-2005, 14:49
Here is a place you can get them:


01-09-2005, 15:32
A lot of hikers carried olive oil with them in small bottles and added it to their food every night to add taste and nutrition.

so how long does fresh broccoli last on the Trail in moderate/warm weather? a couple days?

01-09-2005, 15:49
Just a note on supplements. I have just read a study done on nutritional supplements that the physician I am working with turned me on to. They compared over 500 different brands and the results are rather shocking. It seems as if most of the over the counter ones we take are what is called food grade meaning most importantly that they are not regulated by the FDA. After testing these supplements many were found to have very little of the actual vitamins or minerals that is listed on the label. In addition some such as coral calcium were found to have traces of arsenic, lead and mercury. I am not sure what many of you use but here are just a few examples

GNC - Mega Mens has only 21.1% in each pill i.e. you would have to take almost 5 a day to get the 100% that is said to be in each one.
21st Century has 7.3%
Centrum performance has 5.2%
Comprehensive Formula.. men's has 14.0% and women's 11.8%
Equate Complete 4.9%
Jamieson Power Vitamins 3.5%
Rite Aid Whole source 6.2%

There are 5 companies that have what is called pharmaceutical grade supplements, meaning these are inspected 8 times a year by the FDA, 4 announced and 4 unannounced and everything is tested.
I can only remember 3 right now, Douglas, AmeriSciences and USNA.

Anyhow just an example and something I found rather interesting so thought I would pass along.

Divining Rod
01-09-2005, 17:49
I will be taking and sending myself some packets of salmon,tuna, clams, shrimp, as well as chicken. My ole man made some killer deer jerky so that is going. He is working on fruit now but who knows how that turns out!!

whitedove.....interesting news there, PMed ya for more info.

01-09-2005, 20:53
Olive oil should be a staple of any cooking kit. I found that sunflower kernels were great to snack on, and could easily be tossed into any dish for some extra protein. Protein bars such as the Zone Perfect variety have a good balance of vitamins, you might want to consider those for an occasional snack or as a breakfast bar.

01-10-2005, 00:06
Every so often I'd get mailed 4 or 5 weight-gainer shake packets, which you can get at GNC for about a buck apiece. Get the ones that aren't just protein, but carbohydrates as well. What's also nice is most varieties are loaded with vitamins, too, which absorb quickly into the body because it's a liquid. I'd take them sparingly and I could really feel the difference they made on days I felt slow.

01-10-2005, 02:04
This is all great stuff, I had been wondering about nutrition on the trail, and have been meaning to see a doctor or nutritionist about it, my weight is already rather low for my height (6'3" 160 lbs) and i wanted to make sure that my weight didnt drop any more while on my thru-hike, I'll be sure to post my findings after a meeting with a doctor or dietary professional. :)

01-10-2005, 03:38
1) Do NOT waste money (or room in your stomach) on celery or lettuce (of any kind). Those plants have essentially no nutritive value, no vitamins, minerals, protein, essential fatty acids, nothing. Instead, go with dark greens such as spinach, kale, and chard.

2) Certain plants such as raw green peas and soybeans have chemicals in them that are of negative nutritive value. These chemicals (called antinutrients) affix themselves to vitamins and remove them from your system. The ones in green peas are easily destroyed by ordinary cooking. The ones in soy are far tougher, not being destroyed by most cooking, and take methods like those used to produce soy sauce and tofu to disable them. Also, soy has estrogen analogs, so males may want to stay away from it altogether.

01-10-2005, 03:51
My niece is a dietitian, and we've talked about long distance hiking nutrition quite a bit. A few things of note are: variety, lots of hikers get stuck eating the same ole thing over and over. More variety of foods ensures better overall nutrition. the other things of course are enough protien and calories. So pack what works for you and what you like, and when in town, eat things that you don't pack every day on the trail. Showme