what am i doing wrong (AKA I am cold and wet :(

[Jerry Adams]

The other thing you can do to regulate temperature is exertion level

Starting out, if I'm cold, I'll walk briskly.

If I'm starting to sweat and I'm too lazy to shed layers, I'll walk slowly.

[Mary D]

We've mentioned deficiencies in your breakfast, which you couldn't completely control, but not your snacks. One candy bar is hardly enough. In addition, high sugar items like candy raise your blood sugar which soon causes your body to produce a rush of insulin, often leading to lower blood sugar than when you started. I've seen this yo-yo effect first hand–I actually got to the top of a 3,000-foot (~900 meter), late afternoon climb by my snail-like but steady pace ahead of an experienced, fast-paced climber who kept stopping to eat candy on the way up when he ran out of energy every 20-30 minutes. If repeated enough, this yo-yo effect can lead to type 2 diabetes. What you want are a combination of foods, especially complex carbohydrates which break down slowly and, as a result, give you a continuing source of energy.

My own snacks consist of nuts (healthy fat, protein, some complex carbs), dried fruit (simple sugars but enough fiber to slow their digestion) and cereal bars or granola (complex carbs). Your mileage may vary, of course, but I'd suggest taking more snacks, more complex carbs and less candy.

[David Adair]

I tend to overheat like the OP if my layers fit too close. Really, I just want my base layer and I living in an ideal environment of 55 degrees F with a nice breeze. The only purpose of the rest of the layers is to create that environment. Being able to adjust airflow is important when trying to balance evaporation and temperature. With loose layers you have a great deal more ability to fine tune airflow with the waist draw strings and zippers. Just as importantly, there are more surfaces with airflow from which to evaporate moisture from. Loose layers with lots of airflow. No, it's not the current fashion they are selling.

[Michael Cheifetz]

I hear what ya'll are saying re layers. essentially that is what i tried to do. I THINK what happend is that:
1) the day before was really cold(er) so i was weary and wore more
2) we started at lower exertion AND colder morning (obviously) so that felt good
3) the guys i walked with (people I dont know…just met at the refugio) were in slightly better shape and kept a quite brisk pace and didnt allow slowing down (in the sense thatif i did they would just keep on and take off)
4)atthe point we started to go up a steeper slope we also got more exposed – mycore was fine but i felt my ears/face/neck were cold and instead of just keeping a windshirt and maybe putting on a buff or lightbalaclave i kept the heavy layers on…
5) i also think that choosing the BPL merino (for the hood which i like) might be a mistake – maybei should go with a synth that will move moisture better (and usually stays tighter over the whole day) and compensate for the lack of hood with something else
6) re slowing the pace – my issue with that is sometimes you want to keep the pace cause you know thta a certain route will take XX hours and you need to walk briskly to get that done in time before dark….

RE food – I should have woken earlier and insisted on a serious breakfast
re snacks – prob is that in some remote areas the selection you have in villages where you resupply is very slim…usually no power/clif bars and many time no granola bars ….but everyone has Mars bars or chocolate. I try to get nuts but they are veryhard to eat fast and on the move (as opposed to chocolate you can just chuck down 100g in one mouthful while hiking

M

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Michael

I think you were in a refugio in Spain? And were looking for power bars or granola bars and not finding anything like that? Oh Dear.

I dunno what food the refugio or the village had, but I am willing to bet there would have been plenty of bread and cheese available, and maybe a few other LOCAL foodstuffs. These can keep you going all day. Thing is, when in Spain, eat as the Spaniards do! Yeah, at home we have muesli and porridge for breakfast, but we can't always get any of that in the mountains of Europe, so we adapt. LOTs of carbo – and a bit of coffee too.

We carry chocolate and sweets, and we use them sometimes. Like if we can see that there is only 100 m more altitude to gain and the weather is foul, we might have a quick energy snack on the move to get us up that last bit and over to the lee side, but for endurance we use carbos.

Slowing the pace? I doubt we could! Nah, full bore till we get there. Then whatever the place can offer in the way of tasties. Eat local, and there's always something good.

Cheers

[Eric Blumensaadt]

1.You are not a cry baby. You were cold and miserable. Your body sent the signals and you recieved them loud and clear.

2. Yes, a better breakfast (more complex carbs & fats) would have helped – AND being well hydrated in the morning. Once you fall behind on hydration it's almost impossible to catch up W/O hydration during a 1 hour break from exertion. This is medical fact.

3. CLOTHING:

a. A vest of 300 weight pile or a good synthetic vest of Climate, Thermolite, or Primaloft Sport would be wise to carry. This is especially good for rest stops to keep core temps up. This is a safety article of clothing.

b. You may want to try a medium weight polyester base layer.

c. Use a good waterproof breathable (WPB) parka of eVent or Gore-Tex Pro Shell to stay dry from snow and rain.

d. Protect your neck and head well. Blood vessles there do NOT vasoconstrict with cold and form a perfect radiator for heat loss. This is basic cold weather knowledge.

e. Finally, always carry mitten shells as a safety measure, like the vest. Mitten shells can make a huge difference in the warmth of light gloves worn beneath the mittens.

[Mary D]

Jamon serrano and/or queso manchego, on nice thick fresh crusty bread–the best sandwich of all IMHO! As Roger says, that will definitely keep you going all day! And you can eat it on the go!

[James holden]

if you were sweating you were wearing too much at that exertion level … either lower the pace, or wear LESS … for the extremities, use a good pair of gloves, baclava, etc …

the other question is … where is your belay jacket ???? …. once you are sweating, and unfortunately soaked through your base layers, your belay jacket is what will keep your temp up when your metabolism cools … thats what will hopefully prevent you from shivering and going hypothermic … size it to go OVER you layers

sweating heavily in cold conditions is a total waste of energy … you end up colder afterwards, you drink more water, and you dont think as clearly …

the eskimos knew that to sweat is to die …

[Author]

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