nutrition on the pct

take a look at this thread, it may help. Also you may find that the weight with powered/ drinkable products may equal or be close to the weight of regular food. If it were me i don't think my body would accept powdered/ drinkable for the whole thru-hike. I would need some variety.
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/…/thread_display.html?forum…

Whatever it is that you decide, you better test out in the time before you start. Although there are standard guidelines, everybody's body is a little different. Also, you don't know what your food preferences and cravings are.

There are others here who know a lot about this. All I know is the basic part that applies to me. Carbohydrates are the main quick energy calories. Fats are also for energy, but they tend to be slower to digest and slower to burn. Fats contain about twice as many calories per gram as carbohydrates or protein, so some hikers attempt to load up on fat in order to get the most calories out of each carried gram. Although that makes some sense, a diet high in saturated fat is not highly praised by the doctors. So, don't go overboard with that. I moderate that a bit by trying to get my fat as healthy fat in the form of monounsaturated fat, e.g. olive oil. This is the area that requires some experimentation for yourself.

There is a standard formula for protein requirement based on your weight. I will make that short by saying that it is normally around 55-65+ grams of high quality protein per day. The protein should contain balanced protein with all of the essential amino acids. Some hikers get there with animal protein, and others get there with balanced plant proteins. Take your pick. I go with some of each. If you get too much protein, your body will simply use that as calories.

Tom may pipe up here. I think he goes with mostly maltodextrin to cover the carbohydrate part. Then some other stuff. I can go that route for some of my daily diet, but not for the entire diet for months.

You did not state why you want to eat only powdered food. Are you trying to go without cooking?

–B.G.–

I'll let someone who does that themselves answer your main Q, but a tip I've learned from switching diets for myself, the kids, the dog, etc: Do it gradually! Transition over a few days from around-town food to your new liquid diet.

I'd also *strongly* suggest you try any proposed diet for at least a week around town (with fewer calories than on the trail). You may have issues with something about the diet. And if you can't handle it for a week in town, you shouldn't count on it for 3 months! I could imagine you want to add some roughage (edible plants?, dried fruits?) to "keep things moving along".

I do have a lot of practice and preference for "eating as I hike", whether that's a carb drink, a sandwich or nibbling on snacks. Because:

– I don't get behind the curve and "bonk"
– it is a mental boost to consider the 2 miles I did while slowly nibbling on a turkey-bacon-cheddar wrap that others would have sat down for a 40-minute lunch break
– I warm up faster in the morning by hiking than by sitting in a cold campsite waiting for 250-ml of oatmeal water to boil.
– if I don't eat in camp, I have less problems will the huge spectrum of critters out there (ants, mice, squirrels, bears).
– it really helps make high-mileage days (35-45 mile day hikes for me) possible.

edited to add:
– going stoveless is a huge time, weight, and hassle savings. Not everyone is willing to take that step and some that are do fine for a week or two but REALLY miss the variety one month out.

Greg "Malto" Gressel is who you want to talk to about this. He's here on this site.

Here's his PCT journal.
http://postholer.com/journal/viewJournal.php?sid=d45b01a003b8185c716d11bd6bb64965&entry_id=20018

Be sure to read up on the advice posted above about "Malto", I took many of his suggestions and used them for myself for the first 700 miles of desert hiking. I had regular CarboGain/Protein Shakes with extra electrolyte capsules I'd take a few times a day — never cramped up once and never bonked.

All I can say is good luck – less than 90 days requires you to carry very little, be SUPER fit the moment you hit the trail, and be VERY ORGANIZED in your resupply strategies…lots and lots of time will be wasted if you don't plan you resupplies correctly.

I only knew a few people to do a hike that fast in 2013, and one of them was Lint (started the same day I did at the Mexican border – May 19th).

If it was me – I'd split the trail in half and do it over two years and enjoy it – rather than try to keep that pace up for the whole trail. I had about 4 months of hiking days, with about 30 days off total – for just over a 5 month thru-hike…I loved it.

Go for it if that is the challenge you're looking for – and best of luck !

>"and be VERY ORGANIZED in your resupply strategies"

and/or have a super-dedicated team of support folks tweaking the contents and timing of your mail drops.

jerry, that link doesn't seem to work.

bob, thats a good point with the carbohydrates. i am probably going to modify a meal replacement drink called lean complete by a local company called unicity, and add maltodextrin to give me the carbs and a few more calories.

david, i like your point about trying out the diet, i will definitely be testing new things over the next few weeks. also your point about going stove less. i have been thinking about it a lot, and probably for the pct it would help to take a stove. doing the jmt in 5 days was a different story and i will probably be craving a nice hot meal every night. also i won't be hiking 41 miles a day, rather in the 30s so i should have a little more time.

craig, that link about malto is really helpful i will be reading a lot of that

seth, you make a very good point about organization, i will be planning a lot over the next few weeks.

so in the end i think i have come to realize that my diet won't consist entirely of drinkable shakes, rather a mixture. i would like to do about 2000 calories (almost half my diet) of shakes and the rest things like probars, candy bars, chocolate, and a cooked meal. kind of a take off the meal plan that andrew skurka does.

Advice? Just don't over plan. Don't plan out 3 months of food in one swoop. You WILL get sick of whatever you think you might like at the start. If you go the liquid route, you will end up craving real food, and so on. It is human nature ;-)

>"and probably for the pct it would help to take a stove"

And you can mix it up. Who wants a hot meal in the desert? And when you have a longer stretch or need to use a bear canister, go with more liquid diet (packs in the holes between other stuff) and non-cook for that stretch.

Mail the stove and pot ahead in a bounce box to the start of shorter sections where the versatility and variety won't be adding to an already heavy pack.