[pct-l] Hikers guide to caloric intake

[Steel-Eye]

Good evening, JMT Reinhold,

Thanks for the observations about my Calorie needs rationale.  It's always
gratifying to know that other experienced hikers appreciate the thought that
went into it.

You are certainly correct about the desirability of avoiding saturated
fats - and I do so at home - but in the interest of simplicity I omitted
making that point in my rationale.  I felt a need to confine my comments to
the "quantity" aspect of hiking food, and not the "quality" aspect.  Years
ago when I first began tinkering with a trail food calculator it quickly
evolved into something far too grand to be useable.  That often seems to
happen when a left-brainer like me, runs amok in the dazzling world of
Microsoft Excel.  Eventually, my list of food was parsed, not only into
attributes such as fats, carbs, and protein, but also into types of fats,
simple vs. complex carbs, fiber, electrolyte constituents, organically-grown
content, etc. etc.  The result was I ended up with far too much data.  I
found that I could not write a selection algorithm that would specify what
food items were adaptable to the trail.

Finally, I had to accept some basic guidelines for TRAIL food Calories:
1)      I must consistently like to eat the stuff.
2)      It has to be simple to make or readily available to buy.
3)      Moisture is to be avoided.
4)      Fat is good.
5)      Salt is good.
6)      Durability is important - even with chemical preservatives.
7)      It should be versatile enough to be eaten in different ways.
8)      It should be dense to economize space.
9)      It should be relatively inexpensive.
10)    I prefer that it can be eaten without cooking.

With that in mind I wrote a relatively simple spreadsheet to calculate the
total calories per day based upon serving selections.  It seems to work for
me.

Bon Appétit,

 Steel-Eye


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Reinhold Metzger" <reinholdmetzger at cox.net>
To: <pct-l at backcountry.net>; "Reinhold Metzger" <reinholdmetzger at cox.net>;
"Karen Metzger" <karenmetzger at cox.net>
Sent: Monday, June 16, 2008 4:18 AM
Subject: [pct-l] Hikers guide to caloric intake


> Steel-Eye,
> Your caloric intake requirement described below is probably the best I
> have seen.
> It describes a hikers caloric need and the energy delivered by the 3 basic
> food
> sources in a easy to understand way.
>
> My only comment would be that a concentration should be placed on the less
> harmful
> Unsaturated fats like Polyunsaturated or Monounsaturated (the most benign
> fat) vs
> Saturated fats and complex carbs. vs simple carbs. for healthier, more
> sustainable
> energy.
> Since carbs. are carbs. & fats are fats selecting the healthier ones will
> not change
> the weight or energy delivered, but rather deliver a healthier more
> sustainable energy.
> A good example are Macadamia nuts, rich in Monosaturated fats, they
> deliver 200 calories
> per oz. from the most benign of fats....you have to drink straight oil to
> beat that.
>
> Also protein, at dinner, is important for muscle recovery while the body
> is at rest and
> and in the recovery mode.
>
> JMT Reinhold
> Your malnourished trail companion
>
> ------------------------------------
>
>
> Good evening, Krikor,
>
> My approach to Calorie requirements is described here:
> http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=166338
>
> Enjoy,
>
> Steel-Eye
>
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-l mailing list
> Pct-l at backcountry.net
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l