Having a proper diet on the road is one of the biggest
challenges you will face as a backpacker. It is important to keep up your
energy levels on a long hike, if your blood sugar drops below critical levels,
it can even be fatal for you.
One problem many backpackers face is that they want to pack a lot
of food instead of packing a lot of calories. The aim should be to eat as many
calories as possible, and not to eat as much food as possible, but at the same
time we want to keep the weight of our backpack low. So all in all the aim is
to maximize the calorie/weight ratio of your food.
However taking food that is rich in calories won't do you much
good if you can't hit a minimal threshold of calories. A grown man needs to
consume at least 3500 calories per day on the trail if he wants to avoid weight
loss, however this can get as high as 6000 calories depending on where you are
hiking. Even though being lean is very fashionable, I would advise you to not
attempt loosing weight during backpacking. It is much safer to do it in a
controlled environment where disaster is out of the question if something goes
wrong.
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| A collection of foods for hiking. Source: Flickr |
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| Gorp or trail mix with a bit of M and Ms and almond. Source: Wikipedia |
The best combination of ultralight backpacking food is a
combination of processed food and natural food. Processed food is rich in
calories, but it offers very few minerals, vitamins or protein. You need to
consume natural whole foods as well to keep up the nutritional state of your
body.
It is also very important to not carry anything that is not
necessary. Don't throw items into your backpack just because "you might
need it". The weight of those items will add up quicker than you would
expect, resulting in a very heavy backpack that you will have a hard time
carrying around. You might even end up burning more calories than you have
packed with your food if you are not aware - the cardinal sin of any
backpacker. Sit down instead and think through how many meals you will want to
have, and exactly what you will need to eat in those meals.
Another good trick for keeping the amount of food you to take with
yourself low is to consciously eat more the day before you go out backpacking.
For example if you start your trip on Saturday, have an extra piece of pastry
for breakfast, have extra potatoes for lunch, and have an extra slice of pizza
for diner. Have a huge breakfast the morning you start your trip. You can stack
up on energy this way without carrying food in your backpack.
Without further ado, it is time to take a look at my five favorite
backpacking foods:
Pastry
As you have probably noticed from the earlier parts of my article,
I am a big fan of pastry. It is not only rich in sugar and grains, it is also
very easy to pack. You can easily find space for a muffin or two in your
backpack.
The biggest plus to pastry however is that it is ready to be
consumed at any time. It is a good way to start your day with an energy bomb.
You can eat it right away when you get up in your tent, so that you immediately
get the energy needed to pack your tent and hit the road.
Snickers bars, Mars bars, Bounty bars
These pieces of chocolate are excellent sources of energy on
the trail. They are very light and full of calories, which contribute to a high
calories/weight ratio.
Chocolate bars are excellent substitutions for overpriced energy
bars, that taste like cardboard at best, and have a lower energy/weight ratio.
Not to mention that you can stack up on Snickers bars at every gas station
whereas it is considerably harder to refill your inventory of fitness
bars.
Tortilla Wraps
Tortilla wraps are the best things since sliced bread. They can be
filled with anything you want to fill them with, so you can basically create a
calorie bomb for yourself. Don't limit your imagination when it comes to
filling wraps. I have even read rumours of backpackers who fill them with
peanut butter, chocolate and meat. The sky is the limit.
Tuna
A pack of tuna is one of the best sources of protein that you can
find in the wild. Protein won't give you much energy to burn in the wild, but
it is essential for maintaining and rejuvenating your muscles. Other good
sources of protein are lean meat like chicken breasts and spam. I like spam the
least because it is usually sold in cans, which adds to the weight you carry.
On the other hand if you must take a can with yourself, you can use it to boil
water in a campfire.
Instant drink powders
Instant powders are a good way to replace electrolytes and
minerals that leave your body. These come in a small, lightweight packs that
even fit into your pocket. They are also a good way to give some flavor to
natural waters that you find in nature, and most likely won't taste very
well.
Trail mix
Trail mix, or GORP (Good Ole Raisins and Peanuts) are a very
popular backpacking food. They provide plenty of carbohydrates which means that
GORP is rich in calories. You can add any type of seeds to GORP, so you can enhance
the nutritional value of your mix. Popular choices include almonds, dried
apricots, but my favorites are dries bananas, dried apples and chocolate
covered raisins. One cup of GORP can contain up to 700 calories, so if you eat
five cups of trail mix a day, your energy intake is covered.
However I advise to eat other things as well, it is important to
have a balanced diet that contains a variety of foods.
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