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navy111588
03-26-2007, 09:33
can taking vitamins and supplements along with a filler meal of say ramen,other kinds of pasta, rice, help making up for a lack of other necessary nutrients?

Trailers
03-26-2007, 10:34
im no genius, but i recon if you do this for an extended period you hair will fall out and your organs will eat themselves

max patch
03-26-2007, 10:43
everyone should take a multivitamin. females should also probably take calcium.

MOWGLI
03-26-2007, 10:45
I took a multi-vitamin during my thru-hike. Many hikers do. My doctor told me that I'd probably urinate most of the benefit of the vitamins, but that it would still help.

I suggest that you eat as many fresh fruits & veggies as possible when in town. That'll help. My cravings were a pretty clear indication that my body needed the green leafy stuff.

Footslogger
03-26-2007, 10:46
im no genius, but i recon if you do this for an extended period you hair will fall out and your organs will eat themselves

================================

Oh great ...NOW you tell me !!

'Slogger

Footslogger
03-26-2007, 10:47
[quote=MOWGLI16;345017]I suggest that you eat as many fresh fruits & veggies as possible when in town.

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Couldn't agree more ...in fact, that was the ONE thing I craved during my thru. One of the first thing I did when I got into a town was search out the produce section in a local market.

'Slogger

frieden
03-26-2007, 11:41
can taking vitamins and supplements along with a filler meal of say ramen,other kinds of pasta, rice, help making up for a lack of other necessary nutrients?

Try meal replacement/protein powder. You can put the natural flavor in just about everything.

Rhino-lfl
03-26-2007, 11:51
I wouldn't use a supplement to make up for a crap diet, but you should take a multi vitamin daily. There are types that you take once in the morning and at night so you split them up and can absorb more. There are liquid ones that are easy to absorb, and there a meal replacements that are loaded with vitamins, proteins, fiber, and carbs that you just add water and shake.

I’m a big believer in carrying a few pouches of Myoplex or something like that to have one or two nutrition packed 300 calorie meals just a few shakes of the bottle away.

I’ve seen just way too many hikers atrophy their muscles eating nothing but carbs on their trail. It’s a stupid way to do it and I don’t know why hikers insist on carbs over protein. Protein and fat are the way to go.

LostInSpace
03-26-2007, 21:12
im no genius, but i recon if you do this for an extended period you hair will fall out and your organs will eat themselves

Damn! If I had quit taking these things 40 years ago I might not be shaving off what fuzz I have left today.


My doctor told me that I'd probably urinate most of the benefit of the vitamins, but that it would still help.

That's exactly what my doctor told me. Of course he didn't have any hair either, so maybe that's why he didn't comment on the side effect Trailers mentioned.


Try meal replacement/protein powder. You can put the natural flavor in just about everything.

I don't think protein power replaces vitamins and minerals unless it also contains them. Just how much of a "natural flavor" can meal replacement/protein powder have? I don't exactly recall it occurring naturally.

weary
03-26-2007, 22:27
I wouldn't use a supplement to make up for a crap diet, but you should take a multi vitamin daily. There are types that you take once in the morning and at night so you split them up and can absorb more. There are liquid ones that are easy to absorb, and there a meal replacements that are loaded with vitamins, proteins, fiber, and carbs that you just add water and shake.

I’m a big believer in carrying a few pouches of Myoplex or something like that to have one or two nutrition packed 300 calorie meals just a few shakes of the bottle away.

I’ve seen just way too many hikers atrophy their muscles eating nothing but carbs on their trail. It’s a stupid way to do it and I don’t know why hikers insist on carbs over protein. Protein and fat are the way to go.
I found a bottle of multivitamins in a hiker box on the trail in 1993. I took four or five of them and then put the bottle back in the next hiker box. I figure that's why I'm so healthy.

Weary

jrwiesz
03-27-2007, 01:53
I wouldn't use a supplement to make up for a crap diet, but you should take a multi vitamin daily. There are types that you take once in the morning and at night so you split them up and can absorb more. There are liquid ones that are easy to absorb, and there a meal replacements that are loaded with vitamins, proteins, fiber, and carbs that you just add water and shake.

I’m a big believer in carrying a few pouches of Myoplex or something like that to have one or two nutrition packed 300 calorie meals just a few shakes of the bottle away.

I’ve seen just way too many hikers atrophy their muscles eating nothing but carbs on their trail. It’s a stupid way to do it and I don’t know why hikers insist on carbs over protein. Protein and fat are the way to go.
Multi-vit won't save a crap diet, is right on! If any of you have read or looked into the beliefs/teachings of the "Myoplex" founder, Bill Phillips, you would be advised of his "every two hours" of eating philosophy. Author of the book "Body for Life", Phillips suggests, in every day life, eating a nutritious meal that consists of a serving of protien and a serving of carbohydrate every two hours throughout the day. Serving size-the size of your fist or palm of your hand. His Myoplex shakes are proportioned appropriately. So a great meal, on the trail, would be, say a pouch of tuna fish or salmon and an apple. Notice how an apple is the perfect portion size? Same with an orange, potatoe, tomato, banana, you get the idea. I think this philosophy of "every two hours" would also do well on the trail. Your trail gorp, you make at home, might consist in this same type proportion, a fi****l of almonds, cashews, brazil nuts, peanuts to an equal portion of dried apples, pinapple, apricots, bananas, raisins. You can skip the M&M's, they are pretty much "empty calories", as far as nutrition goes, but it probably won't hurt that much if one must have their sugar/chocolate fix. So back to the multi-vit thing; I think vitamins, divided up, two or three times a day can surely enhance and good nutritious diet. I think most long distance hikers would do best when they pay much attention to "Nutrition and Nutritious" along with "Hydrated". I've read too many posts here at WB about ramen noodles and snickers and other such "empty calories". I believe that this type of diet over the long haul, is what leads to many a hikers non-completion of their specific goal, whether it be a thru or a tough section or whatever. Ones body can only go for so long on this type of "empty" diet before it runs out of gas/fuel. Just my two indian heads worth.

bfitz
03-27-2007, 02:00
can taking vitamins and supplements along with a filler meal of say ramen,other kinds of pasta, rice, help making up for a lack of other necessary nutrients?

They are esssential.