Gain or Lose weight before starting a Thru?

[dancingbear]

Im planning a thru and everybody and their brother has 2 cents to throw at me about it and im glad to listen to everything. But i was a little confused when one of my teachers , who is an experienced hiker, told me that i should put on 5-10lbs before going on the hike. I'm a varsity cross country runner and my body fat is down in the single digits so i can understand where he is coming from when he says this. But i just dont know if i should make heads or tails of this. Im already in good shape and it seems like putting on weight would slow me down, but i know i also burn a lot more when i hike. What are your experiences/ advice with gaining/losing weight before a thru?

[evan_rolltide]

It seems to me that any weight you are able to put on is going to be shed pretty quickly anyway, and would only slow you down to begin with. But I am not an experienced hiker. I just think the less weight I am carrying the better, whether in my pack or on my person.

[JAK]

Dancing Bear,
Chances are at your age and activity level you will not be able to put on 5-10 pounds even if you try, without do something very unhealthy, so just stay active and eat real food. What you should expect is that you will burn more calories on the trail, so you will have to eat more. When you are running cross-country you are probably burning an extra 1000 calories a day with your running, and much of that is carbs. When you start hiking you might be burning an extra 3000 calories a day, and the big difference is that instead of burning 1000 over an hour, mostly carbs, it will be more like 4000 over 8 hours, but only 200 cal/hour in carbs. So you will need to find a way to put healthy fat into your diet, while keeping the protiens and carbs more or less the same as when you are doing alot of running now.

[Josh Calhoun]

putting on 10 quick lbs is just adding pressure to your knees. throw a pack on top of that and its allot of added weight. your fine like you are. you would loose it all very fast anyway

[Marta]

More important is to put some thought into your food for the hike. Lots of protein, as well as calories any way you can get them. You'll need a lot of calories--even more than you need when you're in heavy training.

Good luck with your hike!

[clowncsc]

I've been told by 3 local thru hikers here around me was to bulk up (fat) because you'll loose a lot and not consume as much crap food as one would being in the comforts of everyday life. I can speak from experience going to a survival course in the military high body fat % in the beginning helps.

[Lone Wolf]

Im planning a thru and everybody and their brother has 2 cents to throw at me about it and im glad to listen to everything. But i was a little confused when one of my teachers , who is an experienced hiker, told me that i should put on 5-10lbs before going on the hike. I'm a varsity cross country runner and my body fat is down in the single digits so i can understand where he is coming from when he says this. But i just dont know if i should make heads or tails of this. Im already in good shape and it seems like putting on weight would slow me down, but i know i also burn a lot more when i hike. What are your experiences/ advice with gaining/losing weight before a thru?

if you're a fat azz couch potato, lose some weight. better on your heart. if you're a young, fit athlete, go as you are. too many "experts" dispensin' B S

[CarlZ993]

Andrew Sukrkas's book ('The Ultimate Hiker's Gear Guide') specifically addresses this issue. Outside some unusual circumstances, you shouldn't put on weight before a hike. If possible, you should lose some body fat, if possible. If only I could quit eating so much and lose a few pounds before March. But, the Mexican food I had tonight was pretty good, though.

[clowncsc]

if you're a fat azz couch potato, lose some weight. better on your heart. if you're a young, fit athlete, go as you are. too many "experts" dispensin' B S

Reeeeeeer!

[Miner]

As some who use to be 60+lbs heavier. It is easier to carry the extra weight in your pack then your waist. You body has to keep that extra flesh alive and cool while its working hard. Instead of gaining weight, just add an extra 5-10lbs of food to your pack and you won't have to worry about loosing weight.

[Mountain Mike]

Stay healthy & eat better. Carry a little more cheese or peanut butter. Maybe some olive oil to add to each meal. On my AT thru I had a hard time maintaining weight. I learned as I went. Tuna in oil vs water. Olive oil or margarine in meals... Well into my PCT hike a friend from AT picked me up for a night in town & remarked how fit I looked.

[JAK]

Stay away from hydrogenated peanut butter. Eat the good stuff, or peanuts. Real oil. Mono-unsaturated. Poly-unsaturated. Saturated. It's all good. Just not hydrogenated. I'm not exactly sure what your body does with it, and I'm not sure your body know's either. It hasn't been around that long. Read the label. Eat real food.

[JAK]

Stay away from hydrogenated peanut butter. Eat the good stuff, or peanuts. Real oil. Mono-unsaturated. Poly-unsaturated. Saturated. It's all good. Just not hydrogenated. I'm not exactly sure what your body does with it, and I'm not sure your body know's either. It hasn't been around that long. Read the label. Eat real food.

More specifically, avoid trans-fatty acids.
Real naturally occuring food has none, or at least very little.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans_fat

[q-tip]

A Pound is a Pound is a Pound......putting on additional weight just makes the beginning of a hike more painful. I lost 40 lbs for the 2012 hiking season and 30 for my GA-WV hike. If you are seriously training for the hike, your weight will take care of itself, and yes, you will lose some right off the bat. Buring up 3,500-5,000 calories a day knocks off the weight pretty quickly....

[colorado_rob]

Contrary to a lot of good arguments on here, I do, in fact, put on a few pounds before a big hike or climbing expedition. I find I have more endurance the first week or so, or at least I THINK I do, which also matters. Fat is 3500 calories per pound, as dense of calories as possible, and the best part is that it is not carried on your back, but distributed over your body, meaning all pounds are not created equal. I think 8-10 pounds is excessive though, 3-5 much more reasonable. Basically, all I do is eat a little more of good foods in the 3-4 weeks before a biggie. If you're already a few pounds overweight (which the OP is probably not), then no way. But a few extra pounds on a normally very lean person is a nice little feel-good bonus starting a long hike. Just my humble opinion from 45 years of doing this stuff successfully (if somethng ain't broke, don't fix it).

[Pedaling Fool]

Gaining an extra 10lbs or so before a +2,100 mile hike serves absolutely no purpose; your body will basically settle on a weight during a thru-hike, regardless of what your starting weight is, assuming you start healthy.

[clowncsc]

Wow this is just turning into a "who's got a bigger penis" episode? I guess so, you know what say about people with big feet? Well they have big feet....that is all.

[colorado_rob]

Wow this is just turning into a "who's got a bigger penis" episode? I guess so, you know what say about people with big feet? Well they have big feet....that is all. ??? I don't see that in this thread at all. As usual, with all sorts of varied experiences, we have a couple of different viewpoints, reasonably well expressed.

[beautifulpoetman]

I thru'd in 2011. Fat and out of shape people quit early on mostly. Some just got in shape on the trail. The athletic types started strong but some struggled up in the northeast when they lost too much weight. Better to be in shape. Just eat more if you're a slender body. I started 225 lbs (6'5" frame) and finished 195 lbs. I ate EVERTHING. So the bod fat issue is real for some folks.

[beautifulpoetman]

Don't overthink this ****. Just take a walk every day. That's all it is. Avoid hyper/hypothermia. Hydrate. Watch your step. When you have a bad day, hang on because a great day is on the way. Hike your own hike. Enjoy the mountains.