Article: This or That?: How to Choose Foods for a Thru-Hike
You can view the page at http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/cont...or-a-Thru-Hike
"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life ... and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." --Henry David Thoreau
One thing I learned in the Army is that variety is often worth the extra weight...power to you if that isn't ever important
I don’t want to be negative but you need to go over all your numbers again and fix them. Example-
Peanut Butter: in a small, 1lb 2oz, jar you have about 11 servings so 11 X the $.43 you have listed means you paid $4.73 for that little jar. My data says $1 for the same jar at the dollar store and $2 at large groceries.
The above is just one of many errors in your data. And yes, I gave you the wrong number for servings on purpose, I am close enough to prove my point, so you would look up the correct data yourself.
Also if you use a common denominator to make comparisons you will have better results. Serving size is the worst denominator to use because serving size is different for all foods. -This alone skews your results. How to use a common denominator for food comparisons-
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=440265
They produce products in different sized containers and serving sizes on purpose because the normal person will not do the math. You can buy the same product in two different containers with huge variances in price per serving. Marketing has shown them that the average person buys the next larger jar of peanut butter, but if you look you will see it is only 10oz bigger and almost three times the price.
Tip: If you want to save money, do the math.
The only conclusion hiking on the trail was tuna sucks regardless of it's Moby score. And good luck getting rid of the smell.
Thank you Mergleman for this awesome formula! I will definitely be utilizing it during my food prep. And Animal, pay attention brother. He uses a "Trail serving size" instead of the manufacturer serving size. This "trail serving size" can be modified to ones individual dining habits and preferences but if set to a standard, this formula can be super useful when shopping for trail food.
ZenMtn, I paid attention “brother”. First, there is no such thing as a “trail serving size”. Do you only eat one spoon of Peanut Butter on the trail? Second, he used the serving sizes from the packages, except for the Pasta Sides and Pop-tarts he doubled, and these are a lot smaller then a serving you would use on the trail. And third, his results are wrong because his data is incorrect. –this last point is the reason for my first post. If you don’t believe me go to a collage and find a math professor, or someone very intelligent (IQ over 150...mine is about 178), and ask his or her opinion. If you follow this formula you will be making wrong decisions on the trail. But hey, good luck brother.Originally Posted by ZenMtn
Whatever your IQ you may be (no one cares but you), you look like a blubbering idiot to me.
And I would probably wouldn't find many math professors at a "collage". Maybe I'll try a college instead.
Thank you for the kind words. Thank you for correcting my spelling…I do have trouble with that. Good luck with your hike.
Thanks for the info. I think I'll just pack a lot of snicker bars!
good article, kudos to you. and to anyone new to hiking that has read the responses. keep in mind that the trail, like life, has plenty of jerks of all flavors. remember that when you roll up into a crowded shelter
Bottom line is any formula that lands Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies at the top of the heap should be carved in stone and passed about the land as Gospel.
I use cost per 3,000 calories to find the healthiest food. 3,000 is an arbitrary number which makes the numbers easier to understand.
I strive to get 3,000 calories in 1.5 pounds. As it turns out cost/calorie works well enough to find healthy foods and light foods.
Unfortunately, this doesn't account for what's available in trail towns. It's hard to buy healthy food at many places.
I'm amazed at the junk people find appetizing on the trail, but so many do it, it must work.
This is a neat article, and a good point for the dollar and weight conscious. It's a basic principle: how much of what you need (calories) can you get for what you have (money). Works in real life, too, doesn't it... A "moby" reminds me of Nomad's Snickers-scale of elevation gain: with a 1-Snickers climb being much easier than a 5-Snickers climb.
I'm a fan of this for many reasons, but above all, "Moby" being the unit of measure. Well done, sir.
As for someone who has not yet thru-hiked.. just section hiked, everyone's comments are very helpful. Even during a 5 day section hike I questioned my initial food choices by the 3rd day.. could not imagine how they would change over a few weeks/months. And getting the "right calories" and variety seemed to be a strong message here. Thanks for everyone's comments.
But it doesn't work
If it worked there wouldn't be a need to go ultra lite, if it worked hikers would not be uncomfortable with heavier packs. Any personal trainer will tell you that diet is far more than 50% of performance and results. With this calorie focused diet muscles waste from catabolism because they are not getting the macro or micro nutrients they need. The next generation of hikers will likely focus far more on grams and micrograms of nutrients than grams carried. You read it here first.
http://blackwoodspress.com/blog/1654...ing-meal-plan/
What do you folks think of what Erik lists ?
All this banter, and ruminating over what is/is not available in trail towns is precisely why food drops are so vital. Have your trails staples and proper nutrition mailed to you. Leave snacks to trail towns and the Angels.
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