Worried about weight loss.

[sydneywaffa]

I've read the average male thru hiker loses 10-30lbs. I'm 6'1" and 145lbs. I'm worried doing this will make me lose a lot more weight than I have to lose (I'm already a spooky scary skeleton). Anyone know if i should be trying to bulk before the trip or should I just not worry about it and hike on?

[penny b]

I haven't done the hike yet but I think you should be healthy as Dan be before your hike and maybe take higher calorie foods to keep up with what your burning .

[Engine]

The majority of those who lose large amounts of weight had it to lose before they started, most hikers who are already very lean won't lose much if any. If you keep your caloric intake up and eat well when you're in town you should be fine. If you do notice significant weight loss, take an extra zero day or so every couple weeks and eat high caloric density foods. Honestly, you'll be fine.

[garlic08]

Much of my pre-hike preparation is sitting on the couch eating, trying to gain weight (I normally cycle 3000+/- miles/year, and hike 2,000+/- miles.) A few pounds on my skeleton-like frame seems to help. It's usually gone in the first week, and then I need to keep to a high-fat trail diet (lots of nuts and cheese--I'm vegetarian) and eat every two hours while hiking or biking.

Nobody knows how you'll do, but it's possible to stay skinny and healthy with a good diet. I comfort myself that it's a good problem to have, when you see overweight folks really struggling in the first weeks.

[BrianLe]

I think the one certain thing is that you'll get "hiker hunger" sooner than most do. Most people carry more food than they need for their first stretch on a long distance trail, and even you might do so for the first stretch (?) but you can likely count on needing to carry more within a couple of weeks of starting. I suggest that you do at least some pre-trip walking, stair climbing in particular for the AT and some of it toward the end with some weight on your back, i.e., pre-trip training. Because it would really suck to have hiker hunger before you got your trail legs!

Comments about porking out a little at home beforehand and being willing to take an extra nero or zero now and then just to give your body a chance to fatten up along the way --- I definitely agree with those.

[Leo L.]

I'm about a similar size and weight like you, and never worried about being too skinny. Seems to be more of a cultural issue specific to the US.

Usually I eat myself up a few kilos if a longer hike is pending, and lose the same several kilos within the first few days in the hike.
Then usually hiker hunger sets in and I eat like crazy, keeping the weight constant.

[QiWiz]

Since you don't have fat to lose (I'm jealous), you will need to make sure that the combination of what you eat on trail, and what you eat in town, add up to how many calories you are burning on trail. If you don't do this, you will end up burning up your muscles for fuel, and this can bring your hike to a quick end. If I had no body fat to burn, I would be carrying at least 2 pounds of food with a relatively high fat content per day (4000-5000 calories/day) in order to not lose weight.

[Hikingjim]

if you can't gain weight at home, it'll be harder to gain weight on the trail.
So put on a few pounds and then keep up your food intake on the trail and you'll be all good! You don't HAVE to put on weight first, but it makes food planning easier if you have a couple extra pounds

[turtle fast]

If you look into those statistics, I have a feeling (from personal observation...and myself) that most of that weight loss was from people whom already have more fat reserves to loose. People whom I saw that were more fit to begin with I saw eat more calories to supplement their fat reserves. "Hiker hunger" (a point where the hikers body demands and thusly eats a large amount of calories) for them kicked in earlier. I had a fellow hiker eat almost an entire pizza and was amazed at himself as he'd never eaten so much before.

[rashamon12]

lol well i know personally i will loose some weight on the trail though i am fit and already have hiker hunger and am not on the trail... I just say keep your intake up and the more you burn the more you gotta eat. Vastly depends on your pace and how much you burn. 5000+ calories would be good in my opinion for you.

[coyote9]

I'm about a similar size and weight like you, and never worried about being too skinny. Seems to be more of a cultural issue specific to the US.

Usually I eat myself up a few kilos if a longer hike is pending, and lose the same several kilos within the first few days in the hike.
Then usually hiker hunger sets in and I eat like crazy, keeping the weight constant.

I believe the OP is actually referring to a medical condition in regards to a body fat deficit.

[cliffordbarnabus]

I've read the average male thru hiker loses 10-30lbs. I'm 6'1" and 145lbs. I'm worried doing this will make me lose a lot more weight than I have to lose (I'm already a spooky scary skeleton). Anyone know if i should be trying to bulk before the trip or should I just not worry about it and hike on?

your bmi is normal. even if you lose some weight, doubtfully 10-30 pounds, you'll still be just below normal. walk. enjoy. have fun!

[Dogwood]

Waist? Body Type?

Sounds like you're an ectomorph.

Sounds like if you are an ectomorph body type your wt is on the low side.

If what you mean by bulk up pre hike is add muscle I'm all for it. Some if's though.

One word about Garlic, Brian Le, and myself that I know about is that we're all accomplished LD hikers having some ability to manage our wt, body fat %, and energy expenditures on 2000+ mile hikes. And, if Garlic and Gadget are physically as I last remember them I would assume we all know how to adjust our diets and caloric intake to allow for more or less body wt. FWIW, even if you do "bulk up" it has been my observation that it's better to maintain body wt somewhat generally on a thru rather than allowing wide - 15% or more - body wt swings unless you're over weight and that can entail issues in itself. You rare NOT over weight. You sound like you don't have wt to lose!

Dropping 15 or more lbs with a starting wt of 145 lbs being 6'1"" is not a healthy wt for you. And, I don't care what waist and body type you are.

[colorado_rob]

Seems like a valid concern, but i wouldn't get too worried, as said, bulk up a bit just before, if you can. I'm 6-1, 175, and i lost about 10 in a half AT, but put on 5 just before. If you like beer, as i certainly do, a couple a day can really help put on those pre hike kilograms! Bacon cheese burgers on the side....

Have you read any skywalker hiking books? Good reads, and he has your issue, probably more so (he's almost 7 feet tall, don't remember his weight, but he was all skin and ribs). Check them out.

[foodbag]

I only made 610 miles but even so lost 12 lbs. in just two months, from 157 to 145. I had it to lose but I wonder what would have happened if my feet had cooperated for the entire length of the trail. Methinks I would have been pretty skinny.

When I stopped hiking the weight went right back on much more quickly than it came off! Fast forward from 1999 to today and somehow I have managed to get back to that 145 and stay there. If I ever get the opportunity to get back out there for a couple of months I'll have to gain a few pounds before I start....

[Dogwood]

For one as yourself, without having had significantly added body wt pre hike, consider resupplying more often. This allows more food wt per day to be carried hence possibility of more calories and possibly wider nutritional profiles on trail and more calories eaten in town when you buy along the way at larger towns so at least you can maintain your current wt. However, it's an incorrect assumption that many LD hikers have that they can magically atone or make up for 5-6 days of calorie/nutritional on trail deficits in a gorging off trail in town buffet extravaganza visit. Body doesn't work like that. This is a common assumption. IMO, patterning drastic yo yoing of daily calorie intake and significantly fluctuating body wt can lead to eating disorders that can become more apparent post hike. It's observed post hike by many LD hikers in the beginning of their careers having body wt issues.

It's common for a thru-hiker to have daily caloric needs in excess of 4500-5000+ cals/day. If you are an ectomorph as I'm assuming, characterized by being lean and thin and having a very low body fat %, running constant daily caloric deficits is going to eat your muscle mass. Ectomorphs typically have a hard time bulking up in the first place. Worth repeating QiWiz's post: "Since you don't have fat to lose (I'm jealous), you will need to make sure that the combination of what you eat on trail, and what you eat in town, add up to how many calories you are burning on trail. If you don't do this, you will end up burning up your muscles for fuel, and this can bring your hike to a quick end. If I had no body fat to burn, I would be carrying at least 2 pounds of food with a relatively high fat content per day (4000-5000 calories/day) in order to not lose weight."

Even if you do "bulk up" pre thru but aren't able to keep it on or maintain your wt you're again ultimately back at the same place of possibly withering away, in effect kicking the can down the road to deal with at a later date. So, better to learn how to manage your body wt than ride the body wt roller coaster to such drastic extremes.

Maybe Skywalker can answer for himself but since I don't think he posts here often I'll further what Colorado Rob said. Remembering Skywaker looking emaciated and fatigued from my first on trail meeting and then seeing him having better energy levels and better able to maintain his ectomorph body wt on second and third on trail meetings wt I asked him what he was now doing differently. If I recall correctly, paraphrasing, he said he had to take the greater daily food wt/volume hit combined with resupplying more often and adding more fat % in his total daily caloric load. Skywalker aims not to so drastically yo yo daily caloric intake or allow so drastically yo yoing his body wt. Since Bill is 6'11 combined with his LD hiking approaches he has a 7000 cal/day avg he needs and aims for. He wrote about it in one of his PCT books. Nice guy. Gentle giant. Soars over me even though I'm 6'4".

[coyote9]

I do agree with some here that a bulk in both fat and muscle may help with initial shock on trail nutrition. (He must maintain cardio while doing so) On the note of town food to close a gap on a caloric deficit however, it is my professional opinion that the human body is adept for feast and famine and will store a short increase in calories (feast) for a later time of increase stress/low calorie intake (famine.) You dont eat 5K cal in one sitting but over a day in town with a hiker appetite: easy. Those calories will be used and stored.

[Dogwood]

Yes, for short term by those more able because they are already holding onto abundant stores of wt and fat but the OP is talking about long term 5 months. And, I'm talking about possibly inadequate DAILY caloric intake...famine over that duration. Running a daily calorie deficit wk after wk for that length when he doesn't have the muscle mass or body fat on him to rely on during the long term physical and mental rigors of a 2200 mile hike is going to reduce what muscle mass he does have. It isn't a 21 Day Survivalists type show situation, or a 1 day gym or running workout followed up by post workout recovery with the amenities of home or town, or a situation where the OP is in the high range of healthy body fat/wt for his height. Even on survivalist shows with folks with the body wt and body fat % to lose they are fatigued in 2 weeks and they are rather stationary not walking 15 miles each day up and down mountains.

"You dont eat 5K cal in one sitting but over a day in town with a hiker appetite: easy. Those calories will be used and stored"

To some extent over the short term that can suffice but this extended onto a LD hike over 5 months does not equate with stabilized body wt or energy levels. A thru-hike is an endurance event of 4-6 months.

LD hikers running a daily calorie deficit of 1500- 2000+ cal per day over 5 days don't suddenly make that energy up with a 7500 - 10000 cal gorging at a buffet without consequences. Running calorie deficits like this, which are not uncommon for five days, by one such as an ectomorph will eat into muscle mass. The 7500-10000 cal in town gorging doesn't somehow magically replace the muscle loss. The idea that short term gorging addresses all the consequences of long term famine is a flawed concept.

It's also common for LD hikers experiencing drastic yo yoing body wt, blood sugar, and energy levels when exposed to a wide selection of in town supermarket, restaurant, fast food, and gas station low quality food to gorge on empty calorie junk food. This can have varied wide ranging consequences despite the thought that consuming any calories from any source are all equal. Food is not just calories. A calorie in food is accompanied by a much wider range of nutrients and impacts that affect energy and well being. Now we throw in an alcohol, coffee(as I can) binge, etc and it's not just the added consumable wt that's the cause for the observed lethargy as hikers exit the in town vortex but their changed dietary, consumption, and lifestyle patterns. The roller coaster emotional ride and dealing with fluctuating stresses of LD trail life(YES, there are stresses on a hike, it is not a sit by the pool or inside the casino type "vacation"!) add to eating disorder potential.

It is a valid concern for the OP given his situation to maintain his body weight. He wouldn't be asking this question here if he didn't have a concern. He should be considering how to approach this pre hike. I applaud him for his consideration pre hike.

[atraildreamer]

I've read the average male thru hiker loses 10-30lbs. I'm 6'1" and 145lbs. I'm worried doing this will make me lose a lot more weight than I have to lose (I'm already a spooky scary skeleton). Anyone know if i should be trying to bulk before the trip or should I just not worry about it and hike on?

This is from an article I wrote for WB, and can be found here:

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/show...rol?highlight=

"

Why Backpackers Lose Weight

Take the example of a 180-pound man, 40 years old and 5’ 10” (70") tall. He is planning a weeklong hike of 7-hour days carrying a 35 pound pack. The spreadsheet calculates his daily basal calorie requirement at 1,831 calories. The ExpandedNutribase.xls chart gives a figure of approximately 446 calories/hour x 7 hours/day x 7 days for a total of 21,830 calories to be expended in exercise. To this figure add the basal calorie requirement of 1,831 calories x 7 days (21,830 + 12,817=34,647 total weekly calories. This equals a requirement of 4,950 calories per day and factoring in the 10% thermic effect, 4,950 x 1.1= 5,444 calories needed per day. Since the typical backpacker carries and consumes around 3,500 calories/day (according to many posts on the forums), we see that there will be a calorie deficit of 5,444 - 3,500 = 1,944 calories/day, or 7 x 1,944 = 13,608 calories for the week. This results in a weight loss of 13,608/3,500 = 3.89 pounds for the week. Multiply this through a 4, 5 or 6-month thru-hike and you can see why backpackers experience large weight losses. "

Expect to lose weight, usually after your body starts to adjust to the hiking. Expect to gain it back when the hike is over.

[Dogwood]

So, AtTrailDreamer, assuming your analysis is correct, you see no issue for a 6'1" 145 male losing 15.5 lbs lbs PER MONTH(3.89 lbs/wk) over 4-6 months losing it largely in muscle mass? Should the OP take that wt losing and "regaining it" scenario as a given as if it's a viable healthy valid body wt approach? .

Even if the OP loses 4 lbs per month at the end of a 5 month AT thru-hike that leaves a 6'1" 145 starting wt male at a VERY UNHEALTHY UNDER WEIGHT LIKELY ENERGY ROLLER COASTING QUICK TO FATIGUE emaciated looking 6'1" male at 125 lbs. SORRY, that is not a healthy individual. That's a person that has withered away. The OP is asking how not to let that happen.