elewolf Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 My wife and I have done one whole30 so far in January-February of 2014. We rant and rave to who ever we can about how amazing it was. The benefits we experienced physically, mentally and hormonally were life changing. We vowed, then and there, to do at least one per year until we die! We recently made the decision to thru hike the Appalachian Trail starting in March of 2015, something we have wanted to do for many years and want to accomplish before starting a family. It is about 2,200 miles long starting in Georgia and ending in Maine. Typically you're burning about 3000-6000 calories per day when hiking through the Appalachian Mountains as the terrain can change drastically from flat to straight up a mountain very quickly. If you are thru hiking you will likely be on the trail for 5-6 months with a few "Zero" days (days off from hiking) every month for stopping in towns for resupplying your pack, doing laundry, etc... The typical hiker's diet on the trail is about as far from whole30 as you can possibly get, consisting of easily prepared, cheap and lightweight meals that are basically carbohydrate bombs. Things like mashed potato packets, ramen noodles, pasta sides, dehydrated prepared meals, peanut butter, tortillas and snickers bars are in most thru hikers packs... Woof. After first-hand experience of noticing more mobility and less inflammation when cutting out grain, sugar, dairy, etc. while on the whole30, I cringe at the thought of feeding my body that type of stuff AND expecting TOP performance, putting in 15-25 miles per day for 5 months. Now, we're obviously not going to be able to do any sort of whole30 while backpacking. I know this. I highly doubt that some of these small Appalachian towns have grass fed or organic anything. That being said, we want to stay as healthy as possible while on the trail and we plan to send ourselves "mail drops" along the way every week or 2 with stuff that would be impossible to find anywhere out there. I would love to hear suggestions of healthier options that would be light, packable, and could possibly last up to 3-7 days on our backs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeadowLily Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 I can only think of salmon/tuna in foil packages and good quality jerky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drjeni Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 If you have a food dehydrator, I would get a backpacking cookbook and just modify the recipes so they align with your food goals. You can easily make homemade jerky too! If you make your own food, you get the same lightweight quickness of the packaged meals but you control the ingredients and there are some great backpacking cookbooks out there! I just got a home dehydrator for about $60. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted July 4, 2014 Moderators Share Posted July 4, 2014 You can find a variety of portable foods on the Whole30 Approved page at http://whole30.com/whole30-approved/. Hiking is the appropriate time to eat Primal Pacs, Chomps Snack Sticks, Chapul Bars, Yawp, or RXBars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elewolf Posted July 5, 2014 Author Share Posted July 5, 2014 Nice! We've been looking for some good grass fed jerky options! Keep the suggestions coming! We have lots of planning to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whole30 Certified Coach littleg Posted July 15, 2014 Whole30 Certified Coach Share Posted July 15, 2014 Lucky couple! I've done MA, CT and NY as well as the Whites and Katahdin That was enough I've got two ideas... one might be totally far fetched... I had a roomie in grad school who was a vegan and wanted to thru hike the AT. She sent out letters to companies that manufactured vegan-esque things and asked them to sponsor her. This was all happening shortly before we graduated so I have no idea of the outcome... but it would only cost you the postage to give it a shot. Even if it just got you a few bars it might be worth it - I guess the likelihood would be greater if you already had a blog with some followers. Second - dehydrate your own food. There was a thread on here a month or so ago about backpacking for 3 days. The OP ended up dehydrating a bunch of stuff on her own and she said it worked well. You could start testing recipes now since you've got the time. Also learning to make pemmican might be good. Or just spend the $ and buy some from US Wellness. If I were ever going to do any long distance stuff I'd go back to potatoes. As long as you don't have a nightshade sensitivity you should be fine. Mash them and dehydrate them. Same with sweet potatoes. You could make all sorts of dried fruit snacks (or stock up at Trader Joe's and mail them to yourselves). I'd also probably carry coconut butter (I can't eat nuts but nut butters would work too if you aren't concerned about the Omega 6). I'd also probably carry (clean) rice noodles for pasta. If you are fat adapted you might find that things are easier for you since you can fuel more with fat over the day rather than carbs (coconut oil in your coffee, coconut butter, things like that). I wish I had the interest (and time!) to do a real backpacking trip paleo/W30 style - I'm really curious how I'd feel and if I'd notice a difference I hope you post on here about your prep and experiences - I'd love to read about it! And let me know when you come through MA - I'll meet you on the top of Greylock with food Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeadowLily Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 I would like to hear about your trip, too. I've read alot of other accounts about hiking the trail. I'm sure you're researching and will be well prepared for your adventure of a lifetime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elewolf Posted July 24, 2014 Author Share Posted July 24, 2014 Lucky couple! I've done MA, CT and NY as well as the Whites and Katahdin That was enough I've got two ideas... one might be totally far fetched... I had a roomie in grad school who was a vegan and wanted to thru hike the AT. She sent out letters to companies that manufactured vegan-esque things and asked them to sponsor her. This was all happening shortly before we graduated so I have no idea of the outcome... but it would only cost you the postage to give it a shot. Even if it just got you a few bars it might be worth it - I guess the likelihood would be greater if you already had a blog with some followers. Second - dehydrate your own food. There was a thread on here a month or so ago about backpacking for 3 days. The OP ended up dehydrating a bunch of stuff on her own and she said it worked well. You could start testing recipes now since you've got the time. Also learning to make pemmican might be good. Or just spend the $ and buy some from US Wellness. If I were ever going to do any long distance stuff I'd go back to potatoes. As long as you don't have a nightshade sensitivity you should be fine. Mash them and dehydrate them. Same with sweet potatoes. You could make all sorts of dried fruit snacks (or stock up at Trader Joe's and mail them to yourselves). I'd also probably carry coconut butter (I can't eat nuts but nut butters would work too if you aren't concerned about the Omega 6). I'd also probably carry (clean) rice noodles for pasta. If you are fat adapted you might find that things are easier for you since you can fuel more with fat over the day rather than carbs (coconut oil in your coffee, coconut butter, things like that). I wish I had the interest (and time!) to do a real backpacking trip paleo/W30 style - I'm really curious how I'd feel and if I'd notice a difference I hope you post on here about your prep and experiences - I'd love to read about it! And let me know when you come through MA - I'll meet you on the top of Greylock with food Thanks littleg! Great suggestions and what an amazing offer. We'll keep you posted as we plan our trip. I figured I would wait to do any food prep stuff until this winter. We can nerd out about food when we meet up at Greylock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trexpar Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 Howdy! My husband and I are also planning a thru-hike for 2015. We are going to go south bound and start at Katahdin in late june. I'd love to hear if you come up with any good solutions other than dehydrating your own food. Thats the solution we're at right now, but we don't like that it kinda keeps us beholden to getting packages shipped to post offices every week or so. Anywho, there's a lot of time until you leave- good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annabel Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 Trexpar - You definitely don't want to ship to post offices, it's better to ship to guest houses and outfitters. My husband and I have been considering the AT. But unfortunately dehydrating food isn't an option for us coming from overseas with US customs restrictions. Personally, I'd take more frequent, but quick, trips into town as at least then you're getting a bit more fresh food in. And fewer zero days with all of their temptations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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