What to Eat When on a Thru Hike?

As we are preparing for our thru hike of the Appalachian Trail we are very focused on what food we are bringing. Food is a HUGE component for a successful trip. And it’s not just the type of food, but the right types of foods so you have proper nutrition for your body to function at its best. Also, when on a budget, making our own meals is drastically cheaper than buying prepared dehydrated meals. So we are going to talk about what we will be eating when doing our long distance hike.

We have chosen to prepare most our own meals in order to:
· Save some money
· Make sure we are getting the proper nutrition 

· Enjoy a variety of foods rather than being dependent on what town we are in and what they have available at the store.

We have been backpacking for a number of years but this will be our first thru hike. So we have been doing a ton of research in order to see what types of foods are best while on the trail. From our research we have learned:
· Protein and good carbs are important for muscle recovery
· Staying hydrated
· Electrolytes
· Listen to your body

One of the big issues we are finding is that to get enough calories per day we would have to eat an exorbitant amount of food. Not only would it take a lot to eat that much but all of it weighs a TON! So we had to go back to the drawing board on how we are going to get the calories we need, in a healthy way, a while saving on weight. We didn’t want to do what other people do by eating a candy bar or protein bar smothered in peanut butter. Since we are trying to lose weight while on the trail I will be eating about 2,000 calories per day and Jake will be eating around 2,500. With that calorie intake compared to the miles we are hiking, we should lose 1-2lbs per week. That being said, we opted to buy a muscle building protein powder. The one we went with is Optimum Nutrition, Serious Mass Diet Supplement. They have a variety of flavors and the cost compared to calories is fantastic! Two scoops is 1,250 calories! This solves our weight/calorie issue in a very simple way. We are hoping the flavors we choose, chocolate and chocolate peanut butter, will taste good. Actually, we are just hoping they aren’t gross! But even if they are we will just power through. To be able to consume that many calories with so little weight is fantastic! We will essentially get our calories this way:​

Breakfast
Goal: about 500/550 calories per recipe which includes protein and healthy carbs. We also have dried fruit in a different baggie so we can always add it to the oatmeal mixes once on the trail. We bagged the dried fruit separately from the dry ingredients so no moisture would get into the dry good bags. I would suggest starting with 1 cup of boiling hot water and then add more per your taste in oatmeal thickness.

Apple Pie Oatmeal
1 cup quick oats or ½ cup steel cut quick oats
1 scoop vanilla protein power
​1 tsp sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp all spice
2 Tbs chia seed mix (we bought the big bag from Sam’s club)

Coconut Cinnamon Oatmeal
½ cup quick oats or 1/4 cup steel cut quick oats
2 Tbs coconut flakes
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
¼ tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1 tsp sugar
¼ cup sliced almonds

Chocolate and Mocha Oatmeal
1 cup quick oats or ½ cut steel cut quick oats
1 scoop chocolate protein powder
1 tsp instant coffee
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cocoa powder
3 Tbs chia seed mix (we bought the big bag from Sam’s club)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal
1 cup quick oats or ½ cut steel cut quick oats
½ tsp cocoa powder
2 Tbs PB Fit powder (peanut butter powder)
1 scoop chocolate protein powder

Gingersnap Oatmeal
1 cup quick oats or ½ cut steel cut quick oats
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground ginger
Pinch of ground cloves
¼ cup sliced almonds

Dinner
Goal: about 450 calories per recipe which includes protein and healthy carbs. I would suggest starting with 1 cup of boiling hot water and then add more per your taste for the soup. For the mashed potatoes add ½ cup of hot water.

Soup
1 pack ramen noodles (beef or chicken flavored) (190)
1 scoop bone broth (80)
¼ cup dehydrated vegetable mix (50)
1 tsp Italian spaghetti seasoning mix (5)

Mashed Potatoes
¼ cup dehydrated mashed potatoes (80)
1 Tbs dehydrated butter (50)
Sprinkle of whatever seasoning mix you want

Dehydrated meals range in calories by a ton so we will tweek our days accordingly when we are using the pre-packaged meals.

Blog post written by Amy Karras
Unnamed Adventures