Hey Dusseks; nice job on this article, I found a lot of useful inforamation, and calculated my anaerobic threshold! One good source of fat that I like is 100% peanut butter, the kind with no hydrogenated oils added {like Adams`}. Also I have heard that vegetable fats are easier for the body to burn than animal fats. Does this jibe with your research?
Thanks T,
Yes, personally, I find vegetable fats and other unsaturated (basically non animal) fats burn easier, they usually lack the "bogging down" effect that saturated fats can have. There are much better tests to calculate your anaerobic threshold, according to this one mine would be 195, but in reality it's more like 165-170, or at least I try to stay below that, just take that little test with a grain of salt is what I'm saying. Thanks for the support and if you ever find supplementary info let me know.
Good job, one suggestion I have is powdered hummus. It's high in mono unsaturated fat and protein, lightweight, tastes great, cheap, and easy to prepare (just mix 1 cup powdered hummus with one cup water and a teaspoon of olive oil if you want). They sell it at most grocery stores for around $4 a pound.
..are there any additives to water that can help with providing a quick source of energy? are there any good carb mixes that would be useful to add to water?
I've used a lot of different ones in my water, but from my experience it seems plain old Gatorade (the light weight single packets) work best and help replace electorlytes. Can also help reduce muscle cramps. Gatorade is also the cheapest I've found.
As a multi-sport endurance racer and long-distance runner I experimented with different carb gels and found "Clif Shot" to be the best, in terms of the energy it provides and the quality of its ingredients (organic, no preservatives, etc.). Gels give you a nice boost when you need it!
Very useful information, and easy to "digest" too. Thanks for putting this together. I'd never paid too much attention to trail food content until recently, but I’m learning that a little menu planning and understanding of when to eat which food can make a huge difference in stamina levels. Especially during long days in the mountains. Thanks again.
I have been known to shove 12 or so Clif bars in my pack for a 2 day trip and call it good. As the summer progressed, I grew sick of them and progressed to poorboy sandwiches from Albertsons. As a poor college student living in Jackson, WY, that's about all I could afford. Then the place I worked started getting good deals on Mountainhouse, so I finally gave in and carried a cookset. Having good food in the mountains sure makes a difference!
Thank you for the informative article. As a climber who enjoys the colder weather fat helps you stay warm at night and a great source used by steady Ed Viesturs is SPAM.
Perfect amount of information so as not to be too much or too little. I've only tried a few energy gels but so far have found cliff shots to be the best but have also heard good things about honey stinger.
Good tips regarding how to train just below your anaerobic threshold and what happens when you go above it. The tips you give are great and in my experience, hydration is more important than everything else. I've had times where I had plenty of clif bars and power bars, but no water which makes them (mostly) useless if you are dehydrated without water.
I just started using the hydration bladder this year and I can tell you that it made a huge difference for me. Lots more energy. Thank you for the great article, very useful and practical.
The problem with most gels is that the package sucks. Rack enough for a 20-hour climb or a multi-day adventure and you'll have half a pack of sticky empties, that's if you don't manage to drop them all over the mountain. A better way is to buy the largest tub of gel you can find and repackage it in those small squeeze bottles that runners use. I get something like a litter-sized jug of Hammer jug (espresso flavor is good) at Sports Basement for a good price and put it into four squeeze tubes that fit inside my pockets. The tubes still get sticky so I keep them in plastic bags. As the gel goes down, I top off the tubes with water or snow. The later makes a nice granita on a hot descent.
T Sharp - Oct 18, 2006 4:12 pm - Voted 10/10
Good WorkHey Dusseks; nice job on this article, I found a lot of useful inforamation, and calculated my anaerobic threshold! One good source of fat that I like is 100% peanut butter, the kind with no hydrogenated oils added {like Adams`}. Also I have heard that vegetable fats are easier for the body to burn than animal fats. Does this jibe with your research?
Scott Dusek - Oct 18, 2006 5:11 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Good WorkThanks T,
Yes, personally, I find vegetable fats and other unsaturated (basically non animal) fats burn easier, they usually lack the "bogging down" effect that saturated fats can have. There are much better tests to calculate your anaerobic threshold, according to this one mine would be 195, but in reality it's more like 165-170, or at least I try to stay below that, just take that little test with a grain of salt is what I'm saying. Thanks for the support and if you ever find supplementary info let me know.
-Scotty
Bluecube22 - Mar 4, 2007 6:05 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Good WorkIn this artical it mentioned a carb gel is there a such thang did understand correctly?
Mr. Clam - Oct 20, 2006 12:42 am - Voted 10/10
Nice Article!Good job, one suggestion I have is powdered hummus. It's high in mono unsaturated fat and protein, lightweight, tastes great, cheap, and easy to prepare (just mix 1 cup powdered hummus with one cup water and a teaspoon of olive oil if you want). They sell it at most grocery stores for around $4 a pound.
Scott Dusek - Oct 20, 2006 2:12 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Nice Article!Thanks and excellent suggestion, I will add it to the main text, let me know if you think of any more.
-Scotty
Andino - Oct 20, 2006 10:37 am - Voted 10/10
Re: Nice Article!Thanks for the tip ;o)
aboveclouds - Oct 20, 2006 3:32 pm - Voted 9/10
hydration..are there any additives to water that can help with providing a quick source of energy? are there any good carb mixes that would be useful to add to water?
rockrat2 - Nov 1, 2006 1:19 pm - Voted 10/10
Re: hydrationI've used a lot of different ones in my water, but from my experience it seems plain old Gatorade (the light weight single packets) work best and help replace electorlytes. Can also help reduce muscle cramps. Gatorade is also the cheapest I've found.
breckenridgeboarder - Oct 20, 2006 4:12 pm - Voted 9/10
Carb gelsAs a multi-sport endurance racer and long-distance runner I experimented with different carb gels and found "Clif Shot" to be the best, in terms of the energy it provides and the quality of its ingredients (organic, no preservatives, etc.). Gels give you a nice boost when you need it!
Super Dave - Oct 20, 2006 5:52 pm - Voted 10/10
Good StuffVery useful information, and easy to "digest" too. Thanks for putting this together. I'd never paid too much attention to trail food content until recently, but I’m learning that a little menu planning and understanding of when to eat which food can make a huge difference in stamina levels. Especially during long days in the mountains. Thanks again.
Anneka - Oct 20, 2006 9:19 pm - Voted 10/10
Good articleI have been known to shove 12 or so Clif bars in my pack for a 2 day trip and call it good. As the summer progressed, I grew sick of them and progressed to poorboy sandwiches from Albertsons. As a poor college student living in Jackson, WY, that's about all I could afford. Then the place I worked started getting good deals on Mountainhouse, so I finally gave in and carried a cookset. Having good food in the mountains sure makes a difference!
steste - Oct 21, 2006 9:27 pm - Voted 10/10
A good joband valuable tips.
Thanks for sharing.
Steste
alex_vega - Oct 22, 2006 12:45 am - Voted 10/10
Thank you....very much for this interesting article. Always learns something new :-) Nice job!
Cheers, Alex
Brad Marshall - Oct 22, 2006 8:04 pm - Voted 10/10
Nice ArticleThank you for the informative article. As a climber who enjoys the colder weather fat helps you stay warm at night and a great source used by steady Ed Viesturs is SPAM.
The Vor - Oct 22, 2006 8:54 pm - Voted 9/10
Great ArticlePerfect amount of information so as not to be too much or too little. I've only tried a few energy gels but so far have found cliff shots to be the best but have also heard good things about honey stinger.
itpimps - Oct 23, 2006 8:20 pm - Hasn't voted
Excellent readGood tips regarding how to train just below your anaerobic threshold and what happens when you go above it. The tips you give are great and in my experience, hydration is more important than everything else. I've had times where I had plenty of clif bars and power bars, but no water which makes them (mostly) useless if you are dehydrated without water.
icypeak - Oct 24, 2006 12:32 pm - Voted 10/10
Very good articleI just started using the hydration bladder this year and I can tell you that it made a huge difference for me. Lots more energy. Thank you for the great article, very useful and practical.
Corax - Oct 25, 2006 1:25 pm - Voted 10/10
Thumbs upA very useful introduction to this complex subject.
Dmitry Pruss - Oct 25, 2006 2:13 pm - Voted 10/10
Just wanted to add a plug-infor my pet winter-trip fuel theory :)
MichaelJ - Oct 26, 2006 2:11 pm - Hasn't voted
GelsThe problem with most gels is that the package sucks. Rack enough for a 20-hour climb or a multi-day adventure and you'll have half a pack of sticky empties, that's if you don't manage to drop them all over the mountain. A better way is to buy the largest tub of gel you can find and repackage it in those small squeeze bottles that runners use. I get something like a litter-sized jug of Hammer jug (espresso flavor is good) at Sports Basement for a good price and put it into four squeeze tubes that fit inside my pockets. The tubes still get sticky so I keep them in plastic bags. As the gel goes down, I top off the tubes with water or snow. The later makes a nice granita on a hot descent.