Lost 25 pounds eating 6,000 calories per day :)

Sara1791

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Sara1791 wrote: »

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

Some have gone much faster, of course. This guy started in Feb. and hiked 13.5 hrs. per day, so I'm willing to believe it. He wouldn't have been able to do southbound starting in Feb. (because Katahdin isn't open that early in the year). I'm going to point out that statistically speaking, southbound hikers make better time. They are also usually in better shape because they start out climbing Katahdin with enough food (i.e. heavy pack) for the 100 miles of wilderness. If someone embarks that direction, they know they are in good shape before they start or they get their trail legs fast. Northbound hikers on the AT generally take longer to get their trail legs. But if your goal is to keep moving (rather than some have a goal to move more slowly and there is known to be some partying on the AT), it sounds reasonable to me. Then going straight to the PCT without an extended break should help because he is still in shape and still used to a day of hiking and camping outside.

Sara1791

midwesterner85 wrote: »

Sara1791 wrote: »

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

Some have gone much faster, of course. This guy started in Feb. and hiked 13.5 hrs. per day, so I'm willing to believe it. He wouldn't have been able to do southbound starting in Feb. (because Katahdin isn't open that early in the year). I'm going to point out that statistically speaking, southbound hikers make better time. They are also usually in better shape because they start out climbing Katahdin with enough food (i.e. heavy pack) for the 100 miles of wilderness. If someone embarks that direction, they know they are in good shape before they start or they get their trail legs fast. Northbound hikers on the AT generally take longer to get their trail legs. But if your goal is to keep moving (rather than some have a goal to move more slowly and there is known to be some partying on the AT), it sounds reasonable to me. Then going straight to the PCT without an extended break should help because he is still in shape and still used to a day of hiking and camping outside.

Thanks, this is fascinating to me. I wonder if I could ever be in good enough shape to do the whole thing.

NorthCascades

Sara1791 wrote: »

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

Speaking of fast, here's an article about the lady who has the speed record ("fastest known time") on two of the three trails we're talking about.

http://www.spokesman.com/outdoors/stories/2014/may/25/pct-speed-queen-shares-vignettes-of-her-hike/

HCN: How many miles a day were you hiking?

HA: Between 40 and 50 miles every day. I hiked a lot in the dark. That was one of the challenges that I knew I wanted to overcome. I was scared of mountain lions, and I’ve always been terrified of being out at night. In the past, if it was starting to get dark and I hadn’t found a place to camp, I’d literally be running down the trail almost crying. So on this trip I made myself hike three or four hours each night. I saw four mountain lions.

Anish is a local, and we couldn't be more proud of her.

girlinahat

these guys rowed across the Pacific Ocean on a Paleo diet. They were the only team to finish weighing MORE than when they started (hmmm. what does THAT say about Paleo and losing weight?)

a friend of mine was part of this team in the same race - although it suggests they only consumed a measly 3500 calories during the trip.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Sara1791 wrote: »

midwesterner85 wrote: »

Sara1791 wrote: »

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

Some have gone much faster, of course. This guy started in Feb. and hiked 13.5 hrs. per day, so I'm willing to believe it. He wouldn't have been able to do southbound starting in Feb. (because Katahdin isn't open that early in the year). I'm going to point out that statistically speaking, southbound hikers make better time. They are also usually in better shape because they start out climbing Katahdin with enough food (i.e. heavy pack) for the 100 miles of wilderness. If someone embarks that direction, they know they are in good shape before they start or they get their trail legs fast. Northbound hikers on the AT generally take longer to get their trail legs. But if your goal is to keep moving (rather than some have a goal to move more slowly and there is known to be some partying on the AT), it sounds reasonable to me. Then going straight to the PCT without an extended break should help because he is still in shape and still used to a day of hiking and camping outside.

Thanks, this is fascinating to me. I wonder if I could ever be in good enough shape to do the whole thing.

Yes, you could. There is a big question about other factors. Personally, I have medical issues that complicate such a feat, but still could be in shape. I can't do it because I can't afford to take that much time off from work, but that isn't a physical fitness barrier. I'm not going to tell you that you can break a speed record, but I bet you could do it physically.

Sara1791

I'm thinking about putting this in my five year plan. In that time I can gain fitness, experience, & figure out the logistics regarding money & childcare.

kshama2001

Sara1791 wrote: »

midwesterner85 wrote: »

Sara1791 wrote: »

I thought I had read that it takes most thru hikers from March through August to hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian trail. This guy must be fast.

Some have gone much faster, of course. This guy started in Feb. and hiked 13.5 hrs. per day, so I'm willing to believe it. He wouldn't have been able to do southbound starting in Feb. (because Katahdin isn't open that early in the year). I'm going to point out that statistically speaking, southbound hikers make better time. They are also usually in better shape because they start out climbing Katahdin with enough food (i.e. heavy pack) for the 100 miles of wilderness. If someone embarks that direction, they know they are in good shape before they start or they get their trail legs fast. Northbound hikers on the AT generally take longer to get their trail legs. But if your goal is to keep moving (rather than some have a goal to move more slowly and there is known to be some partying on the AT), it sounds reasonable to me. Then going straight to the PCT without an extended break should help because he is still in shape and still used to a day of hiking and camping outside.

Thanks, this is fascinating to me. I wonder if I could ever be in good enough shape to do the whole thing.

My 78 yo mother (who used to do a lot of hiking) and I were talking about this a few weeks ago. She said there are people in their 80s who have completed the AT. I did some quick googling before posting this and found this:

http://appalachiantrials.com/who-was-the-oldest-appalachian-trail-thru-hiker/

Although Grandma Gatewood is arguably the most badass thru-hiker of all time, she is not the oldest (or even the first). The title of oldest female thru-hiker currently belongs to 74-year-young Drag’n’fly.

The oldest person to section hike the AT, was Mike ‘Cimarron’ Caetano, who completed the full trail over two years, finishing at the age of 84. Simply incredible.

But, Sandy, the long-winded answer to your simple question, is Lee “The Easy One” Barry. Barry is both the oldest male and oldest overall having thru-hiked the AT in 2004 at the age of 81. Fun fact: The Easy One didn’t set out to break the AT age mark; he learned of the record part way through his journey (source).

spiriteagle99

A number of people thruhike the AT or PCT who have absolutely no prior experience. There are a few blind people who have hiked the AT, and a few who have done it with a missing leg, or with MS (on crutches) or without a stomach (literally). Young children have hiked it and some who were in their early 80's. Although it is hard, physically, to hike all day every day, it is more of a mental challenge than a physical one for most people after a while on the trail. To complete the AT in 6 months you only need to hike about 12-13 miles a day. That's 6 or 7 hours of hiking for most people. Hikers can take up to 10 months or so to finish the trail, if they need to. The PCT has a narrower weather window, so most people who do it in one year do it in 4-5 months, with an average of 16-25 miles a day, but since it is graded for horses, without a lot of steep up and down, that is not as hard to do as you'd think.

Aaron_K123

I long-distance backpacked. I'd love to have done the entire PCT but haven't really had 5 months free to do it. I have section hiked it though and have done some of Oregon and most all of Washington. The longest trips I have done were 14 day 200 mile trips. I can say in one of those trips I was eating about 2700 calories a day (what I was able to carry using the most calorie rich foods I could stomach). After 14 days I had lost about 10 pounds. Not just "oh its water weight" right after the trip 10 pounds, legitimate stayed on average 10 pounds lighter 10 pounds. That meant eating 2700 a day I was still in about a 3000 calorie deficit. I don't ultralight though so my pack was more in the 30 pound range.

If you hike 6000 miles in a year I fully believe you can eat 6000 calories a day and still end up almost starving to death.

On the Washington side hiking the PCT when you run into through-hikers they are near the end of their trip and many of them are fairly gaunt and all of them have lost a lot of weight. It is pretty much impossible to not lose weight backpacking like that, you literally do not have the time in the day to eat enough. With long distance packing its basically intermittent fasting to. You "fast" on 2500 calories and then when you get into a town every 4th day or so you just gorge yourself on like 10k calories.

Aaron_K123

Image from around the PCT in Washington:



watch out for forest fires though:

CoachJen71

I suddenly feel the urge to re-read "A Walk in the Woods."

fitoverfortymom

Hubby, my son, and I want to do the PCT when he graduates HS (in 5 years), or possibly the summer between his Jr and Sr year in HS. Take the whole summer off after he graduates and just walk in the mountains for three months.

Sounds amazing to me.

That's part of my long term motivation to do what I'm doing now and to maintain the weight I lose. And I hope I can eat a lot of candy bars when I do it.