Question for hikers....

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newarkco05
newarkco05 Posts: 240
in Fitness and Exercise
Hiking in the mountains burns a ridiculous amount of calories... So my question for any hikers out there is do you eat all of the calories you burn doing it? Do you plan to eat those calories during the hike or afterward? I am hiking today and already have my food planned out but I want to be able to plan better in the future. We plan on hiking again next weekend.

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  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
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    before, during, and after!

    Make sure you have eaten adequately before leaving the house, bring portable snacks and plenty of water with you, and celebrate finishing your hike with a hearty meal!

    Just make sure you eat plenty, bottom line....
  • chorgi
    chorgi Posts: 221
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    I hike a lot, and I end up eating about half or two thirds of the calories that I burn. I do try to pack extra energy bars for while I'm hiking, but it depends on how long I'm hiking. If I'm doing an over night trip backpacking trip, I make sure I have big meals for camp. Otherwise I usually eat a big meal afterwards. :) Hiking in the mountains is awesome! Have fun and enjoy burning those calories!
  • haileykarlyn
    haileykarlyn Posts: 3 Member
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    Non scientific answer here. You want to eat protein and fiber before you leave for strengh and to keep you full longer. Then take a few Healthy snacks for hunger pangs so your sugar level don't drop. Make sure to take plenty to hydrate. After. take care not to gorge. I would not replace all calories burned by hiking as then you defeat the purpose of hiking for weight loss.
  • scarletleavy
    scarletleavy Posts: 841 Member
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    I never end up eating all the calories I burn, it would be impossible for me to eat that much. I do try and pack a good amount of snacks (nuts, bars, etc) to eat along the way. I also usually have a good lunch (and beer) at the huts and heart dinner when I get home. Multi-day hikes are always a struggle to eat enough, but usually the dinners and breakfasts they have at the huts are definitely enough food for me. I'm debating packing a jar of peanut butter for my next hike, I'm always craving peanut butter when I hike. Haha.
  • newarkco05
    newarkco05 Posts: 240
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    Non scientific answer here. You want to eat protein and fiber before you leave for strengh and to keep you full longer. Then take a few Healthy snacks for hunger pangs so your sugar level don't drop. Make sure to take plenty to hydrate. After. take care not to gorge. I would not replace all calories burned by hiking as then you defeat the purpose of hiking for weight loss.

    Thanks for the tips. I am being careful not to use up all the extra calories, however I am not hiking for weight loss. I did it once last year and really liked it! I felt so accomplished afterward and want to make a hobby of it. I figure with a new active hobby that I enjoy, I will also have some weight loss which will be a bonus. Not the other way around.

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