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gearing myself up to join the iDave experience on Monday - trying to collect some decent recipes and so on, but I'm a bit stumped about how to proceed on the occasions that I'll be off camping and carrying what I eat on my back. Most of my existing options rely heavily on carbs particularly rice and couscous, which are light to carry, don't go off, and easy to prepare as one pot meals. Carrying fresh meat is out, as is fresh veg, so I'm wondering whether there are realistic alternatives I'm overlooking, or whether iDave just isn't a practical option for those particular trips.
I asked this recently, didn't get many suggestions (as seems to be the case when asking about idave practicalities rather than theory).
However, You can get some bean stew dried meal things, as an alternative to rice etc. snack on nuts and trail mix through the day. Breakfast is the hard one to deal with, I will just stick to porridge.
I wouldn't worry too much about iDave compliance on a multi day rides.
chorizo, beans/lentils in a ziplock, quinoa, almonds/brazil nuts, all sorts of options. 'Look what we found' main meals.
http://www.lookwhatwefound.co.uk/Page/ProductsByCategory.aspx?CatID=0
I love this site, i was trying to remember who did those meals in a bag. Not to eat, but to put in a book i'm writing.
roadkill and vege's foraged from fields... raw trout head to follow...all iDave compatible...just watch a couple of Bear grylls TV shows and you'll soon get the hang of it....bet you loose weight too 😉
You'll never get the cover closed.CaptJon - Member
I love this site, i was trying to remember who did those meals in a bag. Not to eat, but to put in a book i'm writing.
Second chorizo.
Asda precooked meats in a packet, just see which one has less additiives (not chicken tikka) and a pot of Huumuus.
Go your local tesco and fill up a couple of Salad bowls. Mine does quinoa, tuna, chargrilled veg, beans etc.
Also, depending on how long you'll be riding, fresh salmon fillets (pack with ice) from nearest fishmonger and some soy sauce for bivvy sushi. I did this in Cornwall on my LEJOG.
precooked meats, salad bowls, fresh salmon packed in ice!
some of you don't seem to get the notion of lightweight & small packsize.
fresh salmon packed in ice!
😯
Problem is that most of this is wet food, so not really that great for carrying on your back for 2-3 days.
pepperami multipack. job done.
CAn of tuna, can of kidney beans, tomato and garlic paste (though tomato is a fruit?) heat up with mushrooms and carrot. All good.
Problem is that most of this is wet food, so not really that great for carrying on your back for 2-3 days.
You're telling this to someone who just bikepacked the length of the country 🙂
what about just go on your idiet binge day?
Also, depending on how long you'll be riding ...
I did caveat it.
Also, I would recommend against carrying anything so heavy as food on your back. In your seat pack or bar bag is good, in a frame bag would be better.
Also, thanks to miketually for expanding on my credentials 🙂
974 miles singlespeed, solo, unsupported, 8 days 10 hours. 16 hours a day from wheels rolling to settling down for the night.
if you need the iDave diet, you're already carrying extra weight. couple of pounds more from food neither here nor there.
on that information, let me revise my advice.
ditch the diet for 10days risking putting a couple of pounds back on.
That's a good effort Nick!
I should probably have been more specific that I'm thinking in terms of walking, rather than biking, so everything will be in a sack on my back. The biggest challenge seems to be working out what to have at the start of the day, as all the alternatives I'd normally consider are off limits - porridge, dried milk, meusli, dried fruit, oatcakes, jam and so on.
It's not that big an issue, as it's not like I'm out overnight every week, but I've pulled together a good few ideas on recipes for general use off the various iDave-related threads, and I was interested to know if other people had come up with creative solutions to wild camping breakfasts.
This diet does seem to attract simpletons in an alarming quantity.
i think it just makes people think a lot more about what they used to eat and how they want to eat now. fair to say people get big by not considering what they eat, and get slim by giving it more thought. obviously some people are just a bit thick though, whether fat or slim.
I was talking to shaggy, endurance rider par excellence the other day about food for long (100-200 mile) stretches of trail with no chance of restocking. I'd been working the supplies I carried on my LEJOG trip in terms of calories per pence as I was on a fixed budget per day. Shaggy thinks of food in terms of calorie density, not just how much it weighs, but how much space it takes up.
Dried carbs, are pretty shit on this count as you only get 4 calories per gram, and each gram takes up quite a bit of space. Also factor in that you need to carry or find and filter (water filter takes bulk and weight) water to cook them, and also to carry a stove and fuel to heat the water. Also this all takes time. Stop, unpack, find and filter water (if necessary), boil water, cook pasta/rice, eat, clean pans, repack, get going again.
Turns out my LEJOG diet was closely matching that shaggy was looking at for his long distance races.
For the same calories per gram as dried carbs I was carrying 200g lumps of Cathedral city cheese, 806 calories (403/100g). Entirely protein and fat and no carbs (even if not iDave friendly). It takes up less space than the same room of rice/pasta, needs no water, needs no heating, and can be eaten without stopping.
200g of chorizo provided me with even more energy density at 500 calories per 100g chunk. Again, protein and fat and no carbs. Again no need to carry water/filter/fuel/stove and can be eaten without stopping.
My last snack was 100g bags of peanuts, which are even more energy dense, over 500 calories per 100g, again no carbs.
And before anyone says you need carbs on long rides those three items above and a fry up breakfast sustained me for 10 hours and almost 90 miles on the last day of my LEJOG into a howling northerly gale (7mph pedalling on the downhills), without bonking, cramps, or the bloating that I've suffered when I've used carbs for fuel in 12/24 hour races.
On the one day I made the mistake of buying tiffin as a ride snack I bonked after just 30 miles and only recovered after I'd had a KFC.
I once worked out that Gold bars were the most calorific biscuit......nick3216 - Member
Shaggy thinks of food in terms of calorie density, not just how much it weighs, but how much space it takes up.
I spent £30 on a cheap dehydrator. It works really well. Now we take dried homemade chilli, curry etc.
This one.
http://www2.westfalia.net/shops/household/preserving_food/food_preservation/dehydrating_/193811-food_dehydrator.htm
Had it a couple of years now, and I have also bought some dehydrator sheets so I can dry sauces.
Nick, I can see the logic of that, but I find breakfast and an evening meal a psychological boost when I am out for a few days. I guess thats also part of the problem with those of us that have put on a few pounds, we have trained ourselves to eat till we fill our stomachs.
I can see the logic of that, but I find breakfast and an evening meal a psychological boost
Quite agree, especially about the evening meal. I found an evening meal would set me up mentally for another 5 or 6 hours riding.
if you need the iDave diet, you're already carrying extra weight. couple of pounds more from food neither here nor there.
Harsh but fair 😆
Like the idea of the dehydrator - might have to wait to introduce that to the wife though, as she's already in shock seeing how many aisles of the supermarket she can't shop in now!