Endurance Products I Like

This is a follow up post to my last one, which discusses the importance of maintaining proper hydration and fuel intake during long term athletic activity whether it's racing, hiking, or bugging out.  Especially if you have limited access to supplies, deep woods hiking or a survival scenario, knowing what to bring with you is really important to avoid problems.

I am not sponsored by any of these companies, nor do I receive any financial gain or gain otherwise from discussing them here.  These are simply products I've found that do what they are supposed to, have proven themselves to me in the field, and that I have used extensively.  When I was doing long distance trail running (ultra-running) I always kept these items in stock and then could pick and choose what I needed for each event.



Nuun Tablets

Nuun tablets have been formulated to precisely match electrolytes with the percentages that are sweat out.  You can check their website, they have lots of graphs, studies, and stuff...  I just know they work.  I used to get these really annoying headaches after long races, I couldn't figure out what they were from.  Then I started drinking these during the races and I haven't had a problem since.  Each tube has twelve tablets, they dissolve in water like an alka seltzer and in two minutes you have an electrolyte drink.  Easy to carry and effective, every athlete and survivalist should have a few of these.  And they taste pretty decent too.


Camelbak Elixer

Camelbak Elixir is very similar to the Nuun tablets.  They dissolve in water and produce an electrolyte drink. These are very similar products, both taste good and provide the necessary electrolytes.  I think the ratio on these isn't quite as precise as the Nuun tablets and the Elixir is a little more expensive, but the Elixir produces more drink per tab and seem to be more easily found in stores.  I've used them both a lot, they both seem to be good products.

Perpetuem

Perpetuem is a pretty neat product, it's food and fluid rolled up into one.  When they were making this they wanted a single solution for fuel and hydration.  Because the calories and nutrients are in a liquid form they are much more easily digested during activity.  The nutritional info is on the site.  It comes in powder form, just mix it with water, though the taste takes a little getting used to.  I have the "orange" one, you could take a creamsicle and melt in a liter of slightly gritty water, and that would be about the same taste/texture.  However, for a "one size fits all" approach it actually works pretty well.  I like this stuff, it worked extremely well on my last race.  With most drinks you don't get a 'full' feeling in your stomach.  When you're hungry and then drink a sports drink you're still hungry.  With Perpetuem, it's like drinking a class a milk when you're hungry, might not be entirely satisfied but it's a whole lot better than most drinks.

Salt Stick

There are a variety of "salt pills" on the market.  Salt Stick has developed tubes for dispensing their version of the electrolyte pills and they've done quite a few studies on what electrolytes and amounts to put in them.  They have links for their studies on their site, whether you believe them or not is up to you.  I haven't tried the dispensing tubes but I have taken these pills during events and found them very effective.  I usually drink Nuun or Perpetuem and take these as back ups, or take one an hour for extended races to make sure I'm keeping up the electrolyte levels.  The dispensers seem kind of neat, they keep the pills dry and easy to access, so they might be a good option for long distances or survival scenarios.  Otherwise, any water tight container works well.

Honey Stingers

These guys have a very wide variety of products, all made with honey.  Waffles, gels, chews, you name it and they probably make it.  Carbohydrates are important for maintaining a high level of activity and honey is an excellent carbohydrate.  There are quite a number of different carbs available, but he best ones come from more natural sources, honey, agave, etc.  Carbs that are more processed get absorbed into the body really fast, which leads to ups and downs in your energy level.  More natural, complex carbs are as effective but absorb at a longer, steadier rate, helping maintain a steadier energy level.

GU Chomps

GU chomps have a pretty standard carb mix, there's lots of chews out there that are similar.  However, GU Chomps also have Amino Acids added.  Amino Acids are kind of a new trend in the endurance world.  During exercise, if your body doesn't get enough calories (because your stomach isn't digesting very well) then it starts to cannibalize your muscle tissue.  If you are already damaging your muscles (by exercising) then the last thing you want is that cannibalization.  There haven't been too many studies on the use of Amino Acids during exercise yet, but the theory is that by taking in Amino Acids you are providing them to the body for fuel, which means your body won't need to break down muscle tissue.  Also, it means that there are extra Amino Acids in the body so that during recovery it should make rebuilding muscle tissue faster and easier.  I like these, they do seem to make a difference during and after a race.

Hammer Endurance Amino

Ok, same reason as above.  The difference here is that these are in pill form, you can just drop a pill before, during, and/or after your endurance event.  Again, there aren't many studies on these yet, but in an endurance event or a survival situation I'll take any advantage I can get.  I've used these and they do seem to make recovery faster, I don't know if that means my muscles aren't getting cannibalized or if they help rebuild muscle faster, but they seemed to work for me.

There are plenty of other products out there, I've used quite a few of them and those above are just a few of my favorites.  My favorite place to purchase these items is online at ZombieRunner.com.  They have a million options and good prices.  I also like the name.  What can I say, I'm a zombie dork.

If you have any questions about endurance events or nutrition, suggestions, or comments feel free to send me a message. 

The Metabolism of Endurance

When I was really into long distance trail running and hiking I spent a lot of time looking for the best options for food and drink (usually referred to in those circles as "fuel" and "hydration").  Some of those products were really cool, really effective, and a lot of those lessons I learned serve me well every time I head into the woods.  In this post I'm going to go over some of the basics, in the next post I'll talk about some of the specific food and drinks that have worked well for me.

Obviously, trail running is a much higher intensity than hiking, but a lot of the techniques can carry over.

When you are moving a lot, sweating a lot, you need to keep in mind fuel and hydration.  You need to intake calories, water, and electrolytes if you want to KEEP moving.  Too little fuel, food, and you run out of energy.  You have to maintain the proper electrolyte balance as well, you get too far either way and you lose your endurance, get sick, and it could eventually kill you.  Electrolytes are necessary to relay electrical impulses in the body, they include sodium, potassium (those are the two biggest), magnesium, and calcium.

Too much water (without enough electrolytes) and you can get hyponatremia, a condition that kills a couple long distance runners every year.  They run a long race, lose lots of electrolytes, then drink water trying to rehydrate.  By just drinking water they essentially dilute the levels of electrolytes in the blood, it throws off your body's balance.  Sports drinks are one way to intake electrolytes, but there are quite a few options (I'll go over them in my next post).  Hyponatremia outside of athletics is most commonly caused by kidney failure.  In other words, it's not the kind of thing you want to happen in the woods, in a survival situation, or during/after a race.  That's why you need to take in electrolytes.  Also, look at the drinks you are using, many common sports drinks only have sodium, potassium, and not necessarily in the ratios that are best (these are better than nothing but intended for short term activities, sporting events).  For extended activities you need to find a better option with Sodium to Potassium is about 3.5-1, calcium and magnesium levels should be lower and in a ratio about 2-1.  So, something with 180mg of Sodium, 50mg of Potassium, 10mg of calcium, and 5mg of magnesium should be about right for an hour of high level activity.  There are quite a few electrolyte pills available, a simple, easy solution when drinks are not as available.

Hypernatremia, or too much sodium, results in the same symptoms as dehydration; extreme thirst, lethargy, weakness, swelling, and at extreme levels seizures and coma (the same as drinking sea water).  Usually, it will start with swelling in the hands and feet.  When you get in tune with your body you will notice those symptoms and increase your water to electrolyte intake.

Ok, so those are the reasons that balance is important.  Now, how much overall fluid should you be taking in?  That depends on your personal physiology (some people sweat more than others, with more or less electrolytes lost), your fitness, the climate, and your current activity level.  Essentially, you need to do some testing and find how much you lose so you know how much you need to drink.  When I was running a race I would typically take in close to a liter of fluid an hour, that was trail running though; high activity level, extreme heat, lots of sweating.  For hiking I could probably make do with half that.

It's also better for your body to take in fluid frequently and in small amounts.  That helps maintain a steady balance rather than drinking a full liter once an hour and it's easier to absorb.  That's why hydration packs like the Camelbak or hand held bottles are so popular with long distance athletes, easy to take small, frequent sips.

Ok, now what about food or 'fuel'?  Again, that depends a lot on you and your activity level, but to maintain a high activity level for multiple hours you should probably try to take in at least 300 calories an hour.   Now, this is where it gets a little complicated... when your body is in high activity mode it's diverting blood away from your stomach and generally toward your legs (or skin for cooling), which means you won't be digesting food very well.  In fact, you are going to be digesting really poorly, absorbing calories very slowly and inefficiently, which means you need to bring along food which is easily digested or you will just get bloated, cramped, diarrhea, and not many calories.  Mostly you will need carbohydrates for energy, but you will also need fats (for long term energy), and protein (for energy and to maintain muscle endurance).  Easily digested foods are those like fruits, gels, liquids, and gummies.  For low intensity exercise, like easy walking and hiking, foods like trail mix have a pretty good mix of carbs, fats, and protein. Just like the water, you want to eat small amounts frequently, it's easier on the stomach and will help maintain a better overall balance of energy level.

I know, it all sounds complicated, but once you do a little experimenting with what products and balance work for you the benefits are drastic.  You can go longer, feel better, and recover faster.

Next post, I'll show you some of the cool products I've found that work well for me.

The First Line of Survival

There are a million different priorities that come to mind when someone thinks about a survival scenario:  food, water, shelter, first aid, etc.

One of the many things that most survival posts seem to miss, or not prioritize well, is physical fitness.  This doesn't sound like that big a deal, but there is a huge difference between a fit prepper and an unfit one.

The first big difference is how efficient your body is at utilizing nutrients and creating energy.  If you live a sedentary lifestyle than not only is there the mental challenge of survival but there is the physiological challenge. You're going to be more active, eating foods that you aren't necessarily used to, and you are going to be in shock mentally and physically.

There are a few simple exercises that you can do that will increase your potential for survival.  Walking is probably the biggest and the easiest.  In almost any scenario vehicles will be secondary to foot travel, if you aren't used to walking, your footwear, and your foot care than you are seriously in trouble.

Walking is a good exercise, 20-30 minutes a night will make a drastic increase in your physical ability.  It's good for you physically, mentally, and will definitely help if you need to be able to do some serious walking in the future.

Most of us have a fairly sedentary lifestyle.  We come to accept this because physical activity isn't exactly necessary in this modern world.  However, for thousands of years, physical activity was a necessary, daily activity.  In a survival situation, being physically ready will be almost as important as having supplies ready.

Can you walk 20 miles with your BOB?  Can you hike, climb, and run in a 40lb pack?  If the answer isn't a fast "yes" than you need to seriously consider more physical activity (or a much lighter pack).

It's not all that difficult, you don't need to hit the weights every day, going for a nightly walk will put you miles ahead of most average citizens.  Just think of the mental benefits, knowing that if you need to walk 20 miles you can.  Slowly add in some running, some climbing, swimming, and physical travel will seem like an average day to you.

If your schedule keeps you from a decent work out schedule, try and find some way to be active for 30 minutes at least 3 times a week.  This doesn't need to be anything fancy, jumping rope, jogging in place, walking, anything that keeps you moving for 30 minutes.  First off, your body will get used to using nutrients as fuel for exercise.  Remember, simple sugars are best for extended endurance events (long distance running, cardio level walking) but you have to get your body used to using those fuels DURING the exercise, not just before and after.  Carbohydrates for before and during, 1/3 carb to protein for recovery afterwards.

Also, you absolutely have to test your footwear thoroughly.  If you need to bug out, don't grab the brand new hiking boots, grab the beat up sneakers in the corner.  If you haven't put a hundred miles on them, worked out any problems, they aren't any good for survival.  A blister in new shoes might not seem like a big deal for a mile or two, but after 5-10 miles it becomes an immobilizing problem.  Practice good foot care, get used to treating foot problems, and your best mode of transportation will keep you going much, much further.

Endurance athletes and soldiers have a very disciplined approach to foot care.  They are constantly paying attention to "hot spots" or any other potential warning sign of any foot issues. They notice those little things and attend them early, dedicated practices like that will keep you moving when others fail.  An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  Keep foot care kits in your bag, vaseline, moleskin, and athletic tape (or duct tape).  There are pre-made kits available at many websites.  The Zombie Runner version is my favorite.  There's so much there you could probably split this kit into two or three smaller kits and spread them out between your supplies.

http://www.zombierunner.com/store/categories/foot_care/kits/product2629.html

There are also a variety of foot care books on the market.  "Fixing Your Feet" is widely considered the 'bible' of foot care.  It has very in depth, practical, descriptions of problems and their solutions.  I have a copy and have used it as a reference for many situations.

Your fitness and your feet will keep you alive, they need as much, or more, attention than anything else you are currently researching.  Do you need binoculars in your BOB?  Maybe.  Do you need your heart, lungs, and feet to be in good condition?  Definitely.