Pre-trail: 188
Northern CA: 153
Manning Park: 159
Before Thanksgiving: 176
After Thanksgiving: 179
The Vegas over/under on reaching my pre-trail weight has been set at January 5th. Get your bets in early.
Cuddles
The Official Cuddles Post-trail Weight-Gain Counter
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#1
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#2
Run, don’t walk, to the nearest Weight Watchers meeting and join. Otherwise, you may, like me, be 20 lbs over your pretrail weight before you know it. It’s hard to stop eating like a hiker!
Red Hat
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#3
It doesn’t even matter what you try to do. I gained most of the weight back on fruit and salad. I think what happens is your metabolism actually slows down on the PCT in order to survive the famine. The only cure is to get back on the trail. Permanently.
Piper
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#4
It may already be too late.
I definitely weigh more than I did before I started LD hiking. It’s part of the territory. Sorry about that!
FrankleeMiDeer
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#6
Cuddles,
That is because you at your meals on some weird schedule. If you would have done the breakfast, lunch, dinner routine I think everything would be alright. I’ve only put on 15-29 lbs…
OverDose
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#7
Indeed, I gained +10 pounds in 2 months on the trail and I’m still gaining. The trail has permanently affected my metabolism. That’s OK…I’m storing up for winter…except that it’s 95 degrees out right now…and it never gets cold where I live. So, really, I’m just storing up.
Chris (of Chris and Lynsey)
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#9
So much so that it’s abnormal if i STOP eating.
Don’t take my posts seriously, folks. I’m sure your weight loss systems are impeccable and all, but these are meant as light-hearted posts from a heavy-gutted hiker.
I had sushi with 3 other '08 thru-hikers in Tucson this week. 2 of them just did a marathon. The other is training for a triathalon. I out-ate all of them combined. All the same, the trail-talk was poignant, and i’ve decided along with Emma that if her job goes bankrupt and i get a certain other job, that we will flip a coin. If the coin comes up tails, we’re doing the PCT together in 2009. This may seem like a longshot, but it’s less of a longshot than the set of circumstances that allowed me to hike it in 2008.
I’ll keep everyone posted. Oh, and as of today i’m still at 179. I’m even going backpacking on Monday. So i may have topped off my weight after all. :cheers
Cuddles
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#11
February 3, exactly 4-1/2 months after finishing a trail that took me 4-1/2 months, i’ve successfully reached my pre-hike weight of 188. It took exactly the same amount of time to gain it back as it did to lose it.
I guess it’s time for another hike, or some disciplined eating habits. Or another hike.
Cuddles
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#12
Hey Cuddles, Thanks for making me feel better. I’m just about at my pre-PCT weight, BUT will lose it on the AT beginning late March. That’s the only solution I’ve found…another thru-hike.
Tigger
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#13
Took me about the same amount of time to get back to my pre-hike weight. Swore to myself I would keep a little of it off, but now 3-1/2 years later, I’m 15 lbs. above my pre-hike weight. I like to think that’s it’s mostly muscle gained from all the hiking I’ve been doing. Definitely time for another big hike.
Ducky
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#14
Cuddles, you didn’t even try to keep the weight off!
Alas, I’m at my pre-hike weight, too. 
Piper