Why do the women get physically stronger and athletic while hiking while the men get skinnier and weaker looking?
Jason
Women vs men on the trail
system
#2
I don’t think it’s always true… or even mostly true. I’ve seen plenty of scrawny women near the ends of their hikes, and strong-looking men. It mostly depends on one’s diet and approach.
That said, upper body mass is not really needed during a thru-hike. Men tend to start with more upper body mass, which will diminish over the course of a summer, making them look especially skinny. Women tend to have less to begin with, so it’s less noticeable when they lose some… And I’m sure those bushy beards a lot of men sport add a bit to the effect.
Jonathan
system
#3
I have noticed this also. In general women start with a higher fat to muscle ratio then men. They lose fat and replace it with muscle where men lose fat and replace it with muscle at first but then start burning up the upper body muscles that they are no longer using. And of course there are exceptions to this but from my experiance of seeing thru-hikers come through NH every summer the men are starting to look gaunt and the women look healthy. Short men also tend to fare better then tall men because propotionally the thin upper body doesn’t stand out as much.
Big B
system
#4
After being out on the trail for a couple of weeks, I have to admit that most of the women folk do start to look a lot nicer, maybe its just because I have my trail goggles on at that point. I haven’t really looked at the men that close, but to each his own.
chessnut
system
#5
Oh come on now! Everyone knows its because women are Humans 2.0. The second version just had some improvements over the first version!!!:lol
female hiker
system
#7
Hey, As a 2007 thru-hiking male, I found the women to have the reserves and stamina at the end when many of us men were hanging on. I had lost 50 pounds and was eating to walk while females I had known from the start were getting buff. My wife had tears in her eyes when she saw my condition in Monson, but thought the women just looked in shape. Grasshopper 07
djevansjr
system
#8
Simple really. Men burn more calories for the same output. On the AT, I was starving at over 2 lbs per day. My wife, same body weight (145 lbs) and carrying the same pack weight, was happy on 1/2 lb less per day.
Looks like an opportunity for a PhD thesis to me.
Kea
system
#9
Women burn less calories, that’s why. The 2 pounds of food per day rule is bogus for men, men should be carrying at least 3 pounds of food per day. Women can get away with 2 pounds of food.
Jason
system
#10
Wow, two or three lbs. of food per day sounds like alot of food and weight to carry. Must be talking about no cook, ready to eat food that does not have to be hydrated?
yuk-yuk
system
#11
Jason, 2 lbs per day not bogus, just a rounded figure. After 6 months on the AT and 2 months on the Bibbulmun, I’ve had plenty of time to work out what I need. And it came to 1.1 kgs per day; or 2.4 lbs per day. But as you said, 3 lbs may be necessary, but one has to balance food requirements versus pack weight. And, yuk-yuk, this is all dry weight with as much fat as we could arrange. We had a cooked breakfast and dinner and boiled up at lunchtime for hot chocolate when it was cold. Hot chocolate in the snow was great!
Anyway, my point was I needed more and ate more than my wife for identical output. So obviously, my wife’s body was much more efficient than mine. The question is, Jason, as per your original post, why?
Kea
system
#12
I think this is true in most instances. I met 2 couples on the trail. The men looked horrible an sunken and their partners looked pretty darn good. They were eating all the same stuff too.
Personally, I was a machine when I finished and felt really good and strong. My diet was also the BOMB! Men, in my opinion need to eat a ton of good food rich with protien, good carbs, vitamins and minerals and fat. There is a percentage breakdown that should be followed I’d say eat 5-6000 calories worth. Not that potatoe ramen junk.
hoof
system
#13
I think this is true in most instances. I met 2 couples on the trail. The men looked horrible an sunken and their partners looked pretty darn good. They were eating all the same stuff too.
Personally, I was a machine when I finished and felt really good and strong. My diet was also the BOMB! Men, in my opinion need to eat a ton of good food rich with protien, good carbs, vitamins and minerals and fat. There is a percentage breakdown that should be followed I’d say eat 5-6000 calories worth. I was hiking between 25-30miles a day. Don’t eat that potatoe ramen junk.
hoof