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Schroder
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Joined: 26 Oct 2007
Posts: 6722 | TRs | Pics
Location: on the beach |
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Schroder
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 Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:36 am |
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According to Adam Roy in Backpacker Magazine:
Could Thru-Hiking Be Bad For Your Health? A New Study Makes a Troubling Find.
Exercise may not be enough to make up for thru-hikers’ bad diets, a new paper suggests.
| Quote: | | Heinbockel’s brachial artery flow-mediated dilation—a measure of how well the endothelial lining, a layer of cells on the inside of blood vessels, is functioning—had dropped by more than 25%, while his aortic stiffness had risen by 5%, changes associated with an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. |
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reststep
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Joined: 17 Dec 2001
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reststep
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 9:56 am |
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The following is also a quote from the article.
| Quote: | | The good news: Those negative changes are reversible. While the researchers didn’t do enough follow-up to say how long the effects of Heinbockel’s thru-hike persisted, Craighead says that the endothelial lining is “fairly malleable” and the effects should subside eventually with a return to healthy habits. |
"The mountains are calling and I must go." - John Muir
"The mountains are calling and I must go." - John Muir
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Randito
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Joined: 27 Jul 2008
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Location: Bellevue at the moment. |
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Randito
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:04 am |
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Interesting. I did the Pacific Coast Highway bike tour 3 years ago, covering 1900 miles in 46 days -- a fairly relaxed pace. I lost 10 pounds on the trip, but I think I lost 20 lbs of fat and gained 10 lbs of muscule -- wasn't in condition at the start of the trip. My weekly milelage increased considerably over the course of the trip.
Bike touring is a bit different than thru hiking however -- I never carried more than a couple day's worth of food. My typical practice for dinner was to stop at a grocery store in the afternoon and buy a frozen dinner and a package of frozen vegetables and thaw/heat up over an alcohol stove at the campsite. Frozen entres are a bit high in sodium, but I was sweating a lot so my BP numbers remained fine.
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Cyclopath
Faster than light
Joined: 20 Mar 2012
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Cyclopath
Faster than light
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:13 am |
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I saw those headlines too.
I don't remember the guy's name, there's a "law" (like Murphy's) that any headline asking a question can be answered with a "no."
I keep hearing "sitting is the new smoking" and I think that's a little ... over sold? But I think inactivity and obesity are much bigger pubic health concerns than thru hiking.
| Randito wrote: | | Frozen entres are a bit high in sodium, but I was sweating a lot so my BP numbers remained fine. |
It's my understanding that if you're not hypertensive, salt isn't bad for you.
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neek
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Location: Seattle, WA |
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neek
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:17 am |
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Saw this; good reminder that you don't actually have to eat like crap when thru hiking. Plus there are zero days for scarfing down salads, fresh fruit, etc. Takes more planning, but if you can afford to take months off for this sort of thing, you can figure it out.
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neek
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neek
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 10:26 am |
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| Cyclopath wrote: | | I keep hearing "sitting is the new smoking" and I think that's a little ... over sold? |
Yes. People have been sitting for many thousands of years, although it does help to get up frequently, and to partake daily in a few hours of physical activity as well.
| Cyclopath wrote: | | It's my understanding that if you're not hypertensive, salt isn't bad for you. |
I'm no longer convinced of this. But perhaps it's more like - if your food needs to be heavily salted (and/or sugared) to be palatable, it's probably not that good in the first place. I'm sure there are exceptions, like smoked salmon.
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RumiDude
Marmota olympus
Joined: 26 Jul 2009
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Location: Port Angeles |
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RumiDude
Marmota olympus
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 11:01 am |
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| neek wrote: | | Saw this; good reminder that you don't actually have to eat like crap when thru hiking. Plus there are zero days for scarfing down salads, fresh fruit, etc. Takes more planning, but if you can afford to take months off for this sort of thing, you can figure it out. |
Absolutely! I think so many people think that just because they are doing lots of exercise, i.e. hiking 18-30 miles per day, that exercise somehow negates poor dietary habits. Most of our cronic diseases like type 2 diabetes and heart disease are a result of a lifetime of poor diet in conjunction with genetic variables. You can't do anything about the DNA you inherited, but you can do something about your diet.
Anyway, you don't have to eat crap day after day on the trail. There are plenty of options for eating healthy and it is not difficult. I think the "hiker trash" diet is totally a fad. Just how bad can I eat? Just how many Snikers and Skittles can I get into my food bag? Just how more "hiker trash" can I eat? It's like a competition among many thru-hikers.
Rumi
"This is my Indian summer ... I'm far more dangerous now, because I don't care at all."
"This is my Indian summer ... I'm far more dangerous now, because I don't care at all."
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wolffie
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wolffie
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 11:10 am |
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My thru-hiking diet couldn't possibly be worse than my daily diet within driving distance of any Costco.
Some people have better things to do with their lives than walking the dog. Some don't.
Some people have better things to do with their lives than walking the dog. Some don't.
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Randito
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Joined: 27 Jul 2008
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Location: Bellevue at the moment. |
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Randito
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 11:20 am |
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| Cyclopath wrote: | | Randito wrote: | | Frozen entres are a bit high in sodium, but I was sweating a lot so my BP numbers remained fine. |
It's my understanding that if you're not hypertensive, salt isn't bad for you. |
I don't know about "in general" -- but my mom had mild hypertension, so it is something that I monitor for myself. My BP is responsive to both sodium intake and exercise. When I limit my sodium intake to the US RDA of 2000 mg -- no problem -- however a typical freeze dried meal typically exceeds that -- in one meal.
A long bike ride with a significant sweating sheds a lot of sodium, a workout with intervals with high heart rate also reduces my BP for several days, even if the actual amount of sweating isn't that much.
YMMV.
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Cyclopath
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Cyclopath
Faster than light
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 2:22 pm |
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| neek wrote: | | ... if your food needs to be heavily salted (and/or sugared) to be palatable, it's probably not that good in the first place. |
Was this meant for the bags of dog poop thread?
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coldrain108
Thundering Herd
Joined: 05 Aug 2010
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Location: somewhere over the rainbow |
I love busting my hump hiking, but 60 days of 20+ miles a day sounds about as enjoyable as passing a star shaped kidney stone.
How many miles of this are on non-wilderness scab lands?
How many who start end up with serious foot/leg/back injuries?
My brother played division 2 NCAA soccer - now he can barely walk. Too much physical activity is also not good.
Everything in extremes or your not really cool?
Since I have no expectations of forgiveness, I don't do it in the first place. That loop hole needs to be closed to everyone.
Since I have no expectations of forgiveness, I don't do it in the first place. That loop hole needs to be closed to everyone.
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neek
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Joined: 12 Sep 2011
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Location: Seattle, WA |
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neek
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 3:28 pm |
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| coldrain108 wrote: | | I love busting my hump hiking, but 60 days of 20+ miles a day sounds about as enjoyable as passing a star shaped kidney stone.
How many miles of this are on non-wilderness scab lands?
How many who start end up with serious foot/leg/back injuries?
My brother played division 2 NCAA soccer - now he can barely walk. Too much physical activity is also not good.
Everything in extremes or your not really cool? |
Complete nonsense.
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Seventy2002
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Joined: 19 Jul 2008
Posts: 512 | TRs | Pics
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Will they repeat the study using a high-calorie, high-quality diet?
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texasbb
Misplaced Texan
Joined: 30 Mar 2009
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texasbb
Misplaced Texan
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:03 pm |
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This was not a study in any sense of the word. No planning, N=1, no followup. Diet could be the culprit, but so could "over training" or some other health peculiarity. Did he stop every hour for a cigarette? Sleep poorly the whole way? Worry all day about his family?
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neek
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neek
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Tue Apr 20, 2021 6:10 pm |
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Quite true. But still, anyone who thinks exercise can fully compensate for a poor diet, or vice versa, is not paying attention.
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