The Diet

     I’ve been doing a lot of thinking.. ruminating.. on what to eat while en route. The journey will be~ not only an extremely protracted period of physical exertion but also extreme isolation. I’m looking forward to it with deep anticipation.. at this point in my life, I am in need of solitude.. and meditation and physical activity has always been a deep and centering component to my day. I’m looking forward to the highs and lows.. the ups and downs.. the ebb and flow of my mind and body as I pedal the 45,000 Km journey.. one crank turn at a time!

     But.. food?!?!?!

     So, how many calories do I think I’ll be burning on an average day? According to online calculations a 10 hour day of cycling will burn just under 5000 cal. ( 10hrs x 480 cal).. and I’ll be cycling up to *maybe* as much as 14 or 16 hours on a day. But, for my guestimates- I’m basing my caloric need calculations off of an averaged 10 hour day. Even that is a lot- 5000 cal is a TON. Oh- and on top of that is the daily base needs of the human body.. mine being around 2000.

     I’m very utilitarian. I don’t need a lot of space~ that’s why I’m building my boat as a “svelte missile” rather than a bloated codfish. Also, I don’t need a lot of variations. I do, actually, like simplifying things and eating/ consuming the same things. I know the values and I know how my body will react.

Oatmeal
     I’ve been starting my day off with a boal of oatmeal lately.. a half cup of raw, uncooked turns in to about 3c of finished product. As it is, the caloric value is listed online as being 154c per cup so…
             3cups = 450cal

Monks Coffee
     My preferred morning brew consists of two and a half cups of strong coffee cut with 2TBSP of, both, Honey and Butter/ Ghee.. blended in to a nice frothy bevvie. Both the Honey and the Butter/ Ghee have 150cal each and the coffee… zilch. So..
             2cups of Monks Coffee @ 300cal ea. = 600cal.
             Day Total, thus far= 1050 cal total so far.

Snackings
     I’ll have many snacks.. I see myself eating throughout the day.. nothing major but always eating a little here.. a little there.. and Trail Mix packs a punch! I thought about “Monks Bread” but the shelf- life is pretty short so.. back to trail mix with dried bananas, chocolate.. all the good stuff but without walnust and other tree nuts (since.. I’m deathly allergic. Not as bad as I am to rabbits.. but anyhow- it’s a food I can’t consume). 
             100g of generic trail mix= 450c, Day Average of 300g. = 1350cal.
             Day Total, thus far= 2400 cal total so far.. not bad really.

     When I was ruminating on the rendomness of the meal plan, I was thinking that I wouls need SO MUCH food.. I mean, I do need a ton of food especially for the protracted journeys from/ to like.. San Francisco to Hawaii… Hawaii to the next landfall.. that landfall to the next. That stretch right there is HUGE and I’ll admit- it’s a bit of a speedbump. But, in going over just the few bits and pieces I’ve pulled together above it looks like I’ll be able to make it work afterall.
     I am looking in to a commercial Freeze Dryer.. with that, I’ll be able to pre- cook all of my meals (or most of them anyhow) and… freeze dry them down to.. almost powder so that storage/ cartage will be a breeze. 

More to come, shortly.