# good food for bob



## er6nrider (Jul 12, 2011)

So im still building my bob slowly and need to know what your guys thoughts are on some good bars to eat. I have five powerbars in there but do you guys know of any heavy calorie bars or a good food source in general?


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## Tweto (Nov 26, 2011)

I don't have a BOB but I keep pop tarts in my survival bag. High in fat, high in sugar, last forever and cheap. They need to be in a hard plastic container to keep them from smashing.

I have never found any other food that worked as well.


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## The_Blob (Dec 24, 2008)

er6nrider said:


> So im still building my bob slowly and need to know what your guys thoughts are on some good bars to eat. I have five powerbars in there but do you guys know of any heavy calorie bars or a good food source in general?


Well, my suggestions depend on how much weight/space you dedicate to food and how much potable water you will have access to.

Datrex, Mainstay, etc etc are pretty good for lightweight calorie bars. Protein powders (weight gainer fuel) if you have lots of water.

I recommend a portable water filter first off; then dehydrated/powdered foods, then food in pouches/packets, then canned goods due to packaging weight.


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## lucaspm98 (Apr 23, 2012)

personally, I prefer freeze dried or dehydrated foods over bars b/c they last longer usually and you can make full, tasty meals with them if you have the time


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## Ration-AL (Apr 18, 2012)

i recommend chucking a few of the carb/protein based power gels like that marathoners use during races, usually not bigger then a packet of mustard or ketchup they typically are packed full of calories, while not enough to live on it'll definitely help get you through a few days or to your next point and in my opinion the weight/space to use/worth is great enough to at least chuck a few in there as they take up virtually no space.

Since we are all self reliant here, here's a blog that describes how to make your own gels.
http://www.nomoredependence.com/2010/12/diy-energy-gel/

and another

http://www.ehow.com/how_6733533_make-own-power-gel.html

i usually use the hammer brand .


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## echo1432 (May 16, 2012)

Piggy backing off Ration-AL, power gels are good. I like cliff bars too, they don't taste bad and give me a few hours of energy.


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

Tweto said:


> I don't have a BOB but I keep pop tarts in my survival bag. High in fat, high in sugar, last forever and cheap. They need to be in a hard plastic container to keep them from smashing.
> 
> I have never found any other food that worked as well.


Corn chips.not only can you eat them, they burn like candles!


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

NOW THIS is useful info! thanks for the share!


How to Make Energy Gel

In a survival or emergency situation, water, food, and shelter will often be among your top priorities. Depending on the situation, food may not readily be available around the region where the disaster took place. If it came down to that, the survivor may have to travel to acquire a new food source.

Whatever the case, a practical, cost saving do it yourself project can ensure you always have a few days worth of food until more can be acquired. Obviously, an individual couldn’t survive solely off eating energy gels, but they will provide a burst of energy allowing the survivor to press on.

This post will discuss how to make your own energy gel, which is nutritionally similar to Power Gel or comparable product. Not only will making it yourself provide dramatic savings over buying Power Gel (or most any other brand), but it also allows the survivor to have complete control over the ingredients used.

Before you learn about several basic energy gel recipes, it’s important to have a basic understanding of how energy gels work.

How Energy Gels Work

In order to fully realize the benefits of energy gels, it’s important to know how they work.

The glycemic index measures how quickly types of food is likely to raise your blood sugar. So if your blood sugar is low and continuing to drop during strenuous physical activity, it would be ideal to eat a carb that will raise your blood sugar quickly.

Or, if you would like to keep your blood sugar from dropping during a few hours of milder activity, it would make sense to eat a carb that has a lower glycemic index and longer action time.

The following is a list of some common sugars you could potentially use to make an energy gel and their relative glycemic index score. Glucose is the baseline with a score of 100, keep in mind this list is approximate values and depending on what source you’re looking at, the values may vary slightly:

Glucose – 100
Fructose – 22
Lactose – 46
Sucrose (white sugar) – 64
Brown Sugar – 64
Barley Malt Syrup- 42
Brown Rice Syrup – 25
Raw Honey – 30
Agave Syrup – 15
High Fructose Corn Syrup – 62
Stevia – < 1
Sugar Cane Juice – 43
Evaporated Cane Juice – 55
Maple Syrup – 54
Black Strap Molasses – 55
Maltodextrin – 105

Generally, brown rice syrup and agave syrup are preferred for a longer lasting, steady supply of energy. Feel free to experiment with various sugar types to see how your body reacts as well as the taste. You may even want to keep two or more batches of energy gel in a survival kit, one with a sugar with a high score and the other with a lower score. That way you can use either a longer lasting but milder gel or if you need it, an energy gel that will provide a rapid burst of energy that will soon wear off. Like other survival foods, there is no recipe written in stone. Keep in mind you can also add additional supplements such as crushed up caffeine tablets, protein and/or vitamin powders, etc., to maximize the effect of the energy gel. Use the tool below to gather basic nutritional values of each ingredient you choose to use.

Recipes

Below are some common recipes, feel free to modify and/or create your own favorite combination to create your ideal energy gel. Consider sharing them so that others may also benefit from your knowledge!

75% Brown Rice Syrup 25% Agave Syrup1 Tsp Salt (or electrolyte powder)

60% Brown Rice Syrup 40% Honey

40% Brown Rice Syrup 30% Honey 30% Blackstrap Molasses



Some additional supplements include: caffeine tablets, green tea powder, protein/BCAA powder, multivitamin powder or crushed up tablet, etc. Be advised that by adding these additional supplements, the shelf life will decrease. Many supplements are susceptible to extreme temperatures so it’s best to not keep any supplement enhanced gels for storage more than a day or two.

Summary

Now that you’ve made your energy gel, you’ll need a good container to store it in. There’s a multitude of options for storage. Some products are solely designed for DIY energy gel, common brands include Coghlan Squeeze Tubes and Hammer Gel Flasks. You can just as easily improvise by using various hygiene squeeze tubes and bottles commonly found in the travel or sample sized section of most grocery/convenience stores.

If you’re having trouble mixing the gel, simply add the ingredients in the container then securely fasten the lid. Submerge the container in hot water for a few moments and shake it around. The hot water will help loosen the viscosity of the ingredients inside allowing them to more easily mix. If using only basic ingredients such as brown rice syrup, honey, agave syrup, etc., the shelf life of the energy gel will last almost indefinitely if stored in an airtight, waterproof container at room temperature. Remember, if you choose to you add additional supplements, this will dramatically decrease the shelf life.


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## tac803 (Nov 21, 2010)

Datrex and mainstay are good choices...long shelf life, relative high nutrition to weight ratio, and they taste pretty good.


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## sailaway (Mar 12, 2009)

lucaspm98 said:


> personally, I prefer freeze dried or dehydrated foods over bars b/c they last longer usually and you can make full, tasty meals with them if you have the time


I'm with lucaspm98 on this one, I have freeze dried meals in my BOB, from Mountain House. I have a 3 day supply.

One issue I have not figured out yet is that I am Hypoglycemic and not sure what the best solution is for me.:scratch Refined carbs can send me into an energy tail spin real fast, and the types of food that are good for me don't store all that long.


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

Nothing is better than keeping your body's meals and eating schedule as close to "normal" as possible. Take that into consideration... sometimes it's especially true for women.

Nathanael Morrison says the Canadian military guys had some peanut butter/honey tubes to give them a boost. I want to add that to my stash.

I've yet to eat or drink any energy bars and such... but I could sure see where the the concepts such as athlete gels could be a big help. I guess I need to find a few that my body can handle!


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## Ration-AL (Apr 18, 2012)

Fn/Form said:


> Nothing is better than keeping your body's meals and eating schedule as close to "normal" as possible. Take that into consideration... sometimes it's especially true for women.
> 
> Nathanael Morrison says the Canadian military guys had some peanut butter/honey tubes to give them a boost. I want to add that to my stash.
> 
> I've yet to eat or drink any energy bars and such... but I could sure see where the the concepts such as athlete gels could be a big help. I guess I need to find a few that my body can handle!


actually the fasting and then feasting diet is better for you, i have been eating like this for 90% of my life, it's just my nature, for a few days i will only eat one smallish-med meal a day then for a few days i will eat all 3 with med to large portions. it's not something that i have ever tried to do, it's just my natural cycle of eating i guess, point is all the way up until recently with the over abundance of food humans have eaten this way, and has been known to be good since the 30's that if we could reduce our caloric intake by half we would all live 30% longer


> Researchers first discovered the benefits of low-calorie eating in the Thirties. They found that putting a rat - or a worm, or a fruit fly or just about any animal, as it turned out - on a permanent very low calorie diet helped the animal live about 30 per cent longer than normal.
> 
> The animal had clearer arteries, lower levels of inflammation, better blood sugar control and its brain cells were less likely to get damaged. Meanwhile, rates of diseases linked to aging all dropped.


better article 
http://articles.latimes.com/2007/dec/10/health/he-eat10

anyways, i think we as Americans should all fast for a few days at least once in our lives so we truly know what it is like to be hungry, and i'm not talking about oh, it's an hour past lunch and i'm starving, lol, go a few days without food just to see what it's like to actually be starving, for the most to gain a little empathy for the least to be prepared for what may come for all of us, lol

so i'll just say, being healthy,in shape, and already have a good diet going on will make what food you have in you BOB go alot further and me more useful:2thumb:


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## md1911 (Feb 9, 2012)

Ration-AL said:


> actually the fasting and then feasting diet is better for you, i have been eating like this for 90% of my life, it's just my nature, for a few days i will only eat one smallish-med meal a day then for a few days i will eat all 3 with med to large portions. it's not something that i have ever tried to do, it's just my natural cycle of eating i guess, point is all the way up until recently with the over abundance of food humans have eaten this way, and has been known to be good since the 30's that if we could reduce our caloric intake by half we would all live 30% longer
> 
> better article
> http://articles.latimes.com/2007/dec/10/health/he-eat10
> ...


I'm not arguing with your post I'm not sure your right about the diet and not eating but I do have a similar eating habbit to what you described.

But I have been hungry before. 3 days with no food and it really sucked. Its not a experiance I would wnt to repeat. But it deffenantly makes you appreciate what you eat.


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## bahramthered (Mar 10, 2012)

I've been on that diet myself. Seems to be my default during layoffs.


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## Ration-AL (Apr 18, 2012)

md1911 said:


> I'm not arguing with your post I'm not sure your right about the diet and not eating but I do have a similar eating habbit to what you described.
> 
> But I have been hungry before. 3 days with no food and it really sucked. Its not a experiance I would wnt to repeat. But it deffenantly makes you appreciate what you eat.


no worries, as far as diets go whatever works for you , lol, nothing i ever say is a commandment, just what has worked for me and what i do , sorry if it came across as anything but ,

i was also just saying that just like we have Americans who don't know where milk and eggs come from besides the store , those same people don't know hunger and if they did they'd be working harder and prepping a bit themselves, I'm sure alot of us here had struggles that made us appreciate what we have and understand the need to be self reliant by putting a little something back for a rainy day , and if you haven't struggled like this you probably should just so you know how good you got it and can appreciate it and what others had to go through to get there as well


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## md1911 (Feb 9, 2012)

Ration-al. I was just wondering were you got your information on peoples eating habbits. And if the diet works for you that's great. I have the same eating habbit but as far as loosing weight on it (I'm not). But then I'm not over weight by a lot either. I don't know.

My opinion is a lot of people would do good to lose some weight. And your right most people in america probably don't know what its like to be hungry.


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## Ration-AL (Apr 18, 2012)

md1911 said:


> Ration-al. I was just wondering were you got your information on peoples eating habbits. And if the diet works for you that's great. I have the same eating habbit but as far as loosing weight on it (I'm not). But then I'm not over weight by a lot either. I don't know.
> 
> My opinion is a lot of people would do good to lose some weight. And your right most people in america probably don't know what its like to be hungry.


well in regards to my post, history, read the article i tried to post a critical one, the abundance of food is a new thing , look at the people still living in the jungles, they are living the Hunter gather life style we all came from, eating more some days then others depending on the catch , you never really see a fat tribesmen , lol , this is how humans have eaten and still eat in many parts of the world, the main reason we live so long is our awesome medicines and medical procedures its not because most Americans are healthy and a good diet lol , anyway like i said , your choice to accept it or not , you got Google and can read more about it if you wish , its just what i do.

you have to remember diet is only 1/2 of it exercise is also paramount, its all a matter of burning more calories than your taking in , if you want to lose weight... getting muscle definition is a separate matter, and also its more about body fat percentage then actual weight, and all of the above is based on regular caloric intake, you won't lose weight if you fast for a day then eat two days worth of meals the next also won't work if your single meal that day is 3 meals worth of calories in a single cheese burger , also if you just sit on the couch on the single meal day it won't work , you have to burn more then you take in ....


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## BillM (Dec 29, 2010)

*The quick diet*

A few years ago I found that my weight had crept up a little and I needed to lose about fifteen pounds to meet the requirments of my department .

I hate dieting and decided to just stop eating any solid food until I lost the fifteen pounds.

I went to the store and stocked up on V8 juice, orange juice, Apple juice and milk. I wanted to be sure to get adiquate minerals and vitimens, ect.

Everything was going nicely until the afternoon of the third day. I had been mowing and my wife asked me to do the weed eating in front of the property. There is a long ditch and she just could not handle the weed eater.

I got about half way finished and she came out carrying a quart of ice cold Apple juice. It was about 90 degrees and I sat down under a shade tree and drank the whole quart of juice.

I had just started back weed eating when some folks from down the road came by and blew the horn at me so I raised one hand high over my head and waved at them.

Big Mistake ! With no warning whatsoever I felt somthing running down my pants leg and knew immediatly that the last three days of liquid diet had escaped in one violent action. I just kept smileing and waving until the neighbors passed . I then gathered up the legs of my bib overalls and duck walked across the yard to the house.

I think the wave at the neighbors was the trigger that turned every thing loose.

The good news is that I lost 15 lbs in three days.

If you want to try this diet, pass on the quart of cold Apple juice and do not wave at anyone! :wave:


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

Everybodys dietary needs differ. Some folks do well on high carbs, others on high fats, etc.
In my bob are: single size jerky packets (Jack Links, 1 oz size,Wal Mart, $1 each) single serving size packages of trail mix (look in school lunch or nut area) tubes of nuts (several kinds) some high-energy drink mix tubes (Wal Marts brand, $1.97 for 20 tubes) some bouillon powder, some instant coffee tubes, and a good water filter. i do better with a protein based diet with a few complex carbs from the trail mix fruits. Also, caffeine pills (sold OTC for alertness) do dissolve nicely in liquids if you want the extra boost. But use judiciously as too much of anything, even caffeine, much as I like it, can upset stomachs and ulcers, and you want your wits about you in a crisis situation, not be worrying about a queasy stomach.


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