Calories in the Backcountry: How to Pack Food that Actually Fuels You

Welcome to the Primitive Camping and Bushcraft blog. I am Chris Speir. Around here we talk about gear, real stories, and the kind of lessons that come from sitting around a fire. It is all about learning, adapting, and keeping your faith strong. Today we are talking about calories. What they really mean out in the woods, why you burn through them so fast, and how to pack food that keeps you going.

I am writing this from under a tarp on a muggy, windy, sunny, rainy kind of fall day. If you have spent more than one night in the woods, you already know food out here works differently than food at home. Out here, food is fuel. It affects your focus, morale, warmth, and endurance all at once. You can have the best camp setup in the world, but if you run out of calories, everything else starts to crumble.

The Primitiv Camping & Bushcraft Book

A Quick Word from the Book (p. 182)

On page 182 of the Primitive Camping and Bushcraft book, it says this: when you are heading into the wilderness, food becomes a major consideration for two reasons. One, food is heavy. Two, calories equal energy. You have to think outside the box. Even if you plan to forage or fish, bring a few flavor packets, seasonings, or small add-ins. There is no rule that says your meals have to be bland just because you are camping.

How Fast You Burn Out Here

Most people underestimate how many calories they burn in the woods. You move more, carry more, and deal with weather your body is not used to. Even staying warm burns calories. Shivering alone burns a surprising amount.

At home you might burn around two thousand calories a day. In the field you can easily burn thirty-five hundred to five thousand. Every swing of the axe, every step, every bit of effort adds up. If you do not replace what you spend, you will feel it. Your focus fades, you get short tempered, and mistakes start happening.

Lessons from Trips That Humbled Me

Early on, I used to pack light on purpose. I wanted to test myself. By day two the wheels would start to come off. One trip in particular stands out. My brother and I were drained. Headaches, tired, just running on empty. I had packed a small tube of peanut butter to use as bait for a squirrel trap, but I ended up eating it myself. Within minutes I felt like a new person. Peanut butter, nuts, and seeds are almost perfect foods. They have fats, proteins, and carbs all in one.

The Primitive Camping Rations

Plan by Calories, Not Just Meals

Freeze dried meals are convenient, but the labels can be deceiving. Some of them have less than seven hundred calories each. That is not enough when you are burning several thousand a day. I plan food by calorie count now. I aim for about five to six thousand calories per day on harder trips. I try to pack foods that give me at least one hundred twenty calories per ounce.

Here are a few of my go to options: Fats: peanut butter, olive oil, nut butters Protein: jerky, tuna packets, chicken packets Carbs: granola, oats, tortillas, instant potatoes, rice Boosters: trail mix, chocolate, electrolyte drink mixes

Small Batch Real Food Rations

I have been making Primitive Camping Rations in my commercial kitchen. These are home cooked meals that I freeze dry for the field. Real food, real ingredients. Some of the meals include red beans and rice, large lima beans with ham, pot roast with potatoes and carrots, breakfast skillets, and more.

Lower fat meals can store for many years, while higher fat meals are meant to be eaten sooner. If you want something special that you cannot find on store shelves, I can make small custom batches. Each run makes about twenty five meals. Send me your recipe or your idea and I can cook it, freeze dry it, and ship it to you.

Four Field Rules for Food

1. Eat by the clock, not by your hunger. Adrenaline and excitement hide your hunger until it is too late. Set times for eating and stick to them.

2. Fat is your friend. In cold weather or long days, fat gives you more energy than anything else. Add oils, nuts, and butters whenever you can.

3. Rotate your meals. Variety keeps morale high. Do not eat the same thing every day. I once ate chicken flavored ramen for twenty one days straight while deployed in Alaska. Never again.

4. Always bring one emergency meal. I like to use an MRE for this. Most of them are around two thousand calories or more. Pack one that you do not plan to eat unless you really need it.

Preparation and Dependence

When I plan food now, I think about Joseph storing grain for the famine. He prepared for what was coming. But I also think about the Israelites collecting manna. They trusted that tomorrow’s bread would be there again. That balance between preparation and trust matters. Sometimes you have time to prepare. Sometimes you just have to trust that provision will show up when you need it.

Takeaway

Plan by total calories, not just meal count. Pack calorie dense food that you actually enjoy eating. Eat on a schedule instead of waiting until you feel hungry. Keep an emergency meal you do not intend to eat. Practice with your food before your trip so your body knows what works.

Real Food, Freeze Dried Right

Primitive Camping Rations are small batch meals cooked fresh in a commercial kitchen and freeze dried for long term storage and easy use in the field. If you want to order some or request a custom batch, send me an email listed below. Once Primitive-Camping.com is live, the full menu will be posted there. Follow along with the podcast if you have not already

Thanks for reading and sitting around the fire with me today. If this helped you think about your food planning or even stirred your faith a bit, share it with someone who could use it. Until next time, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths. God bless you.