There’s so much more to bikepacking than just riding a bike. One of the biggest challenges many adventure riders have is eating and drinking enough. It’s a constant battle that can completely change the outcome of a trip. I am often asked “What To Eat Bikepacking?”

As a seasoned bikepacker and ultra cyclist one of the biggest challenges I have faced is eating correctly. It’s not about just the amount of food and drink that you eat. It’s about the different types that make a big difference. In this article, I will be telling you what you need to know. 

• What Is Food?
• Understanding Calories
• Macros And What They Mean
• The GI Index And How It Helps You
• Making A Nutrition Plan

Disclaimer

Before we start, it’s important to understand I have studied nutrition as a level three personal trainer, and I am incredibly experienced when it comes to bikepacking and ultra cycling. I am not a full-blown nutritionist, and it’s important to understand this is just my opinion and is not professional advice. Anything you do with this advice is at your own risk.

What Is Food?

Let’s start by understanding what food is. Essentially, food is fuel, and it’s what the body needs to continue working properly. Each food has a calorie value, and the more calories, the more energy it can provide. 

Food is split into three different groups. You have carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Depending on which group they fall into and what they are made of gives us nutritional value. Fresh, unprocessed food often has better value than frozen, processed food.

Generally, an average man needs 2500 calories daily to function and maintain weight. An average woman requires 2000 to function and maintain. This is dependent on many things, such as activity level and even metabolism. 

All this we have spoken about here will be discussed in much further detail as we go through this article. By the end, you will understand how to properly fuel yourself and better understand bikepacking nutrition.

Understanding Calories

Calories are how we measure units of energy. You will see packets of food often referred to as kcal. The science behind it is that it takes one calorie to raise one gram of water by one degree Celsius at atmospheric pressure. 

As mentioned before, it’s around 2500 calories a day for men and 2000 for women. If you don’t consume enough calories, you become in a deficit, which means your body heads to its fat storage, and you lose weight.

If you eat more calories than you are burning, then the body will store the extra as body fat, and you will gain weight. This is what we call a calorie surplus and is what people go into when they want to increase their weight. 

How Many Calories Do You Burn Cycling?

When it comes to how many calories you burn while cycling, many factors affect it, and it’s a very personal thing. Here are the main ones to think about.

• Body Weight
• Body Height
• Muscle Mass
• How Hard You Are Working
• Metabolism 
• Male Or Female

The range of how many calories you burn when bikepacking will be between roughly 200 calories an hour, going very light and barely pedaling to 800 calories, flat out hammering it up a hill at full gas. 

So when bikepacking, you have 2500 / 2000 calories that you need for your body to function properly, and then for each hour, you ride another roughly 500 depending on your work rate. For five hours of riding a day, you will need a total of 5000 calories altogether.

Big Calorie Eating

Fitting in 5000 calories a day takes work. Honestly, most people struggle to get that, and we completely understand why. It’s double your normal intake of food or more. When ultra racing, the most I can get in is around 8000, and for anything else, my body relies on backup stored energy. 

How To Track Calories

The best way to track calories is to use an application on your phone. I personally use MyFitnessPal. I can find things I eat or search for them, and then it tells me not just the number of calories but also my macros and much more. 

Macros And What They Mean

Then we have macros. As mentioned before, Marcos breaks food down into three different groups. It’s good to understand when questioning what to eat bikepacking. You have carbohydrates, protein, and fats. These work very differently, and even per gram, they hold different amounts of calories.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram. Foods that fall into this category are pasta, bread, rice, and lots of sugar. They provide energy that can be converted into glucose quickly, which is required for your body to work at high-intensity levels. 

Proteins

Next, we have protein. This again has 4 calories per gram when it comes to energy. You will find protein in fish, beef, chicken, and even eggs. Protein’s job is to not just help fuel the body but to help it recover. It’s a slower-burning source of calories, but the muscles need it for recovery. 

Fats

Finally, we have fats. These have a huge 9 calories per gram as far as energy goes. You will find fats in oils, butter, cheese, and even cream. Fats are generally used as backup storage in the body but, unfortunately, convert to energy very slowly. 

What Macros Should I Be Having When Bikepacking?

The best macros to be having when bikepacking is a mix of all. Not only do you need the carbohydrates for times when you need short bursts of high energy, but the proteins help you recover, and the fats are great backup energy. 

The main focus should be carbohydrates while riding for the best energy possible and protein and fats while stopped and recovering.

 In real life, this would be heavy carbs throughout the day alongside some protein and fat. When you have stopped and are getting ready to rest for the night, heavy proteins and fats with carbohydrates are still included but not in a huge quantity like in the day.

The GI Index And How It Helps You

Next, it’s good to talk about the GI index in what to eat bikepacking. The glycaemic index is what is used to rank carbohydrates on how quickly they will affect your blood sugar (glucose) when eaten alone. This is such a valuable tool for bikepacking nutrition, and one very few understand.

A high glycemic index food will give you energy very quickly. This would be white rice, cornflakes, maybe potato, or even carbohydrate power. Perfect if you are coming into a tough section and need a quick boost. 

A low glycaemic index food releases energy much slower and spreads over a few hours. This could be whole-grain pasta, dates, and even plain yogurt. For more information on this, check out GI For Common Foods.

Mixing Foods For Energy Distribution

With the GI in mind, you can now understand why mixing the correct types of foods really matters for the best bikepacking experience. I like to have a big mixed breakfast of protein, carbs, and fats, then mainly carbs and heavy protein and fats for dinner. 

Making A Nutrition Plan

Before I go bikepacking or ultra cycling, I find it’s good to go with a rough nutrition plan. This helps power me through the miles knowing what to eat bikepacking, keeps my spirits high, and ensures I don’t lose too much weight on my travels or eat too little.

When it comes to a nutrition plan it’s different for everyone. There are so many factors that affect who you personally are, to your tastes and even the way your body reacts to certain foods. Here’s how I recommend starting. I will use myself as an example:

What I Need

Daily Calories	2500
Daily Water	2-3 Liters
Calories Per Hour (Avg)	500
Water Per Hour (Avg)	500 ml (Hot Day)

If I rode 7 hours per day, I would need 3500 calories to ensure I stay fueled riding and 2500 calories for my baseline energy. 6000 in total each day I’m bikepacking. I’m not too worried if I’m a little over or under, as I have backup storage in fats. I will also need around 4-6 liters of water (Roughly).

What To Eat?

Next, I like to think about what I’m going to eat and, depending on the destination, what I can easily get. I like to think about food on the different GI index where I might need instant energy and when I might need slow burning energy.

Timing And Balance

So, when you know how much you need to eat and what you plan to eat while riding, it’s good to break up the timing of the meals to ensure you don’t run out of energy. I like to make a little plan like this.

Breakfast	700 calories 500ml water.
Morning Riding (3 Hours)	300 calories, 500ml water per hour.
Lunch	1000 calories 500ml water.
Afternoon Riding (4 Hours)	300 Calories, 500ml water per hour
Evening Meal	1000 Calories 750ml water
Evening Snacks	500 Calories

This is how I would aim to break my day down and my eating. It’s important to understand that you can’t just eat your calories all in one go, or it isn’t going to have the best effect. Having a plan means you know when roughly you need to be eating.

A Final Note: What To Eat Bikepacking! 

What To Eat Bikepacking is such a personal thing, and what works for me might be perfect for you. There’s also a strong possibility it won’t work for you at all. The key to it all is understanding food on a much deeper level and what it can do for you. 

Thanks for taking the time to read what to eat bikepacking! If you enjoyed this, you might like The Ultimate Bikepacking Kit List, Dealing With Dogs When Bikepacking, and How To Make Your Bikepacking Setup Lighter!