Hello…I’ve been on Keto since June of this year and have lost about 22 pounds. I’m a slow and steady girl and decided I’m not in a race to lose this weight. I also have been doing Intermittent Fasting since last fall. Occasionally I will do a 24 hour fast. Anyhow a couple of weeks ago I climbed Mount Manadnock in New Hampshire. I had been doing a lot of walking and walking up stairs to ready myself for the climb. (I work in a building that has 14 floors… I also walk up and down the parking garage which is 8 floors)
The morning of the climb I did not eat and wanted to be in a fasted state thinking that my fat reserves would kick in and give me the energy I needed. Instead this climb kicked my but. (I still have another 30 pounds to loose so I know the fat is there.), but I kept getting light headed, I had to keep stopping and resting, I felt dizzy, I made it to the top that should have taken us about 2 to 3 hours but instead it took me almost 4. Going down was easier because I had food at the top. I was a little surprised by this. Anyone else experience anything like this? What do you think I was missing?
Hiking
Part of it yes, you’re still carrying weight. Part of it is also it’s not a simple feat to climb a mountain haha, sure you’ll get winded etc. If you start doing it regularly you would see an improvement…
Also it was something new and you worked yourself differently than before.
You could tweak how you do it next time by eating first and or bringing food along, learning how/when to rest.
CONGRTAS! That’s a long hike.
Hi Cris –
I like to do a lot of fasted exercise/activity as well, but even a 90 minute bike ride for me might require some additional energy, so sometimes I take an apple along.
A 2-3 hour hike certainly has the potential to kick your ass, so it won’t hurt to take some fuel and water along. And for me, I would use that kind of hike as an opportunity to eat carbs like fruit, as you’ll burn them up on the hike, and they can be a good source of quick energy for that kind of activity.
I had the opposite experience. I recently hiked 9 miles on a hot day wearing a 48 pound pack, and felt fine. I gereally only eat once a day, and occasionally do 24, 36, and 48 hour fasts.
Had the same experience 3 weeks ago hiking Cascade Mtn in NY. I do a 16/8 IF for a 2 months now so I did not plan to eat until on top of the mountain. I also had no clue what was the proper protocole… I also have plenty of fat to loose (20lbs), I had the hardest time climbing ever. I was completely out of breath all the time, felt I had zero strength/energy in my legs. I had to stop all the time. I did drink a lot of water and at some point I took some nuts as I could not continue pushing so hard. I do not have answers but looking for all your answers as i have the same questions. A coworker fast for Ramadan and still run 10-21k a few times a week during his fasting period and he said he did his best time during last Ramadan… (he has no fat to loose…) I guess the level of your athletic shape also plays a part… I’d be interested to know what are the recommendation when doing long activity too.