Weight Weenies

[akhunter87]

I would also say that one of my tents weighs almost 10 lbs (and it is a great tent I take when weight isn't an issue) and the other one weighs 3 lbs and change for sheep type stuff. Would I have bought the lighter tent to cut a few ounces, definitely not. I think it depends on your situation.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

There are times in a person's life when "seemingly simple solutions" are anything but. Just lose weight. Sounds easy enough but can be virtually impossible at times. Ever take the drug Prednisone? It can put 40lbs on a person over the course of 2-3 weeks. Many blood pressure meds can make weight loss impossible as well. Then there's just the natural slide that comes with the aging process. Throw in some surgeries and/or physical injuries that limit mobility and suddenly "just losing weight" doesn't seem so simple.

While the premise for this thread and thought-inspiring reason for it may be indeterminate...getting 280lbs up a mountain can be a simple thing or a nearly impossible thing...depending on the individual circumstances. While many roksliders will rush to recommend this pad or that quilt or the flavor of the month shelter, perhaps we should ask more questions before responding...to better meet the actual needs of the poster posing the questions. Sometimes the fanboys answer that's been copied & pasted 100 times is just dead wrong. The variables are endless and I think we have established that with absolute clarity now.



BTW...no matter how old you are, what you weigh, what mental and physical challenges you may face...life in the backcountry is always better so get out there. Don't let those opportunities pass. Covid is a reminder that we all have an unknown expiration date.

 

[Team4LongGun]

Nice to see most of you see & understand the thread's purpose...presenting the opposite of our established beliefs. Just a fun exercise although I did not expect to see belittling or geographic distain. A few need to get out of the house I think.

I appreciated the comparison, and subsequent thoughts about both sides. Don't let a few useless comments matter....

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Thanks Team4. Tiny points of light on a screen cannot hurt you...unless you let them. I don't.

 

[Felix40]

There is a big difference between weight carried on your hips and weight carried within your body.

I think your premise is flawed.

If you weight 200lbs and carry 75lb pack you would not perform as well as a 275lb guy that carries zero weight.
To make it a bit more extreme...a 160lb guy with a 115lb pack would not do as well either.
Keeping overall BMI/strength ratios/cardio the same.
There is a sliding scale in there that would take too long to figure out per individual...but that may provide the answer you are looking for...

I think both...losing weight off your body within reason and losing weight off your pack is the solution.
One takes time...one takes money. Plan accordingly.

Or...you could take the analytical approach...with assumptions of course.
So lets say dropping 10lbs will take an extra 50 hours of work over a couple months.
What is your time worth? So lets say you are worth $100/hr...that would cost you $5,000 to shed 10lbs.
You can buy some pretty awesome gear with $5K and drop those pounds...off the pack.
(assuming: your normal training wouldnt shed the extra weight, your time is worth $100/hr, you spend that found time producing 100 of value per hour, you shed .2lbs per hour of "extra" work)

Fun to think about...

Then to make it more difficult you have to consider what the value of your life is and how much longer you may live if you get in better shape. Losing weight will most likely involve exercise and better diet which will add days to your life as well as improve quality of life.

 

[roosiebull]

My personal goal wt. when hunting season comes around is 150-155 lbs. At that wt. I really don't have room to drop more body wt. so my only option is dropping pack wt. The older I get, the less wt. I want to carry on my back and if I can afford to spend more money on lighter, and a lot of times better, gear, I'm going to do it.

I’m kinda the same, but a few years ago I got up to almost 190lbs, I’m 6’ even... I started having knee problems, and decided to drop some weight... now I’m 155-160, and now after spring bear season I’m down to 150, and am trying to gain back 10.

I did take the approach of dropping weight, not to walk around lighter necessarily, but to take some strain off my knees. All of the walking I do in combination of working on the ocean my whole life takes it’s toll.

I do think dropping some weight is better than trying to drop pack weight, because dropping pack weight usually means a lot of money or compromising comfort... shedding 10lbs through the year makes more sense (unless you are as light as you want to get)

I hate fixating on ounces, I know they add up but I keep things reasonable without fixating.

my weight doesn’t fluctuate much during the year, I’m either working on the ocean, running around the woods or climbing up and down coastal river canyons chasing salmon and steelhead, I’m lucky in that regard, trying to diet every year prior to hunting season sounds like a drag.

I do think for someone looking to drop a few lbs, the theme of this thread is a great concept, I took that approach and my knees have been better... still not perfect, but not getting worse at a noticeable rate.

the year that they started bothering me was the one year I logged my boot miles for 365 days, and my fishing and hunting related walking miles was just shy of 1650 miles...

 

[Molon Labe]

Then to make it more difficult you have to consider what the value of your life is and how much longer you may live if you get in better shape. Losing weight will most likely involve exercise and better diet which will add days to your life as well as improve quality of life.

Good point. The cost of medical care comes into play. So maybe spending the money on a personal trainer or spending more time dropping pounds you may save in the long run?

OR...how about this...spend less money on gear or working out...save yourself a couple grand and some time. THEN....hire some young tough dude to haul all your stuff up the mountain. I'm sure someone would do that for $15/hr or something. Ideally this dude would be able to carry 100+lbs...have really good eyes and possibly have his own really good glass. While he is waiting for you to kill your animal he could help glass and maybe come up with a plan to stalk the animal you guys found. You could probably get by paying him $120/day for a week and come out ahead! I think I'm onto something here...maybe i will patent the idea.

I think the answer to Bruce's question is: if you have plenty of disposable money...spend it on gear. If you dont have much money...spend your time training and buy gear that gets the job done. And if you are not married? Well then spend the money on gear...spend the time training...do whatever you want and enjoy the freedom!

 

[AKSilent1]

Stop and think about the coin you spend cutting weight. The lightest pack, the lightest shelter, the lightest sleeping bag or quilt...etc. So let's say you weigh 200lbs and your 10 day pack weights 75. Your hiking weight (with boots and clothes, cell phone, and such is about 280lbs give or take. You spent hundreds (probably thousands) to cut your pack weight 10-12lbs. Is that smarter than losing 10-12lbs and carrying slightly heavier and much less expensive gear? I'm asking for a friend.

View attachment 187485

I seem to recall that the established brands recommend the weight of your pack should be a fraction of your body weight. Somewhere between 25 and 40% of your body weight. I wonder if that still applies? I recently spoke to a 63 year old Master Guide who spent 40 years guiding moose and bear hunts. He has two total knee replacements and multiple surgically fused spinal columns. He connected his ailments all to grossly overloaded packs and far too many miles.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

I'm liking what I'm reading! Isn't this fun?

 

[kcbuckeye22]

A month ago I was daydreaming and thinking of packing in on a another Arkansas Backpack Whitetail hunt or going deep into WV doing the same. I'm 37 and had 3 knee surgeries last year including my ALC and microfracture on my femur. I gained 26 lbs since the surgery. I took my tax return and purchased better lighter equipment. In three and a half weeks I've LOST 18 lbs by fasting, eating correct portion sizes, drinking black coffee, and exercising 4 times a week. My weight went from 234 to 216. I'm wanting to get below 200lbs before my hunts and by cutting my pack weight by 10lbs I feel like I'm going to be able to accomplish my task.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Congrats KC...keep at it.

 

[Fitzwho]

No one has ever accused me of being skinny. I fell out of doing CrossFit a couple years ago after having my last knee surgery, then taking some pay cuts at work. I have a hard time making myself workout to the same level as being in a class.

I don’t worry too much on the lightest gear. There’s some of my gear that I would take a weight penalty (be heavier) if it just took up less space. I’m not going to spend twice the money to save an ounce or two by any means.

I’m walking around about 340 at the moment. It’s the heaviest I have ever been. I’m 6’ 5”, so most people don’t think I’m over 280. Which is more The weight I’m shooting for. For this fall just trying to drop down to as close to 300 as I can, which in years past has been left me pretty capable in the woods.

Started a walking/hiking regiment last week. Been averaging 4 miles a day to start. 5 miles this morning. Will be adding weight here and there to get back under my pack. Where I am currently, my hike around weight with some weight in my pack will approach 400lbs.

I’m never going to be a “Mountain Athlete” but I’ll get around.

and on the rifle portion. I can carry my 7lb rifle in one hand all day without fatigue, but my 9lb 300WM on a sling makes my shoulder want to fall apart.

 

[eLightfoot]

My pack is always the same weight because the chit I bring is always the same. Unless there is going to be extreme wet or cold weather. More food for longer trips is another factor. That being said, my pack is usually around 55lbs for a 5 day trip. To me 55lbs is pretty light and I honestly can't tell much difference between 55 and 65lbs when its on my back and I get to work hiking. In most cases I'll carry in 10-12 cans of IPA and a water bottle full of whiskey. I've never regretted it, coming back to camp and having a beer is pretty damn nice, and a shot of whiskey with dinner while you tell stories with your buddies. And Im talking a 6 mile pack in with 2000' elevation gain.

 

[ChrisAU]

Hunting gear is the hobby that keeps me going when it's not hunting season. When I decided I wanted to do backcountry hunting I quickly dropped 25-30 lbs, then slowly another 5-10. I could definitely stand to lose 20 more, working on it. But the pack weight thing is more of a hobby to me than it is a necessity. I did 8 days last year with less than 50 lbs skin out with weapon water and food. It was much more pleasant than the previous year where that number was more around 80 lbs skin out and I was 10 lbs lighter than the previous year myself. Something has been wrong with my lighterpack list and I haven't been able to log in for 3 days...I'm about to have a nervous breakdown

 

[Bradybunchdad]

I have not ran a 50+ backpack but it seems to me the guys saying loose weight on both ends are correct.

 

[Dustin the wind]

The one that always gets me are the people that make the decision not to carry a sidearm based off 20 to 30 ounces. I think anyone in here could trim that off the gut unless they are under %10 body fat.

 

[JeremySheppard]

I was given advice some time ago that seemed helpful: focus on the 3-5 heaviest individual things in the pack, and consider whether you can cut weight on them. The rationale was that sparing weight on a tiny item doesn't yield much total savings (and if you do that for everything, you start to obsess), but finding 10 or more % on even a few heavy items makes a substantial difference.

As for comfort to weight trade off, isn't it about what keeps you out there? Light is comfortable but if a pound of M&M's keeps you stoked, and that keeps you out there, I guess it s a good pound to carry.

 

[JeremySheppard]

The one that always gets me are the people that make the decision not to carry a sidearm based off 20 to 30 ounces. I think anyone in here could trim that off the gut unless they are under %10 body fat.

Agreed. Not allowed to carry a side-arm here but would if i could (especially bow only trips). I have 'two sidearms' of gut and butt that could go....

 

[Dustin the wind]

Agreed. Not allowed to carry a side-arm here but would if i could (especially bow only trips). I have 'two sidearms' of gut and butt that could go....

I feel for you on that ridiculous rule!

 

[big44a4]

I was given advice some time ago that seemed helpful: focus on the 3-5 heaviest individual things in the pack, and consider whether you can cut weight on them. The rationale was that sparing weight on a tiny item doesn't yield much total savings (and if you do that for everything, you start to obsess), but finding 10 or more % on even a few heavy items makes a substantial difference.

As for comfort to weight trade off, isn't it about what keeps you out there? Light is comfortable but if a pound of M&M's keeps you stoked, and that keeps you out there, I guess it s a good pound to carry.

Agreed here. I carry one snickers each day and some gummy bears. They are heavy but worth it.

I always try to go into the season normal/heavy (205-210 at 5’10 and 30” waist) because at end of the hunt I’m worn down and lost 10+ lbs. If I start any lighter it would negatively impact my energy levels and ability to hike miles each day. Have to know your body.


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