I have read in a document from the Marathon des Sables organisers that they recommend a minimum of 3,000 to 4,000 kilocalories per day per participant. 4,000 kilocalories is a lot! I have no idea how many calories or kcal I consume every day, but I will have to find out.
I got up at 06.10 this morning and had coffee with milk: 150 ml of coffee and 150 ml of milk, about 77 kcal. At around half past seven, I had a bowl of cereal with semi-skimmed milk, providing about 280 kcal. A small sandwich with three slices of chorizo and a little olive oil adds 175 kcal. Four biscuits Chiquilin with milk add another 240 kcal. A further milky coffee of 77 kcal at around eleven brings my mid-morning total to 849 kcal.
At about half past two, I had 150 grams of fresh pasta with cheese, equivalent to roughly 320 kcal. For my second course, an 80-gram beef steak with chips, adding around 350 kcal.
Two mandarins at 47 kcal each, followed by fruit yoghurt for dessert, adding another 120 kcal.
By three in the afternoon, I have already consumed 1,733 kilocalories. Looking at the rest of the day, I reckon I could reach 2,800 or 3,000 kilocalories without an afternoon snack. Seeing how much I use while sitting at work and hardly moving, I think the MDS organisers’ estimate of 4,000 kcal falls short for me… After running a 35-kilometre stage through the desert with a 10-kilo backpack, an energy bar will not satisfy my hunger: I will need a whole camel. Perhaps stomach-reduction surgery would help? No, there is no time, only a few weeks left… The tight-belt method is a simple way to reduce stomach space: take a belt and tighten it until the pain makes you forget you are hungry…
My goodness, I am going to be hungry! I will have something else to eat. I need a new strategy: instead of carrying a supermarket on my back, I will try eating it over the coming weeks and carrying it on my body instead.