First protein either has to be maintained during the field problem or it must be tapered off before hand. My recommendation is to taper. The years prior I had always looked for pogie bait to bring to the field. I have yet to find a high protein source that tasted good, had no storage constraints, and didn’t melt into a chocolaty mess in a wrapper. I had pondered the idea of trapping some of the endangered species, they like to keep in the training areas, but that would have taken to much energy. Tapering off protein is much more feasible and will produce better results.

Now all these cool ideas won’t matter if you’re not eating right in the first place! So this assumes you know your daily caloric needs and intake. Going into this is beyond the scope of this article. Starting about one month out will probably be sufficient time to reduce your protein slowly enough for the body to adapt. This can be modified down to approximately a week, depending on current intake, and what your field maintenance will be. “But I go to the field nine months out of the year.” Well guess what junior, your probably not going to achieve your physique goals while on this schedule as is, so don’t worry if you can’t have your favorite chocolate shake for a little while. When you get out of the field you can slam down all the ones you missed in one sitting if it makes you feel better. Although a weeks worth of powered drinks in a half hour period doesn’t seem too appetizing.

Now as for what to bring with you to the field, pretty much depends on your personal needs. Anything with a lot of sugar will just make you feel like crap and give you a headache, especially in the heat. Carbs are good if you can find something not too processed and won’t spoil the first day. Most your meals will probably rely heavily on the yummy MRE’s and whatever hot chow you may get. Stock up on all the extra stuff they give out, live fruit or the extra MRE bread. Steal food whenever you can, you never know when you’ll see it again. Make friends with cooks and whoever brings it to you. They can provide you with enough food to last at least a couple days without worry of re-supply.

This is the best advice I can give you at the moment. As knowledge in this area is increased I’ll be sure to bring all updates to you here on this site. Maybe I’ll be able to invent some kind of cheap space food for the field environment that actually tastes good. Till then stockpile your food and make friends with your local spoon!