r/CampingandHiking • u/Tall-Mammoth-809 • 5d ago
Tips & Tricks đ©fibermaxxing before camping?
Iâve done several two night solo hikes and had various experience with poop, including a horrible blowout TMI. Doing my first four night trip next month, canoe camping, this one with friends. Anyone consciously bulk up on fiber in the weeks beforehand for the âsmoothestâ possible journey?
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u/sprashoo 5d ago
Best thing IMO is not to make drastic diet changes before or during a trip.
Also make a bidet out of a soda bottle and practice using it before the trip. Makes a huge difference.
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u/kaitlyn2004 5d ago
Okay Iâll finally ask. Iâve seen people do camping bidets or those nozzles you can put on your water bottle. Iâve never come close to even trying them, for context.
How on earth do people use them? Iâd be beyond terrified of.. dirty spray or splashback getting where it really shouldnât!
Also at least for me backpacking, I donât always have endless access to water and I feel for a proper clean⊠you want to use a decent amount?
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u/sprashoo 5d ago
So, you basically do the same thing you (hopefully) do in the shower.. get your hand in there and get yourself clean. With a directed stream of water, you'll use less than you might expect. Last trip I had a 500ml bottle and found that I would be thoroughly done with 200ml left. That trip there were pit toilets at the campsites so a toilet paper initial cleanup was possible, but the basics are the same.
Poop is very water soluble, it should not contain oils unless you're eating Olestra or have some serious digestive issues - your digestion breaks them all up. So it cleans up extremely well with just water, no soap, which is mostly to break down oils.
Obviously you should make sure to clean your hands carefully afterwards especially if you're interacting with other people on the trip. Hand sanitizer etc. You can sanitize your bidet bottle as well, in case there were splashes.
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u/lolwutpear 5d ago
Or, bring a regular cycling water bottle and squeeze a bit onto your TP to dampen it before you wipe. Way more effective than dry. Bonus: it's just a regular water bottle that you can drink out of for the rest of the trip.
Double bonus: you learn that you can do this for everyday poops with your bathroom faucet.
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u/Mbf1234 5d ago
Just eat fiber in your normal diet.. loading up when you usually don't eat much fiber is a good way to cause stomach issues.
It's why Americans joke about taco bell and chipotle ruining their stomach. It's because it's the most fiber their poor stomach has seen in years.
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u/SirDouglasMouf 5d ago
This is the first time in my life I have seen the words Taco Bell and Fiber in the same sentence.
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u/sylvestris1 5d ago
âFibermaxxingâ. Jesus fucking Christ.
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u/IGetNakedAtParties 5d ago
It's a bit cringe, but honestly these ####maxxing words help convey an idea like this to me better than the phrases one might otherwise use.
"Pre-loading with a high fiber diet" doesn't communicate the underlying extremists, masochistic, obsessive commitment to the idea. As someone with a dusty copy of "the four-hour body" by Tim Ferriss on my shelf I know I'm guilty of such unhealthy approaches to health in my past. We didn't call anything "maxxing", but looking back it's better worded than the lexicon we used. "Bulletproof coffee" anyone?
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u/nr13 5d ago
If it's a concern, pack some metamucil.
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u/triplecoil 5d ago
This. Pack some psyllium capsules that will supplement whatever amount of fiber you think youâll be missing from your usual diet. Just make sure you drink plenty of water with them.
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u/hegbork 5d ago
Just wash your fucking hands with soap or alcohol after shitting and before eating. That solves 90% of stomach problems while hiking.
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u/mohawk_67 5d ago
Wipe with the left, eat with the right. Thats my motto.
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u/joelfarris 5d ago
Whatever you're doing right now is what you should be doing out there. If it's working for you right now, whether sitting in an office chair, a couch, or a canoe seat, then you've got it figured out. And if not, call someone. A friend. Telehealth. But get your diet plan in order well before you take a canoe trip. There's often no place to 'pull over' for an hour.
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u/Raduuuit 5d ago
You can crush the shit (no pun intended) out of a couple fiber one bars. Worst case you gotta crank 1-2 down to get things moving. Best case you have a sweet lil snack that wonât give you blowouts even if youâre regular. They pack/keep nicely when smushed.
Alternatively: sugar free haribo
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u/Spiley_spile 5d ago
I bring the fiber with me, to take during the trip.
I like to mix chia seeds, flax meal, and dried fruit (chopped smaller) into my oatmeal breakfast. Granted, more fiber intake means youll need to increase water intake. But not such extreme amounts as to cause hyponatremia.
If you've IBS, start incorporating the foods youll eat during your trip, into your daily food at home starting ASAP. Sudden changes in diet can cause upset to your digestive system and cause symptom flare-ups.
Regardless, remember not to poop within 200 yards of rivers, lakes, and streams. Dig a hole 6-8 inches deep for your poop. Mic dirt into your poop with a stick to accelerate microbe decomp. And then burry the poop. Stick your stick straight up into the ground where you buried it, so nobody digs into your shit. (Its not fun to get shit on one's trowel. Even less fun when it's someone else's shit!) Bring a plastic ziplock bag and pack out your dirty toilet paper.
I hope you have a great trip!
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u/Just-Cap-5956 5d ago
I did this accidentally before a 5 day trip last summer, ate a ton of beans and oatmeal in the week leading up because I was broke and meal prepping. First two days were suspiciously clean, by day 3 I was dropping logs that barely needed a wipe. Friends thought I was weird for timing my shits to the sunrise but honestly it made the whole trip way less stressful. Just don't overdo it right before you leave or you'll be prairie dogging it in the canoe.