Lessons From the Trail: Salt Deficiency

Welcome to the first installment of Lessons from the Trail. This is a mini series I will be doing on this blog to help those of you that are hikers also or may consider doing a thru hike.  The topic this time is salt deficiency.  Before I came on the trail I didn't even consider this to be a factor and I am very fortunate I never ran into big problems.  I never imagined I would sweat as much as I do when hiking.  The temperature is not horrible like Florida but when going uphill or long distances sweating is a factor.  Mix this with days on end of hiking and you could potentially run into issues.  Probably the most common symptoms are muscle cramps and fatigue but can lead to much worse things.  Ive noticed I start to get fatigued when not consuming enough salt and am sweating a ton.  Drinking tons of water which you do when hiking and sweating can worsen the condition also.  After the 100 mile wilderness I recognized the issue and now include lots of salt/electrolytes in my diet.  Things like powder packet Gatorade drink mixes help.  During times of extreme sweating I chew salty sunflower seeds which I am not a fan of but it really helps.  They are dirt cheap and weigh nothing so its good hiking food.  Salted nuts are something else I am going to try.  Be smart when outdoors and realize that for the average person the typical little day hike or whatever this wont be an issue because your body has a stockpile of salt.  Its when doing something for a long time like I am that this is more of an issue.  Please note that I am no expert, although I have a lot of experience outdoors, so you should always do your own research before you embark on an adventure.  Hopefully this helps somebody out there.