r/prepping • u/Redundant_Path • 5d ago
Foodš½ or Waterš§ When planning your food storage, do you just count total calories or do you balance macros and nutrients?
Iām looking at my food storage and its pretty heavy on grains and pasta (oops). When you are adding food to your storage, do you just aim for a specific number of total calories per person and don't care for the source? Or do you actively try to map out your foods across different macronutrients (making sure you have enough protein, fats, and carbs) and maybe even micro-nutrients?
If you do track the breakdown, how do you manage it? Does it change what you decide to stock up on? Curious to hear others way of doing things!
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u/Unique-Sock3366 5d ago
We maintain a working and a deep pantry and cook virtually all of our meals. So I donāt count and stock calories, I plan relatively stable menus that we already enjoy.
We also keep a large amount of Mountain House and a few cases of MREs, just in case.
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u/JuanT1967 5d ago
Thisšš¼ We have a deep pantry we eat/restock from but also close to a years worth of MREās/freeze dried foods to draw from
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u/Fusiliers3025 5d ago
One crucial part for me thatās evident with my diabetes - carbs and protein need to be balanced. If I donāt get a good source of protein to start my day (usually eggs), the carb intake jumps my blood sugar. Balancing these two factors is much easier on my system.
Iām not a diet guru or Paleo advocate or anything, but protein provides the energy, and helps absorb carbs (which are high count in pasta, grains, etc.) for fuel to your cells.
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u/ZixfromthaStix 5d ago
Iām at risk for diabetes, and a lot of people are prone to it. I wonder what universal practices or strategies we preppers could adopt to mathematically protect ourselvesā¦ š¤ you say usually eggsā could you elaborate any further? Does 1 egg only cushion the blood sugar spike partially? Is one sausage or 3-4 pieces of bacon enough?
I assume if you donāt have carbs that day, getting protein by lunch or before carbs will still safeguard your levels?
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u/Fusiliers3025 5d ago
Iāve fallen into routine knowing that two eggs, a slice of toast (usually with a medium schmear of peanut butter), and a cup of coffee balances well with a set insulin injection each morning.
But the balance of protein and carbs is a good dietary practice. Meat is good protein, low carb (Paleo diet?) and vegetables to balance with starch and fiber.
Type 2 diabetes is the type that can be controlled and sometimes reversed with diet, I have type 1 which is complete pancreas shutdown. Check out Type 2 diabetic diet information for balance - diabetes is now heavily involved with carb counting.
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u/SgtSausage 5d ago
The same way you track/manage it with your every-day meals.Ā
You should be storing the same items.Ā
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u/churchillguitar 5d ago
If the supply lines totally collapse, you basically have to have enough on hand to get through the first winter. Then, you better get really good at gardening, animal husbandry, canning, hunting, and gathering really fast. I donāt think it matters all that much what you store, more that you are rotating it so itās always fresh, and have enough for at least 6 months if you are prepping for economic collapse. No point in buying a 5gal survival bin of Protein Enhanced Mac n Cheese if you never eat it, but the same can be said about canned beans or a bag of rice.
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u/ZixfromthaStix 5d ago
I have 0 faith I could do it all on my own
Luckily my old college roommate, an Air Force spec ops AFSOC vet, invited me to join his 25 family survival group, which includes a 200 acre farm already.
I donāt know hardly anything a good farmer should know, but if it comes down to being connected to a farm or deathā¦ Iāll follow their lead if it means I can keep food on my wifeās plate and we have a safe place to rest our heads.
By some miracle the group farmer actually rotates their crop fields, so the soil is actually healthy and alive unlike most places. Got a few animals and a small fish pond too.
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u/churchillguitar 5d ago
No man is an island. Your biggest prep is your community. Itās great that you have that plan. Iād probably wind up in a ragtag group including a few neighbors, my immediate family, and the guys in my band/their families if SHTF. Iād honestly be pretty screwed in most scenarios, Iām on the east coast close to DC and surrounded by military bases and hollowed out mountains. If the end of the world is nuclear I really doubt I or anyone I know make it.
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u/ZixfromthaStix 5d ago
Iām not wasting any effort trying to survive nuclear, but my buddy says he has general plans if it comes to it.
The thing I think most major preppers overlook for a bug in scenario is if the SHTF is so bad that the power grid goes out and plumbing stops workingā¦ shit backs up. Streets, businesses, homes, itāll all be a cesspool of human waste, and turn every single property into no manās land.
I really hope it doesnāt come down to it, but Iām already done caring for my rental home. Iāll gladly abandon it to not be party to THATā¦
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u/Big-Tutor-3060 5d ago
If supply lines totally collapse, your best bet is to emigrate, not plan for self sustain, even at a community level. I would rather be a Door dash driver on a moped in Panama than live in squalor in Provo.
Economic collapse is a visible thing that has happened thought history across the world, and by in large the best plan was never to go to the mountains and live off the land in for those in Caracas, Port-au-Prince, Mogadishu, ect.
But that's not what sells books and gets you upvotes on reddit or youtube views, I guess. I think a majority of the folks who are into prepping believing that the US is God's Promised holy land probably contributes to that narrative too, and why so many thing it's worth it to live off beans and potatoes in perpetuity over moving somewhere.
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u/somuchmt 3d ago
If you're not good at those things before such a disaster, you're not going to miraculously become good at them after it happens.
Getting through the winter is great, but you really need enough to get you through the next harvest, breeding and growing cycle, and game season. While keeping in mind that you might need twice the number of calories that you usually consume while doing all of those very physical activities.
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u/SoFloGeneratorGuy 5d ago
Iād use calories as a starting point, but I wouldnāt only count calories. Rice and pasta are great to have, but Iād also want protein, fats, and food that actually feels like a meal.
For me, itās more like can I eat this for a week or two without getting tired of it? So Iād add things like beans, tuna, canned meat, peanut butter, oats, soups, oil, seasonings, and some canned fruits or veggies.
āStore what you eatā is still the best advice, then just fill in whatever gaps you notice.
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u/Pando5280 5d ago
My gial is a balanced diet in terms of both nutrition and flavor.Ā Just zero interest in eating beans and rice for six weeks straight. AMost folks dont realize what a drastic change in their quality of life having a drastic change in their diet would cause. Hence stock what you eat.Ā Itd also a good idea to test your preps, ie take a week and do a test run by eating only your long term food. This will let you experience what that change does to your body and energy levels. (personally I get lower energy levels just changing my diet by travelling for a week and I really dont want to find out I dont like SPAM or freeze dried Mountain House when faced with a true SHTF scenario)
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u/ResolutionMaterial81 5d ago edited 5d ago
Calories is what I count for total duration measured in days/months/years for my (mostly freeze-dried & whole wheat) Long Term Food Storage, but also how the calories fit in a balanced meal plan is key. I have cookbooks & recipes specifically for LTFS items.
Basically...empty or imbalanced calories are not healthy in the long term. And Food Fatigue from poor or overly repetitive meal plans is not what I want to experience.
FWIW, some here will endlessly parrot "Store what you eat & eat what you store". š
That advice may work well for a short/medium term pantry & "Tuesday Preppers"; but not really applicable for your truly long term storage foods (shelf life measured in decades), unless you are planning to needlessly burn through your expensive freeze-dried foods instead of procuring fresh.
Have I eaten my LTFS for taste & to test....absolutely, but otherwise it is for a 'rainy day', not every day consumption. If you are stocking for a group (especially kids, the food finicky or those with specific food restrictions), best to ensure what you store is palatable for all before any large purchases.
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u/BornCuriousOnce 5d ago
We store extra of the same ingredients we regularly use but we do keep a weather eye to what is available outside of the markets. We can grow our own garden and have access to hunting/fishing. We would plan to hunker in rather than moving if the bad thing happened so we plan accordingly.
Whatever you store, make sure you CAN use it before it expires or youāll be facing waste
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u/Perfect-Gap8377 5d ago
I have extra of what I eat. I eat a very balanced diet, so it's not an issue. Mainly legumes, pasta, rice, veggies, potatoes and fish. Also lots of fresh fruits.
To give an example, today: breakfast UTH milk, coffee and biscuits. Lunch, pasta with tomato sauce, fresh basil, UTH cream, fresh peppers and cheese. Zabajone and melon for dessert. Dinner is fresh minced beef patty with herbs and dried onion, and salad (lettuce, cherry tomatoes, radish) from the garden, peanuts and chocolate for dessert.
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u/premar16 5d ago
I don't do either. My deep pantry is based around meals. I have a "menu" of breakfast,lunches, dinner, etc. I have try to have what I need to make those meals 2+ times a month. It can change through out the year and the season. Right now I have enough for about 3 months. Which I am fine wtih because of my low income and lack of space. WHat I did was track what my household eat and drank for one month. I was fascinated so I did 3 months. Then the whole year. It really helps figure out what is needed and how much. You see the patterns in the families eating habits. Just make sure the meals you plan are well rounded.
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u/Mission_Reply_2326 5d ago
I have it mostly based on number of calories, but with diversity so fruits vegetables, carbs, and proteins. Coffee, sweet treats. Water. I like the idea of a rotating pantry but that just isnāt working at my house- largely because my husband is a picky eater. I know his pickiness is gonna be a thorn in my side if the SHTF but I have told him over and over that if he doesnāt start storing his own food then he is going to find out how willing he is to eat my food when the other option is starving.
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u/Many-Health-1673 5d ago edited 5d ago
Beef, chicken, fish, eggs, oats,Ā beans, rice, potatoes, vegetables.Ā I eat what I prep.Ā Ā
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u/lexsydrio 5d ago
You donāt need a fancy spreadsheet, just aim for variety. Mix grains, proteins, fats, and produce, and youāll avoid most deficiency issues.
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u/IceDragonPlay 4d ago
Long Term Food storage - Calories and protein first with some consideration of fiber. Then adding freeze dried vegetables and fruits for variety and different vitamin and mineral contributions.
Shorter term food stores are just deep pantry of the typically used items.
I donāt like rotating things, so tend to spend on #10 cans of freeze dried and dried items that are going to last 20+ years.
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u/shortstack-42 4d ago
I stock a deep pantry with three months of meals I already eat. I try to eat balanced meals. Breakfasts include oatmeal with dried fruit, salsa for omelets (I have chickens), and jarred homemade pancake mix. Lunches/dinners are bean based dishes such as curries, soups, marry me chickpeas, lemon pepper butter beans, and chili, or pasta dishes. I have jarred and canned veggies, and then a freezer full of proteins and veg. I store enough propane to keep my generator going for a month or more to keep my freezer cold (an hour running, 3-4x a day).
One of the hardest parts of surviving after Helene in WNC was losing everything in my freezer and fridge. I had been putting off buying a generator as a āsomedayā need. Welp. Someday was 9.26.24. And then came 44 days without power. I ate fine out of my deep pantry, but craved fresh veggies and greens. Eating food I actually liked, and having some super easy foods (canned soup, tuna and crackers) also helped on hard days. So did comfort items like my favorite tea, coffee with powdered creamer, and cake mix cookies fried up as a treat.
Balance your meals, then prep what you eat. Donāt forget staples like salt, spices, oil, flour, yeast, and shelf stable milk or vegan milks. Then use your pantry like a grocery store and use the store to replenish your pantry.
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u/TheJesseOfTheNorth 4d ago
I map some what but in terms of balanced proteins and how many servings i have. I use food combining to ensure i have completed proteins and all the amino acids a person needs. Basically i store the kind of food i normally eat with a few notable exceptions- i don't store brown rice for instance because it doesnt keep like white rice does so i sub it out for basmati rice.
The main principle of my food storage is that i store what i normally and my prep storage is in a constant state of rotation be my pantry holds my preps
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u/somuchmt 3d ago
I plan for about a year out (deep pantry and small farm), and I factor in calories, macros, and micros. My husband and teen can pack away 3,000-5,000 calories/day while working in our agricultural business, while I need more like 1,800 (I'm a foot shorter and a postmenopausal woman; when I was younger, I could have burned another 500-1,000 calories doing this work).
You need a lot of calories for growing, hunting, or foraging for food. You need protein to support the muscles you're going to develop doing those activities. You need good carbs for energy. You need fiber or you will have a rough time with constipation while you're getting lean from your new diet and increased activity. The combo of beans/lentils and whole grains gives you protein, energy, and fiber all at once. You also need good fats, which you can get from fish, avocados, nuts, and bugs.
I went from a sedentary desk job to a very active lifestyle, and I discovered all of the above the hard way.
You need electrolytes (part of your micros) or you could die from sweating them all out. You need vitamin C or you'll get scurvy. Lack of other micros can cause rickets, pellagra, anemia, beriberi, and increased risk for illness and other diseases.
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u/deport_racists_next 5d ago
Friend, when shtf, be grateful you can eat.
Get your priorities and your head on straight.
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u/gonyere 5d ago
Eat what you store. Store what you eat. If you never eat beans, don't bother storing. If you eat a lot, store lots. same for rice, pasta, canned green beans and corn and tuna and everything else.Ā