What do you eat when you prepare to row an ocean?

One of the most common questions we get is “What will Peter eat during his journey?” This is a loaded question because there are many factors that have been considered in preparing his food and it’s been a long journey of “trial and error” to figure out exactly what works.

Restrictions, Lifestyle & Performance

Peter has spent the better half of the past two years working to balance his diet to various restrictions and accommodate the lifestyle choice to be a vegetarian and not eat animal protein. The latter, was a personal decision made out of his love for animals, but Peter quickly realized that choosing plant protein, supported his performance, if not more than what animal protein was able to provide.

Consistency is key to conditioning

Most of the ocean rowers who take on an expedition typically look to packaged survival meals and loads of snacks to sustain them during the journey. These survival meals are designed to be quick, easy to prepare and contain the various nutrients one needs. The caveat is there are not many vegetarian/vegan options, they are often heavily spiced, contain dairy, gluten, or other preservatives that could cause inflammation and trigger an “allergic” reaction. Let’s just say… the last thing you want to have happen in the middle of the North Atlantic, is a reaction from a meal. The food you consume needs to fuel you! … not fight you.

Lastly, the other side of buying survival meals is they are not cost effective! The average cost per meal is $10.00 for 1000 calories, when you are consuming an average of 5000 calories per day, you can see, it quickly adds up.

To eliminate the hassle of taste testing meals, testing the ingredients for potential triggers, sourcing vegetarian/ vegan options etc. Very much like the physical training Peter has had to do, he has also gone through 8 months of food training.

Yes, you heard that right… food training. Living solely on the exact “expedition” food that he will be eating on the ocean. This has enabled him to become accustomed to eating the same thing day in and day out, never having to question or decide “What’s for dinner?” It’s also afforded a very unique level of conditioning, such as conditioning of the taste buds, conditioning of expectations to not expect anything different or fancy, but the same basic meals day after day. The final level of conditioning comes with how the diet aligns with the intensity of the physical activity and recovery that comes with an expedition like this.