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For many Canadians, the Victoria Day long weekend marks the start of summer camping.

Whether you're planning three days of hiking, paddling, kayaking or simply relaxing at the campsite, a meal plan is critical to getting the proper nutrition - and staying healthy - while in the outdoors.

Not having enough food or water can lead to weakness, dizziness, nausea and dehydration. And bringing too much food forces you to carry or portage an unnecessary load.

Eating right at the campsite requires planning what foods you're going to take. The most important factors to consider include weight and bulk, preparation- and cooking-time requirements, nutrition and taste. (You've probably guessed by now that I'm not referring to car/trailer camping.)

First, think about the type of trip you're taking. If you're planning an active trip spent paddling or hiking, you'll want meals that are easy to prepare and clean up. When you're tired at the end of a day, or in a rush to hit the trail in the morning, it's good to have quick-cooking foods like instant rice, couscous, dehydrated bean soups and instant oatmeal.

If you have the luxury to prepare meals that take more time, determine how much stove fuel you'll need to pack. It's also wise to bring foods that don't require cooking in case your stove malfunctions.

The amount of food you'll need depends on your activity level, the weather and the length of your trip. The more strenuous the activity, and the colder the temperature, the more food you'll eat.

A 175-pound (79-kilogram) man can expend as many as 4,000 calories per day hiking or paddling (if you weigh more, you'll burn more calories). It's a good idea to bring 1½to two times the amount of food you'd eat at home.

If you're planning to cover a lot of distance, you'll also need to pack plenty of carbohydrate-rich snacks to provide energy for physical activity.

The weight of your pack becomes more critical on longer trips. The average person goes through one to 1½kilograms of food a day; the longer the trip, the lighter your food should be. Your requirements for a long-weekend trip will be much different than if you're backpacking for more than three days.

For longer trips, consider adding freeze-dried foods to your menu (they can be purchased at camping-supply stores).

Freeze drying removes 98 per cent of the moisture so foods are light and compact. They last indefinitely and provide more calories per gram than dry foods sold at the grocery store.

Judging by Mountain Equipment Co-op's online store, there's a lot more to freeze-dried food than powdered eggs. You can dine on Texas barbecue chicken with beans, Kung Fu chicken or teriyaki turkey and then enjoy blackberry cheesecake for dessert.

Consider also the amount of garbage your food generates. Remove bulky packaging from store-bought foods (remember to save the instructions) to minimize what you'll have to pack out with you. Repackage foods into reusable, nylon-coated bags with roll-over seals or labelled Ziploc freezer bags.

Use small plastic or Nalgene containers for sauces, jams and dressings. Avoid large cans or glass bottles.

Don't forget about taste. Pack foods that you actually like to eat. If you don't like it, you won't eat it and, as a result, you might not get the nutrition you need.

Leslie Beck, a Toronto-based dietitian at the Medcan Clinic, is on CTV's Canada AM every Wednesday.

lesliebeck.com

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Shopping list

Fresh foods

The luxury of refrigeration is gone once you hit the trailhead. Fresh foods are good for only one day inside your pack. Some campers like to bring frozen meat for their first night. If you do this, wrap just enough frozen meat in several layers of newspaper for insulation. Keep it in a cooler with ice packs while driving to the park. If you're paddling, keep it out of the sun in a small, soft-pack cooler.

Protein

For shorter trips, pack 85-gram tins of tuna or salmon to add protein to a pot of rice or pasta. Cloverleaf offers pre-cooked and pre-seasoned yellowfin tuna steaks in single-serve pouches.

Other sources of portable protein include beef jerky, nuts, nut butter, Parmesan cheese, dehydrated eggs and powdered milk.

Dried bean soups such as spilt pea, black bean and lentil provide protein and carbs. They can be made less bulky by repackaging the contents into plastic bags.

Carbohydrates

Dried pasta, ramen noodles (buy a brand with zero trans fat), instant rice, couscous, soft tortillas and pita bread offer plenty of energy for active trips.

For breakfast, consider instant hot cereal, granola, dried fruit and pancake mix.

Snacks

To keep your muscles fuelled during the day, pack granola bars, fig bars and energy bars.

Bring trail mix or GORP ("good ole raisins and peanuts") for snacking during the day. Make your own trail mix by combining nuts with something salty and something sweet.

Fluids

Drink at least three to four litres of water each day to stay hydrated. Purify outdoor water even if it looks clean. To purify, boil it for one minute or use purification tablets and filters (available at stores that sell camping gear).

Leslie Beck