Hiking farther, faster, and lighter is a matter of cutting unnecessary clutter out of your pack, and a good way to start lightening the load is by packing all-in-one meals no bigger and no more expensive than three bucks. A few years back, the sports dietitians at Carmichael Training Systems, the world-renowned training school that painstakingly designed Lance Armstrong's supercharged diet, took a hard look at the energy and meal-replacement bars on the market. They saw foil-wrapped confections that compromised either nutritional value or good taste, and decided they could make something better from scratch. And in the process of building their recipe, the CTS team came up with a comprehensive checklist of requirements for keeping an adventurer nourished and satisfied.

The formula for a tasty, portable, power-packed superfood follows a few rules: Toss in plenty of raw nuts and dried fruit -- solid sources of fuel that happen to taste good by themselves. Skip the stove; adventurers don't want to spend time baking. And use only ingredients that won't go bad after a week in a sun-warmed backpack. What CTS made (following page) may be the North Star of such bars. Packed with oats, it's heavy on the carbs that are essential to long-term backcountry energy, and supplies micronutrients crucial to the finer points of physical performance: pine nuts for potassium, which helps muscle contraction and maintains the body's electrolyte balance, and almonds, cashews, and walnuts for the all-important protein that helps your exhausted muscles recover. Plus, the stuff just tastes good. "Our athletes look for all-natural alternatives to processed health bars," says CTS dietitian Kelly O'Boyle. "This is one that they can make at home and know every ingredient that goes into it."

In the backcountry, "food fatigue" -- that dreaded moment when you decide you're sick of the fuel you're eating -- can mean the difference between making it home and grinding to a halt. The best way to avoid it is to make your grub as appetizing as possible. Tinker with the ingredients and proportions until the taste and texture is to your liking. CTS coach Jason Koop, for instance, likes to add extra cinnamon to the recipe, and he often substitutes apple juice for water. Occasionally he'll even thin the concoction to the point where it can be squeezed like toothpaste. (Koop recommends carrying bars close to your body, to keep them warm and chewable, and storing them in a Ziploc bag.)