Spend More Time And Resources On Physical Conditioning

If you are SERIOUS about prepping and preparedness, and if you have ANY suspicion that life as we know it might one day become ‘real’ SHTF, then perhaps THE most important thing you can do NOW is to spend more of your time and resources on physical conditioning.

A paragraph from a recent article reads as follows:

If I were out of shape, the chances of me making the trek were slim to none (a 30 mile bug-out through the mountains). That goes for any bug-out scenario in any environment. If your entire plan is based on driving out of a bad situation, you’re not prepared. Movement is life. If you can’t run, jump, climb, and fight fully loaded, start investing more time and resources on conditioning and less on the gear. (I can’t stress that point enough.)

While you or I might not face the prospect of that kind of grueling bug-out scenario, the thing is, you never really know what you might face if it all comes crashing down. Not only that, but your new way of life will very likely become much more physically demanding in an environment that has collapsed into chaos.

Does this mean that you need to condition yourself to become a fighting machine? Well, no, that’s not everyone’s cup of tea. However becoming more physically fit now will not only benefit you now, but it will certainly benefit you if we were to enter such tumultuous times!

Many of us are not fit like we were in our younger days. I myself am now into my fifties (where does the time go!) and I have learned that I can no longer ‘abuse’ my body by eating poorly, etc.. and still ‘get away with it’ without consequences. Unfortunately, now, each and every peanut butter cookie that I may decide to eat will ‘stick’ ;)

The fact is that it takes LOTS more work and diligence (and willpower) to try and stay in reasonable or good physical condition. One tip is not to let it get too far away from you.

How then can you stay in some kind of good physical condition?

Two things…

1. It’s about what you eat & drink (calories in)

2. It’s about what you do to condition yourself and exercise (calories out).

If you have a weight problem then you must (at least) reduce your caloric intake. Eat less.

( How To Lose Weight Fast With This One Tip )

If you are physically out of shape then you must recondition yourself. Exercise.

It is work. It can be very hard work. It might take a long time. But it is what you must do to accomplish the goal.

( 5 Benefits Of Exercise And Physical Activity )

As far as advice or recommendations regarding losing weight, all I will say is that chances are you already know your weaknesses. So just RESIST.

As far as physical conditioning, there are TONS of things that you can do. It depends on your own abilities, your current physical condition, your interests, and the extent to which you would like to condition yourself. Try to make it fun.

You’re looking at two categories. Strength and Stamina. Strength is mostly related to your bodies ability to overcome or exert forces. Stamina has to do with HOW LONG you can do something. You want to train both ways.

It might include pushing weights. It might include cardio workouts – getting that heart rate up for awhile from walking, treadmill, riding a bike…

Try to find ways to exercise while having fun or making it fun. For example I am writing this during the middle of winter. There’s lots of snow outside. So one thing that I often do is go out there with my pair of snowshoes and get a good cardio workout from walking around the fields and woods. I thoroughly enjoy it.

Or maybe simply just go out for a walk! Do it often, not just once in a while. If it’s a winter walk, just be careful – you might want to put on a pair of ice cleats just in case! When the conditions warrant it, Mrs.J and I use the following pair while we walk:

Maybe a treadmill works for you. That’s what Mrs.J does every morning while listening to her music. Maybe a rowing machine is better for you.

Sunny Health & Fitness Treadmill
Sunny Health & Fitness Magnetic Rowing Machine

Swimming. Jogging. Stretching. Pull ups. Push ups. Jumping rope. Rowing a kayak. Playing ANY sport. ‘Moving’.

During the summer there’s especially no excuse. I get plenty of natural exercise just working around the property on various things and projects. Even cutting the grass is exercise. Everything that you do that involves MOVING is exercise.

The key is to MOVE. In today’s cushy world it is so easy to sit still. Many of today’s jobs don’t involve much movement or exercise. Be aware of that and make up for it. At home, get off the couch and go outside once in a while…

Okay I feel like I’m giving a pep talk. I suppose that I am. I’m writing this with regards to preparedness – to emphasize the importance of being as physically conditioned that you can be – before you spend too much of your time and resources just on gear. No problem doing both at the same time!, but just don’t forget that ‘if’ we enter collapse conditions, or ‘if’ we suffer a real SHTF, then it WILL be imperative to be in as good physical condition as you can be.

Use the Power of Exercise to Reverse Aging and Stay Strong, Fit

Good Old Fashioned Physical Labor For Better Health
Walking: Survival Fitness and Exercise