What Role (If Any) Does Physical Fitness Play in Preparedness?

Does Physical Fitness Play a Role in Preparedness?

I’ve had to bug out a total of three times.  Living through a tornado hitting our home and through the Ferguson Riots gave me several opportunities to practice.  One of the things that I learned from my experience is that bugging out rarely looks like what you anticipate.  Only in rare and totally unusual circumstances will you need to be walking somewhere with your Bug Out Bag (BOB) on your back  while making plans to rough it in the woods because it’s The End Of The World As We Know It (TEOTWAWKI).  Could it happen?  Yes, it could and it has in other countries like Serbia,  but will it happen?  It’s not incredibly likely (even in a TEOTWAWKI type situation), but that’s a picture that many of us get in our heads.

I see physical fitness in the same light.  I even read several articles in preparation for writing this post, but one article  struck me. The article spoke in reference to a person who cares about amassing stuff before worrying about being physically fit said this, “This guy has obviously never had to run through a minefield while being fired at by snipers.”

Could something like that potentially happen?  Yes, it absolutely could.  Is it likely to happen, even in TEOTWAWKI?  Probably not.

BUT that doesn’t mean that physical fitness plays NO role in preparedness.

So What Role Does Fitness Play in Preparedness?

Can you chop wood if you had to for several hours?  Is it possible for you to work in your garden for any stretch of time without getting winded?  Can you dig a decent hole in the ground in case you needed to put up an outhouse?  Are you able to hike to a nearby field to forage for chicory?  Could you run fast enough to evade someone stalking you?  Could you pull or carry a log or portion of a log into the relative safety of your yard so you could chop it?

All of these provide you with a much more realistic picture of how physical fitness plays into being prepared.  In a preparedness situation, I need to be able to do many of the things listed above with relative ease.  If I (or you) can’t, then we’re not physically fit enough.

If we’re not physically prepared, what should our response be?

Do I wish I could run a mile?  Sure do.  Can I at this point?  Nope.  Does that mean that me (and the myriad of others who can’t just throw up our hands in defeat?  Absolutely not!

So what should we do?

(1) Create a Plan for General Fitness

Endurance

Can you walk a mile comfortably on a treadmill?  Can you walk a mile comfortably around your neighborhood?  Those are two different things.  If you can walk a mile on your treadmill, can you step it up and walk a little faster or on an incline or for longer?

Upper Body Strength

You’ll probably have to carry more things by hand if we’re living in difficult times.  Work on upper body strength, or if those exercises are a bit too much, try something like these functional arm strength exercises.

Strengthen Core Muscles (especially back muscles) 

The stronger you are now, especially your back, the less chance you are going to have of injuring your back if life gets tough. Making sure your back muscles are toned and your core muscles can help assist will be very beneficial in a difficult situation.   If you’ve already got a decently strong core, exercises like these may be good for you.  If, however, your core and your back aren’t incredibly strong, here are some low-impact core exercises for you to try.

(2) Create a Plan for Specific Fitness Activities

Gardening

Do you think you’re going to be doing a lot more gardening during a life-altering situation?  Start working on this now.  How long can you spend on gardening without being tired out now?  Try to work a little longer each time that you go out to work in the garden this year.

Chopping Wood

If there a likelihood that you will be chopping wood if the SHTF?  Can you shop wood now – without using a chain saw?  Try it.  See what you can do, and then over time keep upping it.

Carrying Water 

While you may not be used to lugging around water now, you’ll probably be doing a good deal of it if we have a SHTF situation.  Can you carry 5 gallons of water 1/4 mile or more?  It’s something at which you may need to work.

 Self Defense

Could you defend yourself from an attacker?  Have you ever looked into basic moves that almost anyone could do to protect themselves?  These moves are simple and easily mastered.  Here are another two moves that anyone can do.  Here is a video that explains your two best and easiest moves when dealing with an attacker.

Climbing

Could you navigate over a car or another large obstacle?  Could you make it through a ravine safely?  Find places that you can practice now. The most you get used to shifting your body in unusual ways as you work to achieve balance as you climb?  I’ve started doing Yoga, and while what I’m doing is mostly stretching with some balance work, it absolutely helps.  I feel like it’s helping increase my balance.

What about people with disabilities?

What does physical fitness look like for people with disabilities?  No matter what your disability, you can increase your fitness level.  There is a man who lives next door to my father who is missing a leg.  He mows his lawn with a push mower.  He’s been up on the roof making repairs.  He rides a specialized bicycle.  He does a lot even with just one leg.

So how do you handle physical fitness even if you have a disability?

You start by looking for ways to help your handicap.

• Can’t kneel on the ground to garden?  Try a garden bench to help or have someone build you raised beds.
• If you want to build up endurance, but balance is a problem for you, could you ride a stationary bike?
• Have problems with your legs?  Work on your upper body strength.
• Can’t do a push-up?  Do one against the wall.

No matter your situation or your fitness level, there is SOMETHING that you can do.

What About You?

What is your opinion of the relationship between fitness and preparedness?  Do you think you’ll be running across a field full of mines dodging bullets?  Or do you think that physical fitness will look more practical if we are plunged into life like we’ve never known before?