The first half of this year is almost over, which means millions of people are going to try to lose weight and get in better shape over the next few months. Sadly, most of them will fail. But if you’re a prepper, you can’t afford to fail at this. I believe physical fitness is one of the most important things to have during a disaster.
You don’t have to be a marathon runner, a bodybuilder, or even skinny, but you at least need to have the ability to go on a long hike while carrying a heavy bag (bugging out). Or the ability to carry heavy objects back and forth for several hours (clearing debris). Or the ability to run short distances very quickly (escaping danger).
Exercising is just one of many things preppers often don’t do enough. There are things we, as preppers, need to do more of or do a better job of. You know it, we know it, but that doesn’t mean it gets done. Here are six prepper things that I came up with that I see as things preppers need to do more of or be better at.
#1 – Fitness:
Let’s start with the bottom line on our six things list, the best way to survive in a SHTF situation where medical care is limited or not available is to not have any preventable health issues.
The body requires daily maintenance to keep it healthy, this includes regular exercise, a decent diet, proper hygiene, and regular medical examinations. You don’t have to be a “great physical specimen”, you don’t have to look like Arnie or Linda Hamilton from Terminator 2, but you do need to be in decent cardiovascular shape. Anything you can do to not need prescription meds is a big plus, too.
#2 – Skill development:
It’s one thing to have a bunch of stores put away, but if you don’t actually know how to use them, they won’t do you any good. Why have spare parts for your firearms if you don’t know how to install them? Why have seeds if you have no idea how to grow them? Why have a chainsaw if you don’t know how to use it safely? Another great example is a first aid kit filled with all the goodies. If you need to use it, it’s generally in a hurry, you won’t have time to sit and read a book about how to stop bleeding using a compression bandage.
#3 – Realistic planning keeping YOU in mind, what you can and cannot physically do:
Do you plan to bug out (or have a get-home bag)? If so, have you ever bugged out wearing the bag or tried to get home using it (or at least carrying that amount of weight). Do you have physical limitations that would cause you to be unable to use a lot of your preps? You don’t know until you have tried!
#4 – Short term food prepping, especially easy to prepare/carry food:
Most preppers have plenty of food, but many people have very little quick, easy to prepare food that requires nothing but water or is just ready to eat. When we get caught up in a SHTF situation, the first 72 hours are likely to be pure chaos, and food for that period of time needs to either be ready to eat or the next best thing to ready to eat, add water and stir.
Related: A Prepper’s Guide to Bugging Out
#5 – Water Purification:
Virtually every prepper we know has a way to purify water. One way, however, isn’t good enough. Two ways to purify water isn’t good enough. Every prepper needs MULTIPLE ways to purify water with them at all times when away from home. Why? Situations might make one way unworkable (such as boiling), or a filter may break or clog. You never know when you are going to have to go into “get home” mode, and being without water is the quickest way to lose physical performance.
Related: Preppers Check Your Survival Skills Now!
#6 – Ammo:
Some people, like Salty, have more ammo than he can ever shoot in his lifetime. This is, frankly, silly, as he (the writer of this paragraph) will freely admit. Having said that, a lot of preppers have “an ammo can” full of ammo, with a couple of boxes of ammo for each gun.
That’s not enough. We recommend shooting 500 rounds per self-defense gun per year (else you just are not in practice with the firearm), and we recommend having at least one year’s worth of rounds per gun that you count on for prepping. This number will vary by gun/purpose (for example, you might want to do more shooting with your AR-15 than the minimum recommended 500 rounds, but really only need about 20 .30-30 rounds for your deer rifle every year.
These are just some suggestions, think about the things in your prepping life that you know you need to improve and make a goal of getting started with at least one of those areas this week!
