Preparedness and Physical Fitness

 Well, I weighed myself the other day and topped out at just under 200 pounds. For me, that's heavy, very heavy. At my fatest I tipped the scales at 216 lbs. and my ideal weight is between 175 - 185 lbs. depending on muscle density. Needless to say I'm a little concerned, especially with the holiday season and it's accompanying food are fast approaching.

Being in good physical shape is a key element in the prepping lifestyle. This doesn't mean you need to run 5 minute miles or do 30 pull-ups with a 50# pack on your back, but you should be at a good and healthy weight with solid health habits. For a lot of people this is old-hat, but let's outline some of the benefits of a base-line level of health below.

Psychology

It's a proven fact that healthier people are happier people. A positive self image and an overall contentment lead to better moods even when life's other stressors threaten. Confidence and high self esteem abound when a person is over all more fit and healthy than not.

Prepping Affect

Having a positive outlook caused by knowing you're relatively healthy leads to better decisions and stronger confidence levels when preparing for disasters

Mentality

Eating right and exercising increase blood flow to the brain. In short, healthy people can think, reason, and deduce at faster levels. Healthier people are mentally sharper people. Now this doesn't mean healthier people are smarter people, but brain functionality in someone healthier is more responsive and extensive than in people who fail to maintain a healthy diet or exercise levels, and healthy folks inspired to, say, earn another college degree or vocational certification will do so at an easier pace.

Prepping Affect

Healthier preppers think more soundly and can address problems with disasters that threaten them in better ways. Thinking better leads to better, more affective preparedness.

Physiology

Of course this is the main benefit. Being healthier just leads to a better life, such as being able to walk up a flight of stairs or carry more groceries per-trip in from the car to the kitchen.

Prepping Affect

Whether you're bugging out with a 35# pack on, slinging cases of water into your pantry, or running from a hoard of zombies, preppers need to be able to actually do some physical labor, and being more on the fit side really helps.

Some helpful links

• This link includes an at-home shadow boxing workout (scroll down a bit).
• Fifteen minute video workout. Warning if you click this one - moderately annoying trainer ahead, but the workout is still nice and simple and affective.
• Top 25 at-home exercises.

Developing a Fitness Plan

As I recommend with everything else related to prepping, a fitness plan should be incremental and in easily consumed chunks of development. Smooth and steady wins the race, and the biggest mistake humans make when trying to get into shape is doing too much too fast. Start with the mentality that you just want to improve your current fitness level by one notch and go from there. Also, keep in mind that this is a base-line, simple plan. For those preppers already in good shape, this will probably be a little light for you. A nice simple plan should start with...

1. A healthy diet. Reduce snacks, including pop, and red meats, and increase healthier foods like fruits and vegetables. Notice I said reduce. I didn't say eliminate. You can still eat snacks and red meat, just don't eat that whole bag of chips or bacon for every meal. The key is moderation.
2. A fitness routine. We have an Echo Show (Amazon/Alexa device), and one of the cool routines it will show you is a 7-minute workout. It's nice and simple and doesn't need weights or even a lot of room to do. Seven minutes and you're done. Getting up and walking a mile outside is excellent cardio...as long as you do it at a good pace. Just remember, any additional activity inserted into your daily routine will help. Keep the mix varied, a combination of functional weight training and cardio; try to perform your routine the same time every day; take breaks from your routine, such as on weekends; and smoothly increase your routine as the exercises get easier.
3. Workout with others. Go to a gym with a friend, or better yet get your whole MAG (mutual assistance group) involved. Doing so allows you to encourage each other and be there for each other if someone starts to slip back into old, bad habits.
4. That which is measured is improved. Track your progress. ...but don't get discouraged. Measure your weight and how well you do with your routine each time you work out, but if you miss a day or miss a goal do not quit. I had a goal of being able to run a mile in under 8 minutes when I turned 50. I failed to do that, but I realize that's okay. I'm still in better shape than a lot of other 50 year olds and I'm going to keep that up. Blank days in your log or tracking software are more hiccups than failures. The important lesson there is that you do your routine the next day after the one you missed.

 

5.  Keep it up. It takes 3 months of performing an activity for it to become familiar, 6 months for it to become habit and a year for it to become part of your natural lifestyle. Another word on this topic - living healthy and exercising becomes easier over time so again, don't get discouraged.

Final Thoughts

A good fitness plan and healthy diet should be part of any preparedness plan, but they should also be realistic and achievable by the individual prepper. Having at least a base-line level of fitness is critical to being able to prepare for disasters and life-altering events. Be healthy, be safe, be happy.

Peace.