How important is Physical Fitness

[Guitargallegos]

How much importance is placed on physical fitness for shtf? Is there any specific metrics that should be strived for?

 

[LEaSH]

Imagine your worst shtf situation, then add the aspect of being physically weak from illness.

Yes, I would only stress that the healthier a person is the better off they will be in any scenario.

Not only physical strength will come into play, but all the benefits of a stronger immune system, ability to sleep better, senses are usually clearer, etc. There is really nothing anyone can say to discourage aiming for better fitness.

I had a weird flu that lasted more than a month! You bet it got my attention.

 

[Spanky46151]

I've long said the cheapest and easiest prep is ignored by most. Being self sufficient is more than being able to start a fire with dental floss or grow tomatoes in a shoe box.

 

[dmarsh8]

Those first two answers are pretty much all that needs to
be said.

 

[Guitargallegos]

But to what degree? I'm relatively healthy but I'm not about to run a marathon. I am really just looking for standard if there is any.

 

[dmarsh8]

You don't need to go crazy heavy, but you can start with
learning how to properly do the following.
1. Squats-start with bodyweight if needed.
2. Pull-ups, dead lift, some type of rows are good too.
3.Pushups/bench press barbel & dumbbell.
4. Burpees/up downs, call them what you like.
5. Look up some core exercises. Core is not limited to abs.
6. You can add in different types of plyometric type movements if you'd like unless the impact would bother you.
That's just a crumb in the world if fitness, but those are good exercises that you never leave behind.
I'm not a huge proponent of distance running, but if you can run a couple miles in decent time that's pretty good. IMO...
I prefer explosiveness over distance. 100 meter, 300 meter. 40yd dash whatever.
If you start with burpees, squat, and cleans, or just the first two if you have no weights, do about 4-5 sets of 12-15, if you can last that long lol... I have no idea what your abilities are so....
Kettelbell swings are good, but again learn how to do them properly. Check out crossfit.com they have instructional videos on there.

 

[WETSU]

Strong people are harder to kill.

 

[shibumiseeker]

But to what degree? I'm relatively healthy but I'm not about to run a marathon. I am really just looking for standard if there is any.

There is no standard because everyone is different. Leaving aside someone with actual physical disability, the range between a couch potato and an Olympic athlete is huge. Thousands of percent.

With physical fitness from a survivalism standpoint, the optimal intersection is to be as fit as you can without causing harm to your body. That is usually way below the super athlete and way above the couch potato.

In general you should be in as good of cardiovascular fitness as you can be because most of the rest of your long term health depends on that.

If you plan on hiking out of a disaster zone, you should be in good enough shape to do so, and practice enough to KNOW you can.


As an example. I am an athlete. In one area I train for I'm in the top of my field. I also bicycle and hike. I can put a 50lb pack on and hike 16 hours a day for several days. I do so regularly. When the weather isn't total crap, I bicycle 20 miles a day 4-5 days a week and every month or so do a 50+ mile ride.

Yet most people who run can outrun me. Most hikers can hike faster than I can. I train for endurance, not speed per se. I train to the point where I can go two days straight with little to no sleep (because my work with SAR has me doing so regularly) and keep putting out the physical and mental effort.

If you already train you have an idea of what you are capable of. If you don't train, you should. EVERYONE not on death's door or so physically disabled they can't move will benefit from SOME form of exercise.

 

[the1kidd03]

Muscle is important, but depending on what you believe to be the most likely of scenarios for you to face, I would refrain from over emphasizing on muscle mass. Focus on endurance is extremely important.

I've watched entry level grunts who were previous body builders fall out of conditioning hikes with their packs on their backs nearly every time. Well, they may not "fall out" in each case, but they certainly struggle to keep up because their focus was on muscle and not stamina/endurance. Or watch the same guys struggle to keep going once they step into the ring because of their size compared to a leaner, more stamina driven guy. In a SHTF situation, it's more likely to be needed to hike/run a distance than to be able to bare handed pick up an engine block (for example) IMO.

Fitness is sort of relative, because people often associate large muscles with being fit and indeed everyone has a different build. There are larger framed guys and smaller framed guys. That doesn't mean they should focus on muscle strength/size to a point where it won't serve a purpose outside of a gym or otherwise limit their capabilities elsewhere (flexibility, stamina, etc.)

On top of that, maintaining that size/strength requires a level of food intake/nutrition that you're not likely to achieve in a disaster situation.

Strength is certainly important, but reaching a level which is likely not necessary outside of a gym for any given task isn't going to be too prudent for a survival situation. Focus on stamina, endurance, and LEAN muscle growth.

 

[iChokePeople]

Muscle is important, but depending on what you believe to be the most likely of scenarios for you to face, I would refrain from over emphasizing on muscle mass. Focus on endurance is extremely important.

I've watched entry level grunts who were previous body builders fall out of conditioning hikes with their packs on their backs nearly every time. Well, they may not "fall out" in each case, but they certainly struggle to keep up because their focus was on muscle and not stamina/endurance. Or watch the same guys struggle to keep going once they step into the ring because of their size compared to a leaner, more stamina driven guy. In a SHTF situation, it's more likely to be needed to hike/run a distance than to be able to bare handed pick up an engine block (for example) IMO.

Fitness is sort of relative, because people often associate large muscles with being fit and indeed everyone has a different build. There are larger framed guys and smaller framed guys. That doesn't mean they should focus on muscle strength/size to a point where it won't serve a purpose outside of a gym or otherwise limit their capabilities elsewhere (flexibility, stamina, etc.)

On top of that, maintaining that size/strength requires a level of food intake/nutrition that you're not likely to achieve in a disaster situation.

Strength is certainly important, but reaching a level which is likely not necessary outside of a gym for any given task isn't going to be too prudent for a survival situation. Focus on stamina, endurance, and LEAN muscle growth.

Sounds to me like Mrs Kidd has been paying a little too much attention to the muscular guys at the gym and *someone* doesn't like it...

 

[the1kidd03]

Sounds to me like Mrs Kidd has been paying a little too much attention to the muscular guys at the gym and *someone* doesn't like it...

LOL, not at all. ...just seen too many big guys struggle to keep up when endurance is more important than strength/size. Getting winded after a few blows, forcing the unit to slow down so you can keep up, etc. all seems like unnecessary risks in potentially dangerous situations to me.

Of course, like I said even size is subjective because there are larger framed guys.

 

[WETSU]

I think physical fitness is VERY important for survival or fighting, or for life in general.

There needs to be a proper balance of strength, power, speed, endurance and flexability, along with general health and remaining injury and disease free as much as possible. For most of us, life happens and that balance changes. Seeking to rebalance is the key, always. So, you get out of the Army and gain 50 pounds, new job, 3 kids, married/divorced etc. Or you suffer an injury, could be a car accident, a fall, or an overuse/chronic injury and that sets you back. Or you get sick, and that lays you low, maybe even changes your life forever. Dunno. But the key is to fight your way back. To be as fit as you can be, at your stage in life, at your age and to work around any limitations as best you can.

I know 28 year old dough balls who can't hump a ruck more than 100 yards or do a push up, let alone drag a 185 pound man from a burning car and return fire. I know 63 year old men who can run 26 miles, do 500 push ups and, slide into cover to run a belt fed and make it all look easy. (but they take ibuprofen).

I guess your level of physical fitness should be task oriented. What will you have to do? Be realistic. Then start there.

 

[the1kidd03]

I think physical fitness is VERY important for survival or fighting, or for life in general.

There needs to be a proper balance of strength, power, speed, endurance and flexability, along with general health and remaining injury and disease free as much as possible. For most of us, life happens and that balance changes. Seeking to rebalance is the key, always. So, you get out of the Army and gain 50 pounds, new job, 3 kids, married/divorced etc. Or you suffer an injury, could be a car accident, a fall, or an overuse/chronic injury and that sets you back. Or you get sick, and that lays you low, maybe even changes your life forever. Dunno. But the key is to fight your way back. To be as fit as you can be, at your stage in life, at your age and to work around any limitations as best you can.

I know 28 year old dough balls who can't hump a ruck more than 100 yards or do a push up, let alone drag a 185 pound man from a burning car and return fire. I know 63 year old men who can run 26 miles, do 500 push ups and, slide into cover to run a belt fed and make it all look easy. (but they take ibuprofen).

I guess your level of physical fitness should be task oriented. What will you have to do? Be realistic. Then start there.

Well stated...

Motivation is the key

 

[Dragon]

Many good things have been said, so I really don't have a whole lot to add. However, I have gained some valuable insight in my time studying martial arts and one of the most profound reasons for physical fitness came from the Chinese. Strength and flexibility will allow you to inflict more damage than you take. Your risk of accidental injury is going to be far less than it would be if you sit around and do nothing. I never really realized what all of that meant until one reckless winter where I took two bad falls and luckily ended up with bruises instead of broken bones. I later had a DEXA Scan and at 32 years-old had the bone mineral density (BMD) of a professional football player, so there's really no luck involved. So, the physical prep left me no convincing at all, as physical health is something I don't want to wish I had if SHTF.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Many good things have been said, so I really don't have a whole lot to add. However, I have gained some valuable insight in my time studying martial arts and one of the most profound reasons for physical fitness came from the Chinese. Strength and flexibility will allow you to inflict more damage than you take. Your risk of accidental injury is going to be far less than it would be if you sit around and do nothing. I never really realized what all of that meant until one reckless winter where I took two bad falls and luckily ended up with bruises instead of broken bones. I later had a DEXA Scan and at 32 years-old had the bone mineral density (BMD) of a professional football player, so there's really no luck involved. So, the physical prep left me no convincing at all, as physical health is something I don't want to wish I had if SHTF.

Actually this is relevant to something that has save my butt numerous times. I started in martial arts when I was six and from when I was 8 to 12 my family owned an academy in Bloomington. I then studied off and on as an adult. I have had some spectacular falls on ice, tripping over pavement while running, launching off a 6' embankment when the cant hook I was using to roll a log broke, etc. I have thus far never gotten hurt. The reflexive fall and roll training always takes over. I also have a very high bone density (I don't float in water) and I have suffered some impacts I know would have shattered most people's bone give how many such things I've seen in a lifetime career in EMS. Bone density combined with muscle mass protecting bone accounts for a LOT, and keeps one healthier as one ages.

 

[dmarsh8]

I definitely agree with doing a lot of non-conventional exercise as stated in various posts.
I was over typing on the phone in my first post.
George Foreman always comes to mind.
After I rock climbed for the first time, I even thought about that as a survival skill.
Swimming also.

 

[bingley]

1. It's important to be in good health, to be in a good level of fitness just for regular life.

2. You don't know when disaster will strike. Emergencies aren't like the Olympics that you can train for four years in advance. Maybe pig out occasionally when more than two years away, but eat extra clean and health just the year before. No, it ambushes you.

So get in good health, good fitness for regular life, so you can enjoy it more. If the end of the world comes, so be it.

 

[irishfan]

I'm working toward getting ready for the Warrior Dash later in the year. It is a 2 1/2k race with obstacles involved. I figure that if I can complete that then I should at least be in good enough shape for a period of survival in a crisis situation. I know I can do a lot of things because I have done them just to test myself but I have never been a runner so I figured why not sink or swim now rather then later when my life could depend on it. That being said I believe physical fitness will be a huge factor in a SHTF event and even more then that just being in good health rather then "fit."

 

[in_betts]

I know 63 year old men who can run 26 miles, do 500 push ups and, slide into cover to run a belt fed and make it all look easy. (but they take ibuprofen).

Not only that, sometimes lots of ibuprofen. Then when a calm moment comes followed by scotch/whiskey to grease the wheels, so to speak.

 

[nighthawk80]

I'm working toward getting ready for the Warrior Dash later in the year. It is a 2 1/2k race with obstacles involved. I figure that if I can complete that then I should at least be in good enough shape for a period of survival in a crisis situation. I know I can do a lot of things because I have done them just to test myself but I have never been a runner so I figured why not sink or swim now rather then later when my life could depend on it. That being said I believe physical fitness will be a huge factor in a SHTF event and even more then that just being in good health rather then "fit."

That is my goal. Two of those type of races a year. I'm doing the Spartan Sprint in April and probably the Warrior dash or equivalent (there is a different on in Paoli around the same time) this fall. I would highly recommend these "mud" races for anyone interested in setting goals to work towards!!