Recent stories have reminded me that "equipped" is great, but its just one side of the triangle. You also need to be trained in the use of your tools, the area, etc., be fit enough for the task and have the wisdom to know when and where not to go.

teacher

I would even go so far as to say that knowledge and understanding is more important than equipment. Ideally you will have both,of course.

Also, you have to take the years into account. I'm not as young as I once was, or in as good of shape (that's for sure!) So I'm not going to be bugging out and hiking off into the sunset with all my gear on my back anymore. So plans have to change. I'm planning on bugging IN these days. Once IN crumbles and that too is gone, then I guess I am too. So be it. We all die eventually. I never really had a good OUT to bug out to anyway. So at least I'll be moderately comfortable for a while. I am more tuned in these days to making a comfortable (relatively speaking), defensible, IN.

I certainly agree that having knowledge, skills, attitude and physical ability are all as (or more) important than being properly equipped in many situation.

I don't entirely agree with bugging in as a complete replacement for bugging out. For example, a house fire that can't be knocked down swiftly with a single fire extinguisher should lead to an immediate evacuation. Less commonly, a train derailment that causes a poisonous gas release nearby should also lead to an immediate evacuation.

Bugging in/out depends upon circumstances. I have twice had my vehicle loaded, ready to leave with a healthy wildfire about a quarter mile away. with wildfires, it is best to leave.

My local area is prone to earthquakes, and if we are ever hit by one that causes significant damage to the residence, my first choice will be to bug in. Basically we will camp out in the yard, utilizing what we can from the wreckage, and carry on.

Fitness is very important off course. And sometimes you have no choice but be fit or be doomed.

A few days ago, I was listening to some stories told by Syrian refugees. One of them was middle aged and he said that ISIS attacked their areas and they had to run with nothing but clothes on their backs.

Not only they had to run for themselves, they had to carry with them their elederly and handicapped folks.

That was a real-life reminder of the nescessity of being fit, which I am not !!

About a year and half ago, my brothers and I had to take care of our late father , and in that process got myself a knee problem.

Survival situations will be much more stressful.
So, definitely , we have to work on improving or body fitness to survive.

The mayor causes of death are health related, most of them are related to lifestyle. So the most effective way to life longer in general is a healthy lifestyle. Staying in shape and eat healthy not only extend your expected life expectancy, but also improve quality of life. So getting/staying in shape should be something you should have as goal.

Being fit in a survival situation is obviously very handy, but should be a secondary reason to be fit. You (hopefully) don’t end up in those situations regularly.

Training wise, well my job relates to training emergency personal. So I know how important it is to be trained. Skills fade if you don’t use them. Skill requirements changes. People change. Equipment change. Always make sure you not only think you know how to do things, but also actually done it. Some things cannot be teached from a book. Some can, but are not described in such detail in books/instructions. It’s sometimes really the small things that matter.

I can see it -- the latest craze: SurvivalFit!

-- Run away from ISIS for the best cardio ever! For a challenge, carry an elderly person on your back!
-- Fetch water from running stream with a bucket to strength your back!
-- Start a fire with a bow and drill to build forearm strength!
-- Hump heavy backpacks over miles to build enduranc

On a serious note, this discussion about fitness made me think of the difference between soldiers and athletes. Soldiers need to be able to do their job under the worst of circumstances. Athletes are given the ideal circumstances to give their best. It seems to me that survival is less about being the fittest person possible so you can run away from ISIS. It is about being able to get away from ISIS even when you have a broken leg. Athletes are graded 0-10. In a survival situation we're graded pass/fail.

With that said, it pays in general to be in good health and in good condition, physically and mentally. It's not a bad thing to be in shape even if it's only because you're motivated by the thought of having to run away from ISIS one day. But there is so much in life you can enjoy when you have good health, and let's not lose sight of that.

A more practical question -- what's a reasonable criterion of fitness for survival? Do we use the various military benchmarks? How do we adjust for age?

> A more practical question -- what's a reasonable criterion > > of fitness for survival? Do we use the various military > > benchmarks? How do we adjust for age? >

I can't see the point of military benchmarks.
The military aren't as fit as people think. The reason they train in ways no one else does; running in boots, walking with packs etc is partly because they don't want the troops to see what their actual times would be on a track. It's good to get the troops believing they are super fit, raises morale.

Walking is the main fitness for most emergencies and having feet that can take it is almost as important. I wear my boots all the time. No one in the office can see they aren't shoes unless I pull my trousers up. Try walking in a pair of dress shoes for long and you'll find it torture.

One important fitness test that is often forgotten is; can you get out of a pool without a ladder? That's like one military test; the assault course, that would be useful. Can you climb a wall, Jump a ditch, climb a rope etc.

qjs

> How do we adjust for age? >

Have light gear. A weapon if legal. Someone to call and somewhere near to go to, that already has all you need.

qjs

Well define 'Athlete'. Mountaineer here "given the ideal circumstances"... Nah. Even the triathlete side of me; swimming, cycling and running. Pretty sure I train in the cold, heat, wind, sun, rain and snow.
Actually most athletes that are described as a ‘adrenaline junkies' are very emotionally stable, well planned and flexible. Also it helps that athletes have stronger muscles, that protect your body from harm.



Well you can’t really tell what skills are handy to survive. I mean if you do, I would suggest to avoid that situation. But a combination of overall strength and endurance seems to be most sensible to me.
With age comes experience and with experience comes efficiency…

A reasonably fit person should be able to,
Jog a mile, on a paved surface, in 15 minutes.
Carry their own weight up a flight of stairs.
Walk at their own pace, an almost indefinite distance, at least 100 miles in 7 days.
Swim, any style, for 1000 feet in freshwater.
Cycle a mile in 4 minutes.
Cycle 100 miles in a day.

(not claimed to be original but I cant remember the source)

The conversation has drifted to the importance of physical fitness, which I agree with, but I think hikermor is right when he says that knowledge may be more valuable. Most of the emergencies most of us are going to face most often are not on the scale of bugging out. Personally, medical emergencies are probably the highest prepping priority for me.

Last week, I got a real life reminder of why. My husband choked on a hamburger at the dinner table and I had to do the Heimlich. In my kitchen. For real. No equipment in the world would have helped unless the Heimlich didn't work, in which case we would have required serious professional help. It did work, despite my being very scared in the moment, because of years of training and practice. He's fine now, btw, and a much slower eater.

As an aside - I was totally scared. I've done a lot of first aid in my life, and never been scared. It's always an adrenaline rush, but this time, was different. The years of training took over, but I had to consciously remind myself to stay calm. I didn't landmark properly before the first thrust, and had to re-position. The third thrust did the trick. He would probably be dead now if I didn't know what to do. Knowledge is really is power, and it can be a lifesaver.

If you haven't taken a CPR & First Aid course, of if you haven't done a re-cert recently, get on it, ok?!

There's rendering first aid and there's rendering first aid to family members...

I never thought, back when I first took FA (a relatively clueless, single dude) that the most gripping and emotional occasions would be those when treating close family. close to that is treating close friends and colleagues. I'm not talking about relatively simple stuff, but major fractures, possible poisoning, and the like.

I've only had to use my training a few times but when I did its RIGHT NOW! No time to look up the instructions or call for help.*


* You should always call for help - Please use 911.

That is normally correct, except if the individual is too exhaust to actually complete the task, like collecting wood at -40c or building a shelter before the storm hits. A high level of fitness is not critical, but a reasonable level of fitness is in many survival situations. Many individuals simply give up or cut corners and that is why they either suffer or parish, when others survive.

Actually many survival gurus place something like "the will to survive" at the top of the list, and then cite numerous examples where that was the predominant factor. In any case what's in your head is very important....

fitness and knowledge can reinforce the will, and make it less vulnerable.

I'm 67 years old, in reasonably good shape for a desk bound professional and I think I can do almost all of adam2's fitness test. The swim part might not be pretty, might have to float rest some, but I'd get it done. I'm not a bike guy, but given my regular distance walk of 11miles in 3 hours, including a steep 300' ascent and descent and some smaller hills, I think I can do most of the bike part. I'm not sure about the 100 miles in a day. Given that, for a man or women of average age, your requirements may be too low.

Bacpacjac's save with the Heimlich was praise worthy. WELL DONE! It reminds me of an event of my own, about 15 years ago. I became an EMT in around 1973. I also served 5 years , in the Seveties, as a volunteer on a very busy urban ambulance corps. We were taught choke save with a curved forceps. I actually did it once, successfully. But I have only read about Heimlich. At dinner that 15 years ago, I successfully employed the Heimlich maneuver to save my Mother- in -Law, who was choking on a clump of French bread. The "lady" in question, never a fan of mine, never thanked me. She did yell at her husband and my wife for not assisting her. She continued to dislike me, without cause, for the balance of her life. Worst mistake I ever made!

Of course it's always handy to have a real expert on hand:
(I want you to forget I said that if I learn to fly and Doug disappears. He is absolutely NOT tied up in the back as part of the survival kit).

From May 27th Guardian:
'The surgeon who gave his name to the simple but dramatic procedure used to rescue people from choking, saved someone’s life with the Heimlich Manoeuvre for the first time this week aged 96.

Last Monday the retired chest surgeon encountered a female resident at his retirement home in Cincinnati who was choking at the dinner table.

Without hesitation, Heimlich spun her around in her chair so he could get behind her and administered several upward thrusts with a fist below the chest until the piece of meat she was choking on popped out of her throat and she could breathe again.'

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/...st-time-aged-96

qjs