"Survival" fitness

[Iraq Ninja]

Anyone remember this ad and all the protests from the "fat ones" about it?

They are still out there, and they are still coming....

[kennith13]

To my mind, survival fitness is being in good enough shape that the weight of both your body and gear are no impediment to you at all, no matter what you are doing, and in any environmental extreme that the human body was meant to withstand.

If you can do that while being fat, more power to you.

The mental side of things is even more important.

[Mjolnir]

One thing being overlooked is what happens when you're shot or stabbed. Who do you think will have a better chance of survival?

Answer: The one in the best condition.

I'm not suggesting people do what I do or what Rob does but please do something.

[kennith13]

One thing being overlooked is what happens when you're shot or stabbed. Who do you think will have a better chance of survival?

Answer: The one in the best condition.

I'm not suggesting people do what I do or what Rob does but please do something.

To an extent. Ancient gladiators and warriors of various types routinely packed on the pounds with special diets. It was accepted at the time that a layer of body fat helped to protect against damage. Now, the weaponry was different in that era, but the point remains somewhat. It is to be understood that they were quite fit under that layer of fat, however.

The key is to be in good physical condition for your weight, and for your endurance level to be high.

[Alex F]

Lately I've been more into physical fitness than into firearms training.

It's cheaper to run than to shoot 500 rounds of .45...

[Barbara]

I think his point is that training for a threat that's statistically not that likely to happen is pointless if you fail to train for threats that are statistically almost guaranteed. Not many civilians get killed in gun fights (enough to train for the possibility, sure, but the percentage is low) but a good share of them are going to die prematurely of preventable diseases.

Still..being big is no guarantee of being in bad shape. I have a friend who is in her mid-40s, just finished a 1/2 marathon, regularly plays sports, works out, etc. She is probably outside of any government guidelines of what she should weigh, but so what? She's got a lot more strength and stamina than I do.

Part of training for anything needs to be in respectable physical condition. That's not to say that every person needs to be in marathon shape, or be able to bench press a Buick. It means eating healthily, getting some physical exercise on a regular basis, something that is not unreasonable for anyone.

[texasrangers]

I think its very important that everyone does 30 minutes of cardio at least 3-4 days a week. If you are training to "survive" then the training should definitely be more intense than that. That being said, EVERYONE'S body is different. I have an absolutely terrible diet and until recently barely worked out at all, and I am still only 168 lbs. I have no doubt that there are "overweight" people who are in better physical shape than I am.

My grandpa was an alcoholic for well over 30 years. He smoked at least a pack a day since he was 18 when he arrived on Omaha Beach on D+2 ( he was an engineer and was assigned grave registration duty, so even though I don't agree with his lifestyle choices as it made for an incredibly difficult childhood for my dad, I do understand it). And he lived to be 85 and was able to every day normal activities up until the last 14 days of his life. If he hadnt of lived the lifestyle he did, I have no doubt he could have made 100. Likewise, there are many, many people who have lived that same lifestyle and not made it past 60. Everyone is different.