Notes for Friday – February 19, 2016

JRH Enterprises is running a sale on their popular Nightfighter 2 combo. This package includes a High Performance AN/PVS-14 Third Generation Pinnacle autogated night vision device brand new with a real factory 10-year warranty, plus an infrared laser, ACH helmet, helmet mount for the PVS-14, infrared marking beacon, and light interference filter (LIF). There are limited quantities on the size Large helmet.

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SurvivalBlog would like to welcome two new advertisers to the site:

  • Go Sun has a variety of solar cookers, from small individual sizes to commercial/party sizes, and they not only work well they look cool! (or is that hot?) Check their site out and see if one of these units is for you.
  • Ready Man, known for their credit card-size emergency tool kits, now has a Wilderness Survival Card. This fits in your wallet and contains the critical tools that you would need to supplement your knowledge and survive off of the land. My personal favorite is their Hostage Escape Card, but they have several others kinds as well. Everybody needs a couple sets of these emergency tools.

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Today, we present another entry for Round 63 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value),
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper with a hammer forged, chrome-lined barrel and a hard case to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel, which can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools and a compact carry capability in a hard case or 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Gun Mag Warehouse is providing 20 Magpul PMAG 30-rd Magazines (a value of $300) and a Gun Mag Warehouse T-Shirt; (an equivalent prize will be awarded for residents in states with magazine restrictions),
  6. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  7. The Ark Institute is donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package (enough for two families of four) plus seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate (a $325 retail value),
  8. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  9. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304, and
  10. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  3. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  4. A Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 value),
  5. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  6. A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  8. Safecastle is providing a package of 10 LifeStraws (a $200 value)

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A $245 gift certificate from custom knife-maker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
  3. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Montie Gear is donating a Precision Rest (a $249 value), and
  8. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).

Round 63 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Fitness for Success When the SHTF– Part 2 by JPM

Practical Fitness.

As the title implies, I believe in “practical fitness”. In my opinion, many people make fitness an obsession that takes over an inordinate amount of their day. I’m not saying it should be something like, “Oh, yeah, time to do that again”, only doing it as a once-a-week-drudgery. Dedicated physical exercise should be something we all engage in on a daily basis. But, it should be in the proper context: to prepare and maintain our body to live safe, healthy, active, productive lives. Physical exercise isn’t the focal goal, but its benefits are. It’s for this reason that I don’t believe that a career in professional sports is the best use of a human being’s potential. With this in mind, let’s proceed.

The Warmup

To engage in intense physical exercise without a warmup is dangerous. I myself have injured certain muscles on numerous occasions because of a failure to warm up. A warmup shouldn’t be done just before dedicated exercise but should be a morning routine, as it helps you work better even when you aren’t engaging in dedicated exercise. You won’t be plagued with aches and cramps at work, if you take a few minutes to warmup.

The best type of warmup is the dynamic warmup, as opposed to the type of static stretching that has been the standby for the past many decades. Since an excellent warmup article has already been written, I won’t repeat that. Please go and read it before continuing!

As I mentioned earlier, the warm-up at least should be a part of everyone’s daily routine. Research has shown that proper stretching (warm-up) can eliminate many issues, such as discomfort. For example, properly stretching the ankle can eliminate knee pain. It is also necessary prior to intense exercise, such as running, to prevent serious injury. Bottom line, if you’re going to work out, warm up.

You probably noticed that article was a little light on warm-ups for the upper body, i.e the arms and shoulders. For the arms, windmills (spinning your arms in a circle that starts horizontally inline with your shoulders and widens every ten reps till you are going above your head and down to your waist. Do this for 30 seconds and then reverse direction and repeat), and another is assuming a boxing stance and throwing crossovers, which has worked particularly well for me. Here are a couple of other useful upper body warm-ups.

Pronated Swings

Dr. Mike Marshall, a former Major League Baseball pitcher, designed this exercise to warm up the arms prior to baseball games and practices. Strap wrist weights on both arms or hold dumbbells in both hands. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and hold your arms at your sides with your palms facing forward. Swing both arms forward and upward to shoulder height simultaneously. Pronate your forearms, turning your thumbs downward, as your arms approach shoulder height, then let them drop back down and swing behind your back. Turn your forearms back to the starting position and repeat continuously for 16 total repetitions.

Scissor Stretch

This scissor stretch lengthens the muscles that pull your arms toward the center of your body and those that flex your elbow joints. Start in the same position as arm circles, with your arms extended away from your shoulders. Move both arms horizontally in front of your chest, crossing your left arm over your right, then reverse back to the starting position and beyond, moving your arms behind your shoulders. Move both arms back in front of your chest, this time crossing your right arm over your left, then spread your arms out again. Continue alternating like this for your desired number of repetitions.

Triceps Stretch

For a triceps stretch, lie on the back of your upper arms and facilitate elbow-joint extension ranges of motion. This exercise stretches the triceps dynamically. Lift your left arm above your head, then bend your elbow, bringing your forearm and hand behind your head. Place your right hand behind your left elbow and pull backward until you feel a gentle stretch through your triceps. Hold for one to two seconds, then release and extend your arm overhead. Immediately bend your elbow again and pull backward again with your right hand, stretching the triceps slightly farther than the first time. Continue this cycle multiple times. Perform the stretch with your right arm as well.

The order you do your exercises in also can help warm up your muscles. For example, a good order could be: jumping jacks, then squats (un-weighted), then sit-ups, then push-ups, ending with your pull-ups, chin-ups, and dead lifts. This order runs from easiest to hardest, giving muscles a good round of warming up prior to moving on to more difficult exercise. You should also do a set of your exercises prior to running, for the same reasons stated above.

I think this concludes the warm-up!

Practical Fitness Exercises

Practical fitness is very simple; it does not require numerous expensive pieces of equipment. These exercises are what our fighting men rely on to be of the most physically fit and strong people on the planet. (I don’t believe in steroids and fanatic body building. What’s the point?) At the end of this section, I will include a list of URL/resources for helpful diagrams of each exercise. I will use Snip URLs.

The Jumping-Jack

This is a very useful full body exercise that also is a good warm up and improves balance and flexibility.

Stand with feet together and your hands down by your side. In one motion, jump your feet out to the side and raise your arms above your head. Then, immediately reverse that motion by jumping back to the starting position.

The Pushup

The pushup is probably the most known and recognizable exercises the world over. It engages the arms, back, and legs and is truly the essential exercise.

Start on all fours with the hands slightly wider than, but in line with, the shoulders. (The body should form a straight line form the shoulders to the ankles.) Squeeze the abs, glutes, and thighs as tight as possible and keep them engaged. Then, lower the body until the chest just touches the floor, making sure that the elbows are tucked in close to the torso and have created a right angle (ninety degrees) with the forearm. Pause for a moment, and then push yourself back to the starting position.

Please note that this is military pushup form, which is more difficult because it much more intensely engages the triceps. Please see this excellent article for the difference between military and standard pushups:

The Sit-up

This is the infamous sit-up, known for exhausting people and strengthening abs everywhere.

Assume the sit-up position, lying on your back with your knees up at a 95 degree angle (see image), with your hands behind your head with fingers interlocked. Unless you have very strong abdominals, you will have to either place your feet under an object (e.g, edge of a couch) or have someone hold your ankles. The correct form for a sit-up requires that your heel always remain in contact with the ground; you can lift the rest of your foot off the ground.

While doing these, tighten your abs and keep them engaged. Now, sit-up to your knees, keeping your back straight; this is essential. Hold for a second and the return to starting position.

The Pull-up

Undoubtedly one of the hardest, this is one of the best exercises for strengthening the arms and back.

Stand underneath the bar and grasp it with your hands, with your arms in front of the bar. Your arms should be slightly farther apart then shoulder width. Cross your feet, one ankle on top of the other. Pull up on the bar, raising your chin above and over the bar, controlling your body (i.e, no flinging yourself up there). Return to the “hanging position” (down till your arms are extended, but without your feet touching the ground).

The Chin-up:

This is a slight variation of the pull-up that engages primarily the biceps, making it easier, as the pull-up requires more back strength. The only difference between this and the pull-up is that you grasp the bar with your palms facing you and your arms shoulder width apart; the chin-up engages primarily your arms, not so much your back. It is still a exercise you should do.

NOTE: Never attempt to do a Pull-up or a Chin-up with the bar behind your head! It isn’t “taking it to the next level”; it’s a sure-fire way to suffer a debilitating back/neck injury!

The Squat:

As one of the very best exercises for developing upper leg and glute strength, the squat also involves the rest of the leg and the lower back.

Stand up straight with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart and your arms at your sides. Imagine you are going to sit down in a chair. Now, sit back butt first, with your torso following. Remember to keep your torso and head straight; think of a board from the top of your head to your waist. You will bend forward at the waist but not higher. Never bring your head forward farther than your toes.

Go down until your upper leg has created a right angle at your knee with the lower leg; no farther. As you go down, raise your arms up and forward, bringing them together until they touch. Do not attempt to raise them higher than your shoulder level at the full drop of the squat, as this will cause you to bend your back. You may also hold your arms out straight in front of you for the whole squat. Proper squat form requires your back to be straight at all times! Then, return to the starting position.

The basic squat is done without dumb/bar bells; the weights can be added as an advanced exercise, but warm up with basic squats first. Weights definitely will increase you muscle mass more aggressively. A bar bell and some weights definitely would be a good investment for your retreat.

Letter: T.Z. Answers Some Questions on Paleo Prepping

HJL,

As to getting rid of accumulations of prepper storage carbs, find some livestock that naturally eats such things. Maybe a local beekeeper could use the sugar over winter. Maybe some chickens can turn it into good eggs or meat.

As to storage, I already mentioned good, organic vitamin and mineral supplements and protein powder, which you can put in bug-out bags. If I have fat on me, I’ll be burning that for a while as I’m bugging out or assessing the local area for wild food, barter, or what I’ve stored. Since I’m not hungry all the time, I can take it more slowly, and if it is temporary, I can go sedentary for a while and huddle in the warmest room with some books.

At least one of SurvivalBlog’s advertisers has long-term storage canned butter. I also look for something like olive oil on sale, especially in bulk, but you need to rotate them, even if you keep them chilled. The original “What’s for Dinner” series had some tips on this. Butter doesn’t need to be refrigerated, it goes rancid from oxidation, so one way is to just keep it under water where it is cool, though I’m not sure how long it stores in this state.

If you have cows, you might get butter, but for meat livestock, there’s tallow or lard. Similar is true for game animals, and the organ meats are usually high fat and nutrient dense.

I’m also looking at oilseeds, like sunflowers. Perhaps other readers can provide ideas of something that is more oily than starchy and grows well in the Redoubt.

For the “if you could do only one thing”, egg laying chickens might be the best alternative to actual storage, but you are likely to get a good surplus when you aren’t grid-down, so you can freeze-dry or maybe sell the surplus. Eggs by free range hens have fairly complete nutrition and you can often get that year round, though they will need feed in the winter.

The Freeze Dryer is the least work for the best results; the worst part is maintenance on the vacuum pump. I would freeze-dry copies of the meals you are eating if they are proper low-carb and don’t contain just oils. (You can’t dry something that is not moist.) Slice, put on trays, push a button, and put in bags is about as minimal work as you can get, and it gives you 25 years.

I don’t know your area, but another possibility is barter now with neighbors. Let them do the high-effort vegetables and livestock; you do the easier ones. You can be the freeze-dry person for the group or provide something else.

Freeze dryed thinly sliced meats become like chips as do leafy veggies, and eggs are like puffs so you can snack on them without re-hydrating or heating. I often freeze-dry and don’t store the food for long-term, as I just eat it out of ziplock bags.

We’re used to a few large, hot meals with a variety of foods, but you can try something different to make it simpler and less work. Bulk scramble eggs then reheat, or do a dozen hard-boiled eggs at a time, put them in a dish, then eat when hungry, not at a specific time. One of the more important low-carb tips is only eat when hungry, and fasting is recommended to accelerate weight loss. You won’t need to cook as often.

You can also just buy freeze-dried eggs and meats and some vegetables, but usually the results aren’t as good as doing your own. There is little work in putting cans in your pantry, though those are basically protein, vitamins, and minerals, and except for eggs and a few meats, have little fat. There are some longer term canned meats, and I already mentioned canned butter. That is a quick way to accumulate the year’s supply with minimal effort but some expense.

You might just want to do powdered or freeze-dried eggs with the Protein Powder and supplements for TEOTWAWKI, and continue your sustainable efforts for a lesser crisis. You have to ask what kinds of disasters and when would they affect your sustainable homestead. If you bug-out, you aren’t going to take a lot with you. If you are sustainable, much less have a surplus, you should only need stores for supplementing your diet or for charity.

Economics and Investing:

Why OPEC Production Freeze Could Pave The Way For Actual Cuts

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More indoctrination of our kids. “Ultimate Banking” Monopoly Edition Goes Completely Cashless – L.P.

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Items from Professor Preponomics:

US News

Why Negative Interest Rates Will Fail (Mises) Excerpt: “…there is an old adage: you can bring a horse to water but you cannot make him drink! With the world economy sinking into recession, few banks have credit-worthy customers and many banks are having difficulties collecting on existing loans.”

Percent of Total Wealth Owned in the United States: Bottom 40% Control -0.9% Meaning Close to Half the County Has a Negative Net Worth (My Budget 360) Excerpt: “This is what happens when wage growth disappears and inflation continues to expand. To keep up the pretense that the middle class was thriving debt products allowed people to spend money they don’t have. This is how the bottom 40 percent of Americans actually own negative wealth. They simply have more debt than assets. The story of the last financial crisis was one of too much debt. As it happens, we have now surpassed that point once again….”

Health Insurers Going Broke, Thanks to Obamacare (The New American) Excerpt: “According to one of ObamaCare’s primary architects, former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, that is exactly what the monstrosity was designed to do: fail, leaving the path open to a single-pay, government-run health insurance system.”

Civic Federation: Illinois Needs $9.4B in New Taxes by 2019 to Survive (WTTW) Excerpt: ““The state has basically spent the entire $32 billion of revenue that it had available,” he said. “We still have five months left in the fiscal year. We’re not going to close a $4.7 billion deficit just by cutting spending. There’s not enough time.”

Puerto Rico Government Has “Substantial Doubt” about It’s Solvency (The World Post) Excerpt: “Puerto Rico said it expects to miss at least some of its July 1 general obligation (GO) debt payment – about $800 million, according to a debt schedule obtained by Reuters – even with the benefit of so-called “clawbacks” wherein revenues earmarked for other debt are redirected to pay GO debt.”

International News

Hungary Central Bank Stockpiles Guns, Bullets: Cites Terror Risk (Bloomberg) Excerpt: “Hungary’s central bank, already facing criticism for a spending spree ranging from real estate to fine art, is now beefing up its security force, citing Europe’s migrant crisis and potential bomb threats among the reasons.”

Rome Looks to the ECB to Resolve Its Banking Crisis (New Europe) Excerpt: “For the moment, Italy’s BBB- just-about investment grade rating is essential, not least an important part of this ECB scheme is to have Rome “guarantee” NPLs, with everybody knowing that is a promise that cannot be met. Italy does not have the money and does not have the fiscal space to make such promises. But, this is a lie one can agree to believe, if it serves a purpose.”

Personal Economics and Household Finance

How to Prepare for a Recession (USA Today) Excerpt: “If I’m correct, and the economy is about to enter a recession, how should I prepare my finances so I don’t repeat history? I feel like the economy could get ugly this coming fall.”

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SurvivalBlog and it’s editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details

Odds ‘n Sods:

It looks like the Feds hold a grudge for a pretty long time. SurvivalBlog reader B.B. sent in this article outlining the charges that Cliven Bundy and sons Ammon and Ryan have been indicted for Nevada standoff in 2014. Now that the indictments have been handed down for that, the rumors are flying about how many more indictments will be coming. The government doesn’t like to lose a fight, and they are feeling their oats now after Burns, Oregon.

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Given world events, it is difficult not to see this as “sinister”. South Florida Jewish Community Concerned Over Bizarre Encounters – Submitted by T.A.

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The FBI apparently has a new stylish brownshirt field uniform with matching pants. Now all they need is color-coordinated stock furniture and purses for a night out on the town. Oh, and maybe some rakish-looking “FBI” armbands, for the complete ensemble.- JWR

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Pat Cascio, SurvivalBlog’s Senior Product Review Editor commented that is sure looks like we are preparing to go to war with Russia… U.S. stationing tanks and artillery in classified Norwegian caves (Warning: autostarting video)

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Vizio’s smart TVs are snitches, lawsuit alleges – Sent in by D.S.

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SurvivalBlog reader CDV sent in this article of the search for a steamboat that sank on the Missouri River 150 years ago. They found it, and interestingly enough among the artifacts found was much preserved food that was still edible. It even looks good in the glass canning jars.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“All the fiery rhetoric of the Founders was directed at a `tyrant’ who taxed his subjects at a rate of about three percent. Today, we in `the land of the free’ are taxed at about 50 percent when you add federal, state, and local taxes. What kind of government would do this? A dictatorship would. “ – Doug Newman

Notes for Thursday – February 18, 2016

Today, we present another entry for Round 63 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value),
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper with a hammer forged, chrome-lined barrel and a hard case to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel, which can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools and a compact carry capability in a hard case or 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Gun Mag Warehouse is providing 20 Magpul PMAG 30-rd Magazines (a value of $300) and a Gun Mag Warehouse T-Shirt; (an equivalent prize will be awarded for residents in states with magazine restrictions),
  6. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  7. The Ark Institute is donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package (enough for two families of four) plus seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate (a $325 retail value),
  8. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  9. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304, and
  10. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  3. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  4. A Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 value),
  5. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  6. A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  8. Safecastle is providing a package of 10 LifeStraws (a $200 value)

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A $245 gift certificate from custom knife-maker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
  3. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Montie Gear is donating a Precision Rest (a $249 value), and
  8. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).

Round 63 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Fitness for Success When the SHTF– Part 1, by JPM

The ancient Greeks probably were the people with the highest emphasis on physical fitness. In fact, their great athletes were worshipped as gods. Hence, we have the Olympic games. Over the ages, people have always had respect for physical exercise and practiced it. But in modern days, we see a shocking amount of obesity; it is on an unprecedented scale, and it’s not a good thing. Those of us preparing for TEOTWAWKI know that we need equipment. We also know that gear without knowledge or training is useless, so we read manuals and attend classes and courses and so on that teach us how to utilize our gadgets. However, the part that we sometimes forget about is also the most important part: you. We all know what we are going to do when things get bad. Most of us have a plan, but we often underestimate our own ability to carry out these plans. It’s like the time when we were kids and Dad said, “Be careful! Maybe I should carry that heavy box.” And we thought, “The old man is crazy! I got this.” For many of us, it was an embarrassing lesson. And so it is now: the worst happening is something we have already decided to face as a possibility, but it may take the breath out of us! Now, I’m no Olympian, but I do work hard to stay able to take on the day. In fact, if you were to ask me why I run long distances or am fanatic about pushups, my answer wouldn’t be “so I look good” (but this is a nice side effect!); it would be so that, when the situation arises where failure to be able to conquer whatever the difficulty is would have disastrous or life threatening consequences, I will not fail for lack of strength. So, here is my humble contribution to our realm of preparedness– a guide on practical fitness for when the SHTF.

A Note On Health

I have no intention of turning this into a nutrition class, but when it comes to physical fitness, a few things are worth mention and many go without saying.

Sleep

Nothing will drain you and totally ruin your long-term health faster than a shortage of sleep. Get at least six hours of sleep a night. The time you sleep is also important. Pick up a autobiography of a Navy SEAL or the like and you’re sure to find mention of Ambien or other sleep drugs. The reason is that he spends many hours of the night doing extremely high stress work and attempts to sleep during the day. Studies have proven that the most restful and healing sleep occurs between 10 and 2am, assuming that you are a normal human being on a regular schedule. This is because that is the way we are meant to function; that’s the way our biological clocks are calibrated. It doesn’t mean we can’t function under less than ideal circumstances or at less than ideal times. It means only that our performance won’t be as spectacular. So, don’t make a habit of staying up late and no all-night TV marathons! Lack of healthy sleep is also the fastest way to catch a cold or the flu, as it weakens your immune system.

Water

Without any question whatsoever, this is the one necessity for life that an absence of will kill you the quickest. At minimum you need half your body weight in ounces per day. (If you weigh 190 pounds, you need at least 95 ounces per day.) Plus, you need more with increased activity. The bottom line is if you are thirsty drink. In America, chronic dehydration is rampant, thanks in part to sugary (and corn syrup-filled) carbonated beverages. The reason is that the sweetener dehydrates you, and many people who drink these sodas are addicts. So, they reach for another to quench the thirst caused by the first. Also, thirst is commonly mistaken for hunger, so be sure to drink up before reaching for snacks. Lastly, drink water that is free of fluoride. There is no proof whatsoever that fluoride prevents cavities, and studies actually support that it is only harmful. The Nazis used it to keep the Jews complacent in the concentration camps; it is a brain-damaging substance and also attacks your gut and thyroid. City water also is just too unpredictable, with reports of drugs being “added” in certain places. In Europe, live polio virus was dumped into the Lasne River in Rixensart, Belgium by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, who claimed it was an accident. So, if you’re going to drink city water, purify it with a reliable system, such as a Propur system, which is American made and affordable: http://store.infowars.com/-Propur-Water-Filtration_c_53.html

Food

(Like I said, this isn’t a nutrition article so I will try to keep this brief; I can write more in depth on this in the future.) Food is our fuel. More important than eating enough is eating good food, and I don’t mean food that tastes good (although pretty much all foods taste delectable, I find that the ones that are healthy taste better than the ones that aren’t), I mean what is healthy. This could get long, so I’ll keep it to bullet points.

  • Eat organic. GMO foods are the product of the last 60 years, and they are a disaster. They cause infertility, cancer (on an epic scale), obesity, long-term disease in almost every body system, and more. Why would you eat something that is resistant to pesticides that kill people who come into contact with them? (You won’t hear about this in America. GMO is too big an industry to let that get out. But, just Google “African boy killed by pesticide”. He died within hours.) In fact, pesticide-resistant crops began when Monsanto found an organism that had survived in a puddle of the toxic waste from their pesticide production. Their brilliant idea was to stick the DNA from this lucky substance into seeds, and voila! We have GMO, Roundup-resistant crops. Another thing to consider is the fact that most all chronic diseases that exist today didn’t exist 150 years ago. They are, to a large degree, a product of the lifestyle of the city dweller of the 20-21st century. I could go on forever on this subject, so for this article, I’d better leave it there. The bottom line: make meals from scratch using organic ingredients.
  • Stay away from meals already prepared, as these are designed for long shelf life and to do so make use of non-organic preservatives and other harmful components. If your local store doesn’t have much of an organic selection (although organic is making a major comeback as people reject the GMO paradigm), you can make use of bulk nationwide suppliers. The one I and my family buy from is Azure Standard. They ship a huge selection of items and food across the U.S to drop points where you then pick up your order. If there isn’t a drop point, you can start one if you have people around you that are interested in making use of one, and if not for an extra cost you can have it delivered right to your residence. I recommend you request a catalog. To recap, organic is the way food was since the Creation of the Earth; the food man first consumed was organic. Why should we change that? Messing with our food in a lab (playing God) is not a very smart idea.

Breathing

You may think you already know how to breathe, but astonishingly there are a lot of people who are practicing detrimental breathing habits. I myself was one of them. Bad breathing habits make your exercise a real pain and limit your performance. For better workouts, follow these guidelines.

Most importantly, do what feels natural. Anything that feels restrictive can almost always be attributed to being counterproductive. Notice, though, that “almost” means almost. Learn to belly breathe, if you don’t already. Breathing with your upper chest is something many people do, but it doesn’t allow your lungs to expand as much as they could. When you inhale, concentrate on expanding your belly, not your upper chest. This increases the amount of air you can take in. Start learning to belly breathe now. Next time you inhale, do as stated above. I recommend breathing with your nose. When you think about it, it makes sense to use your nose: Nose breathing filters out dust and dirt. Mouth breathing or panting dehydrates you faster. Mouth breathing displaces your carbon dioxide level faster than is healthy.

When doing strength exercise, such as pushups, pull-ups, et cetera, inhale on the easy part of the rep (the “drop”), which in a pushup and a pull-up would be the drop down. In bench resting it would be when you drop the bar to your chest. Then exhale when you do the actual work. The expelling the air goes hand-in-hand with the expansion of your muscles as you do the rep. Inhaling on the work takes the energy you need for the rep away. During strength exercise, it is going to be hard to feel your belly expanding with your breath (because you will usually have your abdominals engaged in the exercise), but just focus on that pattern and you’ll do fine. When you run, a rhythm is just as important as how you breathe. Running wild without a tempo will exhaust you quickly, and you won’t get anywhere. Inhale for a count of three, which would be left-right-left, and then exhale for another count of three, right-left-right. Note that I am addressing running here; sprinting will involve more footfalls in one breath than this. But for running, this is a good, even tempo.

Letter Re: Pat Cascio’s Product Review: Beyond Locks

HJL,

Often missed in this sort of door up-armoring process are the hinges.

Assuming your door is set on its own rough framing (no sidelights), replace at least two hinge screws on the jamb side in each hinge with 4 1/2″ flathead stardrive heavy screws (through the finished jamb into the rough framing). In other words do the same thing you’re doing to the strike, fastening them deep and strong.

This works. When we first moved into our present quarters, I replaced the strike and hinge screws is this manner. About a month later my wife came home to find our door cracked and the lockset warped from an attempt to kick it in. Someone drove up, saw no one was home, and took a run at it. The door held and was repairable. (It is an old 1-7/8 inch, four panel, 4-light, solid hard pine beauty, I added top and bottom dead bolts after repairing the crack in the rail)

Also, examine the door side hinge screws. They are often laughably short. Bear in mind that most modern metal clad entry doors have side rail rarely wider than 1- 3/4″, so a real long screw is a waste.

Of course, for a really tough job, you can defy local building codes and hang your entry door so that it opens out (with blind or staked pin hinges). Bad guys can beat on that all day long, if you do it right. – Dollardog

Economics and Investing:

The War On Paper Currency Begins: ECB Votes To “Scrap” 500 Euro Bill – G.G. “Draghi: any ECB action on EU500 note is not about reducing cash. Translation: the ECB action is only about reducing physical cash, some 30% of it to be specific.”

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Central bankers ‘don’t have a clue’ – Jim Rogers – G.G.

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When Cash Is Outlawed… Only Outlaws Will Have Cash– Sent in by D.S.

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Percent of Total Wealth Owned in the United States: Bottom 40% control -0.9% Meaning Close to Half the Country has a Negative Net Worth.

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Items from Mr. Econocobas:

“You Should Be Very Worried, You Should Be Prepared” Warns Jim Rogers– Make sure to listen to the audio interview, and you can fast forward to the 39-minute mark, as the article points out that is where is gets interesting.

Items from Professor Preponomics:

US News

How the Government Buys Your Support (Mises) An excellent Mises article and timely follow up to ongoing SurvivalBlog coverage about egregious levels of wasteful government spending. Excerpt: “In Iraq and Afghanistan, US military officers routinely handed bundles of cash to local residents to buy influence and undermine resistance to the American occupation. Such payments came in especially handy after US troops inadvertently killed innocent civilians or sheep. Billions of dollars were shoveled out with little or no oversight as part of the Pentagon’s “Money as a Weapon System” program. In the same way, politicians have long relied on money as a weapon system to buy votes or to undermine resistance to Washington.”

Watchdogs Let Errant Feds Go Anonymous (Government Waste Fraud and Abuse) Excerpt: “Six of the top inspectors general (IG) — presidentially-appointed watchdogs tasked with fighting waste, fraud and abuse in the federal bureaucracy — withheld the names of government employees in 88 percent of the reports they issued over a six-month period.”

Capitol Portraits, a Perk of Access, Became a Symbol of Excess Instead (Taxpayers for Common Sense) Excerpt: “Families struggle to pay their mortgage and feed their families,” Mr. Cassidy said, “while the federal government spends money on paintings of government officials that are often placed in the back of a government bureaucracy, never to be seen by the public.” …but wait, there’s more. Examples of wasteful government spending just keep coming. Federal Spending Oversight Reports: Dr. Rand Paul Uncovers $15K Grant for Conference on Balding in Latest “The Waste Report”

International News

A Tempest of Fear: European Banks are in the Eye of a New Financial Storm (The Economist) Excerpt: “If the start of the year has been desperate for the world’s stockmarkets, it has been downright disastrous for shares in banks.”

A Massive Banking Crisis is Brewing in Singapore, Says Swiss Billionaire Zulauf(Yahoo Finance) Excerpt: “Speaking at the annual Barron’s roundtable, Swiss billionaire investor Felix Zulauf warned that Singapore’s largest banks are at risk of massive capital outflows if the Chinese economy experiences a hard landing, which he expects will happen this year.”

UK Business Gas Supplies Could Be Diverted to Households in Europe, Under EU Crisis Plan (The Telegraph) Excerpt: “A new “solidarity principle” would apply to gas supplies to ensure that households, healthcare and security services across Europe were maintained as a priority in the event of a severe crisis.”

Saudis and Russians Agree to Oil Output Freeze, Iran Still an Obstacle (Yahoo News) Excerpt: “OPEC member Iran, Saudi Arabia’s regional arch rival, has pledged to steeply increase output in the coming months as it looks to regain market share lost after years of international sanctions, which were lifted in January….” Reuters updates the developing story of Iran’s position related to oil output with this article: Iran Says Will Resist Curbs on Oil Output as Part of Global Pact

Personal Economics and Household Finance

10 Ways to Protect Your Social Security Number (Investopedia) Excerpt: “Identity theft thrives in the U.S. in part because Americans feel forced to use their SSN for so many types of interactions. Ultimately, it falls on individuals to protect their own number.”

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog reader R.C. writes in with regards to JWR’s comment on purchasing PVC pipe and caps for burying caches on SurvivalBlog. Sportsman’s Guide has some used U.S. Military Surpolus M14A2 cylinders for sale.

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SurvivalBlog reader G.G. sent in this article on How to Survive Falling Through the Ice from The New York Times.

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State Supreme Court Rules That Cops Do Not Need Warrants To Enter Homes And Forcibly Seize Evidence – D.S.

JWR’s Comment: <Sarcasm On>Oh, well, now that we’ve been told that the polizei were just being friendly “Community Caretakers” when they kicked in that door, we can all rest easy–knowing that our rights are secure, and that we’ll live happily ever after… <Sarcasm Off> (Actually, this is gross display of the inverted logic of the jackbooted police in Terry Gilliam’s epic dystopic film Brazil.

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Missing Radioactive Material in Iraq Prompts Nationwide Search, ISIS Fears – submitted by T.A.

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SurvivalBlog reader Rick in Ohio wrote in:

The recent terrorist attack on the Nazareth Restaurant struck close to home. Many in our community know the owner and his family personally. His daughter recently posted the following:

“Yesterday when Shafi (on staff at Naz) came into Nazareth Restaurant & Deli all dressed up, my mom who was volunteering said, “You look so nice- do you have another job?” He said no, that he had just received his American citizenship! How exciting!! Just a few days before, Shafi was the guy who grabbed the baseball bat to defend the customers in the midst of the attack. My dad said that when he got his citizenship back in the late 80s, his friends gave him an apple pie, a toy car, and a baseball bat. Tonight we will present him with one of his own! (smile emoticon) I look forward to getting to know him more! We’re so happy for him”

God truly works in mysterious ways!

Notes for Wednesday – February 17, 2016

The Zelman Partisans contacted Ted Nugent to inquire about his offensive anti-Semitic Facebook post. This was the best possible outcome from the situation, and it was enthusiastically accepted. This should be an example to us of the dangers of social media. The graphic was indeed anti-Semitic, but whoever posted it for Ted didn’t pay attention. Kudos to Ted for recovering from this misstep.

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Today, we present another entry for Round 63 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The nearly $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Tactical Self-Contained 2-Series Solar Power Generator system from Always Empowered. This compact starter power system is packaged in a wheeled O.D. green EMP-shielded Pelican hard case (a $1,700 value),
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate that is good for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,195 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper with a hammer forged, chrome-lined barrel and a hard case to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel, which can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools and a compact carry capability in a hard case or 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Gun Mag Warehouse is providing 20 Magpul PMAG 30-rd Magazines (a value of $300) and a Gun Mag Warehouse T-Shirt; (an equivalent prize will be awarded for residents in states with magazine restrictions),
  6. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  7. The Ark Institute is donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package (enough for two families of four) plus seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate (a $325 retail value),
  8. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  9. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304, and
  10. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A transferable certificate for a two-day Ultimate Bug Out Course from Florida Firearms Training (a $400 value),
  3. A Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  4. A Trekker IV™ Four-Person Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $250 value),
  5. A $200 gift certificate good towards any books published by PrepperPress.com,
  6. A pre-selected assortment of military surplus gear from CJL Enterprize (a $300 value),
  7. RepackBox is providing a $300 gift certificate to their site, and
  8. Safecastle is providing a package of 10 LifeStraws (a $200 value)

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A $245 gift certificate from custom knife-maker Jon Kelly Designs, of Eureka, Montana,
  3. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  4. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Montie Gear is donating a Precision Rest (a $249 value), and
  8. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).

Round 63 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

How to Prepare a Refugee Bug Out Bag- Part 2, by Charles T.

  1. Cooking Supplies

    On the road or in a refugee camp you will need ways to prepare food. Preparing food almost always involves heat, usually provided through fire. When thinking about preparing food in a refugee type situation, you need to think a lot farther than you would for a typical camping situation. Anything that runs off gas or some sort of combustible liquid should be disqualified. Why? Because you will run out of fuel and end up throwing it out anyway. Don’t spend money on a fancy gas burning camping stove; it’s a waste, unless you go camping a lot for fun and then is a great investment. Instead, think about what resources you have locally for fuel.

    Most regions have wood available in some form or another. Wood burning stoves have been around as long as there has been fire. While simply starting a fire with a bunch of sticks on the ground and cooking over them could work, it is horribly inefficient and has a high risk of fire spreading out of control. Instead, look at building a small rocket stove or hobo stove. These can be carried with you and are low weight, if you make them out of the right materials. A rocket stove will use a small amount of fuel to quickly boil water or cook over. It can also be made to stably hold a few different size pots.

    Stoves that run off fire need a way to start the fire. A standard Bic lighter may last for a while, but eventually it runs out of fuel. Instead, look into a ferro strike rod, such as the Light My Fire 2.0 Army Swedish Firesteel. It last for about 12000 strikes, which will start a lot more fires than a Bic lighter.

    Once you have your heat source, think about what you need for cooking. A good gallon-size pot and a skillet should suffice for most families. The pot can be used for water purification and making soups, while the skillet can be used to cook meat or whatever you find. If the weight of both is too much, just keep the pot. Its bottom can be used as a skillet type surface. To keep your pots clean, use a scraper to clear any residue after use, and ideally have a small jar of oil to use for cleaning and maintaining your pans.

    For utensils, a lightweight wooden ladle and spatula would be invaluable and should cover most cooking needs. If you already have these at home, then just plan on grabbing them before you hit the road, unless you want to make a separate kit that you keep ready for an emergency evacuation. Each person in your family should have a spork and cup that can be used to eat out of. You shouldn’t need a separate cooking knife; just use the one you will have on you.

  2. Tools

    The last thing you may have seen listed as essential items are tools that people brought with them. Having a specialized tool makes you valuable. If you are the only one who can perform a certain function, this makes you more valuable to a group of people.

    Below are a list of specialized tools that you may already have. The temptation may be to get all of them, but realistically it is better to have everything you need to get one specialized task done well than to have a little bit of everything and be generally useless.

Cooking Tools

I think you should have some basic tools for cooking just to be self sufficient in this area. However, if you loaded up on spices, oils, and pots and pans, you could become valuable as the “camp chef” of your refugee group. By cooking other people’s food you could take some of it as payment and support yourself. Make sure you have plenty of fire-starting materials. Bulk packages of Flint Rods can be used with the back of a Gerber Prodigy or Mora Buschraft to start thousands of fires.

Wood Preparation Tools

If you have a quality full-size ax then you can be the designated wood chopper. Having woodworking knives and tools could allow you to carve wooden utensils and other needed items for trade.

Medical Tools

Most people do not know how to use medical tools. If you have first aid or advanced medical training, stock up on some specialized tools that will make you valuable to other people. A good doctor will be jealously guarded by a group of people because of their importance in keeping a group functioning properly. Everyone should have a basic medical first aid kit prepared, but it is impracticable for everyone to have a kit of dental surgery tools. Make yourself valuable by having the essential healthcare trade.

Defense Tools

Many people do not have firearms. If you have a range of weaponry, ammunition, and maintenance supplies then a job as the group’s sentry or soldier could help support you. Guns are heavy and you can’t eat them, so make sure you have others that know how to cook and find food; otherwise you may be using the gun in ways you never thought you could.

Clothing/Equipment Repair Tools

One interesting refugee carried his sewing machine with him. It allowed him to offer a valuable service to others by fixing their clothes. While a full manual sewing machine may not be practical, having a large assortment of thread, needles, buttons, and buckles could make you the go-to person for mending clothes and gear. Life as a refugee is stressful on all your equipment, so having the ability to repair on-the-go is essential.

Hunting Tools

While the odds of you getting enough wild game on the road to support yourself let alone others is slim to none, having hunting supplies could be useful. Having fishing tackle could give you an opportunity to catch fish if you are camped near a lake. Bringing snare wire and knowing how to use it could allow you to set traps before sleeping and potentially wake up to fresh breakfast.

Charging Tools

Even if the grid is down, people will still have electronics that need charging. If you built a portable solar or crank charging system for storing and dispensing energy you could be a very popular person. Consider getting a basic solar charger that you can use to collect energy from the sun. The downside of these is that they only have energy available if the sun is out. Store excess energy in a big external battery (or a few smaller external batteries) that can be transferred at night or a more convenient time. You can also use a USB battery charger to fill rechargeable AA or AAA batteries that can be used in flashlights or other portable electronics. Grey Wolf Survival has a great article on building a portable charging station that I highly recommend if you want to take your charging station to the next level.

  1. Alternative Transportation

    After reading this list you may be feeling a little overwhelmed with the idea of carrying all this stuff in your backpack. That is because it would be pretty much impossible to do so. It is important to think of alternative means of carrying around your essential equipment now. If you have ever read the book or seen the movie called The Road, you would have watched how the main character carries his precious goods in a shopping cart. If you live near a major city you have probably observed this trick with your local homeless population as well. While in a true emergency a shopping cart will seem like a wagon from heaven, if you have the opportunity now invest in some better alternatives.

    Gardening wagons come in a variety of sizes. These have the advantage of being able to carry a larger amount of equipment (depending on the size you select) over more difficult terrain than a shopping cart could handle due to using inflated tires. They also offer a smoother ride for young children so that you can carry them when they get tired after about 100 yards of walking. If you buy one with inflated tires, make sure you get some spare tires as well as a pump. Automotive flat repairing kits are a must as well. Here are examples of  large, medium, and small wagons that may suit your needs.

    Another standard strategy employed by the homeless is to use a dolly. Dollies are a great way to carry around heavy gear. They only have two points of contact with the ground, which makes it easier to navigate through tough terrain that even a wagon could not. If you go this route, buy a dolly that has solid one-piece construction for the frame and non-pressurized wheels so you don’t need to worry about a pump or spares. The extra weight of the solid frame will more than make up for itself with its added durability. The disadvantage of the dolly is that it cannot easily be used to carry children, and it also cannot carry as much as a wagon. If you are traveling with a group or your family, consider having both available to you. If you like the idea of a dolly but wish for the convenience and stability of having four wheels on the ground, there are dollies available that have four wheels and can be used either as a wagon or a dolly. If you are going to go the dolly route, make sure you have some bungee cords to keep everything attached.

    The last and maybe the most versatile way to carry your gear is on a bicycle. A good mountain bike equipped with storage racks in the front and back can be an invaluable tool. Not only can you walk with it and have it carry the majority of the load, it can be unloaded and used in its normal purpose to quickly move you around. Having at least one person in your group with a bike could be life and time saving as they can scout for food or danger far quicker than someone on foot. If you don’t already have a mountain bike, consider getting one that does not have any additional rear suspension components. The fewer moving parts there are the less there is to break. May sure to pack five or six extra inner tubes of the correct size and a patching kit as well as tools to make basic repairs. Also, have extra tires.

    If you are planning on going the bike route, a pull-behind child’s trailer for a bike could be used for its intended purpose or as additional storage space. There are also more simple bike trailers that are designed specifically for cargo.

Conclusion

Being a refugee should ideally be a temporary experience. Being prepared now can help ease the discomfort of such a devastating situation and prepare you to make the time as short as possible.

While I certainly hope and pray that no one reading this ever finds themselves in a refugee situation, if it does happen remember to maintain hope and maybe you will be a little better prepared by taking some of the steps listed. Best of luck neighbors! Charles T.

Letter Re: Prepping for a Paleo Diet

Hugh,

TZ’s article on the Paleo diet vs. the more usual heavy-on-carb diet that preppers typically prep for was exciting for me to read because it addressed many of the issues my husband and I are dealing with. We’ve been formally prepping for the past six years, storing up wheat, rice, beans, etc. Then two years ago we found a great doctor, a Functional Medicine Doctor, who emphasizes the health model vs. the pathology model. He started with extensive blood tests, then based on the results starts you off on a series of supplements and a strict non-carb diet. We’re in our late sixties, and I just assumed weight gain and loss of energy through the decades was normal. But we both lost so much (and we’re not hungry), that we’re down to the weight we were in our 20s, with more energy, lowered cholesterol, and no longer pre-diabetic, etc. This just through diet and supplements.

However, we had four years of accumulated stored carbs and canned goods. Now what? We have lots of company, so I am slowly using up what’s stored. (I know, feeding our company stuff we don’t normally eat?!!). We’re still working on that issue. I did hope that TZ would give us a list of what to store. But his advice to buy a freeze drier (something we’re seriously thinking about) is a good start.

I personally hate this sustainable life style in that it’s a LOT of work and ties us down with morning and evening chores and the myriad chores of growing your own vegetables year round (and we live at 9000 feet!). I don’t like to cook. I don’t like to put up vegetables either by canning, freezing, or dehydrating. In general, if it’s domestic work, I pretty much hate it (sigh), but I do it anyway. Eating fresh, non pre-packaged food is a lot more work. Putting things in the freeze-drier is too. So, I guess, if anyone has any suggestions for Paleo-type storage, I’d love to hear them. (You know, that no-work but lots of gain philosophy 😉

By the way, TZ excellently laid out the principles and benefits of eating a very low-carb diet. We’ve fallen off the wagon a little, and it’s encouraged us to get back on. – S.