The Survival Handbook: Essential Skills for Outdoor Adventure

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ESSEITIAl SKIllS FOR.omOOR IDllIlTURE

LONDON. NEW YORK. MUNICH. MELBOURN E. DELHI Seniert

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Introduction

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,,,..'" and ""'" n H-__ Legs: improved leg strength is a huge benefit when you're on the trail

Balallce: sure-footedness and confidence are useful qualities on rocky terrain

GETTING INTO SHAPE

FIT FOR THE CHALLENGE

GO FOR A CHECK-UP

Survival fitness is not about trying to tun the 100 meters in 10 seconds; it's about stamina and endurance, and about knowing your physical limitations and being able to work with them. It is also about understanding that you may have to push yourself beyond your limits and that having a positive mental attitude is paramount to survival-the mind will often give up long before the body has reached its limit. Bear in mind that every task in a survival situation will sap your energy.

It's a sad fact that the majority of us don't have regular medical check-ups. Many people work on the principle that you only

t EXERCISING REGULARLY Any effeelive training schedule must include at least three 45-minute sessions per week, with exercises that raise the heartbeat to more than 120 beats per minute.

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To spend time in the wilderness with a pack on your back requires a combination of strength and aerobic fitness. Training in the gym before you set off will strengthen your heart, lungs, and leg muscles, and will increase your stamina levels when you are out on the trail. • Seek expert instruction and guidance wherever possible. • Start gradually and then build up your routine progressively. • Never try to work through injuries-rest and seek medical advice. • Devise a relevant fitness program; there are many websites and organizations that provide you with detailed fitness programs for various levels of specific activities, from training for a trek through the jungle to mountain-biking along the Appalachian Trail. • Duplicating in training what you'd like to be able to achieve on the trail will allow you to build up reference points about how your body works, and how it copes in different situations. The more you know about how you perform, the better equipped you'll be on the trail.

VISIT THE DOCTOR • Let the doctor know of any ailments that have been a concern to you during the course of the previous year. • Tell the doctor where you are going and enquire about relevant inoculations or medication that you should be taking with you .

VISIT THE DENTIST • Have any problems with your teeth dealt with before you go. Any minor dental problem will almost certai nly turn into full-blown toothache when you least want it to.

USEFUL EXERCISES If you already get regular exercise, you'll find yourself far more

plenty of stretching, aerobic exercise, and weight-training.

STRETCHING YOUR UPPER BODY AND BACK Regularly stretching your arms, neck, chest, and shoulders will help your body to maintain a strong core. This will be of great use when it comes to activities such as rock climbing or using trekking poles. Undergoing a regular back-stretching routine will loosen the back muscles, making them more flexible and less susceptible to injury, and will increase both the back's ~ange of motion and its endurance.

STRETCHING YOUR LEGS Because your leg muscles bear the brunt of the work, leg stiffness is a common com plaint at the end of a long day on the trail. Stretching your legs will improve your flexibility, increase blood circulation, and relax your muscles. Concentrate on your calves, quads, and hamstrings.

AEROBIC EXERCISES Also called cardiovascular fitness, aerobic fitness refers to the ability of your heart, blood vessels, and lungs to supply oxygen and nutrients to the rest of your body during sustained physical activity. Regular aerobic exercise-such as swimm ing, jogging, or cycling-will reduce the risk of developing coronary heart disease or high blood pressure, will help you to manage your weight and increase your stamina levels, and will make your heart stronger and more efficient, thus improving blood flow around your body.

WEIGHT-TRAINING

WARMING UP AND COOLING DOWN '\ Time spent warming up and cooling down after exercise will help to improve your endurance levels and will also accelerate the recovery process. Get into the habit of starting and ending your session with afive-minute jog.

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pay a visit to your doctor and dentist and make sure that your

body and teeth are in good condition.

comfortable in a survival situation than your more sedentary counterparts. Any pre-expedition training regime should include

STARTING A FITNESS PROGRAM

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need to see a doctor or dentist if something is wrong. However, you should always make sure that you start any adventure or wilderness trek in top condition. Therefore, before you set out,

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Increased muscle strength will enhance your ability to perform everyday tasks such as lifting, carrying, and walking. A regular weight-training program will improve your posture, build muscle density around the joints and bones, improve your sense of balance, help your stress management abilities, aid sleep, and reduce the chances of you sustaining an injury. In addition, research has shown that a regular ~esistance-training program can improve your metabolic rate by up to 15 percent, which will help you shed any unwanted weight at a faste~ rate.

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BEFORE YOU GO _ PREPARE YOURSELF

MENTAL PREPARATION

INDIVIDUAL REACTIONS TO DISASTER

REGARDLESS OF WHETHER you're backpacking through a remote area, or on a day hike in familiar territory, a situation may arise that changes your circumstances for the worse. Very quickly you move into the unknown, which causes tremendous psychological and emotional stress, known as "psychogenic shock." Understanding this will help you to deal with it better and reduce its impact.

People react to survival situations

YOUR RESPONSE TO DISASTER SITUATIONS Your psycholCX)ical response to a survival situation is crucial. Statistics show that 95 percent of people who die with psycholCX)ical trauma die within the first three days. Losing the will to survive-or suffering psycholCX)ical disorders that prevent you from coping with the physical conditions-is your main concern. If you break down psycholCX)ically, your chances of overcoming a situation will be compromised.

PSYCHOLOGICAL PROGRESSION It's useful to examine how people are likely to react in a survival situation. Using this knowledge, it's possible to prepare mentally for such eventualities and, in so doing,

lessen the impact if the worst should happen to you when out on the trail. Normal psychological reactions to disaster tend to occur in a set pattern of four stages: the preimpact period, the impact period, the recoil period, and

the post-trauma period (see right). Contrary to popular belief, people don't normally panic, although it can be contagious if someone does.

AGGRAVATING FACTORS Reactions to disaster can result from a direct blow to

the psychological system, such as extreme shock, but they can also be brought on, or aggravated by, other factors. As with all psychological problems, knowing what these aggravating factors are. and attempting to avoid them-or at least recognizing what they might lead to-w ill maximize your chances of preventing or overcoming the problem. The most common aggravating factors are: hunger, thirst, fatigue, seasickness, and hypothermia.

COPING STRATEGIES There are many things you can do to prepare yourself psychologically for a survival situation-such as

learning about what you should expect if the worst

were to happen-and to cope better if you find yourself in one. As with all survival skills, prior

knowledge is power, and will help you to deal with a survival situation far more successfully. The main areas to think about are: training, motivation, attachment, hope, acceptance, and helping others. Developing coping strategies is an important technique for survival.

in different ways, although you can expect to find some common emotional reactions in victims who are experiencing, or have survived, a disaster situation. You may experience one or more of them during or after any survival experience or trauma.

HUNGER I nitial~, hunger is not a probl em, but a loo g-term lack of food will cause psychological changes to occur. Symptoms include:

• Apathy • Irritability • Depression • Lack of concentration

TRAINING People who are prope r ~ prepared , wn o know their environment and howto use their equipment. and have an understanding of what to expect in a survival situation , will be far more effective if they find themselves in one. Adequate training and practice using you r equ ipment will he Ip yoo to function effective ~ at an automatic level. Prior knowledge is key to your su rvival.

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THIRST Thirst is a serious problem , especially for su rvivors at sea or in the desert. and its effects are more acute than hunge r. Agitation is comlmnrrlace; other symptcm s • Irration al behavior (see box, right) • Delusions • Visual hallucinations

MOTIVATION Often knoon as "the will to survive," motivation involves a refusal to accept death, and to hang on to the belief that you werenot meant to die under these conditi oos. It invorves CNercoming the emotion al and physical discomforts of extreme conditions. Linked to motivation is the ability to establish goals, work out the steps to those goals , and to follow those steps th rough .

MENTA L PREPARATION

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PANIC

HYPERACTIVITY

GUILT

Panic ari ses fro m t11 e f ear of VYhat mig ht hawen rat11e r th an VYhat has ha p ~ n e d It t ends to occur VYh en pe oil e are tr app ed, or ift11ere is a t ime limit to t11 eir escap e

Hyp eractiv e victJ ms are easil y distracte d, 3Jld are full of m atter, id eas, 3Jld often unh ei pfu l sugg estJons, Sufferers can re am thi s stag e after a state of depre ssion

Some suffe rer s fe el guilty f or survivin g, an d fo r not having don e enoug h fo r oth ers-and som e irratJon ai ly bl ame t11 emS€l ves for bringing abo ut the inddent

DEPRESSION

ANGER

SUICIDE

Depr esse d pe opl e wi ll sit among chao s and debris vacantly gazing and not reil ying to qu estJons, They 're un aware ofthei r si tu atJ on and unable t o help th emselves, so risk f urther injury

Aggression, ang er, and hostJlity are common r eactions to tra uma, T hey're often irratJon al and may even be di re cte d at th e re scu er s or medical staff trying to help th em

DisastervictJms have be en kn own to commit suicid e imm ediatel y after being re scu ed, in som e ca ses wh en t hey're alread y safe in th e hos jltal. Victim s sh ould be clos ely monitored

Pre-impact period

Impact Period

Recoil period

Post-trauma period

The "pre-impact" perKJ d ~ (h ided ilto t\\(l stages • Threat danger ex~ts biJ:, tmL.O;lh ooviwsto thosewho reco[1llZe it, tmsewm wil net aCV1lt it reslXlm with denal am Illder-actrvily • Wamingt freat of danger is nw.r apparent to all; res lXlrJSe is nw.rlikef, to be wer.activity

This is the Ii fe-threatenin g stage Statistirnlly, imividU3.ls behave in one of three ways • lCl-20 percent of people are rnlm and retain full aware~ss • Up to 75 percent of peC'tJle are stumed, bewild ered, and unable to react ratiCflJl1y • lCl-25 percert exhibit extreme behavior, sum as screaming

Hi s i:J11C>NS on directly fr((fl t~ impact perl oo; h e);3.mple, wtims may tRw eSffiped a sirting shp am are inthe lifera Its It rnn ~st for ~ to tfree days, but generally ~sts h arwm tfree hWr). In most rnses, it is ctRracterized bya [pdU3.1 re{ l¥nto rn-mal reaso ri ngabi itie~ aWl.reness, am emotiC«l.1 expressim

If the rem i perioo is rrl fu ly suo::essft,j, i m i~ dU3.ls may de.relCQ pro