There are things we, as preppers, need to do more of, or do a better job of. You know it, we know it, but that doesn’t mean it gets done. Spice and I talked about it in our weekly podcast, you can listen to it by clicking the link below, but here are six prepper things that we came up with that we see as things preppers need to do more of or be better at.
Six prepper things – #1, Fitness:
Let’s start with the bottom line on our six things list, the best way to survive in a SHTF situation where medical care is limited or not available is to not have any preventable health issues.
The body requires daily maintenance to keep it healthy, this includes regular exercise, decent diet, proper hygiene, and regular medical examinations. You don’t have to be a “great physical specimen”, you don’t have to look like Arnie or Linda Hamilton from Terminator 2, but you do need to be in decent cardiovascular shape. Anything you can do to not need prescription meds is a big plus, too.
Six prepper things #2 – Skill development:
It’s one thing to have a bunch stores put away, but if you don’t actually know how to use them, they won’t do you any good. Why have spare parts for your firearms if you don’t know how to install them? Why have seeds if you have no idea how to grow them? Why have a chain saw if you don’t know how to use it safely? Another great example is a first aid kit filled with all the goodies. If you need to use it, it’s generally in a hurry, you won’t have time to sit and read a book about how to stop bleeding using a compression bandage.
Six prepper things #3 – Realistic planning keeping YOU in mind, what you can and cannot physically do:
Do you plan to bug out (or have a get-home bag)? If so, have you ever bugged out wearing the bag or tried to get home using it (or at least carrying that amount of weight). Do you have physical limitations that would cause you to be unable to use a lot of your preps? You don’t know until you have tried!
Six prepper things #4 – Short term food prepping, especially easy to prepare/carry food:
Most preppers have plenty of food, but many people have very little quick, easy to prepare food that requires nothing but water or is just ready to eat. When we get caught up in a SHTF situation, the first 72 hours are likely to be pure chaos, and food for that period of time needs to either be ready to eat or the next best thing to ready to eat, add water and stir.
Six prepper things #5 – Water Purification:
Virtually every prepper we know has a way to purify water. One way, however, isn’t good enough. Two ways to purify water isn’t good enough. Every prepper needs MULTIPLE ways to purify water with them at all times when away from home. Why? Situations might make one way unworkable (such as boiling), or a filter may break or clog. You never know when you are going to have to go into “get home” mode, and being without water is the quickest way to lose physical performance.
Six prepper things #6 – Ammo:
Some people, like Salty, have more ammo than he can ever shoot in his lifetime. This is, frankly, silly, as he (the writer of this paragraph) will freely admit. Having said that, a lot of preppers have “an ammo can” full of ammo, with a couple of boxes of ammo for each gun.
That’s not enough. We recommend shooting 500 rounds per self defense gun per year (else you just are not in practice with the firearm), and we recommend having at least one year’s worth of rounds per gun that you count on for prepping. This number will vary by gun / purpose (for example, you might want to do more shooting with your AR-15 than the minimum recommended 500 rounds, but really only need about 20 .30-30 rounds for your deer rifle every year.
These are just some suggestions, think about the things in your prepping life that you know you need to improve, and make a goal of getting started with at least one of those areas this week!
Like this post? Try 12 Prepper Lessons We Can Learn From Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Book “The Long Winter”!
500 rounds from each gun per year is just stupid and wasteful. After I exited the military it was easily 20 years before I even picked up another gun, (lived in the communist state of massachusetts).
Then I moved to a gun friendly state and got a few, took them out and did a bit of practice.
No, I am no sniper type sharpshooter, but I never was. BUT….
I am still a damned dangerous shot.
The case is always that you never know how you’ll do under pressure and need to drill it to make it second nature..blah.blah, blah…No you don’t. Just no.
don’t waste ammo, practice careful shooting with your rifles and use multiple target shooting with your handguns to get the feel of tactical aim and such..maybe 100-200 rounds total. Better fewer rounds more often than a lot all at once.
Worst advice ever. Practice, practice, practice. Pay for good training once in a while. Anyone can shoot a ragged hole in a target while static, but what about on the move and under duress? And what about the how you have to adapt over the years? Every firearm has a different feel, your muscles change over time, your eyesight changes, you move differently, etc. I’ve noticed changes in my own body that I’ve had to adapt to as I get older (just shy of 50 years old now). Anyone who takes the above advice is just asking to be on the losing side of a fight. Stack the odds in your favor in 1-2% increments via frequent practice. Finally, I have a great deal of respect for former military, but I only take advice on guns from the guys and girls who actually knew how to use them with precision and confidence in high stress situations. That’s probably somewhere around 5% of former military, if that. Same goes for police. Until I know what capacity a former military man or woman has served in, I do not accept their advice as expert. It certainly shows in the results I see at the range.
Several points in reply.
Most preppers reading this article have not served in the military. Most preppers reading this will have no formal firearms training whatever.
Your personal prowess with a gun is entirely irrelevant to everybody else. We all have our own levels of experience. My recommendations are based on my own personal training instructors have shown me is reasonable. I went to school (after we stopped being military brats) and my family lived withing 10 miles of PASA Park & which has allowed me to learn and observe some of the best competition shooters on the planet, these are not just some random guys on the internet. By and large, all of these people are also instructors for both competition and self defense. I’ve learned a lot from them.
You are making arguments against points I don’t have in the story (i.e. I have no idea where on earth you are getting the whole “you never know how you’ll do under pressure” stuff, that’s not in my article. Please don’t argue against things I haven’t even said.
Shooting a box of ammo every couple of weeks is not wasting ammo, it’s simply practice. Besides, it’s fun.
I do appreciate differing views, so thank you for your comments. Having said that, please try in the future, when you wish to make a disagreement, to disagree with something we’ve actually said.
Thanks!
Oh salty has some pepper!
Prowess…Me?? LOL Nah not so much.
My point is still valid, though.
I just think 500 rounds per gun per year seems steep, that’s all. My thinking was that was on point.
500 rounds is way more than we shot in the service and it’s more than needed in civilian world as well.
Hey you shoot as much as you want and as much as you can, that is my policy..
but it is NOT necessary in order to remain sharp, that is a lie.
With the expense of ammo being what it is, (30-06 avg. $1.00/round) that’d be $500/year for one rifle to practice.
I’ll grant it IS fun ~=D
But pretty spendy, too. ~=/
Maybe I’m wrong, no harm done.
The whole “disagreement about what was said” thing kinda ripped my shorts though, on account that the Idea to shooting practice is for accurate shooting under pressure. You know that or else you got no place giving advice. And that is where that came from.
Thing is I like much of what you write
but if you can’t take criticism, well that’s on you.
Thankyou! ~=)
I have no problem with disagreement, I DO have a problem with people having an attitude. We don’t do that here, if you want to make points like you disagree with what I say, that’s fine. If you want to get personal? Not so much. I have zero tollerance for that kind of stuff, none.
Again, disagreement? No problem. You think I am wrong? Not a problem You want to start calling me out in my house personally? Yeah, that’s not going to happen.
BTW Just to be clear to all, I’m talking 500 rounds per gun you plan to use for your personal defense. That’s not 500 rounds for every 9mm or .45 you own, it’s 500 for your main self defense gun.
That’s not even a box of shells every month, a couple of magazines worth. Heck, that’s a good day at the range for Spice and I, and 500 rounds of 9mm is what, $110ish bucks of ammo? For a year. I honestly do not see how shooting a couple of magazines a month is in any way excessive.
Per your point #4, that was a “hole” I’d identified in my preps. I have bulk foods (wheat, rice, beans, etc.) which are great for long-term meals, but not much suitable for meals-on-the-go. I got a few MREs for the Go Bags for situations where stopping to boil water might not be good.
I’d like to stash maybe a month’s worth of quick-easy meals. (not MREs, but dehydrated, whatever.) Perusing the major websites (Liberty, Mountain House, Augusson, etc.) has been a bit less than helpful. Many emphasize “servings” but not calories. It’s hard to figure out how long such “kits” would really last.
Which source do YOU like?
— Mic
We like Backpackers Pantry stuff probably better than anything else, since we are kinda-sorta vegetarians (we only eat meat we personally kill, no commerical meat). So… that leaves out pretty much all of mountain house, as well as most MRE’s. We are doing research on a bunch of this stuff right now and will be posting stories, we are in fact working on a story about the bogus “serving size” stuff that goes on in the industry, plus on calories required during hard work, etc. I just ordered a case of “AlpineAire Vegetarian Gourmet Meals” from Amazon, after reading what they say… well… we shall see, I’m pretty skeptical they will be a big hit but you never know. I’ve been able to pick up vegetarian MRE’s from The Epicenter, but shipping is killer because they are heavy.
Additionally, it’s hard to beat the ease of oatmeal. Good hot filling calorie appropriate and healthy for you, light to carry and cheap.
And oatmeal is a great place to toss in dried fruit (before cooking) and nuts. I keep a lot of cinnamon, since it makes oatmeal much better. Also, if you make up oatmeal with the water and whatever and leave it somewhere cool overnight, it does not require cooking.
In regards to ammunition, first let me say I’m Jewish and if you haven’t heard we’re a bit thrifty. A 1000 rounds of 9mm will cost you about $170 or $.17 per round. You can reload for $.11 per round. If I buy 9mm (.355) bullets I can load them in 9mm, .380, .38 and .357 Sig. If I buy .30 rifle bullets I can load them in 30-06, .308, 30-30 and 300AAC. I don’t load them until I need them so they don’t “age” (powder is not hydrophilic and doesn’t oxidize). I shoot about 4 times a year. If I’m on target I call it a day at 20 rounds, if not I shoot until I can put 5 in 2″ circle at 100 yards. Once a year I’ll stretch it to 300 yards. From my perspective it’s like riding a bike, you don’t forget but as you get older the hands aren’t quite as steady.
Good info, thanks for sharing!
lot of my practice is done with high quality spring-air pellet guns rifles and pistols. low cost, simple back stops, low noise and it will show every flinch you ever have. I shoot the pistols in my basement only need 35 ft because of using a pellet gun targets use a very small bull. you are forced to take you time and make every shot a good scoring shot. I also have shooting friends over and have penny matches. we use three different size steel targets and the 1st shooter calls the target they are shooting. if they hit it you must shoot the same target to say even or shoot a smaller one to take the penny. if the 1st shooter blows the shot you can shoot any one of the 3 and hit it you take there penny. you take turns be the 1st shooter. I hate losing any pennies.
Good point … I could use the compost bin for a backyard backstop … A competition would make it more fun.
Great article!!!! I was really glad to find this. Also, don’t forget about doing dry practice with your firearm. Especially the handgun. A lot of good fundamentals can be developed by doing that. And then put them into practice at the range. And I definitely agree. Good shooting skills is a perishable skill.
Thank you for your comment. Good idea with the dry practice, but I do have a qualifier to add… dry firing is good practice IF your gun is designed for it. Many .22 rimfire guns are NOT designed to be dry fired so they should not be used that way. Some guns like Glock (for example) must be dry fired for disassembly, so a gun like that is perfectly OK to dry fire.
I agree. I shoot Glock mostly and a Sig some. Which are the 2 that I dry practice with. I think a .22 pistol is great for live fire practice even for experienced shooters and especially for teaching a new shooter good fundamentals, especially if they are recoil shy. Also, a .22 is very cheap to shoot and just plain fun. Besides, I like to shoot as much as I can and about anything I can. And one last thing. I don’t think that 500 rounds a year is too steep. Especially for personal defense. I probably wouldn’t shoot that much.308 or 30-06, because it would be expensive and a lot of recoil. But I would definitely do it with a handgun or M-4 type weapons.