Are You Fit Enough For A Crisis?

We all talk, tweet, blog about emergency preparedness checklists, go bags, water, food and so on. Have you ever considered your physical fitness? Besides just being an overall good idea to keep healthy and in shape, when crisis strikes your personal fitness can be an asset. In a disaster you may need to walk, lift, carry gear, climb, dig or even run to stay safe. Good physical conditioning will help you manage stress by not piling the effects of fatigue and inability on top of what is already a challenging situation. The nature of my work over the years has kept me working on my fitness, but anyone can add fitness to their life. Now I'm not a "gym rat" and you don't need to be either. I am a firm believer in functional fitness, that is, exercise that improves performance in things you are actually going to be doing.  Disclaimer: Never begin any exercise program without first consulting your Physician. That said, think about your fitness in the context of being disaster ready, it might be the "game changer" in a crisis.