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Ok, I'm sure that most of us, as some point and time, have either heard or read about Mindset, and how it applies to a survival situation. I've noticed something though, that I wanted to touch on, that some people may or may not have given much thought to. I'll try to be brief, and get right to the point.
Surviving the potential events and situations, that we all discuss on this very board, and prepare for (and pray never happen), is NOT going to be a walk down the nature trail at a local park folks. Its not going to be clean and comfortable like sitting in your recliner in an air conditioned living room. Its not going to be, like taking a short walk through the local mall. In the summer, your going to get hot. Real hot. And sweaty. VERY sweaty. And dirty too. You had better start dealing with that thought now. Get out there, and get your body used to it. Some of you already do this. Some probably dont.
What brings this up you ask? I've seen many postings, on a number of forums, where people are discussing gear, etc., and folks start complaining and saying how hot wearing this piece of gear is, or how heavy that back pack is, etc. I just read a thread this morning on another forum, where a poster made the comment, that he recently took a class, and was using a chest rig to hold his mags for his AK. He commented, in a seemingly proud way, that 4 hours into it he had ditched all his gear and was just running 1 mag in the gun, and 1 in his pocket. The insinuation was that the gear was too hot/heavy, etc. I've seen the exact same thing said at a LOT of places. People go to classes, and then part way through it, dump all their gear, and run the class without it. They then go back to their favorite forum, and tell everyone how they did that, and how they learned that all the gear and such is useless, and pontificate on how bad @ss they are, because they'll just be fighting with their one mag in their jeans pocket if they ever have to in the first place.
There's a couple of issues going on here. First, if you find it too hot, or too heavy, to run some simple load bearing equipment in a 1 or 2 day class, then you need to look into better gear (there IS a reason why some gear costs more than others....hint...its all in the engineering and design), and/or....get your body and mind in shape. Seriously folks. Dont go to a class, or even just training on your own, and do it with the mindset that you have to make it as easy on yourself as possible, and that you cant possibly let yourself get all dripping wet with sweat, because you have to go to the club after class to try and pick up some hotty.
Second, a real fight, in a true catastrophic situation, is not going to be the same as a class at the range. We go to these classes, to hone skills. To repetively do things, so that we build up our autonomic responses (look it up ;) ) We do them under the eyes of an instructor, so that we are not just doing, them, but doing them RIGHT, and can recieve instant correction so that we arent practicing them wrong. Practicing is great. Practicing something wrong....not so much. Training classes, are not going to be the same in regards to tactics, and many procedures, as what a real fight is going to be like. You can get away with completing a class with one spare mag in your pocket, and one in the gun, quite often. You wont get away with that, in a real fight in a true catastrophic situation.
What you should do, is use these classes as an opportunity, in addition to the obvious point of the class, to get as hot and sweaty as you possibly CAN. Push yourself. Drive through it while your hot, and dirty, and uncomfortable. Defending and protecting yourself, your family, your friends, in a truly bad situation, is going to be just like that. Get your mind and body as used to it and ready for it as you can now, before hand. And, if you are one of the ones who thinks your going to go to war (and yes, it IS war when you are fighting for you and your family's survival) with 1 spare mag in your jeans pocket, your going to orphan/widow your family. Oh, you may handle a lone looter a time or two, but you will eventually fail.
The bragging that I see people doing, about training and just stuffing a spare mag in their pants, is nothing more, in my opinion, that self justification and trying to show how "cool" they can be. Its arrogance and little more. The truth of the matter probably is, they either dont take training seriously, or, they are simply in too bad of shape to actually do what needs to be done and/or lack the mental fortitude to push themselves. They are also, much of the time, anti-gear to begin with. You know the type... the ones that make fun of those who do actually use it in the first place. That leads me to my point here. If your in such bad shape, that you cant complete a simple 1 or 2 day shooting class, using even a moderate support load for your weapon, get yourself in better shape. No, I'm not saying you have to be able to survive Ranger school, or fly through the SF Q course. But you can get yourself in decent enough shape to handle a 2 day class in the summer.........IF YOU WANT TO. Much of that, is mental, hence the mindset part. You can probably handle more physically, than you think. The problem is, its not going to be comfortable. Thus you have to mentally MAKE yourself. Many people refuse to do that now, because they dont "have to". Well, if things ever go bad, your not going to have a choice in the matter.
Just to touch on a related subject... get clothing, and equipment, that is going to make the above as comfortable as possible. No, that doesnt mean you have to go buy the most expensive pieces of gear and clothing you can find, but at the same time, dont buy cheap, just to buy cheap. There is a reason why some things, especially gear, cost what they do (yes, there are some things that are priced through the roof, and are far from worthy of the high price tag). There is a certain amount of engineering involved in making not only a good piece of gear that will LAST (another subject... ;) ), but also thats going to be as comfortable as possible. This applies to packs, weapon support gear, boots, socks, and every layer of your clothing. There is some good stuff out there, that wont break the bank.
There is an excellent subforum, right here on Survival and Preparedness, regarding getting into better shape. I encourage you to visit it. There are some great posts in there full of info on working out, eating better, etc. There are all kinds of things you can do, in your daily life, to get your body in better shape, and your mind/mindset as well. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park a little further out in the parking lot instead of going for the first open spot right by the door at work, the mall, the store, etc.., so you can walk a bit further. Go for hikes on a nature trail with a pack full of weight. Go walking/running a couple of times a week. Do some pushups/crunches/flutter kicks/jumping jacks/etc.. before hopping in the shower every night. When done regularly, those things all add up.
Get yourself hot, sweaty, dirty, wet, etc... Dont take the easy route in something like a class, just because you can. The pic below, was a 2 day advanced class I did. It was in August. The temp was 98 degrees in the shade (and there was little to no shade at this range) and the humiture was in the 90's. It was HOT. I ran the first day of class with my "patrol" setup, and the second day, with my heavy setup.... full plate carrier, front and rear plates, loaded mags, etc... It was hotter on day 2 than day one. Wearing a plate carrier with plates all day, was hot. Very hot. I was dripping wet with sweat. Did it feel all nice and comfortable, like wearing a nice soft cotton t-shirt and a pair of soft well worn jeans, sitting on the couch in an airconditioned living room? Heck no. It was far from it. I completed the day just fine though, and I am definitely not in as good of shape as I want to be. I've done the same thing, time and again. Did/do I have to? No. I could take a much easier route. Why would I want to though?
(I'm the tall one....)
Surviving the potential events and situations, that we all discuss on this very board, and prepare for (and pray never happen), is NOT going to be a walk down the nature trail at a local park folks. Its not going to be clean and comfortable like sitting in your recliner in an air conditioned living room. Its not going to be, like taking a short walk through the local mall. In the summer, your going to get hot. Real hot. And sweaty. VERY sweaty. And dirty too. You had better start dealing with that thought now. Get out there, and get your body used to it. Some of you already do this. Some probably dont.
What brings this up you ask? I've seen many postings, on a number of forums, where people are discussing gear, etc., and folks start complaining and saying how hot wearing this piece of gear is, or how heavy that back pack is, etc. I just read a thread this morning on another forum, where a poster made the comment, that he recently took a class, and was using a chest rig to hold his mags for his AK. He commented, in a seemingly proud way, that 4 hours into it he had ditched all his gear and was just running 1 mag in the gun, and 1 in his pocket. The insinuation was that the gear was too hot/heavy, etc. I've seen the exact same thing said at a LOT of places. People go to classes, and then part way through it, dump all their gear, and run the class without it. They then go back to their favorite forum, and tell everyone how they did that, and how they learned that all the gear and such is useless, and pontificate on how bad @ss they are, because they'll just be fighting with their one mag in their jeans pocket if they ever have to in the first place.
There's a couple of issues going on here. First, if you find it too hot, or too heavy, to run some simple load bearing equipment in a 1 or 2 day class, then you need to look into better gear (there IS a reason why some gear costs more than others....hint...its all in the engineering and design), and/or....get your body and mind in shape. Seriously folks. Dont go to a class, or even just training on your own, and do it with the mindset that you have to make it as easy on yourself as possible, and that you cant possibly let yourself get all dripping wet with sweat, because you have to go to the club after class to try and pick up some hotty.
Second, a real fight, in a true catastrophic situation, is not going to be the same as a class at the range. We go to these classes, to hone skills. To repetively do things, so that we build up our autonomic responses (look it up ;) ) We do them under the eyes of an instructor, so that we are not just doing, them, but doing them RIGHT, and can recieve instant correction so that we arent practicing them wrong. Practicing is great. Practicing something wrong....not so much. Training classes, are not going to be the same in regards to tactics, and many procedures, as what a real fight is going to be like. You can get away with completing a class with one spare mag in your pocket, and one in the gun, quite often. You wont get away with that, in a real fight in a true catastrophic situation.
What you should do, is use these classes as an opportunity, in addition to the obvious point of the class, to get as hot and sweaty as you possibly CAN. Push yourself. Drive through it while your hot, and dirty, and uncomfortable. Defending and protecting yourself, your family, your friends, in a truly bad situation, is going to be just like that. Get your mind and body as used to it and ready for it as you can now, before hand. And, if you are one of the ones who thinks your going to go to war (and yes, it IS war when you are fighting for you and your family's survival) with 1 spare mag in your jeans pocket, your going to orphan/widow your family. Oh, you may handle a lone looter a time or two, but you will eventually fail.
The bragging that I see people doing, about training and just stuffing a spare mag in their pants, is nothing more, in my opinion, that self justification and trying to show how "cool" they can be. Its arrogance and little more. The truth of the matter probably is, they either dont take training seriously, or, they are simply in too bad of shape to actually do what needs to be done and/or lack the mental fortitude to push themselves. They are also, much of the time, anti-gear to begin with. You know the type... the ones that make fun of those who do actually use it in the first place. That leads me to my point here. If your in such bad shape, that you cant complete a simple 1 or 2 day shooting class, using even a moderate support load for your weapon, get yourself in better shape. No, I'm not saying you have to be able to survive Ranger school, or fly through the SF Q course. But you can get yourself in decent enough shape to handle a 2 day class in the summer.........IF YOU WANT TO. Much of that, is mental, hence the mindset part. You can probably handle more physically, than you think. The problem is, its not going to be comfortable. Thus you have to mentally MAKE yourself. Many people refuse to do that now, because they dont "have to". Well, if things ever go bad, your not going to have a choice in the matter.
Just to touch on a related subject... get clothing, and equipment, that is going to make the above as comfortable as possible. No, that doesnt mean you have to go buy the most expensive pieces of gear and clothing you can find, but at the same time, dont buy cheap, just to buy cheap. There is a reason why some things, especially gear, cost what they do (yes, there are some things that are priced through the roof, and are far from worthy of the high price tag). There is a certain amount of engineering involved in making not only a good piece of gear that will LAST (another subject... ;) ), but also thats going to be as comfortable as possible. This applies to packs, weapon support gear, boots, socks, and every layer of your clothing. There is some good stuff out there, that wont break the bank.
There is an excellent subforum, right here on Survival and Preparedness, regarding getting into better shape. I encourage you to visit it. There are some great posts in there full of info on working out, eating better, etc. There are all kinds of things you can do, in your daily life, to get your body in better shape, and your mind/mindset as well. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park a little further out in the parking lot instead of going for the first open spot right by the door at work, the mall, the store, etc.., so you can walk a bit further. Go for hikes on a nature trail with a pack full of weight. Go walking/running a couple of times a week. Do some pushups/crunches/flutter kicks/jumping jacks/etc.. before hopping in the shower every night. When done regularly, those things all add up.
Get yourself hot, sweaty, dirty, wet, etc... Dont take the easy route in something like a class, just because you can. The pic below, was a 2 day advanced class I did. It was in August. The temp was 98 degrees in the shade (and there was little to no shade at this range) and the humiture was in the 90's. It was HOT. I ran the first day of class with my "patrol" setup, and the second day, with my heavy setup.... full plate carrier, front and rear plates, loaded mags, etc... It was hotter on day 2 than day one. Wearing a plate carrier with plates all day, was hot. Very hot. I was dripping wet with sweat. Did it feel all nice and comfortable, like wearing a nice soft cotton t-shirt and a pair of soft well worn jeans, sitting on the couch in an airconditioned living room? Heck no. It was far from it. I completed the day just fine though, and I am definitely not in as good of shape as I want to be. I've done the same thing, time and again. Did/do I have to? No. I could take a much easier route. Why would I want to though?
(I'm the tall one....)
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