There was a time not too long ago when “bugging out” was the darling of the prepper movement. Now? Not so much. More and more preppers are starting to realize that bugging out is a dangerous idea, and should only be done as a last resort. Hunkering down in your home with your supplies and staying under the radar is always better than becoming a refugee.
As for bugging in, it also presents its own challenges, albeit they are far less severe than trying to survive outside of civilization. I would imagine that chief among those challenges, would be staying sane and maintaining your health. Depending on the situation, hiding in your home wouldn’t be unlike prison. There may be times when going outside for any reason is too dangerous, and these situations may last for days or weeks at a time.
That means you’ll have to find ways of occupying your time and staying in good physical shape. I don’t have to tell you that staying inside all day will put you on the fast track to flab town (I should know. I stay inside all day writing articles like this. You’re welcome). You’ll need ways of burning off some steam that will also help you stay in the best shape you can be, and having some exercise equipment on hand will help you do that.
Granted, there are plenty of exercises that can keep you in shape and don’t require a gym membership, or equipment. But those are almost always aerobic in nature, and it’s easier get and stay strong when you have the right tools for the job. For preppers however, these tools should be affordable, portable, and simple. So skip the elliptical and take a look at these 5 exercise gadgets that you’ll be glad to have when your bugging in.
Resistance Bands
They’re cheap, lightweight, and very safe to use (so long as they’re properly anchored). Resistance bands are also super versatile and can be used to work almost any muscle group. I’d also highly recommend them for anyone who isn’t in very good shape, and is just starting out on the road to fitness. Resistance bands are simply a great, low impact tool for achieving a basic level of fitness, before moving on to something harder.
If you only want a single resistance band with a specific weight, the check this out instead.
SKLZ Weighted Jump Rope
Jump ropes are the epitome of simple and effective workout tools, and using one would be one of the best ways to get some cardio in a confined space. The only thing that’s better is getting a weighted rope like the SKLZ, which is something that most people don’t consider. Even though it only weighs a little more than a pound, based on personal experience I can tell you that it’ll have you huffing and puffing in no time.
Pull-Up Bar
Pull-ups are a very special exercise. They’re so simple and yet they work so many different muscle groups. They’re also a very impressive feat, no matter what size you are. You could be a hulked out beast and still not be able to do more than a couple of reps. You can only get better at pull-ups by doing them, and size doesn’t necessarily matter.
And practicing them is a great way to build a well rounded physical form. If that’s something you’re interested it, I’d recommend investing in a solid pull-up bar that can fit in a door frame. They’re light, durable, and can be broken down into smaller pieces if space is an issue.
Ab Wheel
When Ab Wheels first came out, I think most people thought they were gimmicky. But after you try one out for the first time, it’ll put you in your place. This is one of the fastest and cheapest ways to build core strength, bar none.
Kettlebells
When it comes to receiving an awesome workout without a room full of equipment, there is nothing better than a kettlebell. A lot of people think that they are just fancy dumbbells, but in reality, you can do things with kettlebells that you would never be able to with dumbbells. There are dozens of different kettle exercises out there that will not only build strength, but power and endurance as well, and they have a long proven pedigree. They’ve been making strongmen since the 1700’s.
I’d recommend starting out with a single small kettlebell, which should cost about the same price as most of the things on this list. If it’s something you enjoy and would like to explore further, then save yourself a lot of money and space and buy an adjustable kettle bell.
Bonus Entry:Boxing Gloves
When your non prepper in-laws decide to show up at the last minute, hoping to weather out the storm in your bunker for a few weeks, you’ll thank me.
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A pull up bar can be used as the basis for many exercises. What you need is to add 2 straps, reminiscent of gymnastic rings into the mix. The big difference is that you will probably need to make the straps yourself. The photo below is the type you want only you want them longer so they can go from your bar to the floor
You will need 25mm webbing and some type of rigid handle.
For the
handles I made mine from the wooden handle of a yard brush, where I cut 2
pieces 120mm wide, drilled a hole through each piece from one end to
the other to allow the webbing to pass through, and sanded the ends to
round them slightly.
Then you need to measure 2 lengths of webbing that are 5 metres in length. Pass the end of a piece of webbing through the hole in your handle, allow a good overlap and then stitch the 2 ends of the webbing together. Once you have done this then stitch across the webbing every 100mm, so end up with a series of loops in your strap, then do exactly the same with the second to give 2 identical straps.
Now all you need are 2 Karabiners through the top most loop.
Put the straps over your bar and clip through a lower loop as desired to get the height you need
1) Facing towards the floor you an do press up and flyes, and with practice you can execute a cable crossover type movement
2) Facing upwards you can do various rowing movements
3) By having the handles at a height where you can hold the bar you can perform calf raises
4) Whilst holding onto the bar or the straps you can train the adductors
5) You can have 1 strap shorter than the other to place different stresses on each side of the body
You can also add a chair into the mix for 1&2 to rest your feet on, so your body goes lower than just horizontal creating extra range of movement.
There are many possibilities here, limited only by what you can think up