Monthly Archives: February 2012

Feb 29 2012

Being Prepared… For a Marathon!

I decided this year that I want to run a marathon. I am going to try to get into the St. George marathon because I hear that it is the best there is. However, there is a lot of competition to get into this marathon. There is a drawing to see which people that have applied actually get in to run it. The cap is at 7400 runners, and that many people register to run it within just an hour of going live.

At the moment I am not prepared to run this race at all. The race takes place in October, and the registration closes May 7th. I have a lot of running to do if I want to be involved in this run, and I need to start working on it right now. I found a cool website that is helping me to make the choice on which treadmill to buy (It is far too cold outside still to run out there right now!) Plus, I have always kind of liked treadmills.. As weird as that sounds. After I decide which treadmill to get, I will be following a strict workout schedule so that I can be totally prepared for the marathon by the time October rolls around. I decided that I am going to go ahead and buy all of my workout equipment over the next few weeks, because if I wait until May, when I find out whether or not I am accepted, it won’t give me enough time to follow my strict daily regimen.

My entire life I have had hopes that I would be able to run a marathon. It’s on my “bucket list” so to speak, and I figure this year is as good as any to get it done! Even if I’m not picked to run it this year, at least I will have some really cool equipment and feel ready to run it… And then we will shoot for next year!

Twitt
Feb 23 2012

Staying in shape is part of being prepared!

Part of being prepared comes with being fit! I know when I think about preparing myself for a disaster, my first instinct isn’t to go run a marathon. However, think of the advantage you will have in an emergency or natural disaster if you are in good shape! You never know when you will have to leave your home, and possibly on foot! Imagine having to walk halfway across your state with a big pack on your back. You will want to be in shape, no doubt.

I have a hard time exercising during the winter, so I hopped onto Nordic Track and took a look at the various ellipticals and treadmills. Might be a good option for me because my exercise regimen comes to a complete and total halt the second it starts getting cold outside. I think that I am going to use my spare bedroom as an exercise room in the near future. I am not a huge fan of running, but I love ellipticals. They are a great way to get into shape without killing your joints. I think that for my exercise habits to succeed, I will need to get something that I can use indoors. I know myself a little to well, to know that there is no way in heck that I will be exercising outside in freezing temps.

Another option is getting a gym membership. I am just a little self-conscious when I go to them gym though, so I don’t think that is the right option for me. Many people have had a lot of success doing with gym memberships, however.

For those of you who may not be exercising but would like to get started but don’t quite know how, I really enjoy this article put out by the mayo clinic. I will definitely be referring to this article as I am starting to create a schedule for myself.

Even if you aren’t concerned about a natural disaster in the near future, maybe, just maybe you will still want to get into shape simply because it is good for you! Even though I’m not the best example of being in perfect shape, I definitely recommend it, and I am working to improve my habits.

Twitt
Feb 21 2012

How To Start Your Food Storage – The Basics

Before I started gathering my food storage, I was clueless as to how to go about it. I knew that I wanted enough food to be prepared for at least 3 months for both my husband and I, but I didn’t know where to find the canned food that I would need.

One way to start accumulating your stockpile is to buy non-perishable food in bulk from club stores like Costco or Sam’s Club.  Buying large cans of food at a reduced price is a great way to go. Always check the expiration dates on the food that you are buying. I always try to buy things that will be good for at least 2-3 years from purchase date, just in case I don’t rotate through them quickly.

The main way that I have been building my food storage over the past couple of years is through self-canning at a local church cannery. There are canneries similar to these located all over the world, just search to see if you can find something in your area! The one that I go to is a non-profit cannery and you can buy any large cans of any type of food that they offer at a very reasonable price. The other good thing about these is that they offer a lot of raw ingredients, such as hard wheat, and dried beans. I usually will just buy about $10 worth of food storage from them per month and that is enough to quickly build up to the stockpile you need.

One problem I had when I was accumulating my food storage is that I found myself buying food that neither my husband, or I were very fond of because it was cheap. This is not a good way to go. Chances are that if you don’t like the food, but would eat it “in an emergency,” you will not rotate through it the way you should and it will end up being thrown away because it expired. So now I only buy food that my hubby and I will both enjoy eating and that I can incorporate into my regular menu plans. If you decide to invest in food storage you will find the peace that comes with being prepared.

Twitt
Feb 17 2012

How to rotate your food storage

When it comes to food storage, I have a big problem. I buy a lot of food to be used as food storage, but I have a hard time rotating through it and actually using the food that I buy so that it doesn’t go bad. The main reason that I have a hard time with the rotation is that a lot of the food storage I have built up is in whole grain form, like hard red wheat. When I make dinner every night, I don’t exactly think to myself, “Hmmm, I think I will grind up some of that wheat to use and make something out of it.” It takes planning ahead to be able to use products like that.


Because I really want to start rotating my food, I looked up some basic information about wheat. I was able to see how wheat can be used and what I need to start doing to use this versatile grain in my kitchen. All you need to do to allow your body to digest wheat is grind it so that the nutrients will be easily digestible.

The first thing that I need to do is get myself some sort of a grain mill. I came across these really cool ones put out by Bosch Mixers, and I think I will start saving for one. I could grind an entire can of my wheat in no time and have the flour available to use whenever I need it. If I get a grinder, I could also grind a lot of the wheat I have and store it in case of an emergency so I will be more prepared if I ever have to start living off of what I have.

Not only will my family be eating healthier when I start incorporating whole wheat flour into our diets, but it will also allow me to rotate my food storage efficiently.

Twitt
Feb 15 2012

Pet Preparedness

When it comes to being prepared for a disaster, how many of us take into consideration our pets?

While you are preparing 72 hour kits for your family members, do not forget about your pets. I have two dogs so I have been thinking about what I will be doing for my dogs for prepare them for an emergency.

A typical 72 hour kit for a dog might include the following items:

At least one gallon of water (2 or 3 gallons might be needed, depending on the size of your dog)

3 days supply of food (dry or canned are both ideal to include in your kit because neither spoils very quickly. Keep in mind that with dry dog food, your dog will drink more water, so compensate for that when you are deciding how much water to include.)

A leash (Not one of those retractable ones, just a sturdy leash, at least 6 feet long.)

A buckle collar with a name tag on it (Make sure the name tag includes your phone number and address.)

A small fleece blanket, or a towel

Optional* You could include some treats and a favorite toy

Ideally, when you are gathering the items for the 72 hour kit, you will purchase a doggie “backpack”

so that you can pack all of the items into the pack and your dog can later wear it. Make sure that you get the correct size of pack for your dog. A 5 lb

chihuahua won’t be able to carry a gallon of water, or much of anything else. So if your dog is small, you may want to just pack their items into your pack so that you have everything all together.

This guideline can be modified for any type of pet. Just remember that if anything happens, you do not want to have to worry about your pets. It will be very nice to have everything all ready for them in case of an emergency.

Twitt