Survival Skills: A Case For Calorie Conservation

There’s a certain amount of hard labor that is required for survival. This is non-negotiable. Once you’ve finished the necessary tasks, there could also be a time to skip any work that can be avoided! That’s right, you have my permission to conserve your strength. Why?

In its simplest sense, survival is all about calories. You should be constantly trying to limit your calorie losses during your wilderness stay, while simultaneously looking for opportunities to collect more calories. Now this doesn’t mean you should avoid necessary work. For example, you may have to invest one thousand calories to build a shelter. Do it! You’ll stay warm that evening (and each subsequent evening), and prevent the loss of thousands of calories each night (and a lot of shivering in the dark). The cold can be one of the most ruthless thieves of our body’s stored calories. People who become lost on a frigid landscape often suffer a fast and shocking weight loss. Even with warm bedding to sleep in and adequate clothing to wear, your body has to rewarm a lot of tissue with each breath you take. This rewarming happens through your body’s efforts to ramp up your metabolism for heat. This burns a lot of calories. Be smart about your calorie expenditures. Manage your calories wisely and you’ll live to tell the tale.

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Written by Tim MacWelch First draft published in his book Beat The Odds