Food Storage And Diet

Water is the most important. You need to stay hydrated. Gallon jugs are the best way to store water. Water jugs give you more flexibility. It is recommended to two to three gallons per person per day. You can then multiply the two to three-gallon number by the number of people you are prepping for. You will want to add additional water per person for hygiene and cooking. Other ways you can prepare are to get a water filtration system. Berkey is a well-respected water filter. 

A minimum of 2,000 calories is recommended per person per day. There are cheap and expensive ways to buy and store food. The cheapest calories come in the form of rice and beans. You want to store the food that you like to eat. You also want to plan to rotate the food that you have. The more expensive option is pre-made emergency food that you can buy from emergency retailers. My Patriot Supply, Readywise, and Augason Farms are the most recognized pre-made emergency food brands. 

You can learn the basics of food storage. Depending on the type of food you plan to store, you will want to use Mylar bags or store them in large buckets with oxygen absorbers. Mylar and large buckets are more for long-term food storage. What you will typically store in these are rice, beans, and things you may need for cooking, such as flour and sugar. 

You can also have a pantry of food that you enjoy. These can be basic canned foods that you rotate. You will rotate and eat these prepper pantry items most often before they go bad because they are things you may eat regularly:

• Canned tuna
• Canned beans
• Canned chicken
• Canned vegetables
• Canned salmon
• Et cetera

Bonus: Being prepared will help your mental well-being. You will not be afraid of stories of crop failures or a run on grocery stores so that you cannot get necessities. You have prepared yourself by becoming more self-reliant. You can get enough food for a week, a month, or a year. It is up to how much you want to prepare.

Mobility

[bctt tweet=”You want to be mobile. This is in case you need to leave quickly or escape. You can have a bugout bag with your pepper necessities: knife, gun, first aid kit, food, emergency blanket, and tent. ” username=”@secure_single”]

You can also have a getaway vehicle to leave where you may be in case things get bad. You can have a plan for where you will go if things get nasty in the area. You can figure out what hotels you like if you need to leave your house for a few days due to an emergency. It could be a hurricane where you live, experiencing more break-ins. You want to relocate until you can figure out where to go. 

This is also when having a second passport and residency in another country could be helpful. You can invest in another country to diversify your political, social, and economic risk. This will allow you to leave your current country if you ever choose to.

Energy Sources

A generator is suitable for backup in case something happens to your power. There are different types of generators available. You could get an electric generator, gasoline, or a diesel generator. Gasoline, propane, and diesel generators are strongly recommended because they have a longer track record of success. You can store extra fuel as needed to fuel the generator. 

Self-Defense

The basics of self-defense are to have a knife and a gun. You can also learn the basics of hand-to-hand fighting. You can get a utility tool to help you with your basic needs. A utility tool could be a basic pocket knife or a multi-tool. A pocket knife or utility tool could be used to cut fish lines to put on a hook for fishing. You could use it for other things around the house. You can then have a larger knife for self-defense. When it comes to carrying a gun. A handgun will work just fine. If you also want to get something more serious, you can look into the gun laws in your area.

First Aid

If someone gets injured, you will need to know the basics of first aid. You will want a quality first aid kit, not a cheap one that most retail stores sell. You want a kit with trauma supplies, minor and major wound care, travel and wilderness medications, and blister prevention and care. A quality first aid kit will look something like the Adventure Medical Kits for Wounds, Fractures, Burns, and CPR | Backcountry. You can add extra things to the gear you want or need for your circumstances. The better quality first aid kit helped you get started and cover most of your bases regarding first aid. 

You will want to learn how to stitch a wound. You want to know how to do the essential things to keep yourself or a loved one alive in case something happens. You can learn to manage these types of injuries outside of significant injuries requiring a professional doctor and hospital admission. 

The Survival Medicine Handbook is one of the prepper community’s top first aid and survival handbooks. 

Everyday Carry

While there is some overlap with self-defense, this is what you carry on or have near you. This is for self-defense reasons and just to be prepared. You will need to read up on your local and state laws to know what is classified as legal and illegal to carry, from knives to guns. You will want to try out different types of knives and handguns to figure out what you like the weight of and are comfortable carrying around with you every day or in your car.