28 July, 2025

Author's Note

Please consult your physician before the commencement of physical exercise, especially if you are recovering from an injury or have been dormant for a while.

Adventure travel requires a good level of physical fitness. Whether you are vehicle, bicycle or on foot, a good fitness regime prior to any adventure should be incorporated a minimum of 4 days a week. The benefits of building and maintaining a good fitness level is that it not only prepares you for the physical demand of the adventure ahead it will assist in the management of sleep, mental health, clears the mind and will greatly assist in the preparation process. There are some pitfalls one should be made of aware of though, especially if you haven't exercised in a while or you are changing fitness levels from low to moderate activity.

Your first 3-4 weeks is going to be exhausting as your body begins to adjust and this is normal. It is the body adjusting to the new routines of your daily life. Many get discouraged or end up cheating themselves during the first few weeks due to the fatigue. Trust me the body begins to adjust as those muscles that once lay dormant are fired up again. Your body may have accumulated excess fuel (fat) the body mechanics are affected and the dead weight that must be carried as well.

Do not be sold on quick weight loss drinks/supplements, on line gimmicks like shake weight or weight loss creams. Heck social media is full of these things claiming they work. There are lot of them out there. They do not help, however tried and tested techniques do, as they have withstood the test of time.  Remember diet and exercise is a balance of self discipline and self respect.

The final pitfall is the fad programs out there promising magical results in 28 days or less. Face it fitness has become a multi billion dollar a year industry. There is everything out there from "SEAL training" to chair workouts to Tai Chi. While some are effective, in the end, they lead to unrealistic expectations for every body type out there by guaranteeing results within a set period of time. Granted there will be results but it will be slow and gradual not the washboard abs you would expect. So where do we begin?

Preparation for adventure travel is all about practical fitness and there is no better resource than the various army fitness manuals out there. For the do it yourself person, the US Army or Canadian Army provides the best start and can be found on various websites, a quick google search will lead you to the appropriate manuals. Just make sure you get the manuals involving fitness for Basic Training as they are written for soldiers who just enlisted and whose level of fitness is pretty basic. I have a downloadable version under Publications and Product Reviews tab. 

https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/a4d9ed6d-cf3a-46ac-8978-b826038fdeda/downloads/47ef7446-e031-47b3-b687-11285a2c7527/B-GL-382-001%3APT-001%20Army%20Fitness%20Manual.pdf?ver=1753680342833

Why use army fitness manuals though? 

The answer is pretty simple, be it from hiking to cycling to vehicle based adventures they give a pretty good grounding of  what bit's like to live and work outdoors. They are not written for building mass or tone but under the required common soldier tasks in order to operate effectively in the field. When you think about it, adventure traveler and soldier tasks are pretty common, however I am speaking from personal experience. The program as laid out in the Army Fitness Manual does work and as you move on you will better develop an idea on how to tailor it to meet your adventure needs. If you are going as part of a team, this could also be a great way to bond as a group.

Another option would be is to hire a personal trainer to assist in your program. If going that route, there are some things you should be made aware of. First and foremost you are the client and in a way the boss. Do not go with the first one you see, pick a few, do your research via google, Yelp or wherever and set up a meeting. Second be honest by addressing any injuries, last time you exercised, your listed goals, fitness level and schedule. It is good to make a list of questions you want to ask and remember you are doing the interview for the right fit. Finally ask for any certifications they have such as first aid, qualifications how they might approach challenges you may have, licensing and so on.  Remember that in a collaborative effort it is important that you have the right fit.

Once your wellness journey begins there are ways you can put fitness into everyday activities. When shopping park where there no cars located, use the stairs at work, instead of going for coffee, take a 5 minute chair workout then reward yourself with a steaming hot cup of joe. Have your lunch then go for a walk. If you have multiple stops to do, if practical park in a central location and walk. I know I use Apple Watch and Apple fitness and they have many programs that you can do at your desk. There a lot of creative ways to keep active.

In closing, the journey to adventure does require a lot of elements from planning to preparation. I have restarted mine and know the key to be fit. It is my life I find physical fitness assists with mental health, endurance, better moods, clarity of thought, reduction in injuries, relaxation well the list goes on. Next week diet.

God Bless

Jason

Author's Note

The opinion in this article is based upon personal experiences and is no way medical advice.  Also pursuing mental health through a licensed professional is like taking antibiotics, let it run its course even though you may feel better, don't stop until the prescription runs out.

Life is hard, difficulties seem to pop up at every turn in our daily lives. We sit and try to meet deadlines, living becomes more of a chore of survival, especially in this day and age, where now there are a bunch of sensitivities that need to be addressed while maintaining the balance sanity. Then one day, it happens.  Something traumatic and life altering the incident goes the complete opposite of the environment and values you were raised in.

The truth about trauma is it affects us all differently. It is all about the way in which we were conditioned within our families and communities.  No matter what, we do all have our breaking points, it is just of a question  of when.

How each of us respond to it, well, it is just as unique as the mosaic of human individuality. It can range from a good cry all the way to suicide. Others may bury it and may seem normal, but as a glass can only hold so much water so can the capacity of dealing with trauma.

Now in my experiences of mental health, Canada and the US has not reached up to the full understanding of what it is with only pop culture being our only guide. It seems to be that we are broken and the responses can vary from kid gloves to our peers talking shit behind your back. You watch crime shows and the perpetrator  is mentally ill, to social media saying trauma is there to fuel big Pharma or comedians making fun of them.  Heck even our peers and family may tell us to suck it up, so we suffer in silence.  Either way there is a culture of misunderstanding when it comes to mental health and trust me it is not bloody helping. There is hope though and these are some of the things in my life I have come to share with you, so let's begin with three simple personal lessons.

1. Things wear down and break, bodies grow old or bones break but we do things to heal or slow down the aging process. Why should the mind be different? A vehicle breaks down, you take it to get fixed, you get sick you go see a doctor so if you are going through trauma seek help, it is after all, an injury. You ARE not alone. What got me going was I came to a point where everything was going wrong. When I attended for my first session I walked in feeling weak minded as I couldn't master my emotions, however, as therapy continued it takes more courage as well as strength to address the issues.  You wouldn't take on a major renovation or an expedition alone so to ask for help is better than coping alone, which brings me to my second point.
2. It is normal to cope with things, that is just the mind trying to sort things out, making sense of it all. Your mind may take you down some dark paths through dreams but it is part of healing. You may go that extra mile while doing exercise but it is your anger and frustration trying to exit. You may spend longer time at Mass talking to God trying to get answers and that is good.  Other ways to cope could be through journaling, group therapy, long drives, the list is endless. It is also not uncommon but very, very unhealthy to resort to addictive substances such as booze, drugs, social media platforms, video games, binge watching in which yes you get a high but the problems are still there. Heck, even the healthy coping strategies can have some negative effects if consumed by them. For me whether it was both negative or positive they became an obsession and led to withdrawal in society. That is in itself is a silent cry for help.
3. You are either a victim or a survivor. First yes, we are all victims after something traumatic, it is how you decide to move forward that counts. I knew right from the start I wanted this to be something to grow with. It is a part of me, it is my story and it is through this that iron is forged. The only question is how? So I reconnected with God and Jesus, looked back into travelling again, exploring our world, slowly broke out of my isolation and returned to physical activity. Like any other injury I also sought professional help. I am not embarrassed and realize that human beings are social creatures which means challenging things are not meant to be completed alone. It has been a few years since I started treatment and there has been ups and downs within the bureaucracy, but the changes moved into a positive direction. The road to healing is like any outdoor adventure, there is going to be progress and there are going to be failures but as long as you keep moving forward this makes you, unique. You as a person, took the trauma, learned from it, not let it consume you and although you may have had help along the way, your mindset of never giving up should be a positive reminder. 

Remember life is difficult enough but there is always joy and celebration. A story to tell which makes you unique and part of the mosaic of humanity. As Morgan Freeman quoted in The Shawshank Redemption, "Get busy living or get busy dying."  I chose to live, in memory of friends lost, a son, family long gone before their time, to continue on with life, God aint done with me yet.

Life is about finding your pace as it is a marathon, not a race. You keep moving forward no matter how many times you get pushed back you just might be surprised of who is there to help you.

God Bless

Jason 

The first step of planning is finding an area to plan, especially on multi day expeditions.  Think of what your needs are?  How many people are in the expedition.  What will I be using for planning tools/aides? My communication requirements? Safety plan? These are the starting steps of any planning.  Myself I have two areas of planning my garage and a 16 x 14 foot shed.  The shed is primarily used as a planing area as well as storage for camping supplies. The garage is a secondary planning area dealing with vehicle kit, training etc.

Now my expeditions will have no more than six and a minimum of two.  What I will not be covering in this section is how to plan.  This is just the basics on things to consider, planning will be coming in at a later date as part of a multi part series.

Planning Tools.   

This will take up a big section in any room. Myself I love to use road and 1:250,000 topographical maps.  I prefer to use them on a wall as they are visible to all and are out of the way.  A very large table can be used as well. 

As social media platforms like to advertise  it is all about Indiana Jones style of adventure when the reality is whether you are hiking or doing vehicle based travel, at least 70% of distances covered are on paved roads.  So I will use provincial highway maps just to get to the areas.  The topographical maps are to plan the details of traversing rough terrain. So the highway map is up on a wall with the appropriate topographical maps on the wall as well.  As topographical maps will take up more space I will hang them up stacked on top of each other (think flip chart) and the maps can be placed upward and put into place with clips.  If you can,  get them laminated and use Staedtler markers that are water soluble.  This would usually encompass a big section of wall space. 

 I also use a white (dry erase board) to track down key notes, required supplies for planning (not expedition), a military map protractor, graph paper writing pads, post it notes/tabs (to serve as bookmarks) along with a few notebooks such as Rite in the Rain  Universal No.370F-M.  This note books are small and come in a graph paper format.  Writing materials is also essential and I use mostly mechanical pencils for notes as mistakes can be erased, a selection of highlighters as well as a good laptop or writing tablet.

Planning Aides

When I think about it Aides and tools are one of the same.  I guess I would view an aide as more information focussed. Think books, social media etc.

With this a primary library should encompass essential books good for any expeditions.  These are used in general as more of a reference to confirm essential needs. My Basic Reference Library includes the following,

1. Overland Journal Overlanding 101 by Scott Brady. ISBN 978-1-5072-2365-9

2. NOLS Expedition Planning by Dave Anderson & Molly Absolon ISBN 978-0-8117-3551-3

3. NOLS Wilderness Navigation by Gene Trantham & Darran Wells ISBN 978-0-8117-3773-9

4. Long Range Shooting Handbook by Ryan M. Cleckner ISBN 978-1-5186-5472-5

Authors Note I have written about this subject on firearms and adventure travel.

https://nwadventure.ca/op-vita-post-servitium/f/to-have-or-have-not-a-primer-on-firearms-in-adventure

5. A variety of wilderness and tactical first aid books.

6. Personal experiences should be kept in a diary for future reference.

This small reference library will be staples of any adventure and should be the backbone of any research project.

The remaining research materials will come from a plethora of reading materials.  A good starting point are books like The Lonely Planet or DK Travel. Many provincial/state governments should also have tourism guides as well.  The one thing I would be careful of is such books usually only promote popular places and events.  You pick up a Manitoba guide there is a heavy push for Winnipeg centric festivals or Churchill on polar bears and Northern Lights.  If you are history buff like myself you would know that in Churchill there is a fort from the 1700's and it was the space port for the Canadian Space Program as well.

Usually when I plan I go deeper into provincial or state archives, the internet, TV, history books, etc.  Canadian topographical maps are rarely updated as well and still have places and industry long gone.  Google maps can also be a source of out of the way B&B and restaurants. It all depends what you want on your adventure.  The information is out there to get you started.  The local population can also help out as well, however in my experiences this information is usually obtained on the actual trip.  If you enjoy writing then I would recommend finding PenPals as locals are a great source of information.

Communication

This is my final point and a very important one that is often overlooked or there is clear lack of understanding. First thing is to assign tasks related to the expedition.  This would share the workload.  I will use the example of a 5 person vehicle expedition

Team Lead

Team Lead is responsible for assigning tasks in the planning stage as well as maintaining the schedule.  The team lead should also be a jack of all trades and monitor the safety of everyone.  Logistics/supplies should also be the Team Lead responsibility.

Driver

Drivers would be responsible for maintenance of vehicles, maintaining receipts, log books etc..  Other areas would also be vehicle recovery.

Navigator

Ensure all required maps Arte available, be capable of  using navigation equipment as well as planning primary/secondary routes and handling of communication equipment.

Safety

Should be trained in wilderness first aid, immunization requirements safety gear and maintenance of TCCC, First aid and automated AED equipment.  Should be familiar with medical facilities on route as well as an extraction plan.

Cinematographer 

Competent in the use of drones, camera equipment and basic equipment maintenance. 

The military side of me would to "double bank" everything.  Meaning  say the Navigator and Safety Leads also know each other's jobs.  So the new titles would be Navigator Lead/Safety Secondary and Safety Lead/Navigator Secondary.  There are many reasons why this way would be approached but it will be covered in a later article.

Once duties have been assigned it should make things easier for meetings/planning sessions.

Meetings should be consistent, when possible held weekly on a consistent date and time.  With the introduction of Zoom, Skype etc. meetings can be held through unforeseen circumstances or over great distances.  Email and texting can be utilized as well.  With the advent of technology though, these means of communication, if practical, should not be relied upon.  If the team is over long distances a dedicated planning week/long weekend should be arranged at least twice, once prior to the journey and final one immediately before departure.  This will give the primary purpose of physically meeting and interaction with each other, which is something society has forgotten to do.

Tasks given should also be related to responsibilities.  They should be clear and direct with an expected time line.  Sometimes that is not always the reality but what ever has been obtained should be relayed in every meeting.

Promote a discussion.  Keep disagreement respectful, provide alternate solutions and back up your arguments if there is disagreement.  If you have a primary plan develop a secondary as well.  I don't like the use of Safe Space, though I get it in a way, how about keep the air open, respectful to your own team's personalities. Face it veterans will treat each other differently then say a university crowd.

Finally any decisions made should be done as a group.

In closing, the Key Points are as follows 

1. Keep the planning area organized and accessible. 
2. Ensure you have the proper maps, guides, logbooks and reference materials on hand.  Remember to take down notes in a master log.
3. Research your areas of travel for interests, events, lodging, flora, fauna etc.
4. Assign tasks if possible according to ability or eagerness to learn.
5. Keep group meetings consistent.
6. Keep discussions open and decisions mutually agreed upon by  the group.
7. Back up arguments and come up with alternate ideas not only for arguments but as a general backup to a good idea and
8. Have fun because success and even failures, can be an epic story.