THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

GreyQueen · 31 March 2017 at 7:56AM

Wow, Fuddle, I think I'd have an infarction if my heartrate ever got that high, my resting heart rate is sub-50 and has been recorded in hospital at 40 bpm (the anaethetist who was about to put me under for an op was a bit freaked out by that, I just lifted my head from the bed, squinted at the monitor and told her not to worry about 40, it was normally about 45-49). My brother, our father and his father have the same. Such readings are usually associated with hyper-fit athletes but in our cases, it seems to be genetic.

I do know that if my heart is beating at 80 bpm, it feels like it's racing to me, and is scary and uncomfortable.

I've held a driving license for 27 years and have had a car for a total of about 8 of those, although I do practise my driving in the family cars (am on their insurance) several times a year.

My parents walk about their errands, the 1.25 miles to town and the 1.25 back and the 0.75 miles each way to the supermarket. My Dad (75) walks several country walks each week, from about 3.5 to 8 miles. He's been walking these routes for years and is enough of a nerd to track his speeds and he isn't walking any more slowly now than he was in his forties when he used to hike in the mountains and walk 20+ mile walks in our lowland area.

I'm sure they're thought a bit odd as their car sits in front of the house but they regard it as healthy to walk and better to reserve the car for longer journeys or heavy load carrying.

Mark Sisson's experience and research (of mark's daily apple) reveals that we humans are meant to move frequently at a low level with occasional sprints and episodes of heavy lifting and lots of rest and sleep. Walking seems to me to be the perfect exercise.

I have seen many examples IRL of people I've known well for years who have got a car and have very rapidly gained a noticable amount of weight. I'm talking 1-2 stone in only a few months. The gain starts immediately. Even if you think you're not doing much exercise, just walking about your errands is healtful and keeping you fit.

[Deleted User] · 31 March 2017 at 8:49AM

I have for some years now followed a blog by an amazing lady in America called G.Donna, her blog is GENERATIONS BEFORE US and she and her husband are currently living for a year as though it was 1942 in the USA. She is worth a visit and a back read as there is a wealth of practical wisdom in the posts that is a relevant today as it was both when she wrote them and in the actual time period she and hubby were replicating. She has what she calls her 'Victory Garden' and is extending what they grow and making the absolute most of every crop they produce, she is a past master at not letting anything go to waste. She is also of the mind that making do with what you DO have and consuming less as a better way of living than consumerism. Todays post is an example and in her 1942 year she is approaching rationing and is making changes to her garden to allow her to grow more crops to feed them as rationing kicks in. What has all this to do with prepping I hear you ask? well, yesterday triggered article 50 and an unknown future for all of us here in the UK, none of us can see how life will change or if there might be shortages of things we now take for granted as being readily available all the time or possibly there will be price rises that take some things beyond our ability to pay for them. Today we will be sitting down with paper and pen and looking at what we can produce over and above the normal and making plans to use what we grow to make provision for our food next winter without wasting anything we can use. Jam, Jelly, Chutney, dehydrated fruit and veg, bottled fruit, fruit cordials, dried herbs, pickles, fruit cheeses and anything else I can think of will be made with ALL the produce we grow and on top of that we'll be looking to leave as much in the polytunnel to overwinter and as much standing crop in the ground to harvest fresh in the colder months. We too will be looking to be more productive for our own sakes. It might be a very sensible time to look t digging an extra bed or two and making plans to use all your produce in some way to provide that little extra sustenance and some variety in your diet if prices and availability do become more difficult to manage on your incomes.

mardatha · 31 March 2017 at 10:31AM

Good post MrsL !

VJsmum · 31 March 2017 at 10:38AM

I also have a very low heartrate - and very low blood pressure (i presume they are linked?) and have also freaked out medics in the past when they saw it. I also walk a lot - but i don't think that's linked, necessarily as i have the low BP whether i walk or not.

i also read MDA

- honestly, you can't have anything on your own :rotfl:

monnagran · 31 March 2017 at 1:22PM

Interesting thoughts on here today.
I am also car less (and probably careless as well, who would know) and fortunately forced to walkl everywhere. I say fortunately as all my life I have subscribed to the view, "never walk if you can stand, never stand if you can sit and never sit if you can lie."

I haven't noticed the weight diminishing at all. My heart rate has always been low - inheritance from my father who, according to the hospital doctor who did all the tests on him when he was 96, had the heart of someone in his 40s. My blood pressure on the other hand has always been on the high side.
I have had a driving licence for the last 55 years and intend to keep it going. Not because I intend to drive again, a mixture of economics and the realisation that my reactions aren't quite as sharp as they were rules that out. I would never forgive myself if I hurt someone. It is very useful on the increasingly frequent occasions when you have to prove your identity.
Until 2015 I have always lived at the top of a hill, the steepest 1 in 7, so I know exactly where Fuddle is coming from. I didn't have a car in those days and used to push a pram up this hill, with baby inside, toddler sitting on the end and the shopping piled up on the rack underneath. I used to think that the next step I took would be my last. I was still overweight though constantly dieting. Explain that please!

Today I am enjoying walking on the flat, to do my shopping and along the beach. It will have to do.

Now I'm off to investigate these intriguing blogs I am hearing about.

x

Cappella · 31 March 2017 at 2:12PM

We do have a car, but I don't drive and never have because of sight issues. We do however have an excellent bus service only a minutes walk away and so going further afield isn't an issue: the bus passes Lidls, Morrisons and Home Bargains so supermarkets are easily accessible. I walk pretty much everywhere else, it's good exercise and the dog benefits as well.

MrsLW I've already noticed price hikes in basic goods since Brexit - Yorkshire tea bags today in B and M were 30p more than last week - and I've been comparing prices over the past month with last years at the same time, in my account books.
Like you we have planned our allotment more tightly this year, and plan to sow as many catch crops as we can in amongst the slower growers e.radishes with our parsnips, lettuces inbetween our rows of potatoes. I'm seriously wondering about another small freezer, but we are very limited as regards kitchen space and it may not be feasible. Over the past three years though we've put rhubarb and blackcurrants into our tiny back garden, as the local authority here have a very long waiting list for allotments and are threatening to service it by cutting all existing plots into half and reletting them. We are fighting them on this - have had ours over 35 years and it was a derelict eyesore when we took it on - why should someone else get the benefit of our carefully nurtured soil!!! - but don't think that we will win so are exploring other options. This morning we have heeled in three gooseberry bushes here have been heeled in here and I'm going to try alpine strawberries as ground cover - every little helps.
We waste very little food wise, but I'm trying for a totally waste free April. I've menu planned for the month, it's not a rigid plan, I just list 30 possible meals for the month and ensure that I include using any available allotment produce (perpetual spinach, sprouting broccoli, microgreens, late leeks and rhubarb at the moment). That way I'm prepping by auditing and using available resources to cut my food bills.
Off now to look at the GDonna website, looks interesting

[Deleted User] · 31 March 2017 at 3:43PM

Hi Capella we too have planted more fruit bushes in the garden, we've invested in a fruit cage and will also grow some brassicas in it to keep the pigeons off and intercrop them with lettuces, land cress, lambs lettuce, endive, pak choi, mizuna, mustard etc.all the tender greens that will (except the lettuces) stand over the winter to be harvested for salads and stir frys. We are going to put in stands of root veg on the allotment and one of the garden beds celeriac, carrots, parsnips, leeks and grow extra onions and a goodly amount of potatoes which will leave us the protein to buy and we should be able to afford that even if it is tins with what we save on not having to buy the fruit and veg. We have vacant plots here on the allotments so I think our 10 rods is fairly safe.

fuddle · 31 March 2017 at 4:33PM

Monna you didnt walk up the hill fast enough

I'm the other way with my heart rate. I have a fast resting heart rate which means when I had tonisilitis last week I was tachycardic. Often times when I'm ill or stressed my heart rate is high but I never feel it.

We're still on with investing in the house so it feels very much like we're consumers at the moment. It's not a nice feeling but once the house is done, its done and I look forward to not spending very much again. In terms of making DH's pay last we've more leeway because of not paying high rent so I'm buying the same amounts and not feeling the pinch but tht too isn't a nice feeling and when all this is done I look forward to making my pennies go further. I am squirreling food away in bags under my bed until my extra kitchen storage is installed and having a boring yet highly functional store cupboard means I can focus on what I use but there isn't any offers on these types of staples.

There's very little I can do to help myself until I can get an allotment plot (I'm top of the list and the list consists of just me) and I have found out that livestock is allowed on the plots so I will be looking into chickens but who knows when this will be.

My concern is school meals costs. I fully expect these to go up very soon. I pay £80 a month for my girls to have a lunch at school. It pains me to put youngest back on packed lunch given her walks to school but I have noticed that cake and custard is a daily thing. She seems to have carrots every day and if not it's sweetcorn. Today was sausage and chips with no veg option. I'm fearful that menus are sliding back to convienience foods that bulk as cheaply as possible. If it's like this now then the future looks expensively bleak or cold items in a packed lunch again.

GreyQueen · 31 March 2017 at 4:43PM

Afternoon all.

Well, a few million people read MDA, so unsurprising there should be some overlap with the prepsters.:rotfl:

Re rising prices, I have to say that I am seeing clear signs of profiteering.

Before the bout of bad weather in southern Eurpope played havoc with the imported veggies a couple of months back, my Liddly always had a whole cucumber at 42p and my Tosspots (a metro) at 49p.

When the veggie-familne struck, T promply stuck their cukes up to 60p and L increased theirs to 49p. Last week, between one day and another, T hiked their cukes from 60p to 70p.

At the very same time, in another city centre metro-type store, Sains are able to offer whole cukes at 50p, and that's what I can get them for in M & S. Liddly still charge 49p.

Now knock me down and call me a fool, but I cannot believe a retail giant like T cannot negotiate equally preferential (or even far better) terms with their suppliers in Spain than the other stores mentioned.

So, cucumber-o-nomics is showing me a clear example of p-taking and profiteering.

ETA Fuddle, have you considered perhaps investing in one of those food thermoses for your girls? They have wide mouths and you could send them out with something like a casserole or a hearty soup. HTH.

jk0 · 31 March 2017 at 5:07PM

My primary school dinners were so vile I refused them and went back to sandwiches. Ah, the 1970's eh?

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THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

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