Quote:
Originally Posted by Steven Lake
[...] But what about all the chair/couch/desk potatoes out there? Our modern society isn't exactly the epitome of physical and mental health. Just a drive down the street is proof enough of that. What do you guys think? Even though hollywood (and a number of survival writers) haven't touched on this too much, I know it'd be a big deciding factor. Sure, a large portion of survival falls to just plain old dumb luck, and being in the right place at the right time (or away from the wrong places) combined with some preparations (to a much lesser degree), but ultimately it's how fit you are. As he mentioned, it doesn't help to be prepared for anything only to drop dead 15 minutes after the disaster starts. So that would be a huge deciding factor too in who would survive Stage 1.
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I suspect ScaleyFreak is right in emphasising the importance of mental strength over physical strength, although actual physical and mental disability is likely to stack the cards against you.
There was a chapter in
The Stand (by Stephen King) about some of life's less fit (druggies etc) that had survived the flu only to die very stupid deaths in the days that followed. Several of the scenes concluded with "No great loss." One of the main characters in that book, Harold, starts out far from fit, but slims down as the story progresses. Except perhaps the hugely obese, it can be surprising how quickly the body can rebuild its health when conditions improve. In most of the situations I've seen described in books there are periods after the disaster when surviving on what's left behind remains possible, and this does offer the chance for people to learn and improve before fitness become more critical. (Though how much this reflects reality, versus the usual "journey" that characters must go through in a story, is not obvious.)
More than anything else I think surviving Stage 1 is down to luck. Being prepared and fit and healthy might get you so far, but stupid things happen to all of us at some time, and in the period following a disaster I suspect stupid things (or things that seem stupid when viewed from the outside) are likely to play a very big part. Where real fitness of mind or body are likely to play a bigger part is in longer term survival.