In the last episode, I discussed a hierarchy for buying equipment. At the lowest level was the fundamentals and everyday carry (EDC). The hierarchy worked it's way up from there to include a variety of patrolling, survival, observation, and combat equipment. Throughout the entire thing, I tied it to the importance of seeking training on how to use the equipment effectively.There's an important element that I did not discuss in that episode, though, and one that we're touching on today. This actually came up in the accompanying live stream that I did with that episode, which you'll find on the YouTube channel. Towards the end of that stream, as we got into Q&A- the topic of physical fitness came up, and I shared a few thoughts.Let's go a little deeper today.Revisiting Tactical FitnessOne of the pillars of the Everyday Marksman philosophy is fitness. Tactical fitness is a combination of lots of disciplines, from strength to endurance, speed, and flexibility. A tactical athlete, to borrow a phrase, is a generalist.Even within the field of tactical athletes, there are subsets. I once asked Rob Shaul of the Mountain Tactical Institute about this, and he explained his approach. From a fitness programming perspective, a tactical athlete’s fitness must cover a much more broad array of fitness demands...their fitness demands are much more “multi-modal”. Green athletes, for example, need high relative strength (strength per body weight), high sprint-based work capacity, tactical agility, endurance (running/rucking) and chassis integrity (core). Most tactical athletes cannot predict the tactical situations they face, and thus their programming must be broader and embrace more fitness attributes than more narrow sport or competition athletes who can predict what they will face in competition, and program accordingly. Rob Shaul, Mountain Tactical Institute I highlighted this particular quote, because Rob mentioned "Green" athletes. In his color coding system, green indicates infantry, land-based special operations, wildland firefighters, and rural law enforcement.This represents the target for all of us. To be someone who can lift, ruck, sprint, climb, and survive in tough environments. This also ties back to the gear hierarchy I mentioned before. If you're going to buy the gear, then you also need to be able to carry the gear.Three Reasons to Be FitNow for the meat of the episode. We're braking down three reasons, or domains, that you need keep in mind. We're not talking about vanity reasons, like looking swole to impress...well...anyone. We're talking the nitty gritty reasons to be fit for everyday life, especially in an emergency situation like Scenario X.The domains break down to the following:* Combat capability* Health & Durability* Developing Mental GritNot everything we're saying here applies only to muscular strength and endurance. Fitness is a holistic concept encompassing several domains.Combat CapabilityI want to talk about the Falklands War for a minute. In 1982, the United Kingdom engaged in a conflict with Argentina over two British territories in the South Atlantic. Without getting into the details of why it happened, I'll simply state that the conflict lasted 74 days and ended with an Argentine surrender. The reason that I'm talking about it is the actions of British troopers on the ground were a testament to their level of physical fitness. The British soldiers, during the Falklands conflict, did a remarkable job of carrying heavy loads on their backs over long distances and during adverse weather conditions.