Bear Grylls Answers Your Questions

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Things can get really wild when you're Bear Grylls ... We've watched him eat live snakes and "float" in quicksand, so perhaps you've asked yourself, "Is there anything this guy won't do?"

Well, Bear has answers to some of your burning questions. Want to learn more? POST A MESSAGE for him in the discussion board. And look for posts by "ltcdrbeargrylls"!

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Q. I was wondering how you keep your body is such great shape. What is your workout routine, or what types of exercises do you do?

A. I try to work out six days a week … I run one day (with the dog in the hills!), and then do circuit training the next, with a yoga session once a week as well. I try to eat really healthily, too, with hardly any dairy or meat or fish most of the time -- except weekends and when in survival mode!

Q. As many know, meat is a good source of protein. If you were hunting meat in the wild for this reason, what is more advisable: a weapon or a trap?
-- dkbro

A. It's always a good idea to keep some form of weapon on you, not only for hunting but as protection. Remember that most hunting is opportunistic — i.e., you suddenly come across something — and keep any weapon practical and light. Also, get in the habit of carrying a couple of lightweight traps, such as some parachute cord and a few small pieces of stick to make a figure-four trap, for example. Set them as soon as you arrive at camp — and carefully wipe off any scent. Choose good locations, looking for runs but never too close to burrows, where animals are at their most cautious. Then leave the traps and let them work for you. Work on a 5 to 1 ratio, generally, but remember the more you set, the luckier you will be.

Q. Are you in any way afraid of heights?
--myth-survivor-weapon-guy

A. Sometimes, but the fear is generally if I have been away from heights for a while. It is very natural; I just stay put, look around, take a deep breath and relax. Within a few minutes I am generally OK again.

Fear is generally because we are not used to something — public speaking, speed, heights, etc. Take the time to get accustomed and overcome the fear with knowledge.

Q. Bear, on your TV show Man vs. Wild, you carry a NATO water bottle and mug. My question is, how do you carry it? It looks to me that you use a paracord like sling, but how do you tie it to the water bottle without it falling out of the metal mug?
-- survivalboy2

A. I tie it in a "daisy chain," a para technique of looping the rope through itself. It means you can carry a lot of paracord but in a short length. I then tie a loop around the bottle neck that links tight down to the handles of the cup and holds it all in place but is easy to release.

Q. Mr. Grylls, I've just finished watching the first season of Man vs. Wild, and I have a few questions. Where's the toughest place you are going next season? Keep up the good work!
--tombotron

A. Iceland in minus 45 degrees and the Everglade swamps with the alligators were tough ones; in fact, they were all pretty taxing! Outback of Oz was seriously hot, and the Amazon was unforgiving in many ways. Mexico was cool, though!

Q. Do you dread being "stranded" more in extreme heat or extreme cold?
--gingela

A. They are both pretty horrible, but it is actually the mosquitoes I have learned to dread more with no mosquito net, etc., ever.

Q. What form of karate are you a black belt in? Also, when is your survival book supposed to come out? Keep up the good work!
--coolcatb306

A. I am a second dan in Shotokan karate, and the book came out last week. (In fact, recently it hit the top 10 best-sellers in the U.K., which was really exciting to see. So thanks, guys!)

Q. Were you scared when you climbed Everest?
--pqer

A. Every day, but I learned that it is OK to be scared — what matters is keeping going, hour after hour, day after day, night after night, until the three months are over and you are finally safe. You can’t afford to relax ever, which is hard, but I guess the journey is ultimately about how much you want it and how much cold and discomfort you can put up with.

Q. Which location did you enjoy filming the most?
--lyndsc

A. Copper Canyon was pretty special, as were the Andes and the Amazon in Ecuador, but in truth they have all been amazing! The series for me has been a privilege to be able to do — hard and emotionally difficult at times but a privilege all the same. Especially as I feel there are so many people who could do my job better than me — so many more survival experts, better climbers, better skydivers ... you name it. I feel lucky also that I was asked by Discovery to do this and that it has been so popular for the channel.

Q. Among other record-breaking feats, you've made it into the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest British climber to summit Mount Everest and return alive. Do you have any plans to set another world record?

A. Yep ... this May, God willing — I am leading an attempt to fly powered paragliders over Everest.

Q. When you're home with your family, do you go camping and hiking together? We love to take our little ones out into the woods!
--trailmom

A. I try not to! That's my work! But we do head up to our Welsh island hideaway, sleep in hammocks, eat picnics and climb and swim in the sea with the seals! (There is no mains water or electricity, so we collect water off our roof and have a wind turbine for power.) But it is heaven and we enjoy our peace and quiet together as a family.

Q. What's the worst injury you've experienced while filming Man vs. Wild?

A. ... endlessly smashing my elbow that I broke on Everest when I fell down a crevasse at 19,000ft ... I keep smashing it doing all these dives and rolls etc. filming ... I can feel the bits of bone swilling around in there somewhere!

Q. If either (or both!) of your children said to you, "Daddy, I want to be an adventurer like you when I grow up," what would you say to them?

A. ... they have more sense than me! Jesse has told me at age 3 that he wants to be a librarian which is great news! My dream though is to teach them to climb — nothing necessarily big but just to climb all together. My father taught me that two things ever matter — follow your dreams and look after your friends. I would love to pass on the same message.

Q. Can you tell us about your service in the SAS?

A. From 1994 to 1997, I served with the British SAS (21 SAS). I passed U.K. Special Forces Selection, serving as a sabre soldier, highly trained in unarmed combat, desert and winter warfare, combat survival, medics, parachuting, signals, evasive driving, climbing and explosives. I served actively in North Africa twice (details classified).

In late 1996, I broke my back in a free-fall parachuting accident in southern Africa. I spent a year in and out of military rehabilitation back in the U.K. In late 1997, I climbed Mt. Ama Dablam in the Himalaya, a peak once described by Sir Edmund Hillary as "unclimbable."

Then, in May 1998, as part of a small military team of four soldiers, myself and my best buddy Neil Laughton (he's an ex-captain with the Royal Marines Commandos and 21 SAS) summited Everest. I turned 24 10 days later. I signed off from 21 SAS in late 1998.

Q. What was your scariest moment?

A. Well, I've just been on The Oprah Winfrey Show, which ranked quite high on the scary list! [Note: Bear appeared on TOWS on Jan. 31, 2007.]

Q. Could you tell us about your book, Born Survivor: Bear Grylls (aka Stranded)?

A. It is a culmination of all that I have learned about staying alive in hostile places. It is based around my military training, Man vs. Wild experiences and past expeditions.

Q. What do you always take with you?

A. Flint and striker, so I can light a fire however tough it gets — lifts my spirit always and has often saved my bacon! My Christian faith: high mountains and my time in the military taught me that it takes a proud man to say he needs nothing, and I need my faith. And, finally, a laminated picture of my family tucked inside my shoe.