How to combat danger...

If you were to walk through a thick mangrove forest in the heart of Guyana and come face to face with a full-grown cobra, it would not be enough to have weapons on hand and courage in the heart.

You would have to think on your feet, react in an instant. Can anyone handle danger without flinching? “No,” says Joseph Teti, survival expert and former Force Recon Marine and Army Special Forces soldier, adding, “You would need a unique survival mindset to stay alive.”

Here’s a chance to watch Joseph and his co-host Cody Lundin, another skilled survival specialist, as they combat harrowing adventures in a television series called Dual Survival, on Discovery Channel. This reality show aims to spread awareness that right skills and creative thinking can keep one alive in any remote corner of the world and in the most dangerous situations.

The series will highlight the survival tips of Joseph and Cody while they survive inside a remote island, the deep jungles of Vietnam, or a labyrinth of underground tunnels or a treacherous ridgeline at 15,000 feet above sea level. They are always prepared.

They are also seen travelling through leech-infected areas, walking down routes blocked by wild elephants, hiking up abundant waterfalls, and descending slippery cliffs in extreme weather conditions.

In an exclusive interview with Joseph Teti, he shares how the duo’s skills have come to play in tough terrains. “Survival experts may need to navigate a crocodile-infested lake on a bamboo raft, attempt to make a fire piston and fight through a dense forest in order to reach a rice farm.

There are times when we travel like nomads across the Arabian Desert, resting during the day and travelling through the night. We have battled temperatures more than 120 degrees, and in the deserts we have used camel droppings as fuel for fire, found scorpions in our camp, navigated routes by the stars and scaled rocky pinnacles in pursuit of higher ground.”

When asked how he entered the television space, Joseph said that it started with a pilot show for Spike TV, which “never aired, but I met people who were instrumental in getting me an opportunity to test for Dual Survival. Five of us went to Arizona to test with Cody. The other four had strong operations backgrounds in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, but I got picked.”

Joseph asserts that top physical condition is a necessity, because the job of a survival expert requires constant stamina and endurance. Sharing a few fitness tips, he says, “I believe that the key to an individual’s fitness lies in the delicate balance between sacrifice and the desire to enjoy life.

Sacrifice is undoubtedly the most important aspect of a solid fitness programme, but you shouldn’t have to give up what you enjoy most, because it won’t promote mental fitness. In a culture flooded with conflicting fitness information, the only certainty is that, if you eat better and work out harder, you’ll look better, feel better and most likely, live longer.

I’m not 25 anymore, but that hasn’t slowed me down in keeping myself in shape. I have merely modified my workouts so that I don’t injure myself or tear muscles at this point in life.”

“Dual Survival is high on excitement as it features a pair of survival experts battling challenging environments. The viewers can watch us battle the elements,” Joseph explains why the show is a must-watch. He has a five-pronged survival plan to get through dangers.

“As far as the survival mindset goes, my philosophy has five tenets: be prepared to rescue yourself, never quit, plan for changes, keep to the constants (food, water, shelter and fire) and stay in top physical condition.”
Dual Survival airs Monday to Friday at 9 pm, on Discovery Channel.