‘Survivor 50’ Stars Reveal Their Hardcore Ways to Prepare for Return

this survivor 50 The cast knows a thing or two about what it takes to play the game — so no one is taking their comeback preparations lightly.

Many athletes rely on regular training methods before returning to competition, such as going to the gym, practicing fire-making techniques, and swimming in the pool. Others, however, opt for some out-of-the-box technology. survivor 46 alum Quintavis “Q” Burdettefor example, specifically tells US Weekly He “stands on nails” to “train” his body to “handle pain.”

“The pain tolerance version of it, it talks to your brain so you can teach your brain to deal with pain. It’s like a bed of nails – you walk across a bed of nails. I just stood on (the nails) for 26 minutes,” Q explained. “It doesn’t puncture your foot, but it hurts. I mean, it hurts like shit.”

Genevieve Musharuk prepared for life on Survivor Island, eating all her favorite foods and gaining weight in the process. The “Survivor 47” alum told us that her favorite food is “dumplings.”

Survivor 50: In the hands of fans Premieres on CBS on Wednesday, February 25th at 8pm ET for three hours. Starting March 4, the show will return to its normal 90-minute format.

Keep scrolling to see how 50 Survivor stars are gearing up for the milestone season:

Rick Devins

Exclusively narrated by Rick Devins us He did “a lot of swimming training” before heading to Fiji for Season 50. edge of extinction The alum added that he ensures his family, including wife Becca and their two children, are “at peace.”

Charlie Davis

Surprisingly, Charlie Davis took the opposite approach survivor 50 Compared to Season 46, there was “much less” preparation.

“I was just there and I think through that experience I learned what was helpful and what wasn’t helpful or just things that I probably don’t need to do anymore,” survivor 46 runner told us. “I think, before I was 46, I had 10 different puzzles memorized, but it was useless.”

While Charlie joked that “it would be hilarious if some of these puzzles ended up in Season 50,” he wanted to spend his time focusing on the larger task at hand.

“My basic rules for getting ready for ‘Survivor’ are: make sure you’re in good shape, make sure you’re comfortable with being uncomfortable, and watch some seasons of ‘Survivor,'” he said. “Listen to some podcasts and get yourself in the right frame of mind, that’s all you can really do.”

Angelina Kiley

Narrated by Angelina Kiley us Becoming a mother of two daughters was a ‘transformative’ experience that helped prepare her for the future survivor 50.

“I’m more patient, I’m more aware, I care more about everything. I’m more confident,” DAVID VS. goliath alum explained. “I just feel like everything in my life is aligned right now.”

Aubrey Bracco

Aubry Bracco is no stranger to comebacks survivorbut many times players told us She’s been hard at work since she last appeared on the show in 2019 edge of extinction.

“I want to say that since edge of extinction it’s over. I’ve done a lot of work on myself,” she said. “I’ve had kids. My outlook on life… I’m more down to earth. I’ve done a lot of self-reflection. “

In addition to mental preparation, Aubrey hit the gym and studied the game.

“I’ve been working out, meditating, listening to a lot of podcasts about all these characters,” she explains. “I’ve been studying. I’ve been doing my Survivor homework. It’s been a little bit of a break, but I’m caught up and I’m ready to go.”

Christian Hubicki

Christian Hubicki prepares ‘quite a lot’ physically for game survivor 50 Just in case the difficult tasks of the new era are thrown at him.

“I run a lot. I hate running normally, but I do it for this damn show,” DAVID VS. goliath alum tells us. “My concern is they’re going to do some of the sweat or savvy stuff that they’ve been doing the past few seasons and we have to run around and gain stamina.”

robotics professor jokes survivorThe New Age could get “weird” and “very complicated.”

Desiree Fields

While being prepared survivor 50Desiree Fields knows how to make the best use of her time.

“What’s the only thing I could do differently? I really don’t know how much it would affect my game or maybe make me more of a threat. Get physically fitter, right? I can’t. I’m never going to be an Olympic swimmer. I do know how to make a fire better than I did before,” she EXCLUSIVELY said us. “So other than that, I don’t really know how to prepare.”

Benjamin “Coach” Wade

After Benjamin “Coach” Wade retired from Survivor and returned for Season 50, one of his first acts was to watch the previous seasons of the eshow. The coach shared what he learned from Borneo During and after the epidemic victor in war He “stopped.” once he gets the call survivor 50he began “cramming” “New Age”, starting with Season 41.

“So I really started cramming, and then I got overwhelmed. I was like, let me look at these players’ cliff notes so I can understand them,” he told me us. “I did watch Season 46 because a friend of mine, Ben Katzmanis in that season. I started looking at 48, not looking at the sprint, trying to catch up with the other runners. So, yeah, I had to do some homework. “

Di Valladares

Dee Valladares’ preparation for Survivor is a little different than last time. Instead of studying “games”, survivor 45 The winner hopes to prioritize “mental preparation” and gain some weight.

“I gained 10 pounds, but because of life, not because I had to get ready for the month,” she told me usadding that she’s also “exercising a lot” because she’s “about to be in the most uncomfortable situation of (her) life.”

Colby Donaldson

Before Colby Donaldson was confirmed, he made it survivor 50he knows he “needs to be ready” by studying the season he “missed.”

“I’m still as big of a fan as I was when I first sent it (survivor) applied, but I missed some years and I needed to go back and study tape,” he told us. “But in preparation, if you’re going to scout a team and get ready for a battle, you need to know your opponent, but you also have to go back and watch your own tape and see some of the mistakes you made.”

Colby added that he knew something went wrong in his last appearance. HERO VS. douchebagwhich aired in 2010. like survivorColby himself is in a new era.

“That’s what’s exciting about having the opportunity to come back and compete again. Not only is the game improving, but I’m improving as well,” he explained. “I won’t play the same game I played last time.”

Genevieve Musharuk

One thing Genevieve Mushaluk focused on before returning survivor 50 It’s “bulk”.

“I ate a lot of stuff, all the stuff I liked,” survivor 47 alum tells usadding that she’s not focusing on the vanity element as much as she did last season. “When I first came out, I was so concerned about the cellulite on my thighs and my unibrow. This time, I’m like, ‘What the heck? I’m just here to hang out and I’ll see how (I look).’ But you know, a million dollars would look good on me, so I’m not going to worry about it.”

In addition to eating, Genevieve also practices her puzzle skills.

“One of the challenges was, I got zero pieces on the puzzle. It was like, I thought that was a terrible new record. So I practiced puzzle making,” she said. “But I think the real question is, can my brain still work when I’m stressed, overtired, hungry? … Obviously, I’ve been working out, not as much as Joe (Hunter) and Jonathan (Young).”

Jenna Lewis-Doherty

Narrated by Jenna Lewis-Doherty us She usually stays “in shape” but gains more survivor Elements of her exercise routine.

“I have some balance beams built in my backyard now,” she said. “I’m practicing making fires.”

Joe Hunter

Joe Hunter’s first priority in Season 50 is to address his “weaknesses.”

“I think a lot of people come into this game focused on what they can do well and certain strategies. I try to work on my weaknesses emotionally and mentally,” he told me us. “Focus on that and not hide behind it but work on improving those weaknesses. So I’ve really spent a lot of time on my own growth and understanding where I need to improve as a person.”

Jonathan Young

Narrated by Jonathan Young us He doesn’t have to do much “physically” to prepare for his return as he works out “almost every day.” However, he did study his competitors.

“I studied the players. I know what they did and why they did it, at least to the best of my ability,” he said, adding that listening to the host Jeff Probst‘s “On Fire” podcast is part of his learning material. “I’ve been listening to ‘On Fire with Jeff Probst,’ and all three (former co-hosts) are here. Rick Devins, Charlie (Davis) and Dee (Valadares), all three of them are here, and all three of them are big targets.”

Camila Katigsu

Ever since the end of Season 48, Kamilla Karthigesu hasn’t stopped preparing for her comeback.

“I haven’t stopped going to the gym since I came back from 48,” she said us. “It was mostly because I discovered that I loved lifting and putting things down.”

Camilla added that while she decided to give up running before the show, she used the time to focus on building a fire.

“I even lit a fire at 11pm the night before my flight,” she quipped.

Mike White

Mike White said getting in shape was his top priority before starting the Survivor 50.

“I think I’m in better shape than last time. I feel like I have to stay in good shape because (survivor It’s too exhausting,” white lotus Creator’s narration us. “I was like, ‘I have to figure this out. I have to prepare like an athlete prepares for a sporting event.”

Oz’s Desire

While Ozzie Russ spends most of his time “running a restaurant in Mexico,” he knows he needs to cut back on his vices — like “drinking and smoking” — and get serious about training before returning to Survivor.

“As soon as I heard the news from Jeff (Probst), I just started going back to the plan and started climbing, doing push-ups and just mentally preparing myself for the next race,” he said. us.

Quintavis “Q” Burdette

Quintavius ​​“Q” Burdette took extreme measures to get ready for Survivor 50 with no preparation before his debut on the show.

“The first time I played, I didn’t work out, believe it or not… I didn’t do anything, puzzles, anything survivor related. I just lived my life until the day we left and I left and I came here and I had a feast. So this time, I started working out,” he said us. “I work out every day. I run, I jog, I lift weights, I do riddles. I stand on spikes.”

Q not only nails his nails, he also “sits in 35-degree water for eight minutes every day” and has sauna time every day.

“It doesn’t do anything for the challenge, right? It’s just mental – tapping into my spirit and knowing when things are going to start to fade away here,” he explained. “How do I control it? How do I live with it? How do I fight it? How long do I feel pain? How long does it take for it to stop? Because a lot of people don’t understand when it hurts, and when you stand on the nail, yeah, eventually it gets to a point where it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Rizzo “Rizgold” Velovich

Unlike other contestants, Rizo “Rizgod” Velovic had less than two weeks to prepare survivor 50. However, survivor 49 An alum told us that being a “superfan” helped him get in the right mindset.

“I live and breathe Survivor and all that. So when it comes to mental preparation and emotional preparation, I’m 100 percent ready,” he said, adding about the physical impact of playing the game survivor 49 Won’t stop him. “I lost a lot of weight, and I was already a very thin person, so I didn’t gain the weight back in nine days, but I felt great. I just weighed a lot less than I did when I was 49.”