I Survived 35 Days on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse

After completing 21 days in the Colombian jungle, I thought I understood what Naked and Afraid could do to the body and mind.

Then I entered South Africa for a 35-day challenge on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse.

This was not simply a longer version of my first challenge. The environment, format and demands were different. We moved through abandoned locations, searched damaged vehicles and structures for useful materials, faced dangerous wildlife and had to preserve enough energy for a final journey back towards civilisation.

I spent weeks surviving on almost nothing. I ate dung beetles. A lion came close to our shelter. After 27 days of severe hunger, catching a catfish became one of the most important moments of the entire challenge.

This is what really happened during my 35 days on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse.

Steven Kelly, also known as Survival Ste, is a British TV survivalist, former 29 Commando Regiment soldier, survival instructor, podcast host and founder of South West Survival.

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Watch: I Survived 35 Days on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse

In the video, I explain how the challenge worked, how the hunger affected me, what happened when the lion approached our shelter, why the catfish catch mattered and what viewers did not see in the final television edit.

How Apocalypse was different from the original Naked and Afraid

My first challenge in Colombia was built around surviving 21 days in one hostile natural environment with my partner, Megan “Sunny” Forsythe.

Apocalypse demanded a different approach.

The South African challenge included abandoned man-made locations such as damaged vehicles, buildings and other structures. These places offered opportunities, but they also introduced new risks.

Something found in an abandoned location might be useful, but it could also be sharp, unstable, contaminated or too heavy to justify carrying.

Every object had to be judged against three questions:

• Can it solve a real survival problem?
• Is it safe enough to use?
• Is it worth the energy required to recover, adapt or carry it?

That final question became increasingly important as the challenge continued.

Thirty-five days changes the entire strategy

A 21-day survival challenge is already long enough to cause major weight loss, sleep disruption and declining strength.

Adding another two weeks changes the calculation.

You cannot attack every day at full speed. If you spend too much energy early, you may have nothing left when movement becomes unavoidable.

The goal is not to look active. The goal is to remain capable.

That means choosing when to work, when to hunt, when to improve shelter and when resting is the correct tactical decision.

Energy becomes a form of currency. Once it is spent, there is no guarantee that food will replace it.

Surviving 27 days with almost no food

Hunger became one of the defining parts of my Apocalypse experience.

For 27 days, I survived with very little meaningful food. The body does not simply feel hungry and remain otherwise unchanged. It adapts by reducing output.

Movement slows. Concentration drops. Patience becomes harder to maintain. A task that looked straightforward at the beginning can feel enormous by the fourth week.

You also become highly aware of wasted effort.

A failed hunt does not only mean returning without food. It means losing calories, time and morale.

That creates a difficult balance. You need food, but searching for it can accelerate the decline if the chances of success are poor.

Eating dung beetles

People often ask whether contestants genuinely eat insects and other unpleasant food sources.

When hunger becomes severe, the normal standards surrounding food change quickly.

Dung beetles were not something I would choose to eat in ordinary life. During a survival challenge, they represented calories and an opportunity to put something into a body running on almost nothing.

The amount of energy they provided was limited, but survival is often built from small advantages rather than one perfect solution.

A few calories can support another job, another movement or another day of clearer thinking.

The lion near our shelter

One of the most serious wildlife moments came when a lion approached our shelter area.

Large predators change the atmosphere immediately. Hunger and tiredness do not matter when a major threat is close. Attention narrows and the team has to respond without panic.

The wrong reaction could waste energy, create confusion or increase danger.

Wildlife encounters are also difficult for television to communicate fully. Viewers see the incident, but they do not feel the vulnerability of lying in a basic shelter while hearing movement nearby and knowing there is no solid wall between you and the animal.

Control starts with behaviour:

• stay alert
• communicate clearly
• avoid unnecessary panic
• maintain awareness of the group
• follow the safety procedures in place

Courage is not pretending the risk does not exist. It is responding sensibly while fear is present.

The catfish catch after weeks of hunger

After 27 days with very little food, catching a catfish was a major turning point.

The catch mattered physically because my body desperately needed calories and protein.

It also mattered mentally.

Long periods without success can make effort feel pointless. A food win restores belief that the next action might produce a result.

That surge in morale can be almost as important as the meal itself.

However, one fish cannot reverse nearly four weeks of physical decline. The body uses the calories quickly, and the wider challenge remains.

The catch gave me a boost. It did not make the final days easy.

Improvisation in abandoned locations

Apocalypse placed greater emphasis on repurposing materials.

Improvisation is not simply turning rubbish into equipment. It requires judgement.

A useful object must improve your position without introducing a larger hazard.

Potential uses included:

• cutting or scraping
• carrying water or materials
• improving shelter
• supporting fire or cooking systems
• creating cordage or fastening points

But abandoned materials can have hidden weaknesses. Metal can be sharp or corroded. Structures can collapse. Containers may be contaminated.

The best survival solution is not always the most creative one. It is the one that works safely and costs the least energy.

How my 23 years in 29 Commando helped

My military background gave me a framework for operating under pressure.

It helped me:

• break complicated problems into clear priorities
• accept discomfort without immediately reacting to it
• work within a team while tired and hungry
• maintain discipline when motivation dropped
• keep the final objective in mind

But military experience did not remove the effects of starvation or make me immune to fatigue.

Training gives you tools. It does not create unlimited energy.

The real value was being able to fall back on habits built over many years when my concentration and strength were declining.

The mental battle of a 35-day challenge

The mental challenge was not one dramatic crisis.

It was the accumulation of discomfort.

Hunger, poor sleep, uncertainty, wildlife, repetitive work and the knowledge that many days still remained all applied pressure.

The mind starts offering convincing reasons to reduce effort or stop.

Managing that requires smaller targets.

Instead of constantly thinking about Day 35, the focus becomes:

• get through the next job
• secure tonight’s shelter
• maintain the fire
• support the team
• make the next sound decision

Large challenges become manageable when they are broken into immediate actions.

The final journey towards civilisation

The challenge did not end with a conventional extraction from one fixed camp.

We had to preserve enough strength and clarity for the final movement towards civilisation.

This changed the entire survival strategy.

A contestant could not spend every remaining calorie making camp more comfortable. Mobility had to remain part of the plan.

By the final stage, every step carried the weight of the previous weeks.

Completing the journey required more than technical survival skills. It required controlled movement, teamwork and the refusal to mentally finish before the challenge was actually over.

What viewers did not fully see

A television series has to compress hundreds of hours into a limited number of episodes.

The final edit cannot fully communicate:

• how slowly the body declines across 35 days
• the long periods without food success
• the repeated work needed to maintain camp
• how hunger affects communication and patience
• the boredom and uncertainty between major incidents
• the recovery required after filming

The dramatic moments matter, but the challenge is often decided during ordinary hours when nothing exciting is happening.

That is where discipline and morale are tested.

Completing 56 days in the Naked and Afraid franchise

My 35 days on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse, combined with my completed 21-day challenge in Colombia, brought my total to 56 days in the franchise.

The two challenges required different approaches.

Colombia tested partnership, jungle survival, humidity, insects and the ability to establish a fixed camp.

South Africa tested long-term energy management, improvisation, mobility and the ability to function through a deeper physical decline.

Neither challenge was easy, and neither could be solved through technical skills alone.

The biggest lessons from Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse

Energy management decides long challenges

Every task must justify the calories it costs.

Mobility must remain part of the plan

A comfortable camp is useless if you have no strength left for the final movement.

Improvisation requires risk assessment

Found materials are only valuable when they solve a problem safely.

Morale is a survival resource

The catfish catch changed more than my calorie intake. It restored momentum.

Fear must be controlled, not denied

The lion encounter required awareness and calm behaviour, not false confidence.

Experience provides habits, not immunity

Military training helped me think clearly, but my body still suffered through hunger and exhaustion.

Would I take on another challenge?

Completing 56 days gave me a clear understanding of the physical cost and the value of the experience.

Any future challenge would need to offer something genuinely different and worth the damage that prolonged starvation and exposure can cause.

I would never dismiss another opportunity automatically, but I would assess it with open eyes.

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Frequently asked questions

How long did Steven Kelly survive on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse?

Steven Kelly completed the full 35-day challenge in South Africa.

How many total days has Steven Kelly completed on Naked and Afraid?

Steven completed 21 days in Colombia and 35 days on Apocalypse, giving him 56 completed days across the franchise.

Did Steven Kelly eat dung beetles?

Yes. He ate dung beetles during the challenge while surviving through a prolonged period with very little food.

Did a lion approach the shelter?

Yes. A lion came close to the shelter area during the South African challenge.

When did Steven Kelly catch the catfish?

The catfish catch came after approximately 27 days of severe hunger and provided an important physical and morale boost.

Where was Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse filmed?

Steven Kelly’s Apocalypse challenge was filmed in South Africa.

What made Apocalypse different?

The 35-day format involved movement through abandoned locations, repurposing found materials and preserving enough energy for a final route towards civilisation.

About Steven Kelly

Steven Kelly, also known as Survival Ste, is a British TV survivalist, former 29 Commando Regiment soldier, survival instructor, podcast host and founder of South West Survival.

He completed 21 days on Naked and Afraid in Colombia and 35 days on Naked and Afraid: Apocalypse in South Africa. View his television and media credits.