The Hardest Thing About Navy Boot Camp - N-FAQs 02 - TheAndySan

http://www.theandysan.com

Alright cowboys, it's time to bring back my N-FAQS video series by going over what the hardest thing I had to do while in boot camp.

I got asked this question (and many more) by one of my subscribers and it took myself a bit to narrow it down, but I did and I sent him this message:

That's a tough question, especially since what I might think is hard might be super-easy for somebody else.

If I did have to point out one of the toughest moments I had in boot camp, it would have to be anytime I took the PFA, which is the physical test. I had to take it a total of 4 times during boot camp while the majority of everyone took it 3 times. The reason I had to do it an extra time is because I failed the final PFA (5 pushups away from passing, dammit!), but I passed it the second time so no worries.

Generally speaking, the first 2-3 weeks will be the toughest since you're being introduced to a whole new lifestyle. The quicker the division catches on to the fact that they'll pay for even one guy screwing around, the easier things will be.

I learned a lot from my Chief, and one of the things he said that stuck with me was "everything you do affects everyone around you". Although this goes along with what I said about just one guy screwing around affecting the whole division, it can also be used positively.

For example, I would always do my best at everything despite not being very good at doing certain things. This helped motivate several of my shipmates to do their best (I found this out shortly before Battle Stations) as well as give me a hand whenever I had trouble with something.

Well, that's all I got for tonight. I'm gonna be hanging out with some shipmates tomorrow and then back to the grindstone on Monday. Take care!

TheAndySan

Category:

Education

Tags:

• nfaqs
• theandysan
• andy
• san
• navy
• boot
• camp
• usn
• pfa
• physical
• fitness
• assessment
• running
• pushups
• situps

[derail14]

the ones who have it real hard in boot camp are the dudes who don,t know how to swim cuz you don,t graduate boot camp until you learn how to swim, i know a few who ended up 3 weeks longer in boot camp until they learned how to swim..........

[AndySan]

@derail14 - It's true! We had two guys in my division that couldn't swim at all. They eventually got ASMO'd shortly before Battle Stations, and they then passed the swim test right after. WTF?

[joshkilla67]

th hardest thing when i went to boot camp was........ NOTHING, lol , maybe the party showers ;)

[AndySan]

@joshkilla67 - Yeah, that was weird to get used to lol!

[AndySan]

@MCWhiteee90 - @sapher2020 is right, although I personally went for the backstroke over the doggy paddle since backstrokes are the easiest to do for me. Whatever works best for you is what you should use.

[sapher2020]

@MCWhiteee90 Just being able to doggie paddle will get you by, it was enough for me. All you have to do basically is jump from a diving board that's maybe 20-30FT high and swim for a few minutes around the pool and that's it.

[AndySan]

@k3vinyAng - While in boot camp, you're not allowed to wear your contacts at all. Some people wore their BCGs (Birth Control Glasses) to the swim test, which freaked me out a bit. Then again, I could see myself losing them at the bottom of the pool or something stupid like that. When I took the test, I did it without my glasses and passed just fine.

[k3vinyAng]

So do you wear contacts when entering the water for the swimming? Since you wear glass. Or did you not wear any at all. Cause I do wear glass too

[AndySan]

@MCWhiteee90 - As long as you got the basic form down, you'll be fine. Watch my swim test NFAQ for more info!

[MCWhiteee90]

I'm not a great swimmer,but i can swim,how good of a swimmer do i need to be to join the navy?