Can I join the army if....?

Question

Can I join the army if I can pass the Initial PT test but can't do 20 pushups... enough situps so on... Is there a "fat camp" that I can join or will they just continue to recycle me while I continue to be paid?

Answer 1

Here's the deal. Or the way it was when I enlisted.

When you get to the reception station at your Basic Training post (mine was Ft. Benning). They make you do push ups and watch you to make sure your form is good (i.e. back straight, head up, etc.). After you do about ten or so correct push-ups without stopping they give you a go. If you can't do at least ten (come on folks its only ten push-ups), can't do them correctly, or stop and come out of the front leaning rest position they put you in the fat boy platoon.
That means you stay at the reception station instead of going down range to your training company. After a week of that they give you another chance (I think you have to do twenty then). If you pass then they let you go on to Basic. If you don't its another week of PT and diet. Followed by another week if you don't pass and so on.
They figure if you can do ten correct that by the time you get out of Basic you'll be able to pass your final PT test. The draw back of fat boy platoon is that it delays your graduation from Basic. You could sit in the reception station for weeks.
My advice to you is to do push-ups every day. Also do sit-ups, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, etc. It also would not hurt to run a few days a week at a slow pace. The PT runs in Basic are usually pretty slow so don't kill yourself running.
I might be off on the numbers but its not hard if you come prepared. Just get up off the couch and get ready so you can go on to training and not waste your time with something you should have been doing in the first place.

Answer 2

Boot now is like a country club resort! Add to this the fact that they will now accept gang members and people with misdemeanors and felonies,and you have an army that is just about the same as a bunch of merc's! You can look like a circus freak with tattoo's from top to bottom and speak only slang language and not be able to read or write. You can be grossly overweight and still complete boot. Then you have your homosexuals with their jewelery in their eyebrows,nose,and nipples. How many deviants can one army take and still have professional integrity? If you're fat forget about it until you join the fit ones!

Answer 3

Well, in the Marine Corps you can. you get put on weight control and they do some other stuff extra. There were some fat guys in my boot camp platoon but I'm not sure what all they did (i wasn't one of 'em, and it was almost a decade ago), except a little extra PT at night and less chow. And they got white stripes painted on their undershirts to identify them.

But, you could always join the Delayed Entry Program, and get off your butt and exercise before you ship out.

Answer 4

Back during the draft the military took all sizes of people. I seen a person drop 150 -200 pounds in basic training. You say you cant do twenty push ups you will at the end of boot camp.

Answer 5

If I was your platoon guide in your cycle, you would be doing more than 20 push ups before the end of the cycle. If you are over weight, you would lose weight because you would get tired of carrying the water can and running around the formation when we are marching. When I went to basic, everyone passed in my cycle, and I remained platoon guide for whole cycle.

Answer 6

you cannot ship until you make weight standards. You will soon bget plenty of practice that will get you up to minimum PT standards. they will NOT recycle you indefinitely, but there will be a seperate group of people who will be doing remedial PT in addition to all of the other normal Basic training stuff in order to get you up to standards quickly.

Answer 7

Hilarious

Answer 8

What the? As a member of the US military for the past 11 years, let me tell you we don't need you nor do we want you. We are fighting a war. Get it? We don't need couch potatoes sitting around in the States getting recycled in Basic Training because they can't meet the minimum standards. The military is broke as it is, by allowing substandard individuals to join. We have no room for criminals, gang members, drug-attics, couch potatoes, or those who can't even pass the #$%@ ASVAB. If you want to lose weight, join the Peace Corps.

Answer 9

your best bet is to go on s very strict diet and exercise routine if you go to your local recruiter and sit down with them they shoeuld help you with this also see your doctor too he or she can help out alot with this.