m0tbaillie
Former SWO
I sincerely hope that every single OCS hopeful who makes their way to this site will sit down and take the time to read this post.
Day after grueling day, I told a lot of my classmates while I was at OCS - and they agreed - that as soon as we commissioned, we would come back to all of the major gouge websites (here and USNavyOCS.com) and set the record straight.
That is, I spent almost 2 years reading gouge on both of these sites and I came to the realization while at OCS that I was no more prepared upon my arrival than was my roommate who literally went into OCS blind. That is, he knew nothing about the program, had no idea what to expect, discovered neither of these sites, read none of the gouge and didn't even know that we'd be trained by Marines.
Moral of the story: most of what you're reading here is purely, purely anecdotal and cannot be used as _any_ sort of guide or reference, because it only applies to OCS for whichever particular person wrote it at whatever point in time they went through the program.
This program is changing *too rapidly* for anyone to give any sort of fail-safe "gouge" on how to get through it. It is simply far too dynamic for that to be possible.
BUT, there are a few pieces of gouge that *are* universal and will always be pertinent to this program...
ONE - prepare yourself mentally. NO amount of gouge will do this for you. You can read every anecdocte written about the program and it will do zero to prepare you mentally. Only you can do that. YOU and you alone are responsible for sitting down and contemplating what you're getting yourself into. You want to be a military officer - an OFFICER in the United States Navy. Too many people show up to OCS not quite grasping the sheer gravity of what that means. There is immense responsibility that comes with that title and you will spend many days and nights confused, miserable, tired, and second-guessing yourself to earn the right to refer to yourself as such.
TWO - prepare yourself PHYSICALLY. This is *almost* as important as preparing yourself mentally... I say that because mental preparation can overcome physical weakness, however physical weakness can yield a propensity towards injury and sickness. You will get sick at OCS. Let me repeat that: you WILL get sick at OCS. Many people in my class were sick from weeks 2-11. You will have a productive (phlegm-inducing) cough at OCS. It is most unsexy, but you'll deal. Your classmates will get sick. People will get penumonia, bronchitis, and all sorts of injuries and ailments. But you know what? Oh well, you want to be in the military, right? Tough it out. That's what happens when you bring hundreds of people from a multitude of climates and different regions of the country together under one confined roof.
Lastly, don't worry too much about what gouge to study. Seriously, regardless of what you read on this site, gouge should absolutely be secondary to your mental and physical preparation for this program. You will have *ample* time to learn what you need to know before each evolution with a moderate amount of effort. However, it can't hurt to know the general orders, the code of conduct, and the chain of command before showing up to OCS (save for the 1st thru 4th people in your chain). But I stress yet again: this should absolutely come secondary to your mental and physical preparation.
None of the gouge I read on this site or USNavyOCS.com did anything to prepare me for this program. This will be especially true for all of you hopefuls out there reading this right now because the program *will* be different from the gouge you're reading on this site. It is changing week by week, class by class. The best way to hit the ground running is to make sure you can run at least 2 to 3 miles at a moderately decent pace without falling out (!!!) and be able to hit a good low on your PT test.
There are no so many orange belts (PT failures) in the program that the last class ran out of friggin' orange belts. It was pretty sickening to see so many people show up so far out of standards. Realistically, you WILL lose weight and you WILL get better at PT, but the better you do initially the more you'll benefit in the long run. Being able to kick ass at PT will help mitigate you daily stress and you'll be able to focus on either parts of the program. Start running *outside*, *on the road* and stop nuking it. Treadmills won't cut it, and if you show up having never run on concrete before (people do it) you run the risk of sports injuries like ITB syndrome or shin splints.
Also, holy crap, *KNOW WHAT THE MINIMUMS ARE FOR YOUR AGE/SEX ON THE PT TEST*. Really, right now, I want you to go to http://navy-prt.com and double check what the standards are for a good low on the Navy PFA. I said good low. Not probationary, not sat med, not sat high - good low.
Now, hit those numbers and KEEP GOING. Too many people come to OCS barely able to hit the minimums and end up looking like a deer in headlights when they get handed an orange belt because they woke up tired as all hell a few days into OCS to take the in-PFA and failed because their scores went down and they were barely able to hit the minimums *before* OCS. Don't do that.
Additionally (I know I said "lastly" a few paragraphs back but oh well, keep reading!), nothing the Drill Instructors do to you while at OCS is personal. OH noes, they might yell at you - suck it up, you want to be in the military. Whatever touchy-feeling lifestyle you were used to pre-OCS, well, it's gone. Get over it. You're joining the Navy, not the Peace Corps. You will get no sympathy at OCS. I say again: you're joining the military. The Drill Instructors, the Chiefs, Senior Chiefs, and Master Chiefs (however few) WANT YOU TO SUCCEED. Be confident, put out during PT, SOUND OFF, and you'll be okay.
Oh yea, one last thing: sound off. Get loud. Everyone can be loud, I've seen some quiet dudes get extremely loud when they've got a giant-ass Marine standing next to them threatening to get knee deep. Get loud.
IF you have any questions, feel free to post them here but I stress this much: these few paragraphs should be enough to set you down the path to success at OCS. You really don't need any more than what I've written here, I promise it *is* ultimately that easy.
Good luck!
ENS Baillie
Class 03-10
Day after grueling day, I told a lot of my classmates while I was at OCS - and they agreed - that as soon as we commissioned, we would come back to all of the major gouge websites (here and USNavyOCS.com) and set the record straight.
That is, I spent almost 2 years reading gouge on both of these sites and I came to the realization while at OCS that I was no more prepared upon my arrival than was my roommate who literally went into OCS blind. That is, he knew nothing about the program, had no idea what to expect, discovered neither of these sites, read none of the gouge and didn't even know that we'd be trained by Marines.
Moral of the story: most of what you're reading here is purely, purely anecdotal and cannot be used as _any_ sort of guide or reference, because it only applies to OCS for whichever particular person wrote it at whatever point in time they went through the program.
This program is changing *too rapidly* for anyone to give any sort of fail-safe "gouge" on how to get through it. It is simply far too dynamic for that to be possible.
BUT, there are a few pieces of gouge that *are* universal and will always be pertinent to this program...
ONE - prepare yourself mentally. NO amount of gouge will do this for you. You can read every anecdocte written about the program and it will do zero to prepare you mentally. Only you can do that. YOU and you alone are responsible for sitting down and contemplating what you're getting yourself into. You want to be a military officer - an OFFICER in the United States Navy. Too many people show up to OCS not quite grasping the sheer gravity of what that means. There is immense responsibility that comes with that title and you will spend many days and nights confused, miserable, tired, and second-guessing yourself to earn the right to refer to yourself as such.
TWO - prepare yourself PHYSICALLY. This is *almost* as important as preparing yourself mentally... I say that because mental preparation can overcome physical weakness, however physical weakness can yield a propensity towards injury and sickness. You will get sick at OCS. Let me repeat that: you WILL get sick at OCS. Many people in my class were sick from weeks 2-11. You will have a productive (phlegm-inducing) cough at OCS. It is most unsexy, but you'll deal. Your classmates will get sick. People will get penumonia, bronchitis, and all sorts of injuries and ailments. But you know what? Oh well, you want to be in the military, right? Tough it out. That's what happens when you bring hundreds of people from a multitude of climates and different regions of the country together under one confined roof.
Lastly, don't worry too much about what gouge to study. Seriously, regardless of what you read on this site, gouge should absolutely be secondary to your mental and physical preparation for this program. You will have *ample* time to learn what you need to know before each evolution with a moderate amount of effort. However, it can't hurt to know the general orders, the code of conduct, and the chain of command before showing up to OCS (save for the 1st thru 4th people in your chain). But I stress yet again: this should absolutely come secondary to your mental and physical preparation.
None of the gouge I read on this site or USNavyOCS.com did anything to prepare me for this program. This will be especially true for all of you hopefuls out there reading this right now because the program *will* be different from the gouge you're reading on this site. It is changing week by week, class by class. The best way to hit the ground running is to make sure you can run at least 2 to 3 miles at a moderately decent pace without falling out (!!!) and be able to hit a good low on your PT test.
There are no so many orange belts (PT failures) in the program that the last class ran out of friggin' orange belts. It was pretty sickening to see so many people show up so far out of standards. Realistically, you WILL lose weight and you WILL get better at PT, but the better you do initially the more you'll benefit in the long run. Being able to kick ass at PT will help mitigate you daily stress and you'll be able to focus on either parts of the program. Start running *outside*, *on the road* and stop nuking it. Treadmills won't cut it, and if you show up having never run on concrete before (people do it) you run the risk of sports injuries like ITB syndrome or shin splints.
Also, holy crap, *KNOW WHAT THE MINIMUMS ARE FOR YOUR AGE/SEX ON THE PT TEST*. Really, right now, I want you to go to http://navy-prt.com and double check what the standards are for a good low on the Navy PFA. I said good low. Not probationary, not sat med, not sat high - good low.
Now, hit those numbers and KEEP GOING. Too many people come to OCS barely able to hit the minimums and end up looking like a deer in headlights when they get handed an orange belt because they woke up tired as all hell a few days into OCS to take the in-PFA and failed because their scores went down and they were barely able to hit the minimums *before* OCS. Don't do that.
Additionally (I know I said "lastly" a few paragraphs back but oh well, keep reading!), nothing the Drill Instructors do to you while at OCS is personal. OH noes, they might yell at you - suck it up, you want to be in the military. Whatever touchy-feeling lifestyle you were used to pre-OCS, well, it's gone. Get over it. You're joining the Navy, not the Peace Corps. You will get no sympathy at OCS. I say again: you're joining the military. The Drill Instructors, the Chiefs, Senior Chiefs, and Master Chiefs (however few) WANT YOU TO SUCCEED. Be confident, put out during PT, SOUND OFF, and you'll be okay.
Oh yea, one last thing: sound off. Get loud. Everyone can be loud, I've seen some quiet dudes get extremely loud when they've got a giant-ass Marine standing next to them threatening to get knee deep. Get loud.
IF you have any questions, feel free to post them here but I stress this much: these few paragraphs should be enough to set you down the path to success at OCS. You really don't need any more than what I've written here, I promise it *is* ultimately that easy.
Good luck!
ENS Baillie
Class 03-10