I am being told to go to PT by the command on only 4-5 hours of sleep. As a junior enlisted, how do I solve this problem?

Dang - stop whining and hit the rack again after PT! This isn't summer camp or the Girl Scouts, this is the Army! Don't like it, don't re-enlist, but remember you signed a contract and swore an oath!!!

as a retired member of the armed services I to remember complaining about PT , glad to see somethings have not changed. LMAO.
After #) plus years of military service, and as a retired Coast Guard Chief,
MY best advice is to just suck it up butter cup.
Complaining only gets you a bad Reputation.
but and it a big but if you are going to push this because you believe in safe spaces, and every one gets a Trophy, hugs and time outs because they are stressed .

The best Advice i can give you is to come up with a few possible solution that doesnt make you sound like your trying to get out of PT!
the reason you do PT in the AM is to avoid the heat of the day and to wake you up, along with a few other reasons , maybe Suggest the 1600 PT Formation would be a better time for your Company. where you are more rested, but wait ....that is impossible, because you will be at work. so you really have no option unless you can convince your 1SG to allow your company to work out at say 1400 in the extreme heat of the day , this will give your company time to rest , work out there PT schedule , take a shower and get to work .

never go to your Supervisor without a few different solutions to your Problems, make sure your company on board with the Suggestions your taking to your 1ST Sergeant, he may toss them out the window or in the trash, or he may Consider them .

Most Importantly he will know you just did not come to him complaning about the problem , you offered some Suggestions , and hopefully a solution to the situation, so every one is happy.
the command is ensuring the company fitness, and you got your rest.

just remember If you stay in the serviceLong enough One day you will be the senior enlisted personal, you do not want a bunch of cry babys in your company, you want men who get the job done, who come up with SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS , you want to be pleasantly Surprised By the OUTSTANDING RESULTS OF THERE PERFORMANCE AND DUTYS. you want to know your Company can be Trusted to handle anything they are tasked with, they will PLEASANTLY SURPRISE YOU WITH THE RESULTS !

Time management! Stay up after your shift and go to pt at 0530. After pt get breakfast and go to bed. Sleep 7-1500. 8 hrs sleep, problem solved.

I worked all different kinds of shifts. I don’t know anyone who goes right home and falls asleep after getting off at midnight. No one.

Stay up, go to PT, go back to wherever, sleep. Get up at 1400-1500 and prepare for shift.

That being said, if you have an entire section that works this particular shift, I would think that the section NCOIC would already have a plan in place to conduct PT. If anything, that is the individual you should be working up your chain to speak to.

I suppose that you volunteered for this? In 1967 We Stood 12 hour 1800-0600 watches in the Gun mount and had three unreps in one day. So every three days one was 36 hours...

I think you may have your priorities mixed up. Even though I was "only" ARNG for 8 years, I did not drink, smoke or "club" during the entirety of my contract.

Gee a new Army. Stay sloppy and Blame your NCO. The rest of your lazy friends will support you. Makes you sick seeing this on important day like June 6.

When I was in I was told I will only be promised 4 hours of sleep per 24 hours. I don’t want to be or sound like an ass. But we fright like we train and we train like we fight. In combat you can’t have a rest period because of lack of sleep. It sucks somedays. I would say embrace the suck.

Honestly, this seems like a time management problem. You work from 1600-0000. Are you not sleeping before that, say 0700 to 1500? You'd get a solid 8 hours which many folks do not get and still have time between work and PT to do whatever. You could also split the sleep time if you like to nap before PT. I do not see an issue here. Many folks still have to go to PT after 24-hour staff duty; which I could understand fighting against.

While the previous are all true, you might want your platoon sergeant to ask if you could talk to your 1SG to consider his appointing a PSG (yours) a PT session for off set platoons. Most 1SGs will understand you can not physically be in two places at once. As for being at am PT, get used to it.

Easy answer.. follow your orders. There will come a time that you may be required to do a lot more than PT on a lot less sleep. Suck it up buttercup!

You're in the army, pal, not the boy scouts. Deal with it. You can always go back to the rack after PT. No one ever said it was an easy job. That's what makes is so great. If you don't like it, you can always quit after your tour is up and go back to being a civvy.

There is no ideal standard. PT is generally considered as part of, an essential part of, a soldiers work day. If you feel that the slated PT formation times would preclude you from carrying out your hospital duties in a way that may create a hazard for those you are treating, approach your chain of command, but do so with facts and a supportable list of impacts. You may not get the answer you're seeking, but this is the only way to approach it.

Although I have been out for 38 years and can no longer quote Army regs, it sounds to me like you have a CO and First Sergeant that care about their troops being physically fit. I was infantry, certainly much more strict and motivated towards PT. The only time we were guaranteed a minimum of 4 hours sleep was a mandated 4 hours rest before and airborne operation. I agree with the SFC that it sounds as though you may need to manage your own clock better. I remember all too well stumbling out after partying, running 12 miles with the smell of alcohol and puke hovering over the formation. Suck it up, make your 1st sergeant and CO proud and maybe along the way you will come to appreciate what you can do.

SPC Join to see, the reality is clear you have do PT. A-3. In accordance with AR 350-1, all Soldiers must attain a score of at least 60 points on each event and an overall score of at least 180 points. Therefore you are part of the unit & must conduct your PT.
We had our own Maddox in the 82nd airborne and they still conducting PT every morning with us.

Do your job and obey lawful orders. That is simple. You are a soldier. That is not part time. If you get forward deployed, you may be on 24 hours for days or weeks. Catching sleep for an hour or two.

My wife has worked in a civilian hospitals for almost three decades. She has a regular 8 hour day, but may have call after that. She has been over 24 hours between time at home to care for patients. I in the civilian world have had 25-28 hour duty days operating cargo aircraft internationally. Welcome to being an adult!

If memory serves (I've been retired since 2009) regulations allow for 4 hrs uninterrupted sleep in a 24 hr period. Given that, you adjust your schedule to follow the training/work schedule set for you by command.

You definitely picked the wrong career path. I am a former Marine of seven years and now retired veteran U.S. Army Aviation Maintenance Officer/Test Pilot, so I have no sympathy for you. Sorry, but that's the way it goes!

Quick story for you about when I was at Ft. Polk Army base in Louisiana during our activation to Operation Desert Storm. I was test flying all 12 of our UH-1V model Huey's and when I was on the last aircraft (74-22421) I had an accident.

My commander saw that I was limping, but I would not go to see the Flight Surgeon. He came to the flight line the next morning and told me that I was finished and I WILL go see the Flight Surgeon immediately. Come to find out, I had a heel spur and hair line fracture (L/foot) and I was put in a fiberglass cast up to my knee.

That's what the outcome was, but the kicker is a bit different. We had a three mile run the previous morning and I have NEVER fallen out of a run during my entire career. This was no exception! I ran on the side of my foot throughout the whole run. Stupidity or a true sense of honor? I think it was both! Hehehe

That's my take on your question, so I believe you have some questions to ask yourself. Personally, I would NEVER even think about doing something like you asked.

When I was a Marine and throughout my U.S. Army aviation career we used to get drunk all of the time, but not once did we suggest that we should be allowed to sleep in. If you drink like a man, you need to pay the consequences. End of story!

CWO Michael R. Metzler Sr. (Cpt.)
U.S. Army Aviation Maintenance Officer/Test Pilot (retired/veteran)

Stop being a whiny bitch and go do PT.

There were several instances in my hospital days worse then that. For example, getting off at 0000 only to have to return at 0330 to go to the range. Still qualified expert. That is besides the point however. The point is once you pin on some stripes you can expect to be in this type of situation more often; and you will be expected not to complain. They are not violating any regs by expecting you to report on only 4-5 hours of sleep, so complaining will only draw negative attention to yourself. Do you not think your command is aware that they have soldiers working that shift? If you go out there and show motivation and leadership, however, you will put yourself in a positive light and may earn some recognition.
BLUF: This is one of those “suck it up and drive on” situations.