Posted on Oct 21, 2016
“I'm going to fail height-weight on purpose and get booted” – how would you handle this?
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This actually happened to me while I was a battery XO in Hawaii. My brigade had just gotten back from OIF and we were in that weird period of tons of people leaving the unit, and tons of new people coming in. I was in the motor pool like a good XO and one of the guys came up to me and asked to chat in private – he was a SPC (E-4) who was on soft shoe profile and had been for a few months. He was also on some PT profile, which many were skeptical of but that’s not the point. He was also quite overweight and in bad physical shape.
“I don’t want to be in the Army anymore,” he told me. “I’m just planning to keep failing height-weight over and over until I get booted out.” So I talked with him and we went back and forth about what’s really going on with him, etc. But he just stayed firm on: (1) wanting to get out of the Army ASAP; and (2) planning to put no effort into passing height-weight, to get booted.
Obviously I know what actions I took here but I don’t want to spoil it for everyone. How would you have responded in this situation?
“I don’t want to be in the Army anymore,” he told me. “I’m just planning to keep failing height-weight over and over until I get booted out.” So I talked with him and we went back and forth about what’s really going on with him, etc. But he just stayed firm on: (1) wanting to get out of the Army ASAP; and (2) planning to put no effort into passing height-weight, to get booted.
Obviously I know what actions I took here but I don’t want to spoil it for everyone. How would you have responded in this situation?
Height and Weight
Army Regulations
UCMJ
Posted 9 y ago
Responses: 259
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I believe the soldier needed time and counseling to see what were the underlying issues. Before I took any action.
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I was in basic as the platoon guide, and one of men came up to me with the same type of attitude, which the DI's told me to ignore. He then told me he was going to drop out of one of our many marches to the ranges and disappear. My DI told me to tell him he could do that, but he would have to do it with the 2 broken legs he would sustain in doing so. He kept up for some reason after that...
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Here we go, I spent 3 years in the US Army as a tanker., walking was never my thing. That being said, I never failed a PT test. We had real PT every morning and we did it in boots and trousers not sneakers and cute PT gear. My sweet lord, we ran and ran. Basic at Ft. Knox was no joke either, PT was a motivation tool used by our Drill Sergeant and he was a 11B so he was not very fond of tankers. This put us in the mindset of, well this is the Army and we were use to it. I never sweated a PT test because I was always from the beginning prepared. Physical fitness is not what it used to be and it is a mindset. AFPT needs to be re examined and integrated into the daily routine along with organized sports, contact sports, field craft. It is a part of our service, a requirement that needs to be used to the betterment of every service member
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He didn't get that way overnight so first line supervision let it creep up. You can offer him a chance to see diet specialist and non impact exercise program if he's motivated to lose weight and at least try. Otherwise if he purposely avoids both you have the discharge route via the Commander. You might get a General under Honorable if he does not execute the plan you set out for him w/the doctors. But still gets VA etc and DD 214 I think reflects that class of discharge.
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That is a horrible attitude. Maybe he needs to be transferred to a desert area so he can sweat it off and maybe change it. He is doing himself no favors. I constantly fought weight while working for the Bureau of Prisons and had a bad knee in my last year. My knee gave out in an accident after 24 years. I know this guy hasn't got 24 years left, he needs to stick it out.
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Your hands are tied. You must abide by the regulation. You can counsel till the cows come home and offer remedial training till the soldier is blue in the face, but in the end, he's made his bed.
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If he had his heart set on getting out that badly, why didn't he just request a chapter and give his reasons? Something could have been worked out and it would have been the best thing for the soldier, the unit and the Army. I've read most of the comments and I'm not sure how I would have handled it. I will say but I think the soldier in question handled it the wrong way.
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