Flat Feet

[DemonicOne]

What do you do if you have flat feet. Am I given boots with supports or do i have to buy them.

[Marine0313]

if you wear arch supports for flat feet it is permanently disqualifying for military service

[Marine0313]

The thing is Flat feet by itself is not a show stopper for enlistment

But flat feet that is bad enough you have to wear arch supports is

I hope this helps you good luck

[DemonicOne]

No its not that bad, but if i were shoes that are to big it feels weird as hell or if i run without shoes but i didnt even know until my doc told me.

[Marine0313]

you should be good as long is you havent been told you need arch supports by a doc

worse case go see the recruiter in your area and he can get your med docs and find out more about your personal issue and go from there

i was just giving the out of the book answer but keep me posted ill help if i can good luck

[cplbrooks]

flat feet - forget it.

[marinegreen]

ditto, if yer feet are bad then forget. with all the humping,running and driving the heel into the deck you wouldnt survive and besides they wont take you.

[ChiefUSMC]

It depends on MEPS if you have to use arch supports its not going to look good for the home team.

Semper Fi
GySgt Rowley
CareerRecruiter

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

If you can live without the orthopedic supports in your shoes, then don't worry about it. Go to boot camp without them. After that, nobody will ever care what you shove into your boots or running shoes. I always had some arch supports in my shoes, because I have very high arches. Nobody ever cared at all, whether they were $5 inserts from Wal Mart of the $300 Ideal Feet inserts.

[DemonicOne]

I dont need supports, im getting in the dep as soon as I can talk my mom to sign the papers.

[Sixguns]

Flat feet is not a "hard" disqualifier. There are degrees of flatness. MEPS can make a determination, but flat feet is an area where a waiver can be obtained.

[Shimem]

Much respect to all my active duty counterparts out there. I've been in the corps for a little over 4 years, about 3 in my unit. I'm still a lance corporal, because I've been on remedial for quite some time. I was an alright runner back in boot camp, wasn't the fastest but decent. My feet are completely flat where as the whole foot touches the deck. Everytime I would run my feet would go numb. I don't know how I made it through sometimes. During my stay in MCCES in 29 Palms, CA. the first few months of pt weren't bad. During the end of my mos training, I started to fall out of runs more often. Running was becoming so much harder for me. The rest of the class would redicule me for my running. After I got back to my reserve unit, where they don't pt, I felt much better after resting my feet for about 2 months. Getting back into running (yes some of us Reservists do pt on our own =P) was very hard. I was consistently failing pft's because of the run, sometimes I would run little over 28 minutes, and other's would be way over 30 minutes, but I do get my 20 pullups and 100 crunches.

The last few pft's however I improved and passed the run, but barely. Due to so much more running, my feet have been hurting like hell to the point where it pains me to walk even a few feet. I'm aware it might be the fact that I've been putting on some weight ( from body building ). The last drill we had a really long formation, about 2hr long formation. Normally I'd be use to that but 10 minutes into the formation I was barely able to stand. I had to stand on my toes and sides of my feet to stay still in formation. I am currently without health insurance, so going to the doctor or podiatrist would cost me an arm and a leg.

If any of you Marines have any advice to share, I would greatly appreciate it.

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

Shimem, my first advice is to go see a podiatrist. He can make inserts for your shoes that can help. I was friends with a guy that had flat feet and BAS sent him to a podiatrist to get them. I don't know if they would do that for a reserve Marine, but there is no reason you can't on your own.

If you can't do that visit Ideal Feet if you live close to one. They may be expensive, but they're the best over the counter supports on the market.

[rvillac2]

What do you do if you have flat feet. Am I given boots with supports or do i have to buy them.

How bad do you want to be a Marine?

The doc will notice right away that you have flat feet. He will ask you if they hurt. If you say yes in any way, you'll be put through the ringer and will either get DQ'd or will need a waiver.

If you do what I did and say "no, hell no, sir."

Then, you gotta suck it up for boot camp. Once you graduate, you can put in inserts, but you gotta wait til then. And trust me, your feet WILL hurt.

So, I ask again. How bad do you want to be a Marine?

[BR34]

You will be issued arch supports at recieving if they determine you need them. They make you stand on a clear box with a mirror in it to see if your feet are flat. Then they write a number on your hand telling the gear ppl which supports you need.

You can also buy them from the recruit PX. Hell, I'm sitting here in the Filling Station with my inserts in my boots that were issued to me.

Unless something has changed in the last 4 months.

Good luck.