knee tendonitis

[ftrmarinemp]

Im 18 and have wanted to be a marine my entire life. ive been meeting with recruiters since i was 15 and knew this was what i wanted. a couple months ago while preparing for basic training i hurt my knee. no major moment i just woke up and i was killing me. i saw a doctor and he said it was knee tendonitis and i got depressed and kinda gave up but after about a month i realized there is nothing else i want to do other than be a marine. i got a second opinion from a specialist and he agreed it was tendonitis.

i talked to my recruiter and i am doing weight lifting with light weights and icing and heating my knee reguarly trying to get healthy so i can enlist. does anyone have any advice on specific excersices or techniques to improve my knee, ot anything involving my knee.

Also my big worry is basic training and mos selection. im worried ill injure my knee in basic and be there for months and months in the medical center being cycled back everytime i reinjure it. Any info on this? Also ive always wanted to be a grunt and after all this my recruiter kinda had me convinced on mp but i really wanna be a grunt. is it possible to be a grunt with knee tendonitis and if not what would be the closest mos without being a total pog?


Thank you in advance,
any info will help
ftrmarinemp

[snipowsky]

I'll be honest with you. If you have knee problems forget the grunts or even anything special operations. There is nothing wrong with being a Marine pogue. Sometimes I wish I was a pogue when I did my tour. But being a grunt was very fun at times! Especially if you like things that go bang! Just do something that you'd love to do in the civilian world. Especially something you can use if you decide not to be a lifer.

Humping sucks, especially if it involves heavy machineguns. But as far as tendonitis. I wish I only had knee tendonitis because I'd volunteer again. Boot camp is physical don't get me wrong, but it's more mental. If you don't mind, it don't matter. You get what I'm saying? Are you hurt or injured?
Kapeesh?

There are excercises you can do to stregthen your knees. Ask your doctor about those and DO THEM. Try some Glucosamine and Chondroitin formulas to help repair your knee. I swear by these! It's some good ****! Trust me.

There is no greater feeling than to be able to cross the parade deck at any USMC recruit depot and then be called a Marine. Not many people can claim that title.

Good luck and Semper Fi,

Mike Mike

[jinelson]

ftrmarinemp,

Listen to the wise words of experience that sniposky has given you they are based on experience and ring so true to my ears. Stay true to your goal, if you honestly want to be a United Staes Marine you shall adapt and overcome any and all obsticles in your way. And in future remember that Marine is always capitalized.

Jim

[snipowsky]

Thank you Staff Sgt. I remember when I was in his position. I had worries too. lol

Just remember HONOR COURAGE AND COMMITMENT. Those are words I will die by! I love America and I will die for America if I have too. As another leatherneck.com Marine puts it. I swore to an oath and it had no expiration date!

I met some of the finest individuals on this planet in the US Marines. People like jinelson and so forth.

Semper Fi brother!

Mike Mike

[Lake0300]

Well said LCpl. Very well said. -Lake

[ftrmarinemp]

thank you all so much for your advice, i cant stress how much i appreciate it. I was kinda hoping you wouldnt tell me it will be impossible to be a grunt, but id rather be a marine for a long time than a marine grunt for a little while. If you have any other advice please feel free to come back to this post. thank you very much

[sgt.lane]

Plenty of MOS if you want to ride, ride a desk, or work on mechanical items-diesel mechanic, optics the list goes on and on...................stay focused

[jinelson]

frstmarinemp, listen up son if you want to be a United States Marine with all your heart and soul then you shall achieve it, I did. What you need to do now is listen to your recruiter and PT your a*s off, study your future employers history, memorize your general orders and rank structure (Chain of Command). My Brothers at this site stand ready to advise you in your quest to be one of the few. This site is full of Marines that served a week ago, a decade ago (AND MUCH FURTHER) and with those Marines who are currently serving God Bless Them. Heed our advice and stay focused. Lcpl sniposki cover my six, help this young man achieve his goal ( thats not an order its a challenge) I believe he he may have what it takes.

[arnoldyG/2/5]

I went to boot camp with a reconstructed right knee from playing high school football. It took two years to get a medical waiver, but it was well worth it. Work your knee and stay in shape and it shouldn't be a problem. I spent 4 years in the grunts and yes all the running and humps took their toll but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. The question is how bad do you want it!!!

[HardJedi]

WEll, guess i'll add my own story in here. Look, I was BORN with a deformity of the spine, but it is such that the only way it can be detected is through x-ray's. No one even knew it existed until I was 13 years old. The way it is, my back has cause me pain my entire life, and it still does. I have been told several times that An operation is what it will take to fix it, but I hate doctors.

ANYWAY, i simply just never gave into the pain. I served 4 years as an 0311, because that was what I wanted. It was what i had wanted my whole life, and that's what I did. I just never TOLD anyone about my back problems, and it's not like they take x-rays at physical time(or at least they didn't used to). So I just kept my mouth shut, and ignored the pain as best I could. Never spent a single day on light duty because of my back. ( spent a few for a few injuries , but a gaping HOLE in my leg had nothing to do with my pre-existing condition) The most valuable lesson I learned as a Marine was in boot camp, and it was just this:

When it hurts too much, and you can't possibly take another step, then do it anyway. Then another. One step at a time, and you can make it, if you have the heart.

[snipowsky]

Staff Sgt. jinelson you see that too? I can't pinpoint it, but this guy definitely has the drive to be a Marine. I wish him goodluck and I'd be happy to help him with any questions or even worries he might have. I look up to young guys from his generation that want to volunteer their time for our country. I wish this country had more fine citizens like himself.

America will always be number one as long as we have people like him in it.

Luckily I came from a long line of Marines in my family, and I had most my questions answered before I even stepped on the yellow lines at Parris Island.

But like Staff Sgt. jinelson said we are all here for you ftrmarinemp. If you know the command structure and your general orders before you even go to boot camp I gaurantee you are ahead of 90% of your platoon.

I'm with HardJedi, sometimes even if you are having pain you just have to suck it up and move on. It's different though if you have an injury that prevents you.