The first clue is in the very name: Basic Training. A major difference between the Marine Corps and other services is that the Marine Corps takes “the basics” very seriously. Another clue how seriously the Marine Corps takes “the basics,” just take one look at Marine Corps Drill Instructors compared to the drill instructors of any other services. Marine Corps Drill Instructors are famous world-wide for taking their job seriously. Marine Corps Drill Instructors embody Marine Corps values and standards.  And Marine recruits see these paragons of the Marine Corps every day, all day for 13 weeks – 91 days. As Marine Corps recruits, we never see our Drill Instructors in any other state other than perfectly squared away – poster Marines.

Even Marine Corps Drill Instructor’s posture is Marine posture. As a recruit, standing at attention is one of the first basics you work at mastering. As recruits, we probably stand at perfect attention at least an hour a day total every day. And you have 3 hyper-critical judges critiquing your “at attention” every single time.  And you are taught specific techniques not only for perfect posture, but also so you can sustain it for long periods of time.  In my opinion, professional ballet dancers and Marines have some of the best posture in the world. We never, ever saw a Drill Instructor slouch.

As boot camp progressed, I intuited (I did not understand or fully appreciate the Marine Corps process until I was in full-on combat in South Vietnam) the thoroughness and the conscious deliberateness of the Marine Corps process. One clue is how Marines proudly describe themselves throughout their life: Once a Marine, always a Marine. Or the Marine Corps motto: Semper Fidelis (Semper Fi!): always faithful. Or: First to fight. Just think of the bloody battles in the Pacific in the Second World War like Iwo Jima – the bloodiest battle in Marine Corps history. “Uncommon valor was a common virtue:” Admiral Nimitz's description of the Marines dedication to each other and to the goal of victory at Iwo Jima.

As recruits in boot camp, we learned this glorious history in classes. The instructors made it clear that we were joining a storied history of a magnificent fighting force. You felt the instructor’s pride as he shared the Marine Corps hymn words: “From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, we will fight our country’s battles.”

Physical fitness is an integral part of being a Marine. So, we practiced and worked at it every day. For example, we would pair up and alternate doing sets of 25 sit-ups. We did hundreds of sit-ups every day.

Close-order drill: we did close order drill with our M14 rifles for hours every day under the relentless scrutiny of the Drill Instructors. Within even the first few weeks of bootcamp, we were already beginning to march in perfect unison, our heels hitting the deck with perfect timing. We were becoming a well-oiled machine. We were mastering the basics.

Our M14 rifle is an essential basic.  Soon we could take apart and reassemble our weapon almost blind-folded. And we kept our weapons immaculately clean.  In fact, we had weekly inspections where the Drill Instructor scrutinized every inch of our weapon for the slightest trace of dirt or rust. Offenders were severely punished. Again, this went on for 13 weeks. So, we would be perfect for the final inspection at the end of bootcamp by a high ranking Marine officer.

The transition from fear to pride. During the first half of bootcamp, we were motivated by fear of the Drill Instructors. But as bootcamp progressed, our motivation evolved from fear to pride. Soon, we were too proud to have sloppy posture or a dirty weapon.

Up and on shoulders. Again, to improve our physical fitness as well as enhancing our relationship with our M14 rifle, we did an exercise called up-and-on-shoulders. An empty M14 rifle weighs 9.2 pounds. To move your weapon from chest level up over your head and lowering it until it touches your upper back 10 or 20 times is no big deal. But doing up-and-on-shoulders for several hundred repetitions is a completely different story. We are talking serious pain.

Obstacle course: running any one of the 3 obstacle courses as fast as you can requires strength, agility, and a high level of fitness. An “O” course combines a number of basics all in one demanding experience. We ran one of the 3 “O” courses nearly every day. As a result, we not only got stronger and more fit, our hands toughened up.  Just like with all the running and marching we did, our feet toughened up. Remember: the Vietnam war was just getting going and a primary objective of bootcamp was to get us ready for combat.

Our Drill Instructors reminded us every day what we were doing and where we were going. I did not begin to appreciate what we had done in bootcamp and how essential mastering the basics proved to be in the jungles of South Vietnam.

Health is a way of life. Nutrition is a basic. To look, feel and perform at your best, you need to master the basics. That means providing the fundamental building blocks of your body. You can’t have strong muscles and bones without high quality, complete animal protein – meaning proteins that provide all 8 essential amino acids simultaneously – or 9 in the case of growing children. Whey protein isolate is at the top of the list followed by organic, Pasture raised whole eggs. Whole eggs are especially important for the growing brains of growing children or grand children. Be like a Marine. Work on mastering the basics every day.

Remember: Your body does not lie.
Joe

Start your day with a JDD protein shake