When you go to bed tonight, remember that a group of young men will be staying up all night training in the cold waters off San Diego. They will continue this constant movement until Friday, around noon. Use their efforts to help you get up out of bed tomorrow and get to work - whatever that work is. Here is my hell week story (as well as the year prior to that week of preparation): After reviewing my article archives -- and, more specifically, my Navy SEAL-related articles -- I realized I have written about how to get to BUD/S and what workouts will help you make it through BUD/S, but I never wrote about Hell Week. I received an email this week asking about my Hell Week. It reads, "Stew, do you think SEAL training Hell Week is still as hard as when you were going through BUD/S?" Of course, any old frogman will tell you his Hell Week was the toughest ever, but I have to say that I have seen several Hell Weeks since I graduated from BUD/S in 1992 and they still suck. After talking to some recent BUD/S graduates, we shared Hell Week stories that were as similar today as they were 20 years ago. This article is going to try to explain to those who have not been through Hell Week what it is like and why it is one of the most successful tools in Navy SEAL training in determining a student's desire to serve. First, My last two years of preparation: My last two years at the Naval Academy were spent busting my butt preparing for SEAL training. My 1991 USNA classmates who wanted to go to BUD/S totaled about 50, yet there were only 20 slots. We trained together often during those years prior to graduation. After hearing stories from the USNA Class of 1989 and 1990 BUD/S students as they progressed through BUD/S, we got excited to challenge ourselves like our mentors did.

Taking a civilian scuba course before military dive school can be beneficial by improving water comfort, providing basic equipment and physics familiarity, and building confidence in the water. All of which can make a difference, but the most significant factor remains that the student needs to learn new tactical skills quickly. Because it's not a substitute for military training, as military diving uses different systems, such as closed-circuit rebreathers, and instructors will retrain all techniques to military standards. Ultimately, mental and physical capability in the water is more critical than a prior scuba certification. Personally, I had been SCUBA diving for nearly 10 years before going to BUD/S. I thought it was helpful, but the learning curve was still steep, as you will be doing things that you never learned on a PADI SCUBA course. Benefits of prior scuba training (tap link for more)... https://www.stewsmithfitness.com/blogs/news/will-taking-a-civilian-scuba-diving-course-help-you-at-dive-school-or-bud-s-second-phase