Got posted back to infantry... of all horrors. Still, it's not too bad since we're already kinda used to this type of training having been through it since BMT. I would like to continue I think, but I'm probably gonna pull out. You see, I'm flat footed, and no, I did not know that till recently. It's not much of a surprise as I'm not a very active person normally, so long runs and walks are never my type, and it never would have been known to me had I not enter the army.
Since BMT, I have always found my feet aching after route marches and long days in combat boots. But those were mild, and I just brushed them off as muscle aches. I recall very clearly that after the first two or three weeks, I asked my FI why my feet was aching, and he told me to just massage it and let it go away. So I did, and it went away. Not because of the massage though. It took a whole week to go away.
BSLC was still ok, but there were days where I could not walk properly for about an hour or so in the morning and night because of my feet. This period coincided, not surprisingly on hind sight, with our runs in vest&slacks. Yet, I continued to push on since it was nearing the end of the term and there was a possibility of being posted to somewhere not so intensive on the lower limbs (read: tankee). 28km route march really took its toll on me. It could be because of my feet, but my right knee started becoming painful at around 16km. By 20km it was too painful to walk normally, and I ended limping 4km as front scout, and the last 4km with the rest of the platoon (after being forced to retire as front scout). That, I thought, was hopefully, the last time I would need to endure such pain.
Now, we don't spend time in shoes anymore. It's boots day in, day out. Only our PT is in shoes, and there has only been 2 instances of that. My feet are getting worse, and they continue to ache even at home. With a 32km route march coming up this term, I'm not going to be able to make it. I guess I'm out. So guys, if you haven't asked a certified doctor whether you have flat feet (or close to flat), do it before you enter army and try not to discover it only after it gets really painful...