Vegetarian during BCT

g396

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I am a vegetarian and have heard that most vegetarians at USAFA have difficulty eating during BCT. Is this true? Could anyone offer some insight into this?
Also, how do you "request" to sit at a vegetarian table?

Thanks for any possible advice!
 
You won't necessarily have trouble eating, but you might find it difficult to get the type of balanced diet you need to be successful during BCT. USAFA BCT is not the greatest place for individuals with specific (tailored) individual dietary needs.

Is there a moral/philosophical reason for being a vegetarian? If so, you might want to contact the Chaplains at USAFA and get direction on how they can help you to accommodate those convictions.

Did you discuss this with your ALO during the Appointment process? You might consider reaching out to him/her and let them run it up the flagpole. Letting someone that matters know on I-Day may be difficult.

FYI - your ALO or the chaplain service won't have to use your name as they inquire into the process.

Rest assured - you are not the first and only person to have brought the matter up.
 
I will definitely be talking to both the Chaplains and my ALO, thanks for all the advice!
 
I have been vegetarian my whole life (I can't eat meat, missing some enzymes or something) including basic training. I don't know if all the work I did at USAFA on the vegetarian meal program survived, but there SHOULD be a vegetarian table or option at every lunch and dinner.

When I was in basic there was a separate vegetarian table, but that may have changed. As for how to ask, something like "sir, basic cadet x reports as ordered, sir may I ask a question, sir I am vegetarian, where can I find today's vegetarian option?" should do it.

Also I hope you like peanut butter. To get the required amount of protein for the amount of muscle I was putting on I ate two rolls with peanut butter at EVERY meal.
 
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I have been vegetarian my whole life (I can't eat meat, missing some enzymes or something) including basic training. I don't know if all the work I did at USAFA on the vegetarian meal program survived, but there SHOULD be a vegetarian table or option at every lunch and dinner.

No vegetarian tables at mandatory meals-but we also don't have ramps anymore, so there's less of a need for them. If you're a vegetarian, you'll just use your handy dandy vegetarian card to snag your entree at lunch or dinner. I don't totally remember how they work it during BCT, but I'm sure flight cadre are trained on how to accommodate.

Over the past few years there's been a big emphasis to prioritize nutrition and prevent weight loss as much as possible during BCT. Peanut butter is a favorite of basics, and if you lose too much weight, you'll get appropriate support from leadership.
 
No vegetarian tables at mandatory meals-but we also don't have ramps anymore, so there's less of a need for them. If you're a vegetarian, you'll just use your handy dandy vegetarian card to snag your entree at lunch or dinner. I don't totally remember how they work it during BCT, but I'm sure flight cadre are trained on how to accommodate.

Over the past few years there's been a big emphasis to prioritize nutrition and prevent weight loss as much as possible during BCT. Peanut butter is a favorite of basics, and if you lose too much weight, you'll get appropriate support from leadership.

Oh good, the card system is still intact (that was implemented my senior year after we had problems with non vegetarians eating all our food :))
 
Oh good, the card system is still intact (that was implemented my senior year after we had problems with non vegetarians eating all our food :))

People still try and get around it...I'm always amused at how many vegetarians there are in the Wing on the days they serve veggie pizza.
 
People still try and get around it...I'm always amused at how many vegetarians there are in the Wing on the days they serve veggie pizza.

Exactly! Thats the reason we decided to have a list and eventually cards. That pizza is great and it doesn't help when the main meal is something particularly nasty.
 
My son who did BCT last year has been a vegetarian for a couple of years and it was a concern last year as well. no worries vegetarians are well taken care of during or after BCT, he was able to remain vegetarian and said food was better with more variety than what we had at home. Now he is starting survival so it might be a different story with killing and eating rabbit/squirrel exercise
 
I can confirm that there is a vegetarian option at every meal throughout all of BCT and the school year. Some of them are better than others. My personal favorites are the cheese calzones and the pasta in general. They also have peanut butter (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) and rolls (lunch and dinner) at almost every meal for BCT. There are also Clif Bars available frequently. I would not worry about maintaining a vegetarian diet at USAFA. The nutritionist here takes care of all the cadets very well regardless of their food choices.
 
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