Accepted Appointment... Now What?

T

txrearea

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So... This may be a dumb question, but I am curious. I accepted my offer of appointment on Thursday, January 12th. I have gotten all of the paperwork on my portal and am currently working on completing it. I am so thrilled about the appointment and I-day could not come fast enough (I know I need to spend time with friends and family but that is just my way of saying how excited I am haha). I am just writing because I am curious what all of the steps for me will be leading up to when I report. Would anyone be able to give a list of what will come in the following months?
Thanks so much and GO NAVY C/O '27!!
 
Go browse for threads like this:

What now?

My son just accepted his appointment to the usna! What as a parent do I need to do?
www.serviceacademyforums.com

The same questions come up every year, and they have already started.

And:
- Don’t stop PTing. Run, run and run some more, in bad weather (when it’s safe), when you don’t want to, etc. Core exercises. Harden your legs, because you will be “chopping” indoors on hard flooring, running in formation on roads, etc., and you don’t want to be sidelined with shinsplints.
- Avoid senioritis and bonehead impulse decisions relating to alcohol or other choices you know are not good.
- If you’re a male, practice shaving fast. Everyone should test-drive fast, efficient showers. Multiple people will be roommates with 1 shower, 1 sink - and minimal get-ready time. No time to puff and fluff.
- Be a “good kid” at home. Remember this will be a transition not only for you, but for your parents. Make it easier for them. Be present in the here and now and enjoy family and friends at home. At the end of June, your life pattern will change, at least for the next 9 years, and you will only visit a few relatively brief times a year, sometimes just once, depending on deployment or training schedules.
 
Capt MJ said:
If you’re a male, practice shaving fast. Everyone should test-drive fast, efficient showers. Multiple people will be roommates with 1 shower, 1 sink - and minimal get-ready time. No time to puff and fluff.
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This is key! The time is rarely ever the same during the summer. One time my company was given 9 minutes from when we were still outside after morning PEP, to get on deck, shower (3 people in my room) and get out ready to go to formation in uniform. Showering for the guys is definitely easier. You have no hair and really just need to get all the sweat off.
 
Agree with everything CAPT MJ said.

Lots of plebes-to-be are physically active until graduation. Then beach week and family time and hanging out with friends take over and the super-in-shape person gets out of shape during the month of June. You certainly can take a short break, but stick with your PT program as it will make PS so much easier.

Don't overthink or overstress about PS. It's a pain but eminently doable.

Tell friends and relatives that, other than the scheduled calls home, you won't have smart phone access during PS. You'll survive -- just let others know what to expect.

Also, if you're a female and plan to keep your hair long, practice making a bun really FAST. Also, if your hair is really long considering trimming it to the minimum length necessary for a ponytail and bun. You hair will be wet most of the summer (no time to blow dry other than Sunday mornings). If it's really long, it never has time to dry fully and can literally get moldy.
 
usna1985 said:
Agree with everything CAPT MJ said.

Lots of plebes-to-be are physically active until graduation. Then beach week and family time and hanging out with friends take over and the super-in-shape person gets out of shape during the month of June. You certainly can take a short break, but stick with your PT program as it will make PS so much easier.

Don't overthink or overstress about PS. It's a pain but eminently doable.

Tell friends and relatives that, other than the scheduled calls home, you won't have smart phone access during PS. You'll survive -- just let others know what to expect.

Also, if you're a female and plan to keep your hair long, practice making a bun really FAST. Also, if your hair is really long considering trimming it to the minimum length necessary for a ponytail and bun. You hair will be wet most of the summer (no time to blow dry other than Sunday mornings). If it's really long, it never has time to dry fully and can literally get moldy.
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Yay! My annual mention of Capezio extra long Bunhead bun pins is teed up.

And, there are plenty of YouTube videos on military women’s buns and styles, different lengths and textures.

THE USNA VIDEO ON THE CHANGES A FEW YEARS AGO TO APPROVED HAIRSTYLES:

 
Hey Capt MJ, you said something about hardening your legs to avoid shin splints, how would one go about doing that?
 
TheToast said:
Hey Capt MJ, you said something about hardening your legs to avoid shin splints, how would one go about doing that?
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The key is gradually introducing elements into your workouts to increase your ability to pound the pavement without injury. Be sure you work some hard surfaces into your runs. Bricks, concrete, tile, road surfaces. As a plebe, you will be running from place to place frequently during the day.

We often mention Stew Smith’s YouTube videos and website here. He is a former Navy SEAL, USNA grad, former USNA staff officer, now a fitness professional.

www.military.com

Ask Stew: How to Keep Shin Splints from Sabotaging Your Workouts

For people starting to run or run again after a long period of time, shin splints is often one of the first issues you may face.
www.military.com www.military.com

Before I went off to Navy OCS that was a tip my officer recruiter gave me. Run at all times of the day, even when you don’t want to, work on cardio-pulmonary strength but also endurance and stamina. He told me I’d be running everywhere, plus up and down ladders (stairs), not just doing 1 workout a day. I added in jumping rope on the concrete patio of my home after dinner every night, going from 10 minutes at a slow pace, every other day, gradually increasing pace and speed, then 3 days straight with a day off, doing 30-45 minutes at a brisk pace. Of course, good stretching and flexibility exercises as well.

Good, well-fitting shoes are a must. Go to a running shoe/athletic store where they will analyze your foot strike and help you find a well-fitting shoe. If you can, buy 2 pair. Break a pair in a bit, then set aside to wear to I-Day, so you have a trusted but fairly new shoe. Continue to work out in the other pair.

And google: “Hardening your legs to prevent shinsplints.”
 
Capt MJ said:
The key is gradually introducing elements into your workouts to increase your ability to pound the pavement without injury. Be sure you work some hard surfaces into your runs. Bricks, concrete, tile, road surfaces. As a plebe, you will be running from place to place frequently during the day.

We often mention Stew Smith’s YouTube videos and website here. He is a former Navy SEAL, USNA grad, former USNA staff officer, now a fitness professional.

www.military.com

Ask Stew: How to Keep Shin Splints from Sabotaging Your Workouts

For people starting to run or run again after a long period of time, shin splints is often one of the first issues you may face.
www.military.com www.military.com

Before I went off to Navy OCS that was a tip my officer recruiter gave me. Run at all times of the day, even when you don’t want to, work on cardio-pulmonary strength but also endurance and stamina. He told me I’d be running everywhere, plus up and down ladders (stairs), not just doing 1 workout a day. I added in jumping rope on the concrete patio of my home after dinner every night, going from 10 minutes at a slow pace, every other day, gradually increasing pace and speed, then 3 days straight with a day off, doing 30-45 minutes at a brisk pace. Of course, good stretching and flexibility exercises as well.

Good, well-fitting shoes are a must. Go to a running shoe/athletic store where they will analyze your foot strike and help you find a well-fitting shoe. If you can, buy 2 pair. Break a pair in a bit, then set aside to wear to I-Day, so you have a trusted but fairly new shoe. Continue to work out in the other pair.

And google: “Hardening your legs to prevent shinsplints.”
Click to expand...
Great advice. Question about the shoes, should they be black or white? Or does it not matter?
 
Karenof2 said:
Great advice. Question about the shoes, should they be black or white? Or does it not matter?
Click to expand...
This is where you get to have some fun browsing past threads on shoes that pop up every year in the spring.

Even better, go to the primary source, usna.edu. Google “USNA Plebe Summer Home.” The info there is still for Class of 2026; it will be updated in the coming months. Much does not change. Go through every page, link and hamburger menu item.

But I’ll be nice. Here’s the 2026 Permit To Report (PTR). Shoe guidance is there. Not likely to change much if any. Pages and pages to To Do/To Bring.

 
Karenof2 said:
Question about the shoes, should they be black or white?
Click to expand...
Your choice of running shoes should be based on the right fit for your foot type: cushioned for regular feet, stability for mild pronators, motion control for severe pronators. If you’re not familiar with those terms, visit a dedicated running store where they can match you appropriately. Good stores let you try the shoes while running, say on a treadmill.

All this will go a long way toward avoiding shin splints and stress fractures — the bane of many plebes. Once you’ve found a shoe that works, stick with it. Color should be the last thing on your mind.
 
MidCakePa said:
Your choice of running shoes should be based on the right fit for your foot type: cushioned for regular feet, stability for mild pronators, motion control for severe pronators. If you’re not familiar with those terms, visit a dedicated running store where they can match you appropriately. Good stores let you try the shoes while running, say on a treadmill.

All this will go a long way toward avoiding shin splints and stress fractures — the bane of many plebes. Once you’ve found a shoe that works, stick with it. Color should be the last thing on your mind.
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SUCH GOOD ADVICE!!

Get professionally fitted at a running store. This often is overlooked. And is SO important. Get the right shoe. For YOUR foot.
 
They also issue you shoes during Plebe Summer. Pretty sure they were Brooks this year (which my son then lost about halfway through the summer playing shoe/uniform shuffle. He thinks his roommate got them). He always trained and raced in Sauconys, which is what he is still using now.
 
LA rockymnt hi said:
Your parents will thank you if you get anything that is not black, white or gray. Trust this current plebe mom. It makes looking though hundreds of pictures so much easier for them to find you.
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The counterpoint is that the plebe is also easier to spot and report by detailers/upperclassmen/officers when they mess up.

"Company Officer to Detailer Company Commander: Can't you get your people to march in step? I keep seeing the kid with the orange shoes on the wrong foot"
.
"Officer of the Day to Company Officer: I saw a bunch of your plebes out after taps on a spirit mission, one of them had green sneakers"

From a Plebe Survival standpoint, its more important to be UNIFORM then to make Waldo hunting easy

Back when I was a Plebe, we all wore issued Keds that were all purpose sneakers, not running shoes through Plebe Summer. Maybe the
plebe track team got to have other non-regulation sneakers but I never saw anyone wearing them.
 
OldRetSWO said:
The counterpoint is that the plebe is also easier to spot and report by detailers/upperclassmen/officers when they mess up.

"Company Officer to Detailer Company Commander: Can't you get your people to march in step? I keep seeing the kid with the orange shoes on the wrong foot"
.
"Officer of the Day to Company Officer: I saw a bunch of your plebes out after taps on a spirit mission, one of them had green sneakers"

From a Plebe Survival standpoint, its more important to be UNIFORM then to make Waldo hunting easy

Back when I was a Plebe, we all wore issued Keds that were all purpose sneakers, not running shoes through Plebe Summer. Maybe the
plebe track team got to have other non-regulation sneakers but I never saw anyone wearing them.
Click to expand...
Agree with the litmus test being what plebe-centric choice makes Plebe Summer most survivable and bearable for the Plebe.

Same goes for choice of civilian shirt to report in on I-Day. Bland polo or top with no messaging. Just blend in. Not the time to think it would be funny to wear a USAFA t-shirt or something with an Eagle, Globe and Anchor implying a Marine background, unless, of course, they are a prior enlisted Marine and earned it. Those choices say “look at me,” and the point of Plebe Summer is to take everyone to an equal starting point where the “me” is buried in “team.” There will be plenty of opportunities to shine individually during the academic year.

Any Plebes-To-Be reading this, if you find yourself sailing through parts of PS and hoping the detailers notice what hot stuff you are, you will make a far better impression - and get the “that kid is a good plebe” comments - when you immediately look around for a classmate who is struggling and move to help or support or cheer them up. That is servant leadership in the making.

Not sure how I fell down this rabbit hole from shoe color, but it’s part of the mental prep.
 
I really think the important thing here is “you do you”. Everything written here is advice from different perspectives. Daughter nor company mates were remembered for shoe color. (just don’t show up on IDay in flip flops, it happened this year and he’s still remembered as flip flop guy) They were however remembered for not pulling their weight, not helping someone else who was struggling, or for not holding each other accountable. It could be very different from company to company or detailer to detailer or even year to year.

Find a shoe that is best for you, whatever color it may be.
 
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