Can any Old Grads put my mind at ease?

S

Sarmo

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Feb 2, 2021
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I can't rationalize a legitimate military purpose for the following:

My DS at CBT repeatedly writes to me that, while in garrison, NCs (that are not on NCAA teams) are underfed. For example, his entire table may have 3 pieces of chicken to share at lunch.... cadets consume gobs of peanut butter in order to get enough calories to make it through the day. Whereas, NCAA athletes sit at other tables at lunch, and are provided adequate portion sizes.

Did this occur when old grads attended? Is this driven by a training policy/SOP that General/SES leadership is aware of?

Re-posting because my original thread/post seems to have disappeared.
 
No, this should not be occurring. I never remember a lack of food at school, ESPECIALLY at CBT. I can't imagine the actual mess hall/server putting out a platter that only has 3 pieces of chicken. I can only think of a few things:
1. your DS has squad-mates who are taking multiple pieces of chicken before it gets to him
2. if the squad is actually getting very little food, it has to be that everyone else is getting very little food too
3. ask your DS to talk to his squad leader about the food situation. If there actually is a food problem, then the squad leader should do something. If the squad leader fails to do anything, your DS can reach out to the platoon sergeant/platoon leader/cadet counselor/actual Army chaplain

Again, there shouldn't be a lack of food at CBT. I remember getting a lot of food at CBT; however, not having adequate time to eat at certain times because setting the table would take a while or there was a last minute change in schedule requiring us to be somewhere. I lost a majority of my weight during CBT because we ran so much (I was not a recruited athlete)

Lastly, some NCAA teams are given double portions of food. For example, the football team might get double portions just so they can maintain weight or gain weight
 
I forgot to mention, there should be enough food served. Everyone should even have the option to get fruits, and if I remember correctly, new cadets had the option to go to the salad bar at the back of the mess hall
 
toomuchtimeonmyhands said:
No, this should not be occurring. I never remember a lack of food at school, ESPECIALLY at CBT. I can't imagine the actual mess hall/server putting out a platter that only has 3 pieces of chicken. I can only think of a few things:
1. your DS has squad-mates who are taking multiple pieces of chicken before it gets to him
2. if the squad is actually getting very little food, it has to be that everyone else is getting very little food too
3. ask your DS to talk to his squad leader about the food situation. If there actually is a food problem, then the squad leader should do something. If the squad leader fails to do anything, your DS can reach out to the platoon sergeant/platoon leader/cadet counselor/actual Army chaplain

Again, there shouldn't be a lack of food at CBT. I remember getting a lot of food at CBT; however, not having adequate time to eat at certain times because setting the table would take a while or there was a last minute change in schedule requiring us to be somewhere. I lost a majority of my weight during CBT because we ran so much (I was not a recruited athlete)

Lastly, some NCAA teams are given double portions of food. For example, the football team might get double portions just so they can maintain weight or gain weight
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Thank you very much for your solid recommendations (which already made it into a letter to my NC)!
 
I understand that it is easy for parents to worry, especially when your DS/DD is away from home and facing the big, bad world. However, please understand that West Point is very good at taking care of your DS/DD, especially during summer trainings. If there is an issue during CBT, it should be resolved quickly.
 
toomuchtimeonmyhands said:
I understand that it is easy for parents to worry, especially when your DS/DD is away from home and facing the big, bad world. However, please understand that West Point is very good at taking care of your DS/DD, especially during summer trainings. If there is an issue during CBT, it should be resolved quickly.
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That's not it with me. I served over 30 years (both enlisted and officer). The only times I went hungry, was when it served a legitimate training purpose (SERE, etc). I took the first letters that I received (complaining about the lack of food) with a grain of salt. At this point (3 or 4 letters), the level of detail described caught my curiosity/concern. He's loving it in the field, where he gets MREs, gets to grow the shooting/outdoor skills that we enjoy, gets to live his childhood dream (occasionally interrupted by getting smoked... nonetheless, a fair price to pay), and gets to bond with his new brothers/sisters.

Thanks again for your sanity-check and recommendations.
 
Sarmo said:
I can't rationalize a legitimate military purpose for the following:

My DS at CBT repeatedly writes to me that, while in garrison, NCs (that are not on NCAA teams) are underfed. For example, his entire table may have 3 pieces of chicken to share at lunch.... cadets consume gobs of peanut butter in order to get enough calories to make it through the day. Whereas, NCAA athletes sit at other tables at lunch, and are provided adequate portion sizes.

Did this occur when old grads attended? Is this driven by a training policy/SOP that General/SES leadership is aware of?

Re-posting because my original thread/post seems to have disappeared.
Click to expand...
Share your concern. When I saw DS's picture on the facebook channel, I cannot event recognize him if not by the name tag. He seemed lost quite some weight in 3 weeks albeit he is already lean and fit before starting CBT. I heard somewhere that WP purposely keep the amount low to keep the cadets fit instead of overweight. But not eating enough and loosing weight seems not a healthy sign.
 
This was being said when my son was a plebe at USNA.

I asked him about it. He laughed about it and assured me he gets plenty of food to eat. He said it wasn’t as good as home, but it was good enough.
 
Both of my sons appeared to have lost weight during Beast but both actually gained weight. My ‘23 has been in the field for almost a month and he hasn’t complained about food. The grab and go during the academic year is a huge help.

Academic year 20-21 was a challenge for the mess hall both quality and quantity. Hoping this year is improved. My son who is in BOLC says the food is good at his post.
 
My DS is at CBT right now, he’s a 2025. He told me that the food is really good and you eat until you get full. He said he’s had more than enough to eat and he’s a big kid.
 
My DS is at CBT and says he hasn’t eaten so much in his life and he can’t get enough food to eat. I got the impression that he is being fed proper portions, but he’s burning so many calories in workouts that he’s ravenous. His squad also started eating peanut butter as a way to supplement. I can only hope they are being fed enough. Doesn’t seem fair that some cadets get more because of their recruitment status. Shouldn’t be the case if true.
 
Interesting thread. My son says he is constantly hungry and eats a banana and peanut butter with every meal in addition to what is served. He mentioned that his cadre has had them "fill their pockets" in the mess hall at times and eat while they walk to the next thing.

There was a mess hall photo and I remember commenting that the plates did not look very full and the chicken breast looked like 1/2 of what I usually serve. (And to be clear, ALL of my children are fit). So, there might be some balancing.

A friend of mine who has a graduate (a big man) said that her son would "clean off" other cadet's plates when they were done because he needed more calories than some of his friends who were smaller men.

He is also having the time of his life. This is where he wants to be and the high of it more than balances the low. I think that these guys are burning so much energy with what is required of them physically and mentally that they are going to be "hungry". That, and they cannot satisfy the "home cooking" taste. I remember that when I first left home.

Unfortunately, getting word to the new cadets is kind of a challenge. For most of us, it will take a week or longer to get a letter that we write today. Certainly, we should still send it, but I think that this is also a resourcefulness exercise for the new cadets too.
 
Parents, if you are truly concerned, please reach out to Debra Dalton, the West Point Parent Liaison. She can look into the issue on your behalf. She is available on Facebook at West Point Parent and she is the administrator for your official class page.

There is no plan during CBT to under feed the new cadets.
 
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DrMom said:
Parents, if you are truly concerned, please reach out to Debra Dalton, the West Point Parent Liaison. She can look into the issue on your behalf. She is available on Facebook at West Point Parent and she is the administrator for your official class page.
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I appreciate your reply. I've taught my son to resolve issues at the lowest point possible... in this case, I wasn't certain if it was something that everyone at West Point went through. I anticipate that tactfully raising this concern to his squad leader may be the catalyst that is needed to improve the circumstances (while giving him practical experience in leadership). He'll get practical experience putting himself in a stressful-situation to resolve a deficiency that is impacting his team.... something he should get used to.
 
There’s a way for tables to ask for more food from the mess hall staff as well. the Academy has absolutely curbed many of the old school traditions that led to NCs under feeding at meal times during Beast. I would have trust in his cadre and the mess hall that your son is getting the food he needs. It just might not be exactly what he wants all the time…
 
My DS is also at CBT right now. His only food related issue is time- he claims “ I am turning into Kobayashi or Joey Chestnut “
In June he was making fun of me for aggressively over doing it with socks and underwear as he packed for Beast- I think he has a new appreciation now
 
My son is an OG and he lost weight during his time in CBT. In his case, it was due to being extremely active (he was no couch potato at home) and the meal times during CBT being short (meal times are filled with activities aside from just eating). He put weight back on during the academic year. The other factor is that other cadets are in charge and they don't always do their jobs perfectly - they are learning also - so perhaps his cadre isn't perfect in this specific arena. In a couple years, he may be beast cadre and he'll view the situation in a completely different way. Good luck to your cadet! WP is definitely a unique experience.
 
Don't know if the cadets are being given this or they are buying at Cadet store but my plebe said they had access to Muscle Milk and Cliff bars also. Never mentioned being underfed and for being a somewhat picky eater loves the mess hall meals and the MRE's except mostly just eats the sides, not the entree.
 
Another parent here of a 2025 NC. My son told us on the phone during the ice cream social that he feels like there is plenty to eat, but they also run out of time to eat. But he did not give the impression that he was not being fed enough (and my son is a pretty skinny kid). Keep in mind that they are also eating a lot of MREs, especially in the field, and those are very high calorie. My son also shared that he thought the food was "not too bad." All that is to say, every New Cadets experience is a little different. The football team does in fact get larger portions to keep the players weights up for the season. But to the best of my recollection when I was a cadet, there were enough portions for everyone at the table (i.e. 10 pieces of chicken for 10 seats at the table).
 
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