LegitNavyguy wrote:
Most of the civilians flaming on the "soft" navy standards have no idea what sailors and officers in afloat commands go through.
In port (i.e. tied to the pier), your workday can vary significantly depending upon your job...expect to be at the ship at 600-630 and leave around 1600-1700 if you're a topsider or later if you're an engineer. That also doesn't factor in duty, when you have to spend the night over and sleep on the ship in port every few days. 10-12+ hour days take a heavy toll on the body and many sailors choose less than healthy means of coping.
Underway (out at sea), you stand 6-8 hours of watch in a 24 hour period in addition to your day job which will likely consume 10-14 hours of your day. That leave only 4-6 hours to do everything else your body needs including sleep, eat and decompress. As you can see, working out often goes the wayside to catch more sleep. Underway periods can last up to 6-7 months with only a handful of short port visits.
Ships also have pretty crappy gyms unless you are on an aircraft carrier....Mine has one busted treadmill and five bikes for a ship with 300+ people onboard.
From what I've heard, subs are way worse. I'm pretty sure they have like three dumbbells and that's it.
Six months underwater?
I would venture that there are plenty of dumbbells on a sub.