US Navy SEALs must undergo an extremely dangerous training exercise which is just as terrifying as it sounds.
It’s imperative Navy SEALs are able to withstand a range of harsh environments and challenges, including the water.
US Navy SEALs must be able to remain calm in water to safely complete tasks all while being able to adapt to their surroundings, as it is the basis of what they do.
During what's known as drownproof training – which is also called the SEAL Water Challenge Test - their arms and legs are bound and they then have to dive into a pool to retrieve an object from the bottom using only their mouths.
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It is usually done in a nine-foot deep pool and retrieving an object at the bottom of the pool is just one of five tasks in the SEAL Water Challenge Test.
In another test, SEAL candidates must bob up and down at the deep end of the pool 20 times, which may sound a lot easier than it is.
They must also float on their back for five minutes, where the challenge is to get a deep breath with an arched back to naturally bring the lungs to the surface.
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Candidates must also swim to the shallow end of the pool before turning around and swimming back without touching the bottom. This is done on the side and is known as the dolphin swim.
To pass the Navy SEAL Water Challenge, those who are successful must also do a forward and backward somersaults in the water.
The Navy SEAL candidate must suceed in all tasks to pass Basic Underwater Demolition/SEALs training, usually referred to as BUD/S. This is the 24-week training course that develops a candidate’s mental and physical stamina, as well as their leadership skills and includes timed physical tests which become more challenging each week.
Drownproof training is part of the first phase called 'physical conditioning' which lasts a total of seven weeks and follows a three-week orientation course that introduces the candidates to the lifestyle of a Navy SEAL.
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This phase also includes the infamous 'Hell Week' where candidates must participate in five and a half days of continuous training.
Candidates that consistently do not meet specified time requirements for running and swimming tests are dropped from training.
BUD/S is notoriously difficult to pass. In 2016, while reporting on the death of a trainee during Navy SEAL training, NBC News said only one in five – around 20 percent – make it through BUD/s, meaning more trainees fail the program which ‘consistently produced between 200 to 250 SEALs a year.’
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The New York Times reports that the pass rate for candidates taking part in BUD/S was ‘about 40 percent’ in the 1980s. This dropped to just 14 percent in 2021.
It goes without saying that no one should attempt any of the drownproof training drills without expert supervision and it is not something that should be tried at home or at a pool.
Gregory Robinson