I agree that taking extra protein is not always necessary if you can get the intake through plain old good eating. Just make sure you are hitting all your goals. I would really recommend you working out more often with a weight vest and maybe increasing the weight on that if you are already doing that. I think adding slow low rep weight sessions that are focused will help you gain some mass as well, just keep those sessions short and succinct to make sure you are not overtraining.

As for him quitting, he will most likely have another chance if he were to reclassify and come back in a couple years. From my experience as an instructor, the younger candidates are more prone to making impulsive decisions and I have seen it time and time again when the student will have a moment of weakness. I always tell the students who quit that it does not define the person you are if you don’t let it. Take the time you need to get over it, then learn from it and get back on the horse. If he has the option I would recommend him to try out for SERE then go back to PJ when he is ready.

I have flat feet and it has never stopped me from doing whatever I need to do, in fact, I have always been a pretty fast rucker.

The most easily correctable things I see guys do is 1) hips are too close to your heels and 2) doing negatives on the way down. That will give you a few more but overall I would recommend just varying your training if you can when you are doing ab exercises. Look up some ab exercises you have never done and just do a 10 min session of whatever that exercise is and you will see a difference.

Physically it will absolutely put you ahead of the game, and it exposes you to the techniques and standards that you will experience in the water. If you finish the program to a "T" then you will not have to worry about the physical portion just focus on the team and the mental portion at selection.

No you do not, you just need to contact the unit and see when tryouts are.

Do a couple of upstrokes to keep yourself down and it helps to do it faster. Make sure when you start your ascent you are on the bottom, so you may have to upstroke back to the bottom.

Yes, custom orthotics are allowed.

No, you will not be allowed to do pushups on your fists.

The biggest thing that helped me doing pull-ups and getting my numbers up was to build up my grip strength by hanging on the bar longer than just for my pull-ups. For example, just hang on there for an extra 30 sec and do reverse shrugs where you flex your back to make your scapula retract if that makes sense. Additionally, I am not sure exactly how strict you are being with your protein intake but that is also a big factor that people end up neglecting.

There are lots of guys who went through with contacts. The instructors don't mandate whether you do or don't wear contacts in the pool but it doesn't really work well if you don't use daily contacts anyway. I would recommend practicing swimming without contacts if possible.

The biggest advice I have for you with breathing is to not focus on breathing. Focus on your stroke in the water and making a smooth glide in the water and push off the wall, the breathing will take care of itself.

I have heard of some people getting it in the military, but to be honest, I never thought about it affecting me at all. I was ready to do whatever it took to bring someone home and expose myself to those types of things because I knew the mission was about setting aside my own fears in order to bring someone back to their families.

It is good to be afraid to fail, it means you care and it will make you push yourself further because of it. When I get the feeling that I might not be extremely confident at something, I never allow myself to not do it, because that sets a mental precedent where you will allow yourself to quit spontaneously. It sounds too simple but sometimes you just need to put one foot in front of the other and get the job done even if it is not perfect.

Breathing techniques are for increasing breath hold, learning to breathe properly, reducing anxiety, eliciting calm, and using oxygen more efficiently.

I would practice by just floating in the water with a mask on and pretending to pass the snorkel to your buddy by taking it out of your mouth and putting it back in. Then practice by doing it with your mask off as well.

You do not have to be extremely intelligent, just be dedicated and put in the time to study. It’s doable.

There is no rest position for the past, you need to stay in the pushup position the whole time.

I would use the stair climber or Jacobs ladder with a weight vest on.

Write it down on a calendar or planner or wherever you look at frequently. Also having a buddy to train with.