Korea's Army of Senior Citizens Ready for Battle. 'I Don't Remember the Rifles Being So Heavy'

Military Times ^ | December 05, 2023 at 4:42pm ET | Max Kim

[Redcitizen]

SEOUL, South Korea — Dressed in borrowed camouflage fatigues, they fumbled with their ammunition belts and K2 assault rifles. Some had white hair and a slow, shuffling gait; their average age was 63, the oldest 75.

It was the most unconventional batch of trainees that the 52nd Infantry Division's Seocho Reserve Forces Training Center had ever seen, and Lt. Col. Hwang Hyeon-seok received them with a strained smile, desperately hoping that none of them would get hurt.

[Redcitizen]

That’s right!

My uniform did shrink but I’m making progress. Some of my pants have gotten looser (lost some weight). :)

[Jamestown1630]

'An 18-year-old doesn’t even like to get up before 10 a.m. Old guys always get up early to pee so what the hell. Besides, like I said, ‘I’m tired and can’t sleep and since I’m already up, I may as well be up killing some fanatical son-of-a-bitch.

My grandmother was up at 5 AM every morning, even into her nineties. She always said that there would be time enough to sleep when she was in the grave.

(Sadly, this sloth didn't take after her...)

[Redcitizen]

Well when I left the army , I did turn in my LBE. I did keep my sleeping bag and medium rucksack. Those two items were issued new to me- still in the wrapper since CIF at fort Riley had issued all the other used to gear to everyone else in preparation for what was to be Desert Storm.

So after my time was done, i had to turn in my gear, I bought a used sleeping back and ruck sack from a surplus store in Junction city. I kept the new sleeping bag and rucksack and brought it home.

As for the LBE, I put together another one from pieces sold for cheap from yard sales, flea markets and gunshows.

Side note: the pandemic showed up and the tribe gave out new wool blankets like you described. Knowing the value of it like you, I grabbed 2 of them.

Thanks for your military memoirs here. Thank you both for your service to our country.

[trebb]

I do exercise regularly - worked out all my life but recently had to go through cancer treatments and the chemo nearly did me in.
Just getting my strength back and doing light exercises and dumbbell work at hoe - and walking at the mall now.
I expect to get back to the gym next month and try to tone up properly - but even when “properly toned” these days, my mind tells me I’m stronger than I really am - aah to be 60 again😎
Great advice though - I had to change oncologists after the first one almost killed me and the new one told me the crap I was given is extremely hard on healthy and hale 30-40 year-olds - if I hadn’t kept myself fairly healthy and strong, I might have had some super serious problems that I couldn’t recover from...fighting off old age with vigorous exercise is the way to go.
And, as my wife says, “Getting old ain’t for sissies”

[bert]

at 79, I essentially took 4 months off my normal routine to care for my wife after her knee surgery. I realized one day I couldn’t get up off the floor. I couldn’t get common tasks done.

It took me a year of PT and continuous effort to regain my strength. It goes quickly and resumes slowly.

Clint taught us....... Don’t let the old man in

I try not to

[trebb]

I couldn’t agree more - I call my exercise routines, “Fighting off the Old Man of Old Age”.

Finally recovering enough from the chemo that I’m walking 3-4 miles a day and doing exercises at home - hope to be hitting the gym next week because the heaviest dumbbells I have are 8 lbs. and they don’t hack it anymore.

Be well and be blessed.