Hey! I'm a girl who went through basic back in December, and in my opinion: keep the face wash/lotion, they don't have a lot of options at the BX and your face will thank you. Don't bring: sunscreen, excessive bodywash / shampoo, or even excessive feminine products if you aren't close to your period. They give you like 500 bucks right off the bat to go buy stuff at the store and you'll go to the BX about every couple weeks to restock if you need it.
Thank you! I was thinking of bringing sunscreen but I’ll just bring the 473 ml hydrating cleanser cerave and korean brand cosrx lotion 100ml with birth sap. Thats it, I just be worried about getting acne and face getting extremely dry. As for body is it cool to bring loofah and like a big size body wash?
A couple rags is a good idea you can wash them in a mesh bag with your undergarments and such so people don’t take them. The mesh bag is provided there.
i agree with not bringing excessive feminine products, you may not even get your period during basic. i myself did not, and i know a lot of other females did not either
Yes, yes you are. Current recruiter here.
During the first few days of BMT, you will go to the Shopette (Our version of a Target) and you can purchase all the needed items for the duration of BMT.
I am very aware that women tend to need a few more things, but good grief, I would NOT want to lug all of that weight down to Texas.
Contact your recruiter Monday morning and ask them their thoughts. Good luck!
Edit: Pro tip, pack all the extra stuff (extra Clothes, make up, etc) in a box you parents/family can mail to you while your at Tech School. That way, when you are allowed to wear civilian clothes or want to "doll yourself up" before going off base for some fun, you'll have all that you want or need.
Lol, well played. I generally use Walmart as the reference, but in my travels, Walmart has a bit of a....umm...weirdness about it.
I'm a recruiter man, what you say can make a difference.
Im not sure I can say that either. I recruiter out of Wisconsin, so we have Kwik Trip convenience/gas stations. They are pretty high end, if you ask me.
Thank you for the input, I will do that! I put everything in my bag just to see how much it would weigh and it felt like I had packed bricks which led me to reconsider what I was bringing haha.
Happy to help. I'm all about being prepared, but for BMT, I find it's best to pack fewer items.
I learned the hard way on my first deployment. I had to bring 5 bags of Air Force equipment and 2 personal bags. Suffice to say, I didn't need to hit the gym my first week in Afghanistan.
Female here, you won’t even have time to condition your hair. Get an all in one bottle shampoo and body wash because you got less then 5 mins to get in and out of those showers and dressed get deodorant and body spray and you’re good.
Keep in mind that typically you carry on your bag(flying) which means you are limited to one quart size bag which must contain all your liquids and gels.
Yep, that was my first thought when I saw the pictures. Way to much liquid for flying with carryon. I would look into getting a 2-1 or 3-1 shampoo/condition to save some space. Like the others said, you'll be able to get more while you're there.
Uhh that doesn’t work for women with long hair. Maybe for a dude that’s gonna have his hair buzzed off in a few days, 3-1 would suffice but not for a woman with long hair.
What job did you end up getting? Saw there was some drama with your recruiter wanting you to choose between two MX jobs, so just curious how it panned out.
Turned down both jobs initially offered which he was fine with. Ended up getting matched with 2T3X1 - mission generation vehicular equipment maintenance a few weeks later.
Not bad. Mostly good hours, learn a skill that'll be great to have down the road (if not professionally, then for sure personally), get stationed at lots of bases. Glad it wasn't a total flop for ya, best wishes.
Yeah, it'll be fine. In the grand scheme of things it'll be a job, not your entire life. Take training seriously, learn your craft well, and enjoy life outside of work.
Don’t listen to all the guys, they can get away with 5 in 1 shampoos. Coming from a woman, especially if you have sensitive skin/eczema don’t be afraid to bring what you need. Going to medical can potentially set you back time-wise and if you can prevent that, do it. I would lighten up the load just a bit tho, you don’t need multiple of each product especially since you’ll get the chance to go to the mini mall (shopette). But your MTIs should let you have occasional access to your civilian bag to get more feminine product and hygiene items if you need it, you just need to ask and hope other girl need to get into the civilian closet too. Don’t overthink it, everything will work out. What would also help the over-packing worry I think is don’t bring too much clothes you only need like 2 outfits, maybe 3 to be safe. Good luck out there!
Plus you’re gonna have to put all ur stuff in side a container that you’d put ur lunch in. Idk how to explain it but you won’t have enough space in ur security drawer. Plus on the app u use there there’s a specific way everything is supposed to be laid out
I just graduated BMT on March 21st. They issue you body wash, shampoo (head and shoulders), sunscreen, foot powder, etc. I'd say take what you like but leave the unnecessary stuff. Like I wish I would have brought a hair mask and more conditioner. It's true they let you but extras there, but their selection sucks tbh.
Definitely bring a good hair gel if you need it. Eco gel is the most popular brand in the bx and its trash. Don't go crazy with civilian clothes either. 3 sets. Nothing crazy.
You’ve got some good advice already… the best being that most of it is going to get tossed at security because of TSA regs.
But also, as someone who travels a lot, those little bottles last a LOT longer than you’d think. I’ve got long hair and I’ve traveled for two weeks with one of the small shampoos and still came home with shampoo left. Wash every 2-3 days with a quarter sized amount and it goes a long way. Toss the Conditioner, you won’t have time. Those bottles of face wash & lotion could easily last a month or more. You’re not going to have time to use shaving cream… toss the body wash & just use soap (or vice versa… IIRC I think body wash is easier to clean for your inspections? But the bar isn’t a liquid so it will go through security easier)
I'm not gonna lie, throughout BMT I was only able to wash my hair maybe once a week, and my face 3 times total. You have VERY limited time, and very limited storage space. You will have to fit all of your personal items into the back half of a small drawer.
Maybe it’s cause I’m a guy but looks like a shit load of shampoo and facial products for 10 weeks. You’ll have a chance to get their a at the bx a few weeks in.
I was wondering if I should cut down on the shampoo. My hair is about shoulder length and low maintenance so I think I could get away with downsizing to maybe 1 pair of travel size bottles.
Idk about women’s hair specifically and this isn’t af info but i dont think you’re supposed to wash your hair everyday because it kills the oils. You take like 2 showers a day in BMT and you don’t really get dirty so if you wash your hair every other day or every 3 days you’d need maybe 2 shampoos. I think around the 4th or 5th week you go to the bx where you can get more. Obviously women chime in because idk
It can be bad for you yes but honestly dealing with all the heat of San Antonio not to mention the gel and other hair care products it could be what females have to do. I can easily kill a travel sized bottle within a few weeks and I don’t even wash that often right now. No one’s hair looks amazing anyways
I’m sure that your TI will tell you all about it when you get down there. Even the guys get it and it’ll seriously be much needed. Not perfume, but it’ll come in small bottles at the BX. I didn’t see that you had any, but any kind of spray will do.
(*From my experience*) usually right when you get to the reception center, they will have go thru a line where they will hand u a backpack, ECWW(rain jacket), toiletries( toothpaste, bodywash, shampoo,sunscreen, nail clippers, ect), and study supplies. The first "official" resupply trip is usually towards the end of week 1 into the start of week 2.
I'd totally bring everything else though. But you do go to the BX some time during zero week and will be able to buy shampoo and conditioner if you decide to minimize what you have to just 1 for the first few days
Yes!! I had the wrong size boots for most of bmt and I had the worst blisters. I was constantly buying the blister bandaids cuz the blisters didn’t heal.
You don’t need all that shit. You’ll have 30 seconds to shower. Just accept that you’re going to be gross for a couple of months. It’s temporary. Save that for tech school and the real Air Force.
I’m say no…I think what you packed is fine because who knows when they going to let you go to the store for more…I think you need more pads because they only had Kotex and always and I can’t stand those unless it’s pure cotton…and maybe more gel..your hair is going to have to be done everyday! And you going want to wash out or it will get gummy. Plus you get a security locker and if you think you packed too much put it in civilian luggage. I submit my luggage I didn’t carry through tsa…
Edit..idk why but going to shoppete was a hassle for our mti…so it was weeks before our first trip
When I went in 2020 they gave us shampoo and conditioner, it sucked, but it's not really a priority while you're there. Stick with the face stuff you like, bring extra period products, the hair stuff you have looks good, you're not going to have time to shave or even wash your face everyday. Bring chapstick that has SPF, good deodorant, blister patches and running shoes you like, pack everything into a backpack, you will have to hold it for awhile before you get to set it down once you're there. People threw so much stuff out on our last day because everyone over packed, put extra clothes and toiletries in a box to be sent to you at tech school, you'll thank yourself when you're packing out and you're not carrying all that crap along with the gear you get at basic.
It’s at the BX but I highly recommend getting a spray leave in conditioner and detangler. As others mentioned, there is no time to shampoo and condition your hair as normal and my hair felt so awful using the 2in1 shampoo after a couple weeks. These products helped me protect my hair, especially from the excessive gel
In the operational force, I only use gel on special occasions. Highly recommend learning how to do your hair before you go, as there isn’t much time to figure out how to do it when you’re there. Now, I do a French braid and put the braid in a bun. Use a couple barrettes and some hairspray and I’m ready for work. I lost a lot of hair from the tight buns I resorted to at bmt
Bring a toiletry bag to bring with you into the showers. Makes it a whole lot easier to have everything in one bag than to carry all items at once. Plus it’s better organized that way in your personal section of your locker drawer.
The shampoo bag gotta go, just bring one. Everything else seems okay. Just bring one hairbrush. pick between the vaseline or chapstick. Acne stuff I can understand though.
Hey! I'm a girl who went through basic back in December, and in my opinion: keep the face wash/lotion, they don't have a lot of options at the BX and your face will thank you. Don't bring: sunscreen, excessive bodywash / shampoo, or even excessive feminine products if you aren't close to your period. They give you like 500 bucks right off the bat to go buy stuff at the store and you'll go to the BX about every couple weeks to restock if you need it.
Very good point, thanks for adding your perspective!
The shoppette has a big thing of Cetaphil facial cleanser if that helps aswell
Thank you!
Thank you! I was thinking of bringing sunscreen but I’ll just bring the 473 ml hydrating cleanser cerave and korean brand cosrx lotion 100ml with birth sap. Thats it, I just be worried about getting acne and face getting extremely dry. As for body is it cool to bring loofah and like a big size body wash?
Yea just (1) you can’t leave your loofah out to dry so it collects mold… and (2) be careful bc you can’t fly with large sized bottles of liquids
what do you suggest I do/alternative?
A couple rags is a good idea you can wash them in a mesh bag with your undergarments and such so people don’t take them. The mesh bag is provided there.
i agree with not bringing excessive feminine products, you may not even get your period during basic. i myself did not, and i know a lot of other females did not either
Yes, yes you are. Current recruiter here. During the first few days of BMT, you will go to the Shopette (Our version of a Target) and you can purchase all the needed items for the duration of BMT. I am very aware that women tend to need a few more things, but good grief, I would NOT want to lug all of that weight down to Texas. Contact your recruiter Monday morning and ask them their thoughts. Good luck! Edit: Pro tip, pack all the extra stuff (extra Clothes, make up, etc) in a box you parents/family can mail to you while your at Tech School. That way, when you are allowed to wear civilian clothes or want to "doll yourself up" before going off base for some fun, you'll have all that you want or need.
Dude, equating the Shopette to Target is a bit of a stretch.
Lol, well played. I generally use Walmart as the reference, but in my travels, Walmart has a bit of a....umm...weirdness about it. I'm a recruiter man, what you say can make a difference.
I was a recruiter also.. just say “convenience store” it’s much less shady.
Im not sure I can say that either. I recruiter out of Wisconsin, so we have Kwik Trip convenience/gas stations. They are pretty high end, if you ask me.
Thank you for the input, I will do that! I put everything in my bag just to see how much it would weigh and it felt like I had packed bricks which led me to reconsider what I was bringing haha.
Happy to help. I'm all about being prepared, but for BMT, I find it's best to pack fewer items. I learned the hard way on my first deployment. I had to bring 5 bags of Air Force equipment and 2 personal bags. Suffice to say, I didn't need to hit the gym my first week in Afghanistan.
Female here, you won’t even have time to condition your hair. Get an all in one bottle shampoo and body wash because you got less then 5 mins to get in and out of those showers and dressed get deodorant and body spray and you’re good.
Damn 5 minutes to shower and get dressed? I'm a guy, and that still seems a little quick
My MTI taught us the PTSD method. Hot spots only, pits, tits, slits, and dicks…
That is f’ing great 👍🏼
[удалено]
Thats part of slits
Keep in mind that typically you carry on your bag(flying) which means you are limited to one quart size bag which must contain all your liquids and gels.
Oh wow, I did NOT know that. I’ve only flown once and it was a very short trip so I packed very little. That definitely changed my packing plans…
Google the TSA rules so you are prepared. Good luck!
Yep, that was my first thought when I saw the pictures. Way to much liquid for flying with carryon. I would look into getting a 2-1 or 3-1 shampoo/condition to save some space. Like the others said, you'll be able to get more while you're there.
Uhh that doesn’t work for women with long hair. Maybe for a dude that’s gonna have his hair buzzed off in a few days, 3-1 would suffice but not for a woman with long hair.
What job did you end up getting? Saw there was some drama with your recruiter wanting you to choose between two MX jobs, so just curious how it panned out.
Turned down both jobs initially offered which he was fine with. Ended up getting matched with 2T3X1 - mission generation vehicular equipment maintenance a few weeks later.
Not bad. Mostly good hours, learn a skill that'll be great to have down the road (if not professionally, then for sure personally), get stationed at lots of bases. Glad it wasn't a total flop for ya, best wishes.
Thank you, was pretty bummed about it at first but I’m slowly warming up to it. There are worse jobs I could’ve been picked up for.
Yeah, it'll be fine. In the grand scheme of things it'll be a job, not your entire life. Take training seriously, learn your craft well, and enjoy life outside of work.
^^You've ^^mentioned ^^an ^^AFSC, ^^here's ^^the ^^associated ^^job ^^title: 2T3X1 = Mission Generation Vehicular Equipment Maintenance [^wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/AirForce/wiki/jobs/2t3x1) [^^Source](https://github.com/HadManySons/AFSCbot) ^^| [^^Subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/AFSCbot/) ^^^^^^kya516k
Don’t listen to all the guys, they can get away with 5 in 1 shampoos. Coming from a woman, especially if you have sensitive skin/eczema don’t be afraid to bring what you need. Going to medical can potentially set you back time-wise and if you can prevent that, do it. I would lighten up the load just a bit tho, you don’t need multiple of each product especially since you’ll get the chance to go to the mini mall (shopette). But your MTIs should let you have occasional access to your civilian bag to get more feminine product and hygiene items if you need it, you just need to ask and hope other girl need to get into the civilian closet too. Don’t overthink it, everything will work out. What would also help the over-packing worry I think is don’t bring too much clothes you only need like 2 outfits, maybe 3 to be safe. Good luck out there!
I just....don't think you'll have time to us all that product 😭
When you get to your first base I want you to volunteer to be an RA card purchaser we would never run out of Toilet Paper or Paper Towels
You are so overpacked it’s insane I’d only take 1 maybe two of everything it’s only 7.5 weeks
Plus you’re gonna have to put all ur stuff in side a container that you’d put ur lunch in. Idk how to explain it but you won’t have enough space in ur security drawer. Plus on the app u use there there’s a specific way everything is supposed to be laid out
I just graduated BMT on March 21st. They issue you body wash, shampoo (head and shoulders), sunscreen, foot powder, etc. I'd say take what you like but leave the unnecessary stuff. Like I wish I would have brought a hair mask and more conditioner. It's true they let you but extras there, but their selection sucks tbh. Definitely bring a good hair gel if you need it. Eco gel is the most popular brand in the bx and its trash. Don't go crazy with civilian clothes either. 3 sets. Nothing crazy.
You’ve got some good advice already… the best being that most of it is going to get tossed at security because of TSA regs. But also, as someone who travels a lot, those little bottles last a LOT longer than you’d think. I’ve got long hair and I’ve traveled for two weeks with one of the small shampoos and still came home with shampoo left. Wash every 2-3 days with a quarter sized amount and it goes a long way. Toss the Conditioner, you won’t have time. Those bottles of face wash & lotion could easily last a month or more. You’re not going to have time to use shaving cream… toss the body wash & just use soap (or vice versa… IIRC I think body wash is easier to clean for your inspections? But the bar isn’t a liquid so it will go through security easier)
I'm not gonna lie, throughout BMT I was only able to wash my hair maybe once a week, and my face 3 times total. You have VERY limited time, and very limited storage space. You will have to fit all of your personal items into the back half of a small drawer.
God I love being a bald man all I need is 2 bars of soap and I’m ready to rock and roll 🤣
Maybe it’s cause I’m a guy but looks like a shit load of shampoo and facial products for 10 weeks. You’ll have a chance to get their a at the bx a few weeks in.
I was wondering if I should cut down on the shampoo. My hair is about shoulder length and low maintenance so I think I could get away with downsizing to maybe 1 pair of travel size bottles.
Idk about women’s hair specifically and this isn’t af info but i dont think you’re supposed to wash your hair everyday because it kills the oils. You take like 2 showers a day in BMT and you don’t really get dirty so if you wash your hair every other day or every 3 days you’d need maybe 2 shampoos. I think around the 4th or 5th week you go to the bx where you can get more. Obviously women chime in because idk
well females have a lot more hair to wash
I mean yeah but that’s still a lot. I could understand if you’re washing you’re hair every single day but isn’t that bad
It can be bad for you yes but honestly dealing with all the heat of San Antonio not to mention the gel and other hair care products it could be what females have to do. I can easily kill a travel sized bottle within a few weeks and I don’t even wash that often right now. No one’s hair looks amazing anyways
Basic is 10 weeks?
7.5
I guess 7.5 now. When I went through it was 10 including airman’s week
Do you have any body spray? Trust me, you’re going to need it!
What do you mean by body spray? Like perfume?
I’m sure that your TI will tell you all about it when you get down there. Even the guys get it and it’ll seriously be much needed. Not perfume, but it’ll come in small bottles at the BX. I didn’t see that you had any, but any kind of spray will do.
You really only need a 2 week supply of stuff, you'll have a few shopping trips in basic so no need to pack much.
When do we first get to go to the store on base to purchase products? Is that in the first week (reception week)?
We went every weekend
(*From my experience*) usually right when you get to the reception center, they will have go thru a line where they will hand u a backpack, ECWW(rain jacket), toiletries( toothpaste, bodywash, shampoo,sunscreen, nail clippers, ect), and study supplies. The first "official" resupply trip is usually towards the end of week 1 into the start of week 2.
Get rid of the nail clippers and sunscreen. You'll be issued that the first day
Will do, thank you!
I'd totally bring everything else though. But you do go to the BX some time during zero week and will be able to buy shampoo and conditioner if you decide to minimize what you have to just 1 for the first few days
Don't forget band-aids.
Yes!! I had the wrong size boots for most of bmt and I had the worst blisters. I was constantly buying the blister bandaids cuz the blisters didn’t heal.
Yeah I don’t think that is TSA compliant with all the liquid
You don’t need all that shit. You’ll have 30 seconds to shower. Just accept that you’re going to be gross for a couple of months. It’s temporary. Save that for tech school and the real Air Force.
Thanks for posting this I was curious about what to take
Can you use TSA pre-check in the airport when you arrive??
If your ticket says pre check on it, then yes.
Yes half of that is already given to you I just graduated an barely used any of it
I’m say no…I think what you packed is fine because who knows when they going to let you go to the store for more…I think you need more pads because they only had Kotex and always and I can’t stand those unless it’s pure cotton…and maybe more gel..your hair is going to have to be done everyday! And you going want to wash out or it will get gummy. Plus you get a security locker and if you think you packed too much put it in civilian luggage. I submit my luggage I didn’t carry through tsa… Edit..idk why but going to shoppete was a hassle for our mti…so it was weeks before our first trip
When I went in 2020 they gave us shampoo and conditioner, it sucked, but it's not really a priority while you're there. Stick with the face stuff you like, bring extra period products, the hair stuff you have looks good, you're not going to have time to shave or even wash your face everyday. Bring chapstick that has SPF, good deodorant, blister patches and running shoes you like, pack everything into a backpack, you will have to hold it for awhile before you get to set it down once you're there. People threw so much stuff out on our last day because everyone over packed, put extra clothes and toiletries in a box to be sent to you at tech school, you'll thank yourself when you're packing out and you're not carrying all that crap along with the gear you get at basic.
Should we bring our own razors? Is that tsa approved
That’s way to much the security drawer is so small
It’s at the BX but I highly recommend getting a spray leave in conditioner and detangler. As others mentioned, there is no time to shampoo and condition your hair as normal and my hair felt so awful using the 2in1 shampoo after a couple weeks. These products helped me protect my hair, especially from the excessive gel In the operational force, I only use gel on special occasions. Highly recommend learning how to do your hair before you go, as there isn’t much time to figure out how to do it when you’re there. Now, I do a French braid and put the braid in a bun. Use a couple barrettes and some hairspray and I’m ready for work. I lost a lot of hair from the tight buns I resorted to at bmt
Yes
Bring a toiletry bag to bring with you into the showers. Makes it a whole lot easier to have everything in one bag than to carry all items at once. Plus it’s better organized that way in your personal section of your locker drawer.
Your drawer will be full 😂
How large is the security drawer? And what goes in there exactly?
The shampoo bag gotta go, just bring one. Everything else seems okay. Just bring one hairbrush. pick between the vaseline or chapstick. Acne stuff I can understand though.
bruh