Rucking 101

We have been told that rucking is the new “Peloton” for us outdoors folks! I am not sure about that, but for an activity once thought to be only for Western hunters and active military, rucking or hiking with a weighted pack is a legitimate way to train for outdoor adventures of all kinds. We promote, coach and recommend it as a supplement to all of our Fit To Hunt DIY Programs! Here is a 101 crash course in the art of rucking!

The Basics

If you are new to rucking, purchasing a solid pack that will fit properly, not rub your shoulders and will adhere to your lumbar spine is important, but how much should you start with? The short answer is not 100 pounds. Currently, I have a 71 year old grandma in New York state rucking, and we started her with 5 pounds in a backpack. Just enough to know something is there but not too much where she will compromise good form or invite injury.

Unfortunately, there are few rucking protocols in the outdoor fitness world rooted in exercise science. There are, however, a lot of opinions and experiential suggestions that you can use to form a rucking program that will allow you to progress linearly. This not only allows you to see gradual changes over a defined time period, but also reduces the risk of injury that could happen if you are a newbie, throw 60 pounds in a pack and go for a hike.

#FitToHunt personal trainer and owner of the Beast Mode Archery Challenge Brian Austin lives to ruck and shoot his bow. When working with a new client, Coach Brian has some very simple philosophies.

“When starting someone on a rucking program I typically start them with a back weight that is 10% of their body weight assuming they are healthy and don't have a lot of excess weight.  Some folks will start with an empty pack and that's just fine.  Depending on their fitness level and the type of terrain they are training on I may ramp them up to 30lbs in a week to a month.  The more rugged and steep the terrain is the slower the increase in weight as ligaments and tendons need more time to adapt to carrying a load then what your muscles do.”  

And is there a difference between rucking for fitness and rucking for hunting? According to Austin the answer is yes! “For my clients that are not hunters or even backpackers they will probably never haul more than 30lbs on their back for a training session.  The benefit of carrying a heavier weight for most people is not worth the increase in discomfort that most entry level backpacks will make you feel.  Most "backpacking" packs don't feel great once you have 40lbs in them.  Rucking for fitness and rucking with the intention of hauling your harvest out of the mountains are two totally different scenarios that require specialized gear and a much bigger commitment.  With that said, over 80% of my ruck training is with 30-45lbs. I will complete maybe 10 ruck workouts a year with 80-100lbs to prepare for my September elk hunt.”

Translating to the field

I carry a pack into the deer woods, wear a turkey vest in the spring and it is hard telling how much stuff I will carry and drag when waterfowl hunting, so rucking translates very well to the outdoor lifestyle. I will still run and use the stationary bike at times, but the principle of specificity states that in order to get better at doing things, you need to do those things. Sitting on a stationary bike will help improve cardiovascular fitness, but it will do very little to improve your experience while deer, turkey or duck hunting. Carrying a weighted pack that will challenge your cardiovascular system while also strengthening your core muscles translates perfectly.

It is your training ruck

If you are still thinking you have to load a pack up with max weight, think again. I’d also encourage you to think about the pack you have and the activity you do and follow this protocol.

Step 1: Weigh your hunting pack or vest. If the backpack you use for chasing whitetails is 15 pounds you don’t need to be hoofing around with 50 pounds in a pack; especially if you are just starting a fitness program. In fact, depending on your fitness level, you might start with only walking and no pack at all.

Step 2: Define your FIT Criteria. FIT is an acronym for Frequency, Intensity and Time. How many days do you plan to run, how heavy is your pack and how long will your training rucks be? A base program might look like:

• Ruck 3 days per week
• Load 15 pounds in your backpack (10% of body weight for a 150 pound person)
• Ruck for 30 minutes

Step 3: Progressive overload is key! Once you have performed three workouts, consider changing one FIT variable. You might add a day of rucking, increase the weight in your pack 1-3% or add time to your ruck. The key here is you should only choose one variable. It is a slower process but what we find are client’s improve fitness at a linear rate with a reduced risk of injury. I typically recommend adding time or load.

Yes, we want you to eventually do some training rucks with a load slightly heavier than your hunting pack but those will be limited. Like Coach Brian said, he might only do 10 heavy rucks in an entire year.

Training hard is good but training smart is better!

Piecing it all together

Do you have more questions on how to add rucking to your active lifestyle? Please shoot us a DM here at GoWild. We LOVE connecting with our friends and answering your hunting and fitness questions! And if you are looking for a solid workout program, check out our growing menu of DIY Fitness Programs on the Fit To Hunt website. Just remember to use code GOWILD10 to get 10% off!

Good luck this season and happy rucking!