Other/Mixed Is Rucking the GOAT exercise for GPP?

[User 7569]

I'm not trying to make an argument for this one, and I understand that rucking in the context of military service leads to injuries for a lot of soldiers -

I am talking about ruck training of 3+ times/week or near daily with loads of 20-50 pounds.

I have simply never found an exercise so beneficial for my endurance and strength. It has a "What the Hell" effect just like Swings, TGU, and Crawling (leopard, spiderman) have given me.

I'm currently at the point, where, if I could do only one exercise, it would be walking with a load. And many days I do just that.

 

[watchnerd]

I'm not trying to make an argument for this one, and I understand that rucking in the context of military service leads to injuries for a lot of soldiers -

I am talking about ruck training of 3+ times/week or near daily with loads of 20-50 pounds.

I have simply never found an exercise so beneficial for my endurance and strength. It has a "What the Hell" effect just like Swings, TGU, and Crawling (leopard, spiderman) have given me.

I'm currently at the point, where, if I could do only one exercise, it would be walking with a load. And many days I do just that.

No, it's not GOAT for GPP.

Rucking is good.

I like it a lot.

But rowing is much better across a wider range of time and intensity intervals.

V02 Max studies on rowing show insane levels of scaling.

Also, you can't do HIIT with rucking....it would become a loaded sprint.

Rowing is also lower impact.

 

[offwidth]

Both good.
Depends upon goals and aspirations.

For 'tactical' purposes, and training for climbing and similar pursuits (might not be any actually) I would highly favour rucking. There is no comparison really... (S.A.I.D. Principle.)
Additionally rucking requires virtually no specialized equipment other than a... rucksack, and can be done virtually anywhere, anytime, and in any weather.

If, however, one has access to a good rowing machine, and enjoys the great indoors, then rowing is a totally bomber way to train both aerobic and anaerobic systems. I favour rowing over all other indoor training by a mile.

Real rowing on water however is a whole other world...

 

[vegpedlr]

I’ll be testing this out soon when I finally get out on some trails, but I’m a ruck convert. With a running background, I never got the point. I just thought it was just something for wannabets doing cosplay with tactical gear they bought on Amazon. Why not just go for a run? Or call it hiking? But recent circumstances left me with this as my best outdoor option, and . . . I like it. I load a 16K bell in a pack and truck it up the steep road for 30-45 min. It feels oddly like climbing on the bike with its low cadence and higher tension.

I like to combine it with rowing. Row for about 20 min interspersing some swings etc every 3 min then grab the pack and the dogs and go.

 

[User 7569]

I’ll be testing this out soon when I finally get out on some trails, but I’m a ruck convert. With a running background, I never got the point. I just thought it was just something for wannabets doing cosplay with tactical gear they bought on Amazon. Why not just go for a run? Or call it hiking? But recent circumstances left me with this as my best outdoor option, and . . . I like it. I load a 16K bell in a pack and truck it up the steep road for 30-45 min. It feels oddly like climbing on the bike with its low cadence and higher tension.

I like to combine it with rowing. Row for about 20 min interspersing some swings etc every 3 min then grab the pack and the dogs and go.

I get exactly what you mean about rucking feeling like climbing on a bike,

 

[User 7569]

Here is a "program" () based on Rucking, for those that are already doing outdoor activities (trail hiking, bushcraft, camping)


I also cannot recommend the rucksack shown in the video enough - it is a US Military Issue ALICE Medium with the frame - a stellar pack. Absolutely tough as nails, can be had for around $60-70 for the full ruck with frame.



This man has an interesting fitness philosophy regarding rucking, he encourages you to blend rucking with your outdoor activities, he also encourages you to load your pack creatively with tools for tramping in the woods / bushcraft as well as actually doing calisthenics or weighted activities in the bush.

The goruck plate looks interesting, does anyone own one?

 

[watchnerd]

Here is a "program" () based on Rucking, for those that are already doing outdoor activities (trail hiking, bushcraft, camping)


I also cannot recommend the rucksack shown in the video enough - it is a US Military Issue ALICE Medium with the frame - a stellar pack. Absolutely tough as nails, can be had for around $60-70 for the full ruck with frame.

Uh oh, I guess I'm in trouble...

I do rucking in a regular civilian camping style nylon-framed backpack.

Can I call it rucking if I'm not using military gear?

 

[Kettlebelephant]

No, it's not GOAT for GPP.

Rucking is good.

I like it a lot.

But rowing is much better across a wider range of time and intensity intervals.

V02 Max studies on rowing show insane levels of scaling.

Also, you can't do HIIT with rucking....it would become a loaded sprint.

Rowing is also lower impact.

Lower back problems is a staple for many, many professional and recreational rowers.

The Research on Low Back Pain and Rib Stress Injuries in Rowing - Rowing Stronger

Reviewing research on low back pain and rib stress injuries in rowers, the most common and costliest rowing injuries, why they happen, and how to prevent.

rowingstronger.com

Back Pain in Rowers: A Cross-sectional Study on Prevalence, Pain Characteristics and Risk Factors - PubMed

Back pain in different spinal locations is a common complaint in rowers of different typologies and competition levels. Rowing kinematics, strength, and ergometer training are the main associated risk factors for developing back pain in rowers. Thus, the spinal load due to rowing kinematics and...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Factors contributing to low back pain in rowers | British Journal of Sports Medicine

These are just a few, you can find a lot more with a quick google search.
My n=1 is the same. When I row and don't keep perfect technique throughout the whole session my back gets stiff and doesn't feel good.
Despite what many people think, rowing on an C2 rower is very technical and you should have proper instruction if you plan on using it frequently.

Rucking on the other side always leaves me feeling better.
The key to rucking is not going over a certain amount of load and not over a certain speed (turning it into a jog).

I sold my C2 after over a year of frequent use, because for me running and rucking get the job done just fine.

Rowing is also lower impact.

Debatable. I totally agree if you think of military rucks (up to 100+ lbs and almost running), but if you keep the speed and load down there's not really much more impact than regular walking.
Besides you want a bit of impact to build bone and ligament strength.

Also, you can't do HIIT with rucking....it would become a loaded sprint.

Just hit some pushups, squats, lunges or whatever with the ruck on your bag.

@offwidth already mentioned rucking beeing a lot cheaper (rucksack vs rowerg).

Not trying to trash rowing, but for most clients I would prescribe rucking over rowing.

 

[User 7569]

Uh oh, I guess I'm in trouble...

I do rucking in a regular civilian camping style nylon-framed backpack.

Can I call it rucking if I'm not using military gear?

No you have to call it something else unless your bag has PALS webbing

I would think about investing in a mil-surplus bag if you start to load up to 50+ pounds on a regular basis though. civilian gear is not really meant for hard, frequent use

 

[Tim Randolph]

I have simply never found an exercise so beneficial for my endurance and strength

Rucking rocks! To me a baseline for gpp is the ability to ruck with 20% or more body weight for a few hours. It covers a lot of bases.

Once you hit that though, I’m not sure rucking is the best gpp tool. For the same amount of time, I get a lot more gpp benefits running and doing S&S. Still, if I could only do one exercise it would be rucking. Huge bang for the buck.

 

[Dasho]

It's the GOAT for me, personally. I love the feeling in my core and traps. If you ruck with a heavy enough load, you feel like you can walk through walls after you take off your pack.

 

[offwidth]

Or call it hiking?

Exactly... which is exactly what it is of course....

 

[vegpedlr]

Exactly... which is exactly what it is of course....

Well, sort of, in my mind at least. Hiking is going somewhere on foot. Such a trip might require some gear in a pack, or not. Rucking is deliberately carrying a load so as to get stronger. I’ve hiked over the years carrying various bits of kit as appropriate, but never did I think what I really needed was a Kettlebell. But that’s what I “ruck” with. The hill is too steep to run at MAF, but a little too easy just to walk.

 

[User 7569]

A thought about rucking:

different packs obviously load weight on you in a different way, due to their design

-An assault pack usually comes with some sort of sternum strap, but don't usually include a real hip belt that shifts weight to your
hips, The genuine military (has US on the front, NSN number on the tag inside) packs go for loads of 40-50 pounds, allowing you to put quite a load on your shoulders, not your hips.

The US military assault packs also have a plastic stiffener (and a piece of black foam) in the back that serves as a frame and keeps bulky stuff (kettlebells, canteens) off your back.

If you buy an assault pack from a surplus store or Amazon / other website make sure that it includes the stiffener. mcgyvering a stiffener doesn't really work as well as you'd think

The above pack is the Marines ILBE pack. This is an example of a military INTERNAL Frame rucksack. This thing is going to offer loads more comfort than an assault pack when the load exceeds 30 pounds. It shifts all of the weight to your hips, and has more of a systemic effect because you can carry much heavier loads and not feel like your shoulders are being torn apart.

This particular pack is a monster, I believe it is 70 Liters and rated for 100+ lbs. You can get these reliably for around $100 take or give some.

This is a frame for an ALICE pack. If you want a systemic effect on your rucking (most of the weight being on your hips, not on your shoulders like with an assault pack or book bag), you can get one of these frames for anywhere from $20-40. You can buy an ALICE frame shelf as well, making it easier to haul loads with. These frames are very durable, common enough, and can be easily repaired with some cheap screws if a rivet breaks.

I'm pretty sure the ALICE frame will hold as much weight as you could want to ruck with for recreational purposes.

The ALICE frame is ridden high, the belt on the ALICE is supposed to go over your kidneys, not on your hips.

 

[offwidth]

Well, sort of, in my mind at least. Hiking is going somewhere on foot. Such a trip might require some gear in a pack, or not. Rucking is deliberately carrying a load so as to get stronger. I’ve hiked over the years carrying various bits of kit as appropriate, but never did I think what I really needed was a Kettlebell. But that’s what I “ruck” with. The hill is too steep to run at MAF, but a little too easy just to walk.

I believe the actual definition of rucking is to 'move gear from point A to point B in a backpack (rucksack)'. This and similar communities have adopted the term to imply a method of training to get stronger. Plenty of people ruck to move stuff from a to b without caring about getting stronger (although they do)
I'm not married to either name. Whatever we call it, and however we do it, it is a great tool.
(Over the years between the army and decades of climbing I have probably accumulated thousands of miles and well over a million feet in elevation gain carrying packs.)
In climbing however 'light is right' and you want to carry as little weight as possible. (And sometimes even less)
In the army you have to schlep what they tell you to...

 

[watchnerd]

No you have to call it something else unless your bag has PALS webbing

I would think about investing in a mil-surplus bag if you start to load up to 50+ pounds on a regular basis though. civilian gear is not really meant for hard, frequent use

I was joking.

I actually have a MOLLE.

 

[vegpedlr]

Why would the military packs not transfer weight to the hips via a belt?

 

[Steve Rogers]

It's the GOAT for me, personally. I love the feeling in my core and traps. If you ruck with a heavy enough load, you feel like you can walk through walls after you take off your pack.

Or jump really high!

 

[User 7569]

Why would the military packs not transfer weight to the hips via a belt?

The assault packs wouldn't, but most every military ruck with a frame will transfer weight to the hips via hip belt

 

[Steve Rogers]

A thought about rucking:

different packs obviously load weight on you in a different way, due to their design

-An assault pack usually comes with some sort of sternum strap, but don't usually include a real hip belt that shifts weight to your
hips, The genuine military (has US on the front, NSN number on the tag inside) packs go for loads of 40-50 pounds, allowing you to put quite a load on your shoulders, not your hips.
View attachment 10581
The US military assault packs also have a plastic stiffener (and a piece of black foam) in the back that serves as a frame and keeps bulky stuff (kettlebells, canteens) off your back.

If you buy an assault pack from a surplus store or Amazon / other website make sure that it includes the stiffener. mcgyvering a stiffener doesn't really work as well as you'd think

The above pack is the Marines ILBE pack. This is an example of a military INTERNAL Frame rucksack. This thing is going to offer loads more comfort than an assault pack when the load exceeds 30 pounds. It shifts all of the weight to your hips, and has more of a systemic effect because you can carry much heavier loads and not feel like your shoulders are being torn apart.

This particular pack is a monster, I believe it is 70 Liters and rated for 100+ lbs. You can get these reliably for around $100 take or give some.

This is a frame for an ALICE pack. If you want a systemic effect on your rucking (most of the weight being on your hips, not on your shoulders like with an assault pack or book bag), you can get one of these frames for anywhere from $20-40. You can buy an ALICE frame shelf as well, making it easier to haul loads with. These frames are very durable, common enough, and can be easily repaired with some cheap screws if a rivet breaks.

I'm pretty sure the ALICE frame will hold as much weight as you could want to ruck with for recreational purposes.

The ALICE frame is ridden high, the belt on the ALICE is supposed to go over your kidneys, not on your hips.

Let me offer my two cents on this.

I have tried all of the above with excessive loads. over a period of time. The winner every time is the ALICE pack or the really expensive ALICE lookalikes that go for $200 or more. The trick is you gotta set it up right with some 550 cord, ISO mat and gorilla tape.

The ILBE shifts around too much for me. The assault bag is great for small loads of up to 40lbs or so but unless you pack it right it will shift on you too much.

A word on GoRuck packs - I've used those too with the GoRuck plate and without and while they are a great tough little backpack I still think the ALICE wins. There is just no replacement for stability.

Now of course if you plan on doing a Ruck workout like burpees, bear crawls, fireman carries, or whatever then maybe GoRuck is your best bet because that is pretty much what they were made for.

And while I'm on the subject of rucks, footwear is probably more important. get a good solid hiking shoe or stable military boot with good insoles. If you use a military boot replace the laces with 550 cord and stuff ISO mat in between the laces and the tongue to push your heel back. That's what we did anyway and we did a lot of military rucking. Even if you don't move fast, it's still a good idea to make those changes if you have an army surplus military boot.