Anybody rucking?

[DuckDogDr]

Looking at starting this myself. Was going to start at 30 lbs and go for 2 miles with my kifaru

 

[Ope]

I'm new to rucking. Using an old alice ruck to train while I save up for a good pack. Exo has a workout plan to help with rucking/packing out has anybody used it? It's a 4 week plan.

 

[Hicksy]

I learned to ruck the hard way, in USAF TACP School. You ruck everywhere and everyday. The best piece of advice I can give you is to keep the weight as stationary and high as you can. Build a plan and work up in increments and learn where your hot spots are make the proper moves to mitigate.

Were were issued old Alice Frame rucks and iron weight plates, more plates would be issued each week.

Take said plates and duct tape them together then 550 or zip tie them to the top bar of your frame of whatever pack you have if applicable.

My current set up for exercise is a pack rabbit with a topped off Jerry can strapped to it and it works fairly well.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

I just ordered a goruck pack, I was using a kifaru 14er but it didn't keep the ruck plates very high. This will just be for workouts. If Im going ot th emountains to train I'll use my hunting packs.

 

[dtrkyman]

Nothing ground braking but I bought a bag of playground sand, duct taped the hell out of it, you can really tie it down so it has zero movement. 25-30lbs if i remember correctly.

I add a couple 5 lb rubber dumb bells in the lower side pouches when I want more weight.

Load up a water bladder or bottles as well, easy way to play with weight.

 

[DeePow]

Thanks to everyone for the advice. This was my first experience on rockslide and it was a good one. Everyone is friendly and helpful. I’m gonna try to get a bag of something that’s 30lbs and adjust my pack to put more weight on the hips.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What I’ve done in the past is slit the opening and pour the sand into a five gallon bucket. Start with 20lbs and work my way up. Use the pack to do high steps too to develop more leg strength. You do. It want to mess your back up by straining it because you will be set back weeks if not longer. Treat your back kindly and build your trunk strength.

 

[Istandalone]

I just started this morning with my old mountainsmitth approach 3.0 and 2 gallon jugs of water while walking the dog. Needed the alternative to running at my age (60). Probably upgrade soon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[UTJL]

I wear my pack while walking the dog daily and then on a hike at least once every two weeks. I’ll start with 40lbs in May and keep adding weight until the season starts.

I find the walking off trail and uphill to be the most beneficial/difficult. It strengthens my feet, ankles, calves and improves my balance. The daily walks are great to dial in your packs fit.

 

[bozeman]

Bleachers without a pack for a few weeks now, up to 1.25 hours....once I get to 1.5 hours, I add a pack and start adding weight each week.....start tapering off around early Sept

 

[Wags]

Not much elevation change here so I’ve been hitting the stair stepper & treadmill with the pack a few times a week.

 

[Patriot2]

I weighed everything I need for a 3-4day hunt and came up with 32#, so I have beed rucking with an old pack loaded to about 32 lbs once per week, about 3 miles. Hit 60 last year so it is a good low impact workout. Probably step up weight, hills or distance as hunting season nears. Will be in Colorado all of September chasing critters in the mountains, God willing.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Not much elevation change here so I’ve been hitting the stair stepper & treadmill with the pack a few times a week.

View attachment 409370

You'll get better results if you use a flat brim hat and post about the workout on facebook/instagram. Just saying.

 

[KHNC]

I learned to ruck the hard way, in USAF TACP School. You ruck everywhere and everyday. The best piece of advice I can give you is to keep the weight as stationary and high as you can. Build a plan and work up in increments and learn where your hot spots are make the proper moves to mitigate.

Were were issued old Alice Frame rucks and iron weight plates, more plates would be issued each week.

Take said plates and duct tape them together then 550 or zip tie them to the top bar of your frame of whatever pack you have if applicable.

My current set up for exercise is a pack rabbit with a topped off Jerry can strapped to it and it works fairly well.

My first experience at rucking was at Medina in 1988 , class 04/088 CCT Indoc. We used ALICE as well. I see they are still resistant to change when training.

 

[Alvie]

If your up to a challenge do the MTN tough Embrace the Ruck.

 

[Wags]

You'll get better results if you use a flat brim hat and post about the workout on facebook/instagram. Just saying.

Don’t own a flat brim & I don’t have any social media outside of this forum. Neither of which interest me. But feel free to use the picture if you use those platforms.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I will play.

started rucking 1000 years ago when I worked for my Uncle Sam. These days I start about now and go through the summer.

after trying everything from water jugs to bolt cutters to add weight, I find sand works best IMO. Salt and corn can attract mice that chew packs. hard shit like weight plates and tools will burn nylon through with enough miles. Water will leak if you toss your pack around enough.

I take 2x gallon zip locks and load it with dry (spread it out in the sun to avoid mold) play sand . I wrap that in a contractor bag. I sometimes wrap that with an old towel. Shit loads of duct tape between the layers. I make “pills“ in 10# increments from 10-30#. I put some styrofoam on bottom to get the weight up closer to the middle of my back and mix and match depending on what weight I want.

I run those in an MR crew cab with a set of load lifters usually but I will also put them in my main pack too as I get closer to a hike or hunt.

- I will go light and long with 20-30#
- I will go a bit heavier to challenge myself with 40-50#.
- rarely I will do shorter, heavy work with 60+#. But only for short distance.
- I will mix in hills and uneven paths and a little terrain to train stability.

- don’t run with a lot of weight, you will miss you knees, hips and spine when they are gone.
- train up slowly. let your joints adapt, which will happen more slowly than muscles
- Pay attention to your feet and give them time and attention to adapt. Blisters suck but plantar fasciitis and stress fractures can end hunts and keep upyou out of the game for months or years.

 

[Istandalone]

I just started this morning with my old mountainsmitth approach 3.0 and 2 gallon jugs of water while walking the dog. Needed the alternative to running at my age (60). Probably upgrade soon.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Filled the gallon jugs with sand. Went from about 20 lbs to about 33 lbs.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Nick Muche]

Did a Norwegian Foot March recently, 18.6 miles and finished in 4 hours. Used a Kifaru Duplex with a 44 Mag, pack weighed 45 lbs. Zero feet issues, even though I was in combat boots and never once took the pack off. It held up and carried like a dream, many others in the event didn't fare as well.

 

[chanson_roland]

I picked up an Atlas Trainer on sale. It's made a major difference for me in learning my boundaries, and how to comfortably put on a good amount of weight. I even walk the dogs with the thing on now.

 

[sterlryu]

Superfeet insoles, merino (smartwool or darn tough) socks, and crank those hipstraps and loosen your shoulder straps so more weight transfers to your hips. Got me through my military service. You'll want to tighten the shoulders when bushwacking off trail or scrambling though. Stop and treat hotspots (mole skin, kino tape) the moment you notice them.

Also a thing around here in WA is to pack gallon jugs of water when going hiking, then dump the water at the summit to reduce injury risk on the way down. Each gallon jug is a little over 8 pounds, start with 1-2 as well as the 10 essentials.