Heavy Pack frequency?

[TheWhitetailNut]

So I'm about halfway through my training period for an upcoming Multi-species trip to the NWT and I've added the weighted pack. Are there any guidelines to prevent injury? Here's my current rundown:

Leg Day:
2-150' lunges down and back
50 flights star machine unloaded
2-sets seats leg raises with weight to fail @12-15 reps
2-sets seats leg raises with weight to fail @8-10 reps (running out of weight on the machine)
50 Flights with Atlas trainer and 25# plate
2-sets deadlift with 185# 15 reps and 225# for 10
2-sets of high box steps 10 reps each leg
50 flights with Atlas and 45# plate

Off days:
2 miles with Atlas and 45# plate down my street. We have no hills here so the good folks over in the sheep forum recommended I "sidehill" ditches. That has been effective and I can feel it mid calf through the foot.

How much weighted training is too much? A lifetime (47 years)of being a very active 250-300# person has taken a toll on my frame already but I've been recovering nicely from even heavy workouts since on TRT the last few months.

 

[Truck24hr]

How long is that taking you, and how often are you doing it?

Sounds like a lot of variation, when you could do several variations of weighted step ups, and get in those slow step downs.

For me, I think the heavy lunges are great. I'd personally keep those, add in side lunges, and then box step ups and step downs.

 

[justinspicher]

I’ve never carried a heavy ruck for training. I’m more into the endurance with light weight and go heavy when I have to.

 

[P Carter]

Are you getting in one long day per week?

Depending on fitness, one walk (I guess we call it “rucking” now b/c we’re cool) with a lighter pack would go a long way. The goal is to be to be able to be on your feet and moving for like 8 hours a day, 10 days in a row, it’d make sense to do some long walks with maybe 25 lbs. maybe start at 1.5 hrs and work up to 4. Probably 1 day a week.

I wouldn’t go heavier than 45 lbs. as I understand it, that’s roughly the breaking point where injuries start to happen.

I didn’t see the frequency—are you doing leg day like 2x per week and walking with a weighted pack every other day? If not, I’d think you want to do at least something 6 days a week to get your body used to recovering day after day. Plus, honestly, a 2 mile hike with a 45# pack should be like…not even really a workout. More an active recovery day, which is fine. What’s your heart rate or perceived exertion on those?

If you stay consistent with this, and are recovering fine, seems like you’re well on your way.

 

[Skerhunter]

There is a lot of ways to do it (running, walking, rucking, biking), but I would focus on more steps/elevation on the stair machine and current rucks based what you have chosen for your workouts. Looks like you are off to great start!

I don’t know what your hunts will entail (elevation gains/daily miles/pack weight), but I simply train/test myself on those aspects. Lots of long miles with a heavy pack, I focus more on heavy rucks, but generally I’m not doing a ton of miles with a pack over 60-70lbs.

 

[Ross]

I would focus more on endurance and duration with a lite pack. I see too much emphasis on heavy pack training. When you think about a mountainous or strenuous hunt, 80% of our hunt is with lite weight 20-40 pds. When successful, heavy is heavy and can be broken up into many loads. No reason to beat ourselves up and risk injury. Your doing plenty of heavy stuff, add in high intensity intervals

 

[TheWhitetailNut]

Are you getting in one long day per week?

Depending on fitness, one walk (I guess we call it “rucking” now b/c we’re cool) with a lighter pack would go a long way. The goal is to be to be able to be on your feet and moving for like 8 hours a day, 10 days in a row, it’d make sense to do some long walks with maybe 25 lbs. maybe start at 1.5 hrs and work up to 4. Probably 1 day a week.

I wouldn’t go heavier than 45 lbs. as I understand it, that’s roughly the breaking point where injuries start to happen.

I didn’t see the frequency—are you doing leg day like 2x per week and walking with a weighted pack every other day? If not, I’d think you want to do at least something 6 days a week to get your body used to recovering day after day. Plus, honestly, a 2 mile hike with a 45# pack should be like…not even really a workout. More an active recovery day, which is fine. What’s your heart rate or perceived exertion on those?

If you stay consistent with this, and are recovering fine, seems like you’re well on your way.

I work out every day on a 3 day rotation. Arms/Upper, Core, stretching/walk with pack, Leg day. The 2 mile walk is exactly that, just a walk on days I'm not hitting my legs. On the 2 mile walk HR is like 110, Mid 160's with the stair interval because the pace is also brisk. The likelihood of doing something for 8 hrs a day is zero, I may get one or two in the last month but zero chance of doing it many times.

I’ve never carried a heavy ruck for training. I’m more into the endurance with light weight and go heavy when I have to.

I did the last 4 months without load. I cannot continue to drop weight without load increasing calorie burn.

I'm confident we are not going to go 100 miles with heavy packs or anything. Maybe 20-25# most of the time.

 

[TheWhitetailNut]

How long is that taking you, and how often are you doing it?

Sounds like a lot of variation, when you could do several variations of weighted step ups, and get in those slow step downs.

For me, I think the heavy lunges are great. I'd personally keep those, add in side lunges, and then box step ups and step downs.

50 minutes start to finish on the leg day routine.

 

[P Carter]

I work out every day on a 3 day rotation. Arms/Upper, Core, stretching/walk with pack, Leg day. The 2 mile walk is exactly that, just a walk on days I'm not hitting my legs. On the 2 mile walk HR is like 110, Mid 160's with the stair interval because the pace is also brisk. The likelihood of doing something for 8 hrs a day is zero, I may get one or two in the last month but zero chance of doing it many times.

I did the last 4 months without load. I cannot continue to drop weight without load increasing calorie burn.

I'm confident we are not going to go 100 miles with heavy packs or anything. Maybe 20-25# most of the time.

Got it. Just my two cents: since you’re training for an activity that will consistent if many hours walking day after day, don’t you think training should involve walking day after day?

To be clear, I’m not suggesting to walk 8 hours a day in training. But walking several days in a row, maybe an hour per day with one longer effort per week maybe 2-4 hours, seems tailored to the demands of the event.

Put more bluntly, if you’re training for an event that consists of walking many hours a day for 10 days in a row, shouldn’t your training be primarily focused on walking for days in a row?

Strength training and muscular endurance is clearly necessary, but from what you’ve described, the training doesn’t seem well tailored to the event you’re training for.

Final observation, and I’m not trying to be a jerk. If your HR is 110 while walking with no weight, and 160 on a stair interval with no weight, it seems like endurance is severely lacking and should be an area of emphasis. Everyone’s HR is different, but not many people can maintain 160 hr for hours on end, and your event will be walking uphill for hours on end.

 

[mtnbound]

I work out every day on a 3 day rotation. Arms/Upper, Core, stretching/walk with pack, Leg day. The 2 mile walk is exactly that, just a walk on days I'm not hitting my legs. On the 2 mile walk HR is like 110, Mid 160's with the stair interval because the pace is also brisk. The likelihood of doing something for 8 hrs a day is zero, I may get one or two in the last month but zero chance of doing it many times.

I did the last 4 months without load. I cannot continue to drop weight without load increasing calorie burn.

I'm confident we are not going to go 100 miles with heavy packs or anything. Maybe 20-25# most of the time.

While I do program occasional intensity-focused rucks to simulate a heavy pack-out where the load can reach 50–55% of bodyweight, most of my rucking falls into a lower BW percentage. My longer sessions are typically at 20–25% of body weight, while shorter sessions are usually in the 10–15% range.

Your reported heart rate of 110 bpm on 2-mile walk days stands out as a bit high, if you’re truly just walking.

On the other end, a heart rate of 160 bpm on the stair machine appears too intense for Zone 2 work. Generally, you’d expect Zone 2 to fall below the 140 bpm range, but I don't know your exact HR zone ranges.

In terms of programming, I typically work in 3-week blocks. After each block, I make adjustments based on the time of year and any short-term training priorities. My base structure usually includes two Zone 2 sessions per training week, one shorter session (around 35–45 minutes) and one longer session (60+ minutes), with flexibility in how those sessions are implemented. In your case, I would try to gradually increase one of your ruck sessions to 2+ hours working in Z2, with no more than 45#.

 

[P Carter]

While I do program occasional intensity-focused rucks to simulate a heavy pack-out where the load can reach 50–55% of bodyweight, most of my rucking falls into a lower BW percentage. My longer sessions are typically at 20–25% of body weight, while shorter sessions are usually in the 10–15% range.

Your reported heart rate of 110 bpm on 2-mile walk days stands out as a bit high, if you’re truly just walking.

On the other end, a heart rate of 160 bpm on the stair machine appears too intense for Zone 2 work. Generally, you’d expect Zone 2 to fall below the 140 bpm range, but I don't know your exact HR zone ranges.

In terms of programming, I typically work in 3-week blocks. After each block, I make adjustments based on the time of year and any short-term training priorities. My base structure usually includes two Zone 2 sessions per training week, one shorter session (around 35–45 minutes) and one longer session (60+ minutes), with flexibility in how those sessions are implemented. In your case, I would try to gradually increase one of your ruck sessions to 2+ hours working in Z2, with no more than 45#.

This is good advice, I would just ask: why two zone 2 sessions per week when the goal activity is more or less 100% zone 2 for 10 days in a row?

I would think the zone 2 work should predominate. I realize you’re describing your workouts, which I assume aren’t geared towards a sheep hunt, but for a sheep hunt, why would someone do only 2 aerobic sessions a week? Seems backwards to me.

 

[mtnbound]

This is good advice, I would just ask: why two zone 2 sessions per week when the goal activity is more or less 100% zone 2 for 10 days in a row?

I would think the zone 2 work should predominate. I realize you’re describing your workouts, which I assume aren’t geared towards a sheep hunt, but for a sheep hunt, why would someone do only 2 aerobic sessions a week? Seems backwards to me.

I maintain a baseline of two Zone 2 sessions per week throughout the year. As the season approaches, I increase my total training volume to approximately six hours each week.

I've tried higher volumes, but they can be challenging to sustain alongside the demands of everyday life. In my opinion, for most people, including hunters, training beyond five to six hours of Z2 per week often results in diminishing aerobic returns and compromises relative strength. To me, this is not a balanced approach.