Perhaps you have recently noticed more people walking around the roads of Greene County wearing sleek backpacks. If you have, then you may have witnessed one of the fastest growing fitness trends, and it is known as “Rucking.” And a lot of our residents have joined the party.
Rucking is merely walking with weight on your back. It is quite simple, but it is also scalable, inexpensive, and extremely effective. If you are a walker, it will absolutely add intensity to your everyday walks. It has been proven to provide significant benefits like building strength, burning more calories, improving endurance, and boosting mental wellness with minimal impact: Thus, with fewer injuries than running. And it is also easier to motivate yourself to do it than many other training regimens. You simply sling your backpack over your shoulders and begin walking.
My first exposure to rucking was last August. I had just had my second hip replacement (The first being three months earlier), and I was desperate to plan a way to re-strengthen my legs and core. I knew running was not advisable, because that is what probably led to my replacements in the first place. While recovering, a friend suggested I read the book, The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self, by Michael Easter. The book explores how being too comfortable in the modern western world has led to a rise in depression, disease, and obesity. I highly recommend the book for a full reading, but I was particularly struck by the section on rucking.
Easter describes how humans, throughout history, were built to carry loads for long distances. This ability allowed early hunters to travel tens of miles in a day to find game, and then to return to their villages carrying heavy loads of fresh meat. He speculates that even modern-day humans are still built to benefit from a similar activity.
He then describes how the U.S. special forces, the most well-trained forces in the world, have largely abandoned running in favor of rucking. They have discovered that rucking provides equivalent levels of endurance, while also building more muscle and strength, increasing fat burn, increasing bone density, and dramatically reducing injuries sustained from other types of training.
When I got the “All clear” from my surgeon, I started rucking. Obviously, I eased into it, and I suggest anyone should do the same to allow the muscles to become used to weight-bearing. I began with five pounds and rucked about one mile. Over the course of the next several months I have increased my pack weight to 75 pounds, and my ruck times vary between 30 and 60 minutes, at least five days a week. Some rucking experts recommend not exceeding one-third of your body weight, so I believe I have maxed out. But I do plan on occasionally rucking for longer distances, and I hope to do a 10-miler.
Not everyone will want to ruck with a 75-pound pack, and that is fine. The most important thing is consistency. If you feel you will more consistently enjoy rucking week after week with 5, 15, or 25 pounds, then that is what you should have in your pack.
You can begin your own rucking journey with any kind of backpack and some old weight plates or dumbbells. However, if you plan to get serious, and want a backpack that stands up to heavier loads, you can look at the websites of companies like GoRuck for both packs and specialized weight plates. You can also find less expensive packs on Amazon. You can also look for announcements In the GreeneScene Magazine for rucking clubs and rucking events. Good luck to all of you who begin your rucking journey!
