#DailyBloggingChallenge (45/50)
What is #rucking?
Rucking is walking with a weighted backpack.
Technically speaking, there are no backpacks that weigh nothing, thus carrying any backpack is considered as rucking.
In the community one considers acceptable weight as weight that doesn't have any other purpose than being heavy.
#DailyBloggingChallenge (46/50)
Weight is categorized into two: "wet weight" and "dry weight".
Dry weight is defined as the actual weight of the object(s) that have no other purpose than being heavy.
Wet weight is defined as the complete backpack weight.
In regards to #rucking the backpack is called a "rucksack" or short "ruck".
#DailyBloggingChallenge (47/50)
What weight should one start #rucking?
Depending on one's weight and body shape, most can handle 10-20 lbs dry weight which is approximately 5-9 kg in the beginning. It is better to start lighter and increase as needed.
Ruck weight is typically measured in pounds and notated with the # symbol.
In general it is recommended to stay below 33% of one's bodyweight, since that is the threshold where health damage exponentially increases.
#DailyBloggingChallenge (48/50)
What are examples of weight?
The simples weight that most have readily available are water bottles. They have two downsides: first they take up a lot of volume and second if using larger containers the swaying of the liquid will add an additional strain.
The traditional option is either rocks or bricks. One brick usually weighs 5#, so one can quickly get the desired weight. Additionally it is advised to duct tape them together to get one congruent unit.
Another option is to use a sandbag. The benefit is that if it ever is too much you can always empty it out. The downside towards the higher weights is that it takes up quite much volume, thus it is usually carried on top of the ruck.
The current standard is to use steel plates. These are low in volume, though can be costly buying them.
Beyond that if one has the money one can go with even more dense materials to decrease the volume. Though the returns are minimal.
#DailyBloggingChallenge (49/50)
What are some standards by #rucking?
Standards are defined as the bare minimum measurement before being considered sufficient in the area.
There are a couple of standards:
- 15 min per mile or 9 min per kilometer
- 12 miles in less than 3.5 hours or can be extended to 20 km, high achiever achieve the distance in less than 3 hours
- marathon in less than 10 h
- 50 km in 12 h
- 50 miles in 20 h
- 100 km in 24 h
#DailyBloggingChallenge (50/50)
Where to start with #rucking?
Depending on one's #fitness level 1-5 km and 1-5 kg is a good starting point.
If all feels good after the first ruck either increase the weight or distance, not both because it will be an exponential over linear increase which can cause unwanted injuries.
Once one is fit enough to do 5 km with 20# without any worry, then one should first attempt the standards.
