Rucking

FeWolf

FeWolf

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Joined
Jul 30, 2012
Messages
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Sate of confussion ;)
I found this site looking for some rucking info, since I last served the nation in 1992, alot has changed , I no longer have to ruck 25 miles with 85lbs, even thou I did like it. Now that I am alittle slower and older, and no longer have to go from point "A" to point "B" as fast as I can, and I no longer compete either.
I have moved to the Mnts of TN., and love the area, I did a small 5 mile ruck on something as big as a animal trail, I enjoyed it, especially the views and wildlife. But I noticed that I need to do so training in the ruck/hike area.
I am lloking for several things.
Gear, I have great boots, but the ruck it self is another matter.
I was checking this post out: http://www.shadowspear.com/vb/threads/working-on-a-3day-ruck-cobra.14380/

very interesting gear for a day trip, carrying my gear and the wife's. I was wondering if anyone has tried it out yet?

Second part of post is training, the average ruck/hike with be about 8 miles long, 10 to 15% grade, gear is about 25 lbs. ( which includes a bottle of wine and food ;) )
I am age 49, guess I am in average condition.
I was looking for some type of suggested training, so I can enjoy the trip without being winded, or the wife preforming CPR on me.
Should I train in distance or wieght or a combo of both.
treadmill with weight?
Any prove method would be great.
 
There is a ton of info on this around here, but like anything, the best training for rucking (or hiking) is to put a pack on and walk. That aside, any good old fashioned strength and conditioning program will meet your needs.

If you're looking for a day pack, why not take a trip to your local REI or other outdoors store and check out what they have? If you really want to drop 2-3 bills on a pack, I'm sure the one mentioned above or a Mystery Ranch pack will more than work.
 
Ranger Psych said:
Bring your wife and get her one as well.

A: She can carry her share of the load
B: She can come on the conditioning walks
C: When you do walks for real, put her point so you get a better view all the way there. (and on "fun rucks" she sets the pace so you actually enjoy the walk)
Click to expand...
LOL, I like you number 3, actually my wife is in excellent condition, still the same weight as when she was 21, I have her carry a mini pack, I carry more of the load, so to score extra points.
 
As a civilian of your age, there is really no benefit of "rucking" with a ton of weight. Get a small pack to carry necessities for the hike and call it a day. Rucking/hiking is all about conditioning and you will only get better at it if you just go out and do it. Start small and easy and work your way up into more difficult hikes. It's like anything else: ease your way into it.................especially at your age.
 
do lunges for 800 meters around a track. then later on do some weighted. then do lunges for 1200 meters.. etc.

that'll help with rucking
 
Deathy McDeath said:
Alright I went ahead and did one lap around our compound, which is about 550 meters. My legs kinda hurt really badly.
Click to expand...
You need to fight through the initial phase where you have a lot of DOMs. Once you get over that, your legs won't really get sore anymore, they will just be tired.
 
I have a hard time finding a pack to fit my frame. I'm about five feet with a waist of 28... Yeah... that's right... I'm small. I know.

I have gone to REI and got a pack to fit my frame. The guy helping me had to move me down to the 'boy scouts' pack (juniors), but it fits comfortable, so no complaints there. However, it's not something I can use in the military. It's BLUE. I've been using the one that my unit had given me... Blackhawk, but the waist strap sits around my hip and not on my waist and the straps are still a little loose after I pull it tight. I want to buy a pack that I can train with and continue to use in the military.

Guidance welcomed!
 
Bang for your buck - Osprey. Made is Asia but the majority of their packs are a good design, the way they construct their straps is some of the best I've seen (better than the majority of the Gucci go faster brands) and they have a lifetime warranty. You can swap out the harnesses and waist belts in their 50 lt plus range. Do not ever buy Dakine, absolute trash.

For military use accept that you are never going to get the same level of comfort as a civilian pack. That vest/belt rig you need to wear so you can kill MFers throws the ergonomics out the window. The hip belt you need to transfer the weight to your hips (don't get me started on the hype of that myth) will have a hard time fitting properly, the sternum strap is going to interfere with things you need in a hurry.

The MR nice frame is good but it's expensive and heavy for what it does. A DEI 1606 frame with a strap kit will do the same more or less. The Tac Tailor Malice is still a good pack, it would be better if they trimmed some weight, fabric tech has evolved well beyond 1000d Cordura. The new USMC pack looked really good but I've been told they are blowing out.
 
Mac_NZ said:
Bang for your buck - Osprey. Made is Asia but the majority of their packs are a good design, the way they construct their straps is some of the best I've seen (better than the majority of the Gucci go faster brands) and they have a lifetime warranty. You can swap out the harnesses and waist belts in their 50 lt plus range. Do not ever buy Dakine, absolute trash.

For military use accept that you are never going to get the same level of comfort as a civilian pack. That vest/belt rig you need to wear so you can kill MFers throws the ergonomics out the window. The hip belt you need to transfer the weight to your hips (don't get me started on the hype of that myth) will have a hard time fitting properly, the sternum strap is going to interfere with things you need in a hurry.

The MR nice frame is good but it's expensive and heavy for what it does. A DEI 1606 frame with a strap kit will do the same more or less. The Tac Tailor Malice is still a good pack, it would be better if they trimmed some weight, fabric tech has evolved well beyond 1000d Cordura. The new USMC pack looked really good but I've been told they are blowing out.
Click to expand...

Thanks Mac. I'll look into it.
 
Eberlestock also makes packs that are pretty adjustable and have military styling/features. The choice of if you can apply those comfort features or not, falls up to you.

I like my Skycrane II.

135676132539.jpg
 
Thanks RP. The backing/straps on these look just like the ones I got from REI. I will research.
 
Mac_NZ said:
Bang for your buck - Osprey. Made is Asia but the majority of their packs are a good design, the way they construct their straps is some of the best I've seen (better than the majority of the Gucci go faster brands) and they have a lifetime warranty. You can swap out the harnesses and waist belts in their 50 lt plus range. Do not ever buy Dakine, absolute trash.

For military use accept that you are never going to get the same level of comfort as a civilian pack. That vest/belt rig you need to wear so you can kill MFers throws the ergonomics out the window. The hip belt you need to transfer the weight to your hips (don't get me started on the hype of that myth) will have a hard time fitting properly, the sternum strap is going to interfere with things you need in a hurry.

The MR nice frame is good but it's expensive and heavy for what it does. A DEI 1606 frame with a strap kit will do the same more or less. The Tac Tailor Malice is still a good pack, it would be better if they trimmed some weight, fabric tech has evolved well beyond 1000d Cordura. The new USMC pack looked really good but I've been told they are blowing out.
Click to expand...


wow I know this is a really old post but I was searching for posts about rucking. You mentioned that using the hip belt is a myth? care to explain about that? Thanks in advance to anyone who can weigh in here.
 
The overwhelming majority of pack designs don't actually transfer any weight to the hips, the ones that will you can identify by the rods that run the length of the pack and terminate into the hip fin which is attached to the waist belt. Most hip belts are just a comfy looking belt mounted onto the pack with no actual mechanical transfer of weight, some have the frame bars mounted into the hip belt but there is still no transfer to the belt, its just pushing straight down the back.. There's a very good explanation of how it should work in a NATO study, Innovations in load carriage system design and evaluation.

A prime example of the myth is NZDF replaced the Alice pack with the Erblestock Terminator (which are falling apart) and one of the main selling points from a doctor who studied bio mechanics was that it had a hip belt and if it didn't have a hip belt then the weight would be carried wholly on the shoulders. The only problem is that the hip belt on a terminator is a joke (as are the shoulder straps), there is no stability straps mounted from the pack to the belt as you would expect, no transfer of weight via bars, it secures to the pack through a 4" wide sleeve and fastens with hook and loop. There is now an investigation into why Soldiers who are using it are suffering from nerve damage to their shoulders with a pack that "transfers weight to the hips".

Even with a really well designed pack the load transfer to the hips is not as high as you would think, the testing I had UCAN help me with showed an 8-11% reduction in weight on the shoulders when a hip belt was fastened properly. So not a myth as such but a very over hyped feature, the kicker is that with the old Alice and a belt rig the same thing was almost being achieved.
 
Mac_NZ said:
The overwhelming majority of pack designs don't actually transfer any weight to the hips, the ones that will you can identify by the rods that run the length of the pack and terminate into the hip fin which is attached to the waist belt. Most hip belts are just a comfy looking belt mounted onto the pack with no actual mechanical transfer of weight, some have the frame bars mounted into the hip belt but there is still no transfer to the belt, its just pushing straight down the back.. There's a very good explanation of how it should work in a NATO study, Innovations in load carriage system design and evaluation.

A prime example of the myth is NZDF replaced the Alice pack with the Erblestock Terminator (which are falling apart) and one of the main selling points from a doctor who studied bio mechanics was that it had a hip belt and if it didn't have a hip belt then the weight would be carried wholly on the shoulders. The only problem is that the hip belt on a terminator is a joke (as are the shoulder straps), there is no stability straps mounted from the pack to the belt as you would expect, no transfer of weight via bars, it secures to the pack through a 4" wide sleeve and fastens with hook and loop. There is now an investigation into why Soldiers who are using it are suffering from nerve damage to their shoulders with a pack that "transfers weight to the hips".

Even with a really well designed pack the load transfer to the hips is not as high as you would think, the testing I had UCAN help me with showed an 8-11% reduction in weight on the shoulders when a hip belt was fastened properly. So not a myth as such but a very over hyped feature, the kicker is that with the old Alice and a belt rig the same thing was almost being achieved.
Click to expand...

Really? Quite interesting, I had always been taught to use the hip belt as much as possible and had seen good results, or so I thought with it. I can see how it is over hyped on certain packs, especially the USMC pack we use now a days. But your saying that the alice pack system does the best job of weight transfer?
 

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