Rucking
This fitness trend is even more effective than jogging
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Rucking is a very simple workout, but incredibly effective for endurance, fat burning and muscle strengthening. No wonder the fitness trend is so popular right now.
Rucking originally comes from international military training. It’s basically about hiking with a backpack on your back. The soldiers should train to run long distances with a lot of weight. But rucking becomes particularly important without the military context Fitness trend. Rightly so, because the workout is simple and offers many benefits. Above all, it strengthens our endurance and therefore our cardiovascular fitness. Here’s how rucking can help us stay healthy in the long term – and possibly even live longer.
That’s what rucking is all about
When rucking as a workout, those practicing also wear a backpack on their back. They use it to walk or run a certain distance. Depending on your fitness level or age, the training intensity can be easily adjusted – running can be faster or slower, with more or less weight.
As already mentioned, the origin of training with a backpack lies in the military sector. In the Bundeswehr it is practiced as a “performance march”. The soldiers wear a backpack weighing at least 15 kilograms with which, depending on the level, they have to cover six kilometers in 60 minutes, nine kilometers in 90 minutes or twelve kilometers in 120 minutes.
Rucking fitness trend: These are the benefits
Rucking is an aerobic exercise – this means that we train our endurance. We burn body fat and strengthen our muscles. These are primarily the muscles in the legs, buttocks, torso, i.e. stomach and back, and in the shoulders. And we also train our bones during the workout.
Above all, the strengthening of the muscles sets rucking apart from other endurance sports. When jogging, for example, we burn calories – but we don’t build muscle at the same time. Rucking is a holistic workout that strengthens both the heart and the muscles. How effective it is could be, among other things an Australian study prove.
This is what you should pay attention to when rucking
We don’t need much for rucking, basically just good shoes and a high-quality backpack with the right weight for us. These points are important to ensure your training is effective and safe:
- It’s best to start with low weight, it should be a maximum of three to five kilograms at the beginning be. You can increase it gradually, but the maximum weight should not exceed 25 percent of your body weight at any time.
- Also the The distance for your rucking session should not be too long at the beginning. Two kilometers is enoughwhen you start. The more practiced you become, the longer you can run.
- Speaking of running: If you haven’t trained yet, you should at the beginning just walk. If you are already a little fitter or want to increase your training intensity after a while, you can switch to jogging.
- Make sure your Backpack is back-friendly and fits well. It should be as high up and as tightly as possible so that it doesn’t slip back and forth.
- Also important: Walk or run as upright as possible and activate your abdominal muscles to protect your back.
Sources used: nike.com, fitbook.de