Are long, slow, heavy rucks bad?
TL:DR - No, but there are better ways.
First, rucking in and of itself is not bad. When properly prepared for, there is no inherently greater risk of injury. The injuries occur almost exclusively in deconditioned athletes (aka fat, weak, and lazy). I have yet to see a study that showed any greater risk of injury for athletes with an appropriate cardio and strength baseline as indicated in the 5x5 progression. Every ‘study’ (most of these aren’t very rigorous or methodologically sound) uses a study population void of consistent baseline. So please, tell that fat weak SSG that keeps popping off about rucking being dangerous to get his ass in the gym, we’ve got work to do.
As most of you know, the best way to build rucking performance is field based progressive load carriage, usually 2-3 times a week, focused on short intense sessions. Say it, commit it to memory, get it tattooed, live it.
The embodiment of this methodology is the 5x5, aka The Man Maker. A good goal for the 5x5 is sub 2 hours, including all of the transitions. Make sure that you progress to the full as Rx. It’s a man maker, but it’s also a widow maker. Make sure to read The Addendum as well.
The 5x5 and its supporting methodology is the antithesis of conventional precedent, which focused on longer distances less frequently. It is common to see 6 miles week 1, then 8 miles week 2, followed by 10 miles week 3…so on and so forth. This is what most prep programs advocate. It’s fine, it’ll build some performance, but it’s not the best method.
Almost exclusively, the literature that supports the lower frequency (the literature concludes rucking every 10-14 days !!! Are you fucking kidding me?) is based on injury prevention, not performance enhancement. This literature also shows that injury is significantly more likely to occur when fatigue occurs, and that fatigue is more pronounced at the tail ends of longer distances. Hmmm, seems like an important factor. But injury prevention isn’t our priority. Performance is.
Without going down the rabbit hole too deeply, the literature is quite clear: 1- rucking (when properly prepared for) isn’t bad/dangerous. 2- the best methodology (regardless of intent) is field based progressive load carriage. 3- the best frequency for injury prevention is once every 10-14 days. 4-the best frequency for performance building is 2-3 times a week. 5- the best approach for performance building is short intense sessions. So, the best way to build rucking performance is field based progressive load carriage, usually 2-3 times a week, focused on short intense sessions. We are dedicating an entire sub-chapter to a lit review of this specific topic for the new book. It is posted on this website. It gets very tedious arguing with internet idiots who claim that because we don’t hand-feed them links and literature that it doesn’t exist.
So, does this mean that longer rucks are bad? No, they’re just not optimal for building performance. But if you read Ruck Up Or Shut Up then you know that misery management is part of the ruck training trifecta (Page 161). And there is a uniqueness to the misery that a longer ruck brings to the table that you can’t really replicate. So, I’m not opposed to a longer ruck every so often. Maybe a 12 or 16 miler every 6-8 weeks, just to acclimate to that specific misery. Be ever mindful of form, as you accept more risk as you fatigue. But as a regular fitness training tool, it’s not something that I would strongly consider. Stick to the proper proven methodology…short intense sessions.
Ruck Up Or Shut Up
