Aug. 17, 2025

How Much Weight Should You Ruck With? The Beginner’s Guide to Weight, Distance, Pace, & Scaling

How Much Weight Should You Ruck With? The Beginner’s Guide to Weight, Distance, Pace, & Scaling
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How Much Weight Should You Ruck With? The Beginner’s Guide to Weight, Distance, Pace, & Scaling
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If you’re just getting into rucking, one of the biggest questions you’ll face is: “How much weight should I ruck with?” In this episode of The Rucker’s Edge, we answer that question and discuss when and how to scale-up.

You’ll learn:

  • How to determine your starting weight
  • Why 10% of your body weight (or 20 lbs) is a solid starting point for most — and when to adjust lower or higher
  • The safest way to scale up without risking injury
  • My personal “scaled too fast” story and what it cost me in recovery time
  • The “boring is beautiful” philosophy — and how consistency beats flash every time
  • We’ll also go through my Before You Scale Up Checklist so you know exactly when your body is ready for more weight, more distance, or more speed — and when it’s smarter to hold steady.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

Notes:

  • Music: “Play This Game” by Black Rhomb
  • I’m not a doctor, and this podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult with your physician before starting any new exercise or physical activity.
WEBVTT

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Starting with the right weight is critical because

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it's step one of your rucking plan. I'm going

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to guide you to making this decision for yourself

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by feeding you questions and making you reflect

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on where you are in terms of your current physical

00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:17.019
fitness. This will get you thinking about what

00:00:17.019 --> 00:00:19.359
you want to achieve out of rucking, how you want

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to get there, and then you can make a decision

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based off of some of your answers to those questions

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as well as general guidelines that I'll provide.

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Welcome to the Rucker's Edge podcast, a show

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all about rucking that is designed to help you

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develop a rucking routine, lose weight, and ultimately

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gain your strength and energy back. Whether you're

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an office worker with lower back pain, a fitness

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first -timer, or a new parent trying to get back

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to your pre -kids weight, this is the show for

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you. I'm your host, Spencer. Thanks for tuning

00:00:51.039 --> 00:00:53.399
in. Today, we're answering one of the most common

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questions new ruckers ask. How much weight should

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I start with? In this episode, I'll walk you

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through how to make the decision based on where

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you are right now in terms of your fitness level,

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your injury history, and the goals that you have.

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You'll also learn about the three core variables

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in rucking, weight, distance, and pace, how to

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safely increase intensity, and why going too

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heavy too soon can set you back. I'll also share

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a personal story about the time I scaled up too

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quickly and paid the price so you don't have

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to make the same mistake. I know we've touched

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on this before. But let's start out by touching

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base on the three variables you can change when

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you ruck. They are weight, distance, and pace.

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Arguably, there could be a fourth one to increase

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the intensity of your workout, and that would

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be elevation changes. But elevation changes are

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more of an advanced topic. So starting out, it's

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wise to stick to relatively flat trails until

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your body is ready to start handling more of

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a challenge. like stadium steps or hill repeats.

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When deciding how to start rucking, these three

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variables all have to be considered. Tweak them

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as you develop your rucking plan and continue

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to make gains. Deciding what weight to use brought

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us here today, but first let's consider the other

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two variables, and then we'll attack what weight

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to use. Let's talk about distance and pace. How

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do we set these? Well, for distance, you need

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to determine how far do you want to go, how much

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time do you have to ruck, and how far are you

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comfortable going? The general recommendation

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is to start with two miles. All right, let's

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talk about pace. How fast are you going to go?

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Let's start out at a brisk pace. You may not

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know exactly how fast you're going to go, but

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go take a walk without any weight for your intended

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distance and go at a brisk pace. That's going

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to be your baseline. When you start adding weight,

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you're naturally going to be walking slower,

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but as you get stronger, you're going to increase

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your pace, and your baseline pace is a good goal

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to shoot for. The general recommendation is 20

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minutes per mile. All right, now let's talk about

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weight. How much weight should you ruck with?

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The answer is it depends. The general guideline

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is 10 % of your body weight or 10 to 20 pounds.

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But it's very situational and unique to each

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rucker. There are situations where you should

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start with less than that. You should start with

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no weight. Here are some examples of that. If

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you're just getting back into training, you're

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nursing an injury, recovering from a surgery,

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going through physical therapy, your body mass

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index or your BMI exceeds the overweight category,

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you're suffering from chronic pain, recovering

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from a major illness, you're an older adult,

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or you're a postpartum mother. If you fall in

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one of those situations, maybe consider establishing

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a good walking routine for a few weeks and then

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progressing to weighted walks. Now, conversely,

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there are situations where you could start with

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more than the recommended starting weight of

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10 pounds to 20 pounds or 10 % of your body weight.

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Situations where this might be the case include

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maybe you've been strength training very regularly.

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We're talking three to four times a week for

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more than one to two years straight, and you're

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in great physical condition already. Starting

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with the right weight is critical because it's

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step one of your wrecking plan. Because everyone

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is different and on different fitness journeys,

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where you start may not be the same place where

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I started or where your workout buddy started.

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I'm going to guide you to making this decision

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for yourself. by feeding you questions and making

00:04:43.819 --> 00:04:46.379
you reflect on where you are in terms of your

00:04:46.379 --> 00:04:48.899
current physical fitness. This will get you thinking

00:04:48.899 --> 00:04:50.879
about what you want to achieve out of rucking,

00:04:51.100 --> 00:04:53.819
how you want to get there, and then you can make

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a decision based off of some of your answers

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to those questions as well as general guidelines

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that I'll provide. The first thing to assess

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is your fitness level. Have you been riding the

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couch, basically living a sedentary lifestyle,

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years of inactivity? Are you slightly more active?

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Do you do other exercises casually here and there

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and have a relatively active lifestyle? Maybe

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you formally trained and you just need to get

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back into a rhythm. Or maybe you've been consistently

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working out for a significant length of time

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and you're already in decent shape. Do you have

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any historic or existing injuries or chronic

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pain? If this is the case, I strongly suggest

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talking to your doctor. Good time to remind everybody,

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I'm not a doctor. The contents of this podcast

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is for informational and educational purposes

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only. But if you fall into this case, talk to

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your doctor to establish where you should start

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your rucking journey. For new ruckers that fit

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into the unfit or sedentary lifestyle currently,

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maybe start out walking and progressing slower.

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If you're slightly more active and have been

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working out here and there, a great place to

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start is 10 pounds. If you lift weights already

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and run or some other exercise on a very regular

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basis, you can start off a little heavier and

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do 10 % of your body weight. Okay, let's talk

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rucking plans. I've had a few listeners reach

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out to me asking for some guidance about what

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rucking plan I follow or what rucking plan I

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suggest to them. And in each case, it's always

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different. But let's walk you through developing

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your own rucking plan and what options there

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are out there. for you to either use or adjust

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and tailor it for your own goals. Okay, so we

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already did our baseline walk. We've established

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our distance, we've established our pace, and

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we've decided on what weight we're going to start

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with. But in terms of developing a rucking plan,

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the first thing you need to consider is what

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is your goal? Are you rucking for endurance,

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weight loss, strength? You can go heavy and short

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if you're focusing on strength. or lighter and

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longer if you want to increase your endurance.

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GoRuck has some excellent suggested rucking plans.

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I'll include them in the show notes. There are

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several out there. But to summarize GoRuck's

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general rucking plans, they recommend most beginners

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start with 20 pounds, regardless of body weight,

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especially if they're new to fitness or returning

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after a break. For those over 150 pounds, 30

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pounds is acceptable. They suggest keeping the

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weight manageable. focusing first on form and

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distance before increasing the load. Scaling

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up should happen gradually in five -pound increments,

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never exceeding one -third of your body weight

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and always listening to your body. Another resource

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out there is Wild Gym's How to Ruck series on

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YouTube. They emphasize starting light and moving

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often. Their guidance encourages beginning with

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10 to 20 pounds depending on fitness level and

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focusing on consistent practice over intensity.

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They prioritize good form, pack fit, and flat

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terrain early on. As strength and confidence

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build, users can increase weight and duration

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slowly while keeping posture and comfort front

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of mind. The last one I'll summarize is the Pathfinder

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Ruck Training Plan. They advise new ruckers to

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begin with a baseline of 10 to 20 pounds and

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focus on building volume and consistency. Their

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structure programs guide ruckers through progressive

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challenges by gradually increasing weight, distance,

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and intensity over 12 to 16 weeks. They emphasize

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progressive overload and encourage lighter recovery

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weeks every fourth week to allow adaptation and

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avoid injury. These plans are a softer entry

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than some of the tactical style rucking programs

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out there. If you're looking to start heavier,

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longer, and go harder, do some googling. You'll

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definitely come across a few. Probably one of

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the most popular options out there is Gritty

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Soldier's Embrace the Ruck program. Okay, so

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the key points or takeaways that I have from

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reviewing these plans, if you're just starting

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out and new to rucking, are don't start scaling

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until you nail down the form. I talked about

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form in a previous episode, episode four, but

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I'll recap that here in a second as I tell you

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a story about how I messed up and scaled too

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quickly. Other takeaways include you can add

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five pounds every two to four weeks as your current

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weight gets easier. Don't change more than one

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variable at a time. Don't exceed one -third of

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your body weight. Don't incorporate difficult

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terrain or significant elevation changes when

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starting. You can certainly include it when you're

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ready to increase intensity. And it's okay to

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ease off every few weeks and go on recovery rucks

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to give your body a breather. Progress is not

00:09:49.789 --> 00:09:54.309
necessarily linear. The last plan that I summarized,

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the Pathfinder plan, mentioned taking a break

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every four weeks or so. It's not just okay to

00:10:01.750 --> 00:10:05.330
ease off. It's smart. Even elite marathoners

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structure in recovery by including easy days,

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slow runs, or lighter weeks. And then the last

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takeaway from reviewing these plans, in addition

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to rucking, incorporating another type of workout

00:10:19.509 --> 00:10:22.429
is going to be extremely beneficial for your

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health. The Pathfinder guides athletes to incorporate

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functional workouts like I discussed. So functional

00:10:27.929 --> 00:10:30.409
workouts focus on movements that mimic everyday

00:10:30.409 --> 00:10:32.750
activities. They improve your body's ability

00:10:32.750 --> 00:10:35.210
to perform daily tasks with ease and reducing

00:10:35.210 --> 00:10:38.090
the risk of energy. I previously published a

00:10:38.090 --> 00:10:41.769
blog post on theruckersedge .com where I summarized

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the workout routine I used to get my body in

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shape, and I include using body weight, cinder

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blocks, and my TRX strap. All right, I want to

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take a pause real quick to say thanks for listening

00:10:52.039 --> 00:10:54.740
to this podcast. I make these episodes to help

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people build healthier, stronger lives through

00:10:56.940 --> 00:10:59.159
rucking. And if that sounds like someone you

00:10:59.159 --> 00:11:01.120
know, send this episode their way. And if you

00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:03.120
haven't yet, hit follow on your podcast player

00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:06.039
so you never miss an episode. All right, back

00:11:06.039 --> 00:11:09.220
to it. So you've decided how much weight you're

00:11:09.220 --> 00:11:11.279
going to start with. You've formulated a plan

00:11:11.279 --> 00:11:14.139
based off of a few recommendations. Now let's

00:11:14.139 --> 00:11:18.840
talk about scaling. crazy crucial to listen to

00:11:18.840 --> 00:11:21.740
your body when you're increasing your load or

00:11:21.740 --> 00:11:25.740
increasing the intensity of your rucks. Let me

00:11:25.740 --> 00:11:28.080
tell you about the time just five pounds set

00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:30.960
me back weeks in progress I was making through

00:11:30.960 --> 00:11:34.899
rucking. Whenever I have free time, I'll go on

00:11:34.899 --> 00:11:37.960
to a few social media platforms and check out

00:11:37.960 --> 00:11:41.120
a few rucking groups that I'm a member of. It's

00:11:41.120 --> 00:11:44.919
great for motivation and accountability purposes.

00:11:45.120 --> 00:11:47.379
I always like seeing the progress other people

00:11:47.379 --> 00:11:50.320
are making, it energizes me and motivates me

00:11:50.320 --> 00:11:53.139
to get up and get going again. One day I was

00:11:53.139 --> 00:11:56.299
on one of these platforms, and this was like

00:11:56.299 --> 00:11:58.779
early days of me starting my rucking routine.

00:11:59.299 --> 00:12:01.440
I opened up my phone and saw a few posts about

00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:03.759
people carrying sledgehammers and axes and a

00:12:03.759 --> 00:12:05.360
few other things, and I thought, man, that looks

00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:08.159
pretty cool. They were talking about how it's

00:12:08.159 --> 00:12:11.559
an excellent addition to your rucks to develop

00:12:11.559 --> 00:12:13.759
grip strength if you're into that sort of thing.

00:12:14.299 --> 00:12:16.500
I thought it was a great idea. I was noticing

00:12:16.500 --> 00:12:19.519
all of my muscles except for my forearms were

00:12:19.519 --> 00:12:22.100
developing, and it would help make carrying my

00:12:22.100 --> 00:12:26.519
kids a lot easier. It seemed perfect. So I decided

00:12:26.519 --> 00:12:28.899
to give it a go. I thought I was ready to do

00:12:28.899 --> 00:12:31.340
a 20 -pound ruck carrying a 5 -pound dumbbell.

00:12:32.120 --> 00:12:34.179
I started my ruck like I normally did, except

00:12:34.179 --> 00:12:35.940
this time I brought the 5 -pound dumbbell with

00:12:35.940 --> 00:12:40.220
me. I plan to alternate it between my hands every

00:12:40.220 --> 00:12:43.590
quarter of a mile or so. I started out like normal.

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I was feeling good. The confidence was high.

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I was pretty excited about this new addition

00:12:46.789 --> 00:12:49.889
to the ruck. I continued to switch it about every

00:12:49.889 --> 00:12:53.149
quarter of a mile. Then I hit the mile mark and

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the sweat started to accumulate on my palms,

00:12:55.429 --> 00:12:58.330
making the carry just a little difficult. I thought,

00:12:58.350 --> 00:13:00.629
great, I was expecting this to get hard. I can

00:13:00.629 --> 00:13:03.490
do hard things. Check this out. Then I hit a

00:13:03.490 --> 00:13:06.389
mile and a half. The dumbbell got heavier and

00:13:06.389 --> 00:13:09.039
heavier. My palms were burning. We're just talking

00:13:09.039 --> 00:13:10.440
about five pounds. I didn't know what was going

00:13:10.440 --> 00:13:11.860
on. I didn't think it was going to be this difficult,

00:13:11.940 --> 00:13:13.639
but here I was thinking, you know, what the heck's

00:13:13.639 --> 00:13:15.419
going on? Am I really struggling with just an

00:13:15.419 --> 00:13:19.500
extra five pounds? I got to mile two. The sweat

00:13:19.500 --> 00:13:22.259
made it incredibly hard to hold on to. The weight

00:13:22.259 --> 00:13:24.080
felt like it was getting heavier and heavier

00:13:24.080 --> 00:13:26.919
still. I started switching hands even more frequently,

00:13:27.019 --> 00:13:28.740
probably so frequently it looked like I was playing

00:13:28.740 --> 00:13:31.200
a game of Hot Potato or something. At this point,

00:13:31.220 --> 00:13:33.000
I would seriously consider ditching this thing

00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:34.399
on the side of the trail and coming back for

00:13:34.399 --> 00:13:36.679
it later. I'll just... Throw it down by the bench

00:13:36.679 --> 00:13:38.759
and hope it doesn't walk off. I'll drive back

00:13:38.759 --> 00:13:42.000
and pick it up later. But I was determined. No,

00:13:42.179 --> 00:13:45.000
I told myself I'm not giving up. And in retrospect,

00:13:45.179 --> 00:13:47.100
I wish I would have had the thought to just throw

00:13:47.100 --> 00:13:49.259
it in my backpack. Just throw it in the rucksack.

00:13:49.919 --> 00:13:52.179
I might have avoided the negative impacts I encountered

00:13:52.179 --> 00:13:55.059
at the end of the ruck. I kept going, carrying

00:13:55.059 --> 00:13:57.220
it. I got to, I don't know, two and a quarter

00:13:57.220 --> 00:14:00.279
mile down the trail and started to feel a stinging

00:14:00.279 --> 00:14:04.039
sensation in my ankle. But I decided to push

00:14:04.039 --> 00:14:06.639
through it. I got to the two and a half mile

00:14:06.639 --> 00:14:08.360
mark where I usually check my posture through

00:14:08.360 --> 00:14:13.080
a window. And holy cow, almost unrecognizable.

00:14:13.120 --> 00:14:15.360
My head, shoulders, and back were so hunched

00:14:15.360 --> 00:14:17.399
over. My knuckles might as well have just been

00:14:17.399 --> 00:14:19.759
dragging on the ground. I looked like the monkey

00:14:19.759 --> 00:14:23.179
on the chart of human evolution from primate

00:14:23.179 --> 00:14:25.500
to homo sapien. That was me all the way on the

00:14:25.500 --> 00:14:28.820
left, hunched over. I fixed my posture and finished

00:14:28.820 --> 00:14:31.460
the last half mile and threw my gear down in

00:14:31.460 --> 00:14:34.690
the grass when I finished. The next day, my ankle

00:14:34.690 --> 00:14:37.250
was screaming. I caused a flare -up that no amount

00:14:37.250 --> 00:14:40.870
of post -ruck recovery routine could have stopped.

00:14:41.929 --> 00:14:45.470
I was down for weeks. It was a struggle to walk,

00:14:45.549 --> 00:14:48.850
let alone ruck, and I was itching to get back

00:14:48.850 --> 00:14:51.549
out there and ruck every day I was sidelined.

00:14:52.250 --> 00:14:54.529
In my line of work, we typically do an after

00:14:54.529 --> 00:14:57.110
-action report after an event or important activity

00:14:57.110 --> 00:15:00.860
to assess what worked and what went wrong. So

00:15:00.860 --> 00:15:03.299
I did an abbreviated after action report for

00:15:03.299 --> 00:15:05.460
this ruck where I carried the dumbbell. And here's

00:15:05.460 --> 00:15:09.159
what went wrong. The added weight and the shift

00:15:09.159 --> 00:15:11.580
in my center of gravity from carrying the extra

00:15:11.580 --> 00:15:14.659
weight impacted my posture severely. I was not

00:15:14.659 --> 00:15:17.539
engaging my core. I was not keeping my head up

00:15:17.539 --> 00:15:19.899
and my shoulders back. My back was definitely

00:15:19.899 --> 00:15:22.879
not straight. I was leaning way too far forward,

00:15:23.039 --> 00:15:26.120
which we all know is a recipe for disaster. I

00:15:26.120 --> 00:15:28.679
finished the ruck, but I definitely shouldn't

00:15:28.679 --> 00:15:32.500
have. The moment I felt a sensation or a burning

00:15:32.500 --> 00:15:35.559
in my ankle, I should have called it quits then

00:15:35.559 --> 00:15:37.779
and there. I probably should have dropped the

00:15:37.779 --> 00:15:39.659
excess weight once my body started negatively

00:15:39.659 --> 00:15:42.500
responding to it. And because I scaled up too

00:15:42.500 --> 00:15:45.139
quickly and was using improper form, I was making

00:15:45.139 --> 00:15:47.799
my legs compensate by forcing several muscle

00:15:47.799 --> 00:15:50.460
groups and associated ligaments and tendons to

00:15:50.460 --> 00:15:52.940
work harder, specifically my ankles and calves.

00:15:54.509 --> 00:15:56.710
My ego got the best of me as a poor decision

00:15:56.710 --> 00:15:59.129
to scale up too quickly by carrying extra weight

00:15:59.129 --> 00:16:03.009
just because it looked cool. And that decision

00:16:03.009 --> 00:16:05.429
led to me having to take two weeks off to heal

00:16:05.429 --> 00:16:10.250
and recover. Moral of the story, only scale when

00:16:10.250 --> 00:16:12.529
your body is ready, especially if you have a

00:16:12.529 --> 00:16:14.350
pre -existing medical condition or a history

00:16:14.350 --> 00:16:17.409
of injuries. You need to go slow because your

00:16:17.409 --> 00:16:20.590
muscles, tendons, cardiovascular system, they're

00:16:20.590 --> 00:16:22.269
all getting used to this new activity that you

00:16:22.269 --> 00:16:24.820
started. You need to stay at a certain stage

00:16:24.820 --> 00:16:27.059
or certain difficulties to allow your body to

00:16:27.059 --> 00:16:31.379
adjust before pushing any further. There's a

00:16:31.379 --> 00:16:33.360
saying that I like. Sometimes people will say

00:16:33.360 --> 00:16:35.700
you're getting out in front of your skis when

00:16:35.700 --> 00:16:38.080
you act prematurely or take on something that

00:16:38.080 --> 00:16:40.539
you're not necessarily ready for or is just beyond

00:16:40.539 --> 00:16:43.320
your capabilities. So on your rucking journey,

00:16:43.440 --> 00:16:45.519
if you scale up too quickly, you get out in front

00:16:45.519 --> 00:16:49.200
of your skis, just scale it back. Go back down

00:16:49.200 --> 00:16:50.679
to the level where you previously were. Go back

00:16:50.679 --> 00:16:52.820
down to the weight you were previously carrying

00:16:52.820 --> 00:16:56.639
or the distance you were previously going. And

00:16:56.639 --> 00:16:59.679
then attempt to scale back up in a week or two.

00:17:00.320 --> 00:17:03.879
Don't rush it. You might be asking, well, how

00:17:03.879 --> 00:17:07.579
do I know when I'm ready to scale up? Here's

00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:09.440
a bit of a checklist that you can run through

00:17:09.440 --> 00:17:12.220
to make that decision. Do the form check. Can

00:17:12.220 --> 00:17:14.680
you maintain perfect posture for your current

00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:18.799
weight or distance? Do the comfort test. Is your

00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:21.099
current rucking routine feeling easy for at least

00:17:21.099 --> 00:17:24.839
a week? Do your recovery check. Are you bouncing

00:17:24.839 --> 00:17:28.400
back quickly after your rucks? And then always

00:17:28.400 --> 00:17:30.859
remember the one variable rule. Only change one

00:17:30.859 --> 00:17:34.400
thing at a time. In my instance, I changed two.

00:17:34.440 --> 00:17:38.480
I changed the weight I was carrying and how I

00:17:38.480 --> 00:17:41.640
was carrying that weight. Now, after you scale

00:17:41.640 --> 00:17:43.819
up, after you've made the decision to scale up

00:17:43.819 --> 00:17:48.599
on that first ruck, pay attention is your form

00:17:48.599 --> 00:17:51.059
being impacted are you feeling more than just

00:17:51.059 --> 00:17:54.180
a little sore if so scale back stay at the previous

00:17:54.180 --> 00:17:59.200
step for a little longer scale up later scaling

00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.759
isn't about overloading it's about doing something

00:18:01.759 --> 00:18:04.359
sustainable for a long period of time there's

00:18:04.359 --> 00:18:06.980
a good phrase i like that's applicable to my

00:18:06.980 --> 00:18:09.799
philosophy on scaling up a workout and it's boring

00:18:09.799 --> 00:18:14.019
is beautiful And I know that sounds sort of counterintuitive,

00:18:14.039 --> 00:18:15.880
especially when you're scrolling through Instagram

00:18:15.880 --> 00:18:19.259
or other social media posts, seeing people carrying

00:18:19.259 --> 00:18:21.579
axes and kettlebells or dumbbells on their rucks.

00:18:21.619 --> 00:18:24.339
But here's the thing. Boring is what builds you

00:18:24.339 --> 00:18:26.759
up and keeps you injury free. Ultimately, boring

00:18:26.759 --> 00:18:30.839
is what gets you to your goals. Think about it

00:18:30.839 --> 00:18:33.359
this way. When you're doing the same 20 pound,

00:18:33.440 --> 00:18:35.380
two mile ruck every Tuesday and Thursday for

00:18:35.380 --> 00:18:38.500
two to four weeks straight, that might feel monotonous.

00:18:39.150 --> 00:18:41.289
But what's actually happening is incredible.

00:18:41.390 --> 00:18:43.609
Your body is adapting your muscles, tendons,

00:18:43.670 --> 00:18:45.670
cardiovascular system. They're all getting comfortable

00:18:45.670 --> 00:18:47.910
with this new demand you're placing on them.

00:18:48.230 --> 00:18:53.269
And you're building a strong foundation. Here's

00:18:53.269 --> 00:18:56.309
what I've learned. That boring routine becomes

00:18:56.309 --> 00:18:58.690
this anchor in your week. Just like you don't

00:18:58.690 --> 00:19:00.490
think twice about making your morning coffee

00:19:00.490 --> 00:19:03.150
or brushing your teeth, that consistent rut becomes

00:19:03.150 --> 00:19:07.019
automatic. It becomes part of who you are. The

00:19:07.019 --> 00:19:10.400
beauty is in the process itself. Instead of chasing

00:19:10.400 --> 00:19:12.640
the excitement of adding 10 more pounds or an

00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:15.220
extra mile, you're focusing on how your form

00:19:15.220 --> 00:19:18.599
feels that day. You're tuning into whether your

00:19:18.599 --> 00:19:21.859
pack is sitting right. You're noticing if your

00:19:21.859 --> 00:19:23.900
core is engaged or if you're starting to lean

00:19:23.900 --> 00:19:27.500
forward. That internal focus, that's where the

00:19:27.500 --> 00:19:31.400
real progress happens. So when your buddy asks

00:19:31.400 --> 00:19:33.220
why you're still doing the same route with the

00:19:33.220 --> 00:19:35.420
same weight for the third week in a row, tell

00:19:35.420 --> 00:19:38.160
them, Because boring is building me into the

00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:40.759
rucker I want to become. The flashy stuff can

00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:42.940
wait. Right now, boring is exactly where you

00:19:42.940 --> 00:19:45.440
need to be. Trust the process. Embrace the boring.

00:19:45.579 --> 00:19:49.619
And let consistency do the heavy lifting. Literally.

00:19:51.240 --> 00:19:53.460
You know what? You want a great example of trusting

00:19:53.460 --> 00:19:55.200
the process and living the boring is beautiful

00:19:55.200 --> 00:19:58.900
life? Nick Saban. If you're unfamiliar with who

00:19:58.900 --> 00:20:00.960
Nick Saban is, he's the greatest college football

00:20:00.960 --> 00:20:03.759
coach of all time. His teams have won seven college

00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:06.519
football national championships, and he's created

00:20:06.519 --> 00:20:09.019
a football dynasty at Alabama over the last couple

00:20:09.019 --> 00:20:11.759
of decades. Well, he's since left Alabama, but

00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:13.740
while he was there, he was just absolutely dominant.

00:20:14.099 --> 00:20:17.180
And even before Alabama, at his previous schools,

00:20:17.220 --> 00:20:21.079
LSU and Michigan State. But Saban doesn't get

00:20:21.079 --> 00:20:22.819
his players fired up by talking about winning

00:20:22.819 --> 00:20:25.849
championships. Instead, he gets them focused

00:20:25.849 --> 00:20:29.509
on executing each individual play perfectly all

00:20:29.509 --> 00:20:32.369
throughout the season and even the offseason.

00:20:32.809 --> 00:20:34.869
He tells his team, don't think about winning

00:20:34.869 --> 00:20:37.369
the SEC championship. Don't think about the national

00:20:37.369 --> 00:20:40.450
championship. Instead, focus on this practice,

00:20:40.630 --> 00:20:43.869
this drill, this rep. It's not about winning

00:20:43.869 --> 00:20:47.150
the game, but winning the seven seconds per play.

00:20:48.190 --> 00:20:50.170
That's exactly what boring is beautiful means

00:20:50.170 --> 00:20:52.269
for ruckers. The process is about learning to

00:20:52.269 --> 00:20:54.910
focus on the things that you can control. You

00:20:54.910 --> 00:20:56.250
can't control whether you're going to be able

00:20:56.250 --> 00:20:59.009
to ruck 50 pounds next month, but you can control

00:20:59.009 --> 00:21:01.650
whether you show up for today's 20 -pound, 2

00:21:01.650 --> 00:21:05.210
-mile ruck with perfect form. So that boring

00:21:05.210 --> 00:21:07.809
Tuesday ruck where you focus on keeping your

00:21:07.809 --> 00:21:10.190
shoulders back and your core engaged, that's

00:21:10.190 --> 00:21:12.470
your championship play right there. Saban has

00:21:12.470 --> 00:21:14.410
won multiple national championships not by dreaming

00:21:14.410 --> 00:21:16.569
about trophies, but by making the boring stuff

00:21:16.569 --> 00:21:19.200
beautiful. The daily grind, the attention to

00:21:19.200 --> 00:21:21.000
fundamentals, and the consistency that nobody

00:21:21.000 --> 00:21:23.700
sees. Your rucking journey works the same way.

00:21:23.759 --> 00:21:26.279
Trust the process, embrace the boring, and let

00:21:26.279 --> 00:21:30.259
the results take care of themselves. Speaking

00:21:30.259 --> 00:21:32.920
of the process and results, in next week's episode,

00:21:33.000 --> 00:21:34.700
we'll discuss the importance of tracking our

00:21:34.700 --> 00:21:37.759
rucks and what we can do with the data that we

00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:40.000
collect. So be sure to follow the podcast so

00:21:40.000 --> 00:21:43.059
you get notified of new episodes. I make these

00:21:43.059 --> 00:21:44.980
episodes to help people build a healthier, stronger

00:21:44.980 --> 00:21:47.160
life through rucking. If that sounds like someone

00:21:47.160 --> 00:21:50.099
you know, send this episode their way. As always,

00:21:50.160 --> 00:21:52.240
links to all studies and products mentioned in

00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:54.220
this episode are provided in the show notes.

00:21:54.779 --> 00:21:56.720
Thanks again for listening to this week's episode

00:21:56.720 --> 00:21:58.279
of The Rucker's Edge.