Any ruckers out there unafraid of wandering the streets of Hunterville and Cornelius with 6 feet of distance from your pals? I came up with this idea while rucking solo Saturday, and figure the preblast should hold me accountable while perhaps encouraging others to join me for one or more outings this week (March 30 – April 4). If not, I’ll be prepared with audiobooks and podcasts as I rack ruck up miles this week.
Pace will be set by slowest member of the group (My average was an 18-min mile Saturday). Ruckers should adjust their pack weight accordingly. The goal here is to leave no man behind by challenging yourself with weight rather than speed. Likewise, don’t overburden yourself if you’re just returning — use the short trip Monday to find your baseline if necessary.
Need some examples?
- You’ve been inactive for awhile and haven’t walked more than a mile in 3 months.
- Toss a water bottle in your backpack and show up.??
- You run all over town without breaking a sweat, but have never added weight to your routine.
- Borrow a weight vest with some light weight and join us.?
- You regularly wear a ruck during bootcamps and haven’t met a challenge you don’t crush.
- Fill that ruck with a plate, a couple boxes of nuts and bolts and a bag of dogfood, and impress us.
BLINKIES, HEADLAMPS AND REFLECTIVE GEAR HIGHLY ENCOURAGED. I am using sidewalks and greenways whereever possible, but there are a few spots that will require walking in roadway.
Here is the schedule with locations, start times and distances:
MONDAY
- Start/End: Starbucks Birkdale (Java AO)
- Time: 0600
- Distance: 3 miles
TUESDAY
- Start/End: Starbucks Gilead (Odyssey AO)
- Time: 0530
- Distance: 4 miles
THURSDAY
- Start/End: St Mark (Mighty Jungle AO)
- Time: 0530
- Distance: 5 miles (look familiar?)
SATURDAY
- Start/End: Westmoreland Park (General AO)
- Time: 0600
- Distance: 6 miles
I’ve found that I am better able to maintain a fat-burning heart rate while rucking vs during some tougher bootcamps. I also like rucking because it allows for ample mumble chatter. Of course, that requires 2 or more pax in attendance. I’m hopeful that I’ll get at least one taker each day this week.