Skip to main content

Here’s why ‘ruck and lift’ plans are popular for a well-rounded workout

When you incorporate both weightlifting and rucking into your workout routine, you get the benefits of both.

Man wearing red and backpack rucksack rucking hiking walking in nature outdoors
Dasha Klimova / Pexels

Rucking is one of my favorites of all the growing fitness trends that have stuck around. I love getting out in nature surrounded by sun-speckled trees, and rucking encourages you to do just that. The benefits of rucking range from burning calories and improving heart health to getting stronger muscles and bones. There are also plenty of proven benefits of exercising outdoors.

If you’re not really much of a runner or you want to mix it up a bit, rucking is one way to elevate your walking to the next level. Rucking involves walking or hiking while wearing a backpack or rucksack. Rucking typically means walking at a moderate or faster pace, more like a purposeful march, while carrying a loaded pack on your back. Lately, ‘ruck and lift’ plans have been surging in popularity. 

Recommended Videos

What is a ‘ruck and lift’ plan?

Ruck and lift plans are weekly workout routines that include weightlifting and rucking. For example, you might lift three times a week and go rucking three times a week. Even if you can only fit in a 20-minute rucking session, it’s better than none at all. A balanced workout routine delivers the best outcome.

Modifying your rucking

You can go rucking however you want to go rucking. Whether you choose a faster 30-minute rucking session that ramps your heart rate up higher or a longer 60-minute ruck at a lighter pace, you can switch up your workout schedule to suit you. You can also incorporate progressive overload, increasing the weight in your rucksack or backpack over time as you feel stronger. That being said, avoid going too heavy when rucking, and focus on the heavier weights during your resistance training sessions.

The benefits of both

When you incorporate both weightlifting and rucking into your workout routine, you get the benefits of both. I like a varied workout routine alternating between moves like Goblet squats and kettlebell swings and quick jogs or rucking. Plus, doing the same thing all the time gets boring. 

Researchers have found the following benefits of weightlifting:

  • Boosting your strength and flexibility.
  • Improving cholesterol and heart health.
  • Reducing blood pressure.
  • Improving bone mineral density and body composition.
Topics
Steph Green
Steph Green is a content writer specializing in healthcare, wellness, and nutrition. With over ten years of experience, she…
The best leg day workout routine: Everything you need to know
How to maximize your lower body gains
Man in the gym wearing a hat and shorts performing leg press exercises on a machine

The muscles in your legs are some of the biggest in the body, which means you need more resistance and effort to train them. This is one of the reasons why your leg day workout can feel so tiring.

I remember when I went through months of physical therapy learning how to walk again after a major surgery, my quads and hamstrings had become so weak on one side that they would shake when I first started to workout. I would often walk back to my car with jelly legs. By the end of physical therapy and plenty of leg days, I developed serious muscle strength in my quads and hamstrings on both sides, so it’s worth it.

Read more
Sustainable dumbbells are for the eco-conscious — here’s what they’re made of
These earthy-looking dumbbells could change the paradigm.
sustainable wooden dumbbells

Many of us try to do our part for the betterment of our environment. Some fitness trends are making a difference, like plogging, where you go jogging while picking up trash. In the fitness world, while focusing on building muscle and power, one personal trainer in Kent decided to also focus on eco-conscious fitness by developing wooden dumbbells. Most weights and dumbbells are made from metal or plastic materials, but these earthy-looking dumbbells could change the paradigm. So, what are they made from, and how did they come to be? This really got me thinking about how we make gym equipment, and if maybe there is a better way when it comes to our planet.

Sustainable dumbbells

Read more
Want to get fit like Cody Rigsby? Try his nutrition and workout tips
Rigsby discusses breakfast, weekly workouts, and dancing as exercise
Cody Rigsby smiling Planet Oat

Just like doing strength training and aerobics, dancing is a form of exercise, and mounting research confirms the many benefits, from improving motivation, memory, and mobility to reducing stress and depression. Sometimes, I find myself randomly breaking out some moves to whatever is playing or just to the music in my head. As a musician, I love the 80s, and it makes me want to boogie down to the big kick drums, leading vocals, and Roland synths.

Recently, we asked widely loved Peloton instructor, top Dancing with the Stars contestant, and experienced fitness buff Cody Rigsby to share his fitness and nutrition tips, including his experience dancing for exercise. If you saw Rigsby on the show, you know he’s certainly got some moves. We wanted to know how he fuels his body with his favorite nutritious meals and how he works out to keep up with his busy schedule. 

Read more