Follow This Ruck and Lift Plan for Next-Level Strength and Stamina
The last few winters I’ve found myself asking the same question: ‘Am I not going outside because my mood and energy are low, or are my mood and energy low because I’m not going outside?’ The answer I’ve come to is that it’s probably a bit of both – a negative feedback loop that can have a very real impact on mental and physical fitness, if left unchecked.
Up until a few years back, I’d always trained outside year-round, and I’d never encountered this waning in enthusiasm, even on the dreariest of dark, cold nights. Increasingly, I’m of the mindset that – while any form of movement is invaluable in our quest for health – making sure that at least some of that movement takes place outside acts as a force multiplier. The science seems to agree with me; multiple studies speak to the enhanced benefits of tackling your training al fresco.
So, while for many a gym rat, winter has traditionally been a time to throw on a baggy hoodie and hit the weights hard – emerging in the spring from this gym-floor hibernation with a few extra kilos of muscle, ready to re-engage with parkruns and summertime sports – I’d like to propose something different.
Rucking for Fitness
Running and walking are the obvious solutions. But what if running – due to personal preference, injury history, or a bit of both – just isn’t your bag? Walking might be more your speed, but a morning stroll isn’t going to help you build serious fitness. That is, unless you turn that walk into a ‘ruck’.
Rucking, also known in Blighty as yomping or tabbing, involves tackling a fast, purposeful march (but not a run) carrying a loaded pack or ‘ruck’. Combining elements of cardio and resistance training, rucking provides a full-body workout that’s challenging but accessible. Rucking has less of an impact on your joints than running, but the additional load works to strengthen your core, back, shoulders, and legs. In short, rucking preserves muscle while building the type of ‘pack horse’ endurance that means you can be stronger, for longer.
Our six-week Ruck and Lift plan combines hard lifting and heavy rucking to help you add size, build unstoppable strength and fitness, and – most importantly – get outdoors.
The Ruck and Lift Plan
You’re going to be rucking three times per week and lifting three times. You can spread these sessions out across the week, double up on some days, or pack it all into three hard workout days. Take careful notes of reps, weights, and distances and follow the instructions for progressions to ensure you’re pushing hard.
Ensure you're resting at least 48 hours each week, and repeat this plan (following the suggested progressions) for 6-8 weeks.
Rucking
Load up and stride on to build serious stamina and a physique that’s built to last.
You’re going to perform three rucking sessions per week:
A ‘fast and heavy’ 30-minute effort
A ‘light and long’ 60-minute ruck
A ‘sweet spot’ 45-minute, medium-weight march
Track your distances over these times, then once you can add 10% more distance to your ruck, add weight in your next session.
Try to ensure you leave 48 hours between each ruck session.
Ruck Weights
Follow these loading guidelines. The leaner you are, the further towards the high end of the range you should begin.
Ruck Length and Suggested Starting Weight
30-minute ‘fast and heavy’ – 30-40% of bodyweight
45-minute ‘sweet spot’ – 20-30% of bodyweight
60-minute+ ‘light and long’ – 10-20% of bodyweight
Workout 1
Complete the first two supersets aiming for the higher end of the recommended rep range. Rest minimally between movements and for 2-3 minutes between sets. Once you can complete all sets at the top end of the rep range, add 5-10% more weight in the following session. Perform part C in as few sets as possible, pushing each set to failure before taking a short rest, then pushing on.
A1. Single-arm Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 5 x 5 each side
Clean a dumbbell onto the front of your shoulders. Take a breath and brace your core. Dip at the knees and using your legs to help drive the dumbbell up overhead. Lower it under slow control to your shoulder and repeat. Squeeze the opposite fist to create tension.
A2. Inverted Row – 5 x 10-15
Grasp a bar at around hip height or a pair of gym rings and hang with straight arms directly beneath. Create a rigid plank position. Flex at the elbows, pulling yourself upwards. Don’t allow your elbows to flare and keep your hips from sagging. Pause at the top before slowly lowering yourself back down to the starting position.
B1. Goblet squat – 4 x 15
Stand tall, holding a kettlebell or dumbbell close to your chest. Sink your hips back and bend your knees, dropping into a deep squat, your elbows should be almost between your knees at the bottom. Drive back up explosively, keeping your torso upright and kettlebell steady throughout.
B2. Kettlebell swing – 4 x 15
With a kettlebell between your legs, hinge at your hips, swinging the weight backward, high between your thighs. Drive your hips forward to explosively blast it up to eye level. Let the momentum return you back into the hinge position and straight into rep two. Keep your torso flat and knees soft.
C1. Press-up x 100 (in as few sets as possible)
Assume a strong plank position, hands stacked directly below elbows and shoulders, bend your elbows to slowly lower your chest to the floor. Keep your upper arms from flaring as you push back up explosively to a straight arm position. Push hard to hit 100 reps as quickly as possible whilst maintaining good form.
Workout 2
As with Workout 1, complete the supersets in parts A and B before moving into part C and attempting to hit 100 curls as quickly as possible, with good form. Once again, when you can hit all of the prescribed reps and sets, add more weight in your next session.
A1. Deadlift – 5 x 5
Feet shoulder-width apart, hinge down and grip your barbell, getting your hips low. Take a deep breath, create tension throughout your entire body and push the ground away with your feet, avoiding your hips shooting up too early and standing upright. Your arms should be hanging straight throughout this movement, you don’t want to ‘pull’ on the bar; think of them as ‘hooks’.
A2. Front squat – 5 x 5
With your feet at shoulder width, hold a barbell across your chest, lifting your elbows high to secure the bar on your shoulders. Maintain an upright torso and push your hips back, bending your knees until the crease of your hips drops below your knees. Stand back up explosively, take a breath and repeat.
B1. Three-point row – 4 x 10 each side
Hold a dumbbell in one arm and hinge at the hips, letting the dumbbell hang and placing your empty hand onto a bench, box or wall for support. With a flat back and rigid core, shift your weight onto your supported hand and row the dumbbell up into your hip. Pause briefly, then lower the weight under control. Repeat.
B2. Dip – 4 x 10-15
Jump up on two parallel bars or gymnastics rings with your palms facing inward and your arms locked out straight. Lean forward and bend at the elbows, slowly lowering your body until you feel a deep stretch in your chest. Pause here before driving yourself back up to the top explosively.
C1. Barbell curl x 100 (in as few sets as possible)
Stand tall with a barbell hanging at your waist, hands shoulder width apart, thumbs facing away from each other. Keep your torso still and upper arms pinned to your sides as you curl the bar upwards towards your chin. Squeeze here and slowly lower the bar under control until your arms are straight.
Workout 2
As with the previous workouts, complete your supersets before moving onto the 100-rep ‘chipper’. Keep a careful track of your reps, aiming to add weight once you can confidently hit your rep goals across all sets.
A1. Split squat jump – 5 x 20
Step one foot back and sink into a deep lunge, with your rear knee lightly touching the floor. Explode upwards into a jump, switching legs mid-air to land in a lunge position with the opposite leg forward. Repeat the movement, alternating legs each rep and aiming to maintain balance.
A2. Face pull – 5 x 15-20
Stand tall facing a high anchored band or high cable pulley, with straight arms there should be tension on the band. Pull the band towards your face, squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top of the rep before reversing under control.
B1. Hindu push-up – 4 x 15
Assume a strong push-up position with your hands shoulder-width apart. Walk your hands backwards until your hips are in the air, almost above your hands. Flex at the elbows lowering your nose to the ground between your hands before shifting your weight forward, push the ground away, straightening your arms as you drop your hips to the floor. Reverse this movement until your hips are back in the air.
B2. Chin-up – 4 x max reps
Grab a pull-up bar with your palms facing your body. Lift your feet from the ground and hang freely. Pull yourself up by flexing your elbows and pulling your shoulder blades down and back. Think of bringing driving your elbows into your pockets. When your chin passes the bar, pause before lowering slowly to the starting position. Try to avoid excessive swinging.
C1. Lateral raise x 100 (in as few sets as possible)
Stand tall holding a pair of dumbbells at your sides. Avoiding momentum from the hips, raise both arms up, straight, either side of your body until they’re parallel to the ground. Pause here before slowly lowering the dumbbells under control to your sides. Repeat.
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