Rucking as an army special forces assessment is an endurance activity, not a sprint. However, for those who regularly ruck, it’s not just a stroll through nature with a weighted pack. Serious ruckers looking to take their performance to the next level always want to learn how to ruck faster.

Rucking is a dynamic and demanding activity that requires both physical and mental strength. And when you start to speed up the pace, you will have to be prepared for very strenuous moments.

I will help you prepare for the fast ruck march and GORUCK Star Course. Let’s delve into the strategies and techniques you need to ruck faster and more efficiently than ever before.

Physical Preparation

As a strength and conditioning coach, I can confirm firsthand how essential physical preparation is to ruck faster. Since ruck marching is multi-layered, your preparation must also be comprehensive, addressing different aspects.

If you’re interested in diving deeper into this, several books on rucking provide expert insights into building strength and improving your performance.

Strength Training for Rucking 

We must start strength training immediately. It’s impossible to ruck or run faster if your muscles, tendons, and ligaments are weak.

Squats, lunges, and deadlifts are fundamental leg exercises that build lower body strength and stability. I always include them in my clients’ training programs. Such exercises will help you push each step during rucking. Squats engage the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes, while lunges (forward, reverse, or lateral) promote balance. Deadlifts strengthen the posterior chain – lower back, glutes, and hamstrings. If you have pain when doing one of these exercises, feel free to replace it with another similar one. Although old-school coaches insist that nothing can replace squats or deadlifts, that’s just not true. The movement is important, not the exercise itself.

Next, we have to focus on the core. A strong and stable core is vital for maintaining posture and efficiently transferring power between the upper and lower body during rucking. Try planks, Russian twists, and hanging leg raises.

One common mistake is to neglect the upper body, thinking that rucking engages only the lower body and core. The shoulders and upper body play a crucial role in supporting the weight of a rucksack and maintaining proper arm swing and posture during rucking. Do all the exercises that activate the chest, back, arms, and shoulders. Some are bench press, overhead press, rows, and push-ups.

Although it won’t immediately seem like the strength you’re gaining is transferable to rucking, trust me, you’ll notice an improvement soon.

Cardiovascular Conditioning 

Cardiovascular conditioning directly impacts endurance and stamina, key factors in speed and performance over long distances. Interval training, as type of aerobic exercise, and long-distance rucks are the best approaches for improving cardiovascular fitness.

I’ll talk more about interval training later, and now let’s focus on long-distance rucks.

To achieve in-game conditioning for tennis, basketball, or football, you have to play those sports regularly — the same applies to rucking. Long-distance rucks are a tool for building cardiovascular endurance. Gradually increase the duration and distance of rucking sessions, and you will improve your aerobic capacity. Long-distance rucks also provide an opportunity to practice pacing, hydration, and nutrition strategies while experiencing health benefits.

Mobility and Flexibility 

Mobility and flexibility are essential for injury prevention, but they are not limited to that. If you are mobile and flexible, you will also improve your performance and overall well-being.

By improving joint mobility and flexibility, ruckers can mitigate the strain placed on muscles and connective tissues during repetitive movements, directly decreasing the likelihood of discomfort or injury.

Mobility and flexibility affect a range of motion, allowing runners to achieve full extension and contraction of muscles with each step.

Dynamic stretches are my favorite way to improve mobility and warm up before ruck. Static stretching is an okay option from time to time to work on flexibility because it feels good, but it should not be your primary option. We do not want to achieve too much flexibility without mobility. That’s a path to injury.

Training Plans and Workouts

There are different training plans and daily workouts that can get you to your goal.

Structured Rucking Programs 

If you don’t stick to a detailed training program or a plan for any other activity, you waste at least 50% of your potential. You have to come up with a structured rucking program. Then, you can improve the performance and get to the rucking pace you want.

A central principle of structured rucking programs is progressive overload, which involves gradually increasing the intensity, duration, or volume of workouts over time to stimulate improvements in fitness and performance. The body will only adapt to what you put it through, so you must constantly challenge it. That way, you will continue to see gains in strength, endurance, and speed.

Maintaining an appropriate rucking pace is key to this, as it allows you to balance pushing your limits while avoiding burnout or injury.

In addition to incorporating challenging workouts, structured programs must include adequate recovery days to allow the body to rest, repair, and adapt to training demands. Recovery days may involve light activity, such as walking or gentle stretching, but I often advise my clients to take a total day off. Although this sometimes causes the feeling that we are stagnating and regressing, in fact, that is when we make the most progress.

Interval Training for Speed 

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves alternating between short bursts of intense activity and brief periods of rest or lower-intensity exercise. This is probably a type of training that you don’t associate with rucking, but it can be very useful because it improves anaerobic endurance and speed.

That way, you will challenge the body’s capacity to generate force and power

I’ll give you a sample HIIT workout for rucking speed. Alternate between 30 seconds of fast-paced rucking at maximum effort followed by 60 seconds of walking. Repeat this interval pattern for 20-30 minutes.

Mental Strategies

What separates former Navy Seals, now marathoners and ruckers from regular people? Many things, for sure, but above all mental strength.

In my experience, realistic goal setting, visualization, focus, mindfulness, positive self-talk, and motivation help ruckers and other athletes to maximize their performance.

Setting specific, measurable goals for improving rucking speed gives ruckers clear targets to strive towards. Of course, the target must be realistic, not a world record.

Visualization doesn’t help everyone but try it. Imagine yourself arriving at your destination at the desired time. Many professional athletes talk about how they imagine themselves with the trophy before the final. I never fully mastered visualization, but you should most definitely try.

Staying present and mindful during rucking sessions will help you maintain mental clarity. Just think about the next step, moment-to-moment sensations, and it will be much easier for you. This should also be applied in everyday life.

You have to encourage yourself to move forward. Everyone deserves encouragement. Positive self-talk involves replacing negative or self-limiting thoughts with empowering statements and affirmations. It is a proven strategy for believing more in your abilities and potential for success.

Recovery and Injury Prevention

Sooner or later, an injury will happen. This is perfectly normal and should not worry you. Do you know a single professional athlete, or even an amateur, who has never been injured? Oh, chorus note.

However, your physical preparation and recovery strategy will determine how long you pause and whether you return to your previous level.

Prioritize recovery between rucking sessions. Rest, hydration, and nutrition play vital roles in recovery. Your body needs essential nutrients, fluids, and therapeutic processes for muscle repair, glycogen replenishment, and overall recovery.

The cool-down routine is the first stage of recovery that begins immediately after activity. Massages, foam rollers, massage guns, and similar tools can help, but they are not as important as nutrition and rest. Nutrition and rest are the foundation of the recovery pyramid, and other things come only later.

When you are injured, it is crucial to determine the extent of the injuries. It is certainly not the same approach to treating a grade 1 muscle strain that will cause minimal problems and an ACL tear. Consult a personal trainer, physical therapist, and doctor if the situation does not improve after a few days. Grade 1 injuries tend to heal in less than 10 days or 2 weeks, so if you’re not better after 4 days, it’s probably a more serious injury. (1)

Technique Refinement

You can be Mr. Olympia with the endurance of an Ironman triathlete, but without skill, you will not achieve the best possible result. This is true for every sport and activity.

The rucking technique is one of the main ways to ruck faster.

Proper Posture and Form

A stable, upright posture helps distribute the weight of the rucksack evenly across the body, and that way, you enhance stability and balance.

Even more important is overall biomechanical efficiency. Proper posture and form minimize energy expenditure and maximize forward propulsion during rucking. Look at any elite athlete; almost every one of them has elite biomechanical traits.

Align the spine, hips, and shoulders in a neutral position, engage the core and stop wasting energy. This will help maintain speed over extended distances.

Stride Length and Cadence 

I noticed that beginners often struggle with stride length. They think that long steps are inherently better.

Even though a longer stride length results in greater forward propulsion and faster speeds, it also increases impact forces and energy expenditure. It is certainly not favorable over extended distances or uneven terrain.

Another factor is cadence or step rate. It is the number of steps taken per minute while rucking.

You need to experiment with different combinations of stride length and cadence to find the optimal balance that maximizes speed while minimizing energy expenditure. So, you can slightly lengthen your stride on flat or downhill sections to increase speed while shortening your stride and increasing cadence on uphill climbs or challenging terrain. Over time, as you gain experience, adapting to a new trail will be much easier.

Breathing Techniques

Although breathing is otherwise an unconscious action, if we think about it, we can significantly ease the effort during strenuous activities. Practicing rhythmic breathing patterns that synchronize inhalation and exhalation with your stride can enhance oxygen utilization, reduce perceived effort, and maintain a steady rhythm.

This will not be easy; it takes practice, but you don’t have to immediately follow the breathing pattern during the entire ruck march. Dedicate time during your rucking sessions to practicing rhythmic breathing patterns and finding a rhythm that feels comfortable and sustainable for you. Start with a simple 2:2 pattern (inhale for two steps, exhale for two steps) and gradually experiment with longer patterns, such as 3:3 or 4:4, as your fitness and comfort level improve.

Gear Optimization

You can’t ruck fast in flip-flops. You need suitable gear to have comfort, efficiency, and overall enjoyment.

Choosing the Right Rucksack 

Numerous different types of rucksacks can serve you for rucking, but they must be comfortable and durable. Look for padded shoulder straps, sternum straps, and hip belts. Then, check if it has a sleeve for the hydration bladder and other useful compartments.

Explore the market, and if you want our advice, Rucker 4.0 and Rip Ruck 32 are among the best rucking models.

Selecting the Ideal Load 

It goes without saying that you should choose a manageable load (according to your fitness level and body weight) that will not interfere with your speed. Start with a light load and increase.

Yet, not only the ruck weight is important, but also the type of load. If you choose weight plates, your balance will be significantly better than if you put water bottles and so on. I always use a ruck plate when I want to focus on rucking faster.

Footwear and Apparel

Have you ever heard the saying that you shouldn’t cheap out on shoes and mattress? As someone in sports and with multi-year experience in the sleep industry, I can confirm the accuracy of that saying.

Before you start to ruck regularly, invest in high-quality, supportive footwear specifically designed for rucking/hiking/trekking activities and special operations. Such shoes must have durable construction, ample cushioning, and a supportive midsole to provide stability and shock absorption.

If you’re unsure where to start, this GORUCK shoes review breaks down features like durability, grip, and comfort, offering insights to help you make the right choice.

After investing in shoes, moisture-wicking clothing made from breathable, quick-drying materials and premium socks should be next on your list.

Conclusion

Rucking faster requires a combination of physical conditioning, mental resilience, and strategic training.

Once you achieve all that, your ruck time will improve, and you will reap even more benefits.

But don’t push too much. You risk injury and burnout, and you won’t reach your goal much faster. Remember to stay consistent, stay motivated, and enjoy the journey because rucking should be enjoyment above all else.

Happy rucking!

Frequently Asked Questions