The 2 Hour 12 Miler and How to Ruck Faster
Less is Always More
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I recently PR’d my 12 miler time on the Sapper course with a finishing time of 1:57:30 carrying 35 pounds dry weight, water, and a rifle.
There are plenty of people that are faster than me — just check out any Ranger Batt instagram for some insane finishing times. But relative to the general population, I am certainly top 10%. The point being, I am not unique and being sub 2:30 at a minimum for any 12 mile course is extremely achievable. I have many problems with the way big army prepares for rucking, including frequency, lack of variability in training, lack of aerobic capacity training, and lack of strength training.
In preparation for this, I did very little specific preparation. I am a big believer most graded events you do in the Army (or military as a whole) should be able to be accomplished in a high percentile or maxed with zero preparatory work. I don’t mean roll off the couch and max an ACFT. I mean the way you train every day should prepare you for anything and everything they will throw at you. This extends from a basic PT test, a timed 12 miler, the 82nd annual 4 miler, Ranger School, SFAS, and RASP. Obviously for more intensive schools rucking more frequently is advised, but shouldn’t cause any major changes in your training schedule and only add to it.
My preparation for the ruck was simply what I do every day. I rucked 1 time per month leading up to it, had a high amount of conditioning work including METCONs, intervals, tempo runs, easy runs, and long runs. My strength training consisted of 4 sessions per week (2 upper + 2 lower sessions), and that was it. These are the things I was already doing for months and years leading up to it.
Some of my peers who have assessed into SF or the Ranger Regiment were previously track/cross country athletes and require very little rucking to have insane times that blow me out of the water. Their limiting factor is their ability to develop strength in their trunk, legs, and core. This is primarily for injury prevention and lessen the burden of the load compared to their previously slender frames. So what is the difference maker? Insane aerobic output capacity. It is generally easier for a previous endurance athlete to have very fast ruck times because all they have to do is implement strength training to an existing high aerobic base.
Rucking fast and preventing injury comes down to 2 factors: strength and aerobic capacity. The strength is fairly straightforward. What are the points of friction/pain during long periods of rucking? Traditionally many experience soreness in their traps/shoulders, lower back, hips, knees, and soreness in front of the shins. Similar to running, the one of the best ways to prevent injury in the long run is implement strength training as part of a well rounded program.
Primary components should include a shoulder compound movement (strict press, seated machine press), quad compound (back squats, hack squat, leg press), hamstring compound (bulgarian split squats, lunges, single leg weighted step ups), trunk movement (deadlift, RDLs, straight leg deadlift), calves (seated/standing calf raises), and tibialis raises. Many of these should be familiar to you, and seem fairly obvious. The addition is specific training of the tibialis, which can be accomplished with sets of 15-20 raises at varying difficulty (see video and explanation here).
Aerobic capacity specific for rucking can be developed with a combination of steady state running and high intensity intervals. As mentioned in here, this could be accomplished with as little as 2 hours of steady state (SS, zone 2) running and 1x interval session per week. Over time, this should be built up to 3-4 hours of SS and 1-2 interval sessions per week. Realistically, minimal rucking is actually required for a FAST time. Training for specific schools may require some extra time under load to be acclimated to carrying a pack for days/weeks at a time. Additionally, as mentioned in the same post, a rep range of 6-20 should be held for 2-4 total sets per movement, including 3-6 movements per workout. You could break it down into as few as 2 sessions per week (full body), a push/pull/legs split, or upper/lower sessions. The world is your oyster. The primary emphasis (as always) should be on slowly progressing in either reps or weight with adequate rest between training sessions.
Putting it all together:
Monday: Upper + SS
Tuesday: Lower + Intervals
Wednesday: Active recovery (mobility work or shakeout run)
Thursday: Upper + SS
Friday: Lower + SS
Saturday: Long Steady State (LSS)
Sunday: Full rest day.
5 days of running per week may be too much to start and that’s completely fine. I recommend starting with 3 days per week (1x SS, 1x LSS, and 1x interval session) and building up to being able to run 4-5x per week. The strength could also be minimized to just 2x full body sessions per week, depending on how much time you have available. Additionally, the intervals should vary by short and long intervals each week. In one week, short intervals could be 100s, 200s, 400s, or 800s, where the total work (distance sprinting) should not exceed 3200m. The same rule applies for long intervals, which include 1000s, 1200s, and 1600m repeats. Rest should be approximately a 1:2 work:rest cycle where the rest period is spent walking or doing a recovery jog.
To further break it down, the SS sessions should result in a total of 2-4 hours of total work per week. How you break this down is up to you and your current fitness level. Just like strength training, progressive overload and de-load weeks are key. Over a 4 week period, you should be either increasing the total time running or days per week running each week, then on the 4th week reduce all mileage by 25-50% for an easy week, and begin the cycle over on the 5th week. For example:
Monday: Upper + 30 min SS
Tuesday: Lower + 1 mile warmup + 6x400m + 1 mile cooldown
Wednesday: 3 mile shakeout run (VERY easy pace, slower than SS)
Thursday: Upper + 60 min SS
Friday: Lower + 30 min SS
Saturday: Long Steady State (LSS): 90 min hike or run
Sunday: Full rest day.
When you are first starting out, rucking 1x per month is going to be totally fine. As you progress, adding in a 2nd ruck per month is extremely repeatable and could be run infinitely. When we get into weekly rucks does it exceed what I would want to be able to run for an indeterminate amount of time training. Only in the final 1-3 months of a train up would I recommend adding this many rucks per month.
When adding the rucks, simply substitute 1-2x LSS sessions on Saturday for a ruck. Do not exceed 8 miles on the rucks. If you are doing this much mileage, there is no benefit to doing monthly 12 milers (lol). Rather, the focus during the rucks should be on intensity rather than volume (mileage). You can moderate the intensity of your rucks by adjusting the pack load (weight), speed (pace), and distance. I like to vary every other ruck for either speed or weight. For example, 1 months ruck may look like 4 miles at 45 pounds at a 10 min per mile pace. The following ruck would be 5 miles at a slightly slower pace but with 60 pounds. This way you get acclimated to both moving at speed and moving with heavy weight. Over time, the same principle of progressive overload applies. Either drop the pace or add weight. Simple!
This begs the question of “ruck running”, which seems to be highly controversial. But, it is impossible to ruck a 12 miler in under 2 hours without running. I’m literally moving at a 9:30 pace per mile. I have never been injured from ruck running. I keep the same form fundamentals from running (see post here) as I do when running with a ruck. I also pack the weight high up on the frame of the pack, as close to my back as possible. I keep the pack high up on my shoulders and keep the straps tight and the frame as close to my shoulders as possible. These are simple changes you can make by re-attaching the fabric of the ruck to the frame by shifting it higher.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. There is no mystery to moving weight quickly, just a lot of misinformation out there leading many to ruck FAR too much which can actually lead to injury. But if you are training strength and building your aerobic capacity you will inevitably be an animal when you throw some weight on your back.
Cheers ✌️
DISCLAIMER
This is not Legal, Medical, or Financial advice. Please consult a medical professional before starting any workout program, diet plan, or supplement protocol.