RUCKING to ROLLA

Photo: HEROES Board Member Jackie Sisco

RUCKING to ROLLA
By Marilyn Sweitzer, RN; HEROES Marathon Race Director

Roughly three out of four Americans do not meet the recommended physical activity guidelines, according to the CDC. Lack of activity and/or poor dietary choices can lead to disastrous health outcomes, such as heart disease or diabetes. To take care of ourselves, we need to decrease our screen time, or whatever is holding us back, and get moving!
One way to move is to RUCK! If you want to burn some calories and perhaps are not a fan of running; strap on a backpack or ruck, put some weight inside, and walk. Gradually add weight as you get stronger; you can use potting soil, a bag of rice, or some dumbbells as your weight, or you can purchase weight plates that fit in your ruck.
Walking with a ruck increases your endurance.  Weight bearing exercise is great for preventing osteoarthritis, and the benefits of exercise on your brain, heart, and entire body are numerous. Building muscle and strength is important at any point in our lifespans, and especially as we get older. Rucking improves not only the calorie burn and effectiveness of walking, but improves posture as the ruck pulls the shoulders back.
Rucking is easy. It requires minimal equipment: a backpack or ruck and a pair of shoes. You can burn up to three times more calories than walking without a ruck, and the faster you walk and the more weight you can carry, the greater the workout.
I walk with a ruck purchased from the GoRUCK company. Founded by a soldier, who was used to carrying a military-style ruck, I find the ruck to be not only a great workout addition, but it’s super practical- I can load it up with my laptop and planner and get a 5K walk done anywhere when I’m traveling. At home, I can tuck  a weight plate inside my ruck; when I have ten minutes to spare, I can get the benefits of a longer walk with a speedy ruck walk.
The HEROES Marathon Event on Nov. 16th at Rolla’s Lions Club Park honors and benefits our veterans. Now in its ninth year, HEROES added a RUCK division in both  Light (20 lb ruck) and Heavy (40 lb ruck) categories, with awards for the first, second and third place finisher in 5 year age increments in ALL of the distances we offer (5K, 10K, Relay, Half and Full Marathons).  M S & T ROTC cadets have been participating in HEROES carrying rucks for several years; now we hope to see more rucks worn by the general public as well.
To register to walk, run, or RUCK, visit www.heroesmarathon.com; use discount code RUCK for 10% off your registration. Come join us as we Honor our HEROES, and good ruck!