Getting Older, Getting In Shape, and Rucking.

[Sam Gamgee]

I've been taking long walks for years. It has health benefits but I find the mental/spiritual benefits to be where the real payoff is. I work indoors and love getting outside for my lunchtime walks. It helps keep me sane.

I've recently decided to go to the next level and try to really get in shape. I'm almost 50 and don't mind the hard work: the mentality that brings with it the willingness to follow through is finally there after all these years. When I was younger I was too distracted to stick to much of anything.

I've been lifting weights faithfully for a few weeks now and am seeing some gains. Mostly, I can tell I'm getting stronger. The hardest part is staying off sweets and beer once I get home at night. I love beer but it doesn't love me back.

I'm about to up my game with a legit rucksack. I've done some research and, while expensive, it seems like GoRuck is the way to go. They have a sale going on right now so this weekend I'm going to take the plunge and place an order. My parsimony has its limits.

Anywhere else here into rucking?

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[cosmicfolklore]

Good for you. I have been a member or the YMCA for years. But, then my wife had hip surgery and couldn’t walk for a few months. I stopped going while caring for her, having to carry her to bed and bath and stuff. I wasn’t going to the gum alone so I quickly atrophied a bit and slipped and herniated 3 disks and currently dealing with sciatica.

I can’t wait to get over this and get back to swimming laps and lifting every night again.

 

[Sam Gamgee]

Good for you. I have been a member or the YMCA for years. But, then my wife had hip surgery and couldn’t walk for a few months. I stopped going while caring for her, having to carry her to bed and bath and stuff. I wasn’t going to the gum alone so I quickly atrophied a bit and slipped and herniated 3 disks and currently dealing with sciatica.

I can’t wait to get over this and get back to swimming laps and lifting every night again.

Man, that's rough. I made a go at this about eight years ago and got wiped out by a back injury and it took away my will to get in shape. What I find is that an injury seems to do more harm mentally than physically. That back injury I sustained literally changed my outlook on life and suffering and I've never been the same (in a good way). But sometimes pain can wipe someone out for good and break the will.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Man, that's rough. I made a go at this about eight years ago and got wiped out by a back injury and it took away my will to get in shape. What I find is that an injury seems to do more harm mentally than physically. That back injury I sustained literally changed my outlook on life and suffering and I've never been the same (in a good way). But sometimes pain can wipe someone out for good and break the will.

I completely got over my last bought of sciatica a few years ago by riding my bike. I just wore a belt brace to keep the weight off of my spine, and I altered the geometry of my bike to keep me upright instead of leaning forward. Worked then. But, I am not yet to the point of doing that yet.
Yeh, it is mental, but when your back is out, your core strength is limited. I can’t even do limited work in the studio at the moment because I can’t swing a small hammer without stressing my spine.

 

[Grangerous]

True. There is something strangely comforting about a heavy ruck. A 40 pound sandbag is the Army way to embrace the suck.

 

[BarrelProof]

True. There is something strangely comforting about a heavy ruck. A 40 pound sandbag is the Army way to embrace the suck.

Pt and water. Gotta love it.

@Sam Gamgee - are you dead set on GoRuck?

 

[huntertrw]

Sadly, as many people age, rucking becomes less and less frequent. No, wait, did you mean "hiking"? Never mind!

 

[Sam Gamgee]

Pt and water. Gotta love it.

@Sam Gamgee - are you dead set on GoRuck?

I'm pretty set on GoRuck but open to suggestions. I've thought about making my own sandbags and going with another pack, but I'm concerned it won't hold up, and then I'll have to spend more money to get a good one. I've learned this the hard way in many other areas of life. Do you have any suggestions?

 

[sablebrush52]

I completely got over my last bought of sciatica a few years ago by riding my bike. I just wore a belt brace to keep the weight off of my spine, and I altered the geometry of my bike to keep me upright instead of leaning forward. Worked then. But, I am not yet to the point of doing that yet.
Yeh, it is mental, but when your back is out, your core strength is limited. I can’t even do limited work in the studio at the moment because I can’t swing a small hammer without stressing my spine.

Sciatica is a bitch. My cure is yoga.

Years ago I was suffering from extreme sciatica that had been going on for 6 months without let up. I'd had the lovely spinal steroid shots, which did next to nothing and was facing surgery, when one of my students recommended yoga. My first thought was, yeah, bullshit. But I then figured what do I have to lose by trying it out. I found a "restorative" yoga instructor, who was also a licensed physical therapist and held high degrees in several forms of martial arts.
The first two weeks were torture, but then, during a lower back stretch, the pain melted away for about 10 minutes. By the end of that week it was gone and as long as I do my yoga it's been kept at bay, now going on 14 years.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Sciatica is a bitch. My cure is yoga.

Years ago I was suffering from extreme sciatica that had been going on for 6 months without let up. I'd had the lovely spinal steroid shots, which did next to nothing and was facing surgery, when one of my students recommended yoga. My first thought was, yeah, bullshit. But I then figured what do I have to lose by trying it out. I found a "restorative" yoga instructor, who was also a licensed physical therapist and held high degrees in several forms of martial arts.
The first two weeks were torture, but then, during a lower back stretch, the pain melted away for about 10 minutes. By the end of that week it was gone and as long as I do my yoga it's been kept at bay, now going on 14 years.

Yoga and me go way back. But, now a days its just very specialized stretches. But, I should get into more of a full routine again.

 

[mawnansmiff]

I had to look up the meaning of the verb ruck in the OED to understand the post fully. Alas to rucksack isn't there but if a credible source can be found I'll enter it in my daily additions to the OED reader's programme.

v1: to squat, crouch, cower.

v2: to heap, pile up or stack.

v3: to belch.

v4: to crease or wrinkle (clothing, fabric etc).

v5: to severely criticize, to rebuke.

v6: to inform on, to snitch.

v7: to fight.

The English language, don't you just love it

Regards,

Jay.

 

[sablebrush52]

View attachment 211993
Yoga and me go way back. But, now a days its just very specialized stretches. But, I should get into more of a full routine again.

Great, so ask about stretches that address the sciatic nerve. One simple one is triumphal sitting, where you sit with your back tight against the wall and your feet tucked in, touching sole to sole. That stretch addresses the sciatic nerve.

 

[BarrelProof]

I'm pretty set on GoRuck but open to suggestions. I've thought about making my own sandbags and going with another pack, but I'm concerned it won't hold up, and then I'll have to spend more money to get a good one. I've learned this the hard way in many other areas of life. Do you have any suggestions?

I do. I’ll send you a PM.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Great, so ask about stretches that address the sciatic nerve. One simple one is triumphal sitting, where you sit with your back tight against the wall and your feet tucked in, touching sole to sole. That stretch addresses the sciatic nerve.

Yes, yoga is great for sciatica, but I want to wait for the disks to heal back a little more. I’ve got three out at the moment. Traction and electric therapy every day till I can get off the floor by myself.

 

[AroEnglish]

What a timely thread; I’ve been thinking about starting rucking myself. A couple of my friends do it and find it helpful and enjoyable.

 

[sablebrush52]

Yes, yoga is great for sciatica, but I want to wait for the disks to heal back a little more. I’ve got three out at the moment. Traction and electric therapy every day till I can get off the floor by myself.

Makes sense. When you feel ready, assuming that your haven't already checked this out, look into rope wall yoga, which uses a lot of traction in its practice.
Most people who hit my age group start to shrink, sort of collapse in on themselves. I've stretched out about 1/2 an inch or so so now I'm about 6'1".

 

[SBC]

A couple of my kids are still young enough to go into one of these:



(This isn't the exact model I have -- I can't find a picture of it at the moment -- but very similar.)

We used to hike a lot, and I hope to give this a lot of use this summer to get back into shape after chemo (which is scheduled to finish by the end of May!). I'm physically destroyed right now and feel like crap about my body. Really hoping to re-enter the land of the living this summer.

When my youngest gets too big for this, I could see trying a rucksack. Neat idea -- thanks for sharing.

 

[Sam Gamgee]

BarrelProof mentioned this brand to me as well: MYSTERY RANCH Backpacks | Built for the Mission - https://www.mysteryranch.com/

Looks legit! Putting this out there so all who are curious can see the other options. I'd never heard of this company till today. Weird that it never came up in all my websearches for packs, rucks, etc.

 

[huntertrw]

The English language, don't you just love it

I believe that it was George Bernard Shaw who said something to the effect that the British and the Americans are two people separated by a common language.

 

[huntertrw]

v3: to belch.

Hence, the scientific term for this: Eructation.