How much weight/distance for backpack training?

Just to brainstorm regarding what I believe is the ultimate training for backpack carrying:

Some factors to consider:
1. Your build - Are you long or short, strong or weak strength-wise?
2. Previous experience in endurance sports or carrying backpacks.
3. Proneness to injury.
4. Cardio level vs Strength.

I would say that a weak person can benefit a lot from going to the gym with the goal of adding muscle. Having a good strength is fundamental when adding weights to carry. It also stabilizes the core, knees and other weak-spots. Strength training for a thin person should in my opinion focus on adding muscle weight and by that increase durability in the body and joints, and of course - developing a higher strength that makes it easier to work a long time with lower weights.

A good strength in my world is to be able to benchpress your own bodyweight (bw) for 8 reps, deadlift/squat 1.5 x bw for 5-10 reps with a very correct form. Or, if you don't like deadlift and squats: To be able to barbell lunge 70% of your bodyweight for 30 reps (alternate between right and left leg, 15 rep each).

With such a strength level, you are able to carry a lot more than a "pure cardio" person that practice running and walking with backpack - if you practice that too.

If I were an untrained individual I would try a training schedule along these lines:
1. Reach the strength standards mentioned above by a good training regime and protein-rich foods (protein intake should be higher than most people believe). It may take a lot of time. Possibly several years, depending on background.
2. Running 2-3 times per week, starting with a very low mileage and build up. But do not take it too far- that will destroy the strength gains (cardio sends a signal to your body to not gain too much muscleweight as your body wants to be light to run easier, to say it in a very simplified way).
3. Walk with a backpack that weights not more than 15-20 lbs as a start. It is generally better to walk long than heavy when you start off.

I tend to get into the best backpack-carrying form by strength training and decent cardio exercises while adding about 15-20 pounds of bodyweight. My "secret" after that is to then lose the 15-20 pounds I added while simultaneously increasing the mileage for running and adding the lost weight in the backpack.

By this method, if you weight 220 lbs and carries 45lbs for training, you can go up to 65-70lbs when your diet is done, and probably move a lot quicker than you did with 45 lbs.

A thing to consider is that cardio-output is closely related to bodyweight. If you use a Vo2Max calculator and elaborate a little with bodyweight you can see it clearly. So being fat is the worst thing for your speed. Same applies to excessive muscles, of course. But very few have "excessive muscles" to the degree that it hurts cardio output.

My most effective training for backpack carrying is to walk in ski-slopes or similar steep hills. Doing it as an interval training with a decent speed is extremely exhausting even with very low weights added to the backpack. By using a pulse-watch you can see that your fitness increase almost every week (giving a lower average heart rate), as your legs becomes more used to handling the stress.
 
Im 58,5-9,165#.I work in construction,bagged up ,up down ladder,etc=3-5 miles a day at work.3-4 nights I do weights that I can handle,free hang.When out camp I do pullups,pushups,bring dumbell. I start out easy and work up,my day pack is 20#,Go what I can,then repeat.This year I did over 160 miles in mountains.Packed a bull solo,ten miles,shuttle style.Easier on older guy,less weight all at once.My muley easy pack compared.Had a lot of fun, lot days 3-4 miles.Some 6-10.Just keep at it.
 
Would start off at least 4 months prior to a hunt / work up to a 70-80 lb pack and do up to maybe 18-25 miles jut like the LRRP 's depending on the hunt. Regardless of the training I would still loose over 11-17 lbs on a hunt and as much as 23 lbs on one- now am lucky to grab a beer and not get winded . only kidding guess you get the message. All are not created equal.. Besides an ELK does not come off the ground like a deer !!!
 
I do the stairs at my office building with a 70# weight vest 1 hr a day. I work in sets of pushups and dumbell cleans at my desk throughout the day. I also started to backpack hunt missouri wilderness areas in preparation getting my mind used to the "packout"
 
I have been using my Cabelas frame pack in the gym once a week for since June of 2017. I started at 30 pounds and every 6 weeks I added five. When I hit 90 for six weeks then I started switching up different weights each week. I typically walked on the track or treadmill and then get on the stair machine ( think walking up the escalator that is going down) and then back to the track. I get at least a mile of walking in now and at least 20 min on the stairs. 90 pounds kicks my butt, but 60 pounds doesn't seem like much anymore. I'm sure if I had a better pack or had someone to show me how to adjust this one properly it would make a difference. I am 6' 1" and weight about 260.
I'm 6'1" and 240 but plan on losing at least 20 pounds. Ever notice hunting personalities are slender? People like Randy Newburg for instance. I think we don't need the extra body weight.
 
Being in good general shape helps rucking.

If you're in good general shape, and you're just starting, start small and light, and work up heavy. Then push distance. Then hump hills. Finding local hiking trails is a good way to start.

If your back and shoulders hurt, then your pack is almost always set up incorrectly, or incorrectly sized for you.
 
On a fly in Alaska with a DeHavlin beaver we were limited to 50#....
Thas everything you need for 7 days....
I trained abit with more but not long distance.
 
there is probably a weight or % of your body weight that is a good balance of exercise vs. potentially hurting the knees.

Starting lower and working up, how much do you carry and what distance do you go?
All this is very dependent on your bodies ability to handle the weight and distance. We are not created equal. Age, strength, stamina, tolerance. On the hunts I've done out of my pack I range from 50-60#'s including the rifle or bow. Even on horseback hunts I am pretty light tho. I generally stay around 50-60 regardless. Used to be 70-75 but I can afford lighter performance gear now vs when I was younger. What is weird, my day pack is 40-45 lbs. Part of that is due to packing a little more shooter gear then I would take on pack hunt. My day pack weight included my bino pack, rifle, tripod, shooting stick, backpack and all the normal bs inside. Hunts for me vary 3 miles to 15 in a day. Generally I am good with 5-10 mile days in Idaho back country but that is really dependent upon how steep the terrain is. I am not exactly super stoked about 10-15k vertical in a day with a heavier pack. So for me 40 lb pack, hunt all winter on the weekends, and hike during the summer. Summer hikes is generally 20lb pack and 5-10 mile hikes. If I go too heavy I can't keep pace with my wife and she refuses to carry my pack....
 
I am truly impressed with the amount and distances you folks go with. I am 78, 6'6" and 230. I am walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain and plan to finish the last 200 miles next March. I was supposed to be walking now, but a knee replacement had to take place. The rule of thumb there is 10-15% of your body weight. No need for a tent or food, as it is available along the route. I usually make 14 miles a day, up and down hills. Far enough for these old bones. I do plan to hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon in October and there the weight will be significantly heavier as tent, food, pad and stove will be added. I live in S. Utah, at 5600', with hills going up to 11,000', so can get some training hikes around town that are pretty strenuous. I think the base altitude helps a lot when I go to lower elevations to trek.
 
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