Rucking is a major part of soldier skills. Everyone who served should have fond memories of marches, healed by time. It sucked back then, but afterwards, all those clicks are warmly remembered.
This article covers the basics of preparing for a loaded march, clothing, gear, and the march itself. There are many means to an end, and this is not the only truth. However, Varusteleka employees who gave these tips have marched a fair number of kilometers in both armed service and as reservists.
The purpose of marching
Marching is a way to advance your forces over ground. It should not be seen as a standalone thing. The soldiers must maintain combat readiness before, during, and after the march. This should be considered as part of the objective: can you complete the march without exhausting yourself mentally and physically? Too often, people look to cross the finish line and drop there and then.
Of course, long marches are important and taxing events, but keep in mind the original purpose of marching and be honest with yourself.
Marching is a good way to maintain fitness and find the limits of your performance. With experience, you can find peace of mind, especially over longer distances. At its best, training for a march and marches are a perfect combination of physical exercise and meditation.
How to practice marching
Marching doesn't require top-level athletic condition; just regular fitness gets you far. In practical terms, a healthy person can complete a 20-30 km (12.5-18.5 mi) march with a 10-15 kg (22-33 bs) load in 4-6 hours without being a wet and sore noodle afterwards. The situation does change when the distance, load, pace, or all of these are increased.
The best practice for marches is, of course, marching. Shorter and longer distances, various loads, and various paces over different kinds of ground. Jogging helps, but don't count on just running fitness alone. A backpack and boots are different animals and require a lot of practice to get used to.
In addition to marching and running, work your legs and core muscles. A good many marches have been cut short because of severe back pain, or knee or Achilles tendon injuries. Having good abs and back muscles helps carry the backpack and reduces the risk of injury when you're tired. The legs should be trained diversely to ensure sufficient strength to protect your knees and ankles. If you aren't familiar with this kind of training, it's advisable to consult a professional. Tell what you're up to and ask for advice to get a good program.
The key is to have trained enough to know your body and its performance. Practice also boosts your confidence during the march, as you won't be easily surprised.
Clothing and gear for marching
Marching is certainly not an equipment-focused sport, but, as usual, high-quality, functional gear will help minimize the suck on the trail.
Footwear
Boots are the most important piece of equipment. Usually, these are high lace-up boots, the type used by various armed forces. Bad footwear has shattered many efforts despite the wearer being in top shape.
The top priority is a good fit and walking enough beforehand to mold them to your feet. Make sure that your toes don't touch the tip. However, the fit must be tight enough to support and hold the foot steady. There are no shortcuts here; you have to do this properly or suffer the consequences.
Another important aspect is durability. Don't go with the Temu-quality shoes. They will fall apart very quickly. There are no indestructible shoes, but there is a huge variety in lifespan.
It is also good to have a cushioning and shock-absorbing sole when you plan to walk long distances, especially on hard surfaces such as asphalt.
Water resistance is a matter of preference. If you only march in the summertime and always sleep indoors afterwards, you don't really need waterproof boots. However, if you walk around the year and plan on sleeping in the bush, waterproof footwear makes your life considerably easier. You basically have three options: GTX or other membrane, good ol' greased leather boots, or waterproof socks. The fourth one is to march in rubber boots, but they aren't ideal companions for your feet.
Find suitable boots and shoes for marching in our footwear section.
Socks
Proper socks are another staple of marching gear. The socks should fit without wrinkling or bunching and have flat seams. They should wick moisture (or reject it) and dry quickly. Your feet will also love soft materials. Merino wool blend socks are an excellent choice. Soft, comfortable, breathable, and moisture-wicking. Merino wool on its own is too fragile for socks but when blended with synthetic materials, it gives you enough durability as well.
The role of socks is important from the first step to the last. They reduce friction around the feet as your feet inevitably move a little inside the boots. Many swear by double or even triple socks for marches. When socks are worn as layers, the friction is absorbed by each sock, preventing the skin from blistering or chafing. Put a thin merino sock next to the skin and another similar or thicker one on top, depending on how warm the weather is.
Just like footwear, socks are a personal choice you should discover through trial and error. Check out our sock selection for suitable marching socks
Backpack
A backpack or rucksack is certainly noteworthy for loaded marches. After all, you must carry the required weight or equipment on your back. In addition to meeting outside requirements, the pack must be suitable for the wearer.
Typical loads to be carried from start to finish are 10-20 kg (22-44 lbs), and earnest folks will carry more than 40 kg (88 lbs). Choose the appropriate pack for the load unless you're a masochist and consider a waistbelt to distribute the weight even with a small backpack.
It pays off to familiarize yourself with all the adjustments of your pack. When adjusted correctly, you shouldn't have hot spots on your shoulders or chafed hips, no matter how much load you carry. Check out our backpack options.
Clothes
What you wear affects your performance through heat management. An ordinary soldier produces 2300-3200 kJ of heat per hour when marching with a 25 kg (55 lbs) load. With this in mind, choose clothes that can be adjusted to vent heat to avoid overheating and dehydration from sweating. A good rule of thumb is that if you're cold while waiting to go, you are likely to be good when you get going.
Obviously, your clothes shouldn't chafe, bind or restrict movement. The base level should wick moisture (or reject it) just like your socks. As an additional challenge, the clothes must protect you from exposure (wind, rain, sun, etc.) and mechanical hazards like sticks and rocks. Our experience favors merino wool against the skin (L1) and the Varusteleka L4 Field Jacket and L4 Field Pants as the outer layer for the Finnish environment. We dare claim that this combination works across a wide range of weather worldwide.
What you shouldn't do is wear all the clothes you bring along. It makes sense to carry a windbreaker to stay warm during breaks. This allows you to continue with a higher morale without warming up again.
This product group has all the clothes you will need for any march.
First aid and preventative measures
Shit happens. The most common boo-boo is a blister on your foot. Another common setback is a sprain or stress-injury of the lower limb. You should at least prepare for these.
In addition to your first aid kit, which may already include a chest decompression needle, pressure bandage, and nasopharyngeal airway, you are likely to need antiseptic wound cleansers, blister band-aids, gymnastics tape or duct tape, a sterile needle, and sharp scissors. This set usually resolves minor issues and lets you continue. Elastic bandages may also be a good option for treating a sprained ankle or knee.
Chamois crème and talcum powder are also worth their weight in gold to keep your arse smooth and slick. Other good spots to give a dab are the armpits, nipples, and crotch. Talcum powder helps manage moisture. The best time to practice and get used to these performance-enhancing tricks is before you need them. Check out our first aid selection.
An example of the foot-care kit for a 50 km (31 mi) march:
- Wet wipes (for cleaning your feet)
- Small towel (for drying your feet)
- Blister bandages
- Individually packed wound cleansing wipes
- Small roll of wide Gorilla tape (for serious SHTF)
- A couple of sterile needles (for emptying blisters)
- Small scissors (sharp!) and a nail file for maintaining your nails and trimming possible tape-jobs
Other useful pieces of equipment
All essential survival equipment should also be included in your marching kit, including but not limited to a water bottle, light source, firestarter, map, and compass. If the route goes along roads with any traffic and the scenario doesn't include avoiding enemy surveillance, a reflector or blaze orange/yellow flag on the backpack can be used for added safety.
Typical road marches don't require land navigation, but the routes may not be clearly marked. Carry a map to be sure of the direction. Think of it as map-reading practice, even if it's not mandatory: it's part of combat readiness and general knowledge to be aware of your location at all times.
A small supply of toilet paper and wet wipes will help you in case nature calls on the way. A less likely but incredibly useful "don't ruin your march"-card is a pair of spare laces for your boots.
Preparations before marching
You should start getting ready as soon as the decision to participate in a march is made. The boots, socks, pack, and other vital equipment should be tested as you practice. Don't bring along anything you're not familiar with.
Caring for your feet is a forward-approach thing as well. Any hard spots, warts, and similar issues should be sorted out weeks before you put your left foot over the start line. If you have any problems at the start, the likelihood of trouble on the way increases exponentially, and another multiplier is distance.
Clip and file your nails well beforehand. Ensure there are no sharp corners, fractures, and that the nails don't bother other toes on either side. Clipping reveals more sensitive skin underneath and it needs time to get used to the new look.
Some people swear by taped feet. However, it is better to count on practice and correct equipment rather than this gimmick. Keep in mind that marching is a wartime skill, and achieving a good, hygienic tape job in the field can be impossible. If you do take this route, practice it. Use high-quality tape and avoid wrinkles, impurities, and sharp corners.
Before the march, take extra care of personal hygiene, especially around the crotch, armpits, and other areas prone to chafing.
Go through the boots and socks you intend to use. Make sure nothing is broken and remove lint balls, loose threads, and other gremlins that could chew your feet into minced meat.
Clean the boots inside and out, and loosen trapped dirt and sand from under the insoles, along the inside seams, and in other nooks and crannies. Use a vacuum cleaner as an extra measure.
Eat and drink during the 24 hours up to the march to be hydrated and well at the start. For an ordinary 25-50 km (15.5-31 mi) march, you don't need any mystical bulk-up, just good home-cooked meals and water. In this phase, don't mess up your diet by introducing anything new. Stick to familiar foodstuffs that you can handle.
Make a plan as soon as you know the route. Obtain maps that cover the entire route to be familiar with it, and choose a pace and break spots. Once you have made a plan, stick to it. Increasing the pace or skipping breaks may feel attractive on the go, but may come back to bite you in the ass later.
Common mistakes include starting with a fast pace or without any idea of how often and how long breaks you should have. A good march will have a steady pace, breaks are kept as planned, and in the end, you remain functional.
Here are some examples of break plans used by marchers at Varusteleka. The patrol leader helps to send the team off on time.
| Example one, 50 km (31 mi) March | ||
| Elapsed distance | Break time | Break tasks |
|---|---|---|
| 12.5 km | 5 min | Equipment check |
| 25.km | 20 min | Foot care, sock change, eating |
| 37.5 km | 5 min | Equipment check |
| 50 km | Finish | |
| Example Two, 50 km (31 mi) March | |
| Elapsed distance | Break time |
|---|---|
| 10 km | Break max. 5 min |
| 20 km | Break max. 5 min |
| 30 km | Break 15-25 min |
| 40 km | Break max. 5 min |
| 50 km | Finish |
The march
Marching itself is simple: put one foot in front of the other and keep going at a steady pace without breaking yourself.
The typical pace on roads and easy terrain ranges from 4.5 to 6.5 km/h (2.8 to 4.0 mph). For a 25 km (15.5 mi) march, this means between 3h 50min - 5h 30min excluding breaks. If breaks add up to 20 minutes, the total time will be between 4:10 and 5:50 h. If the breaks extend over the plan, it will be difficult to make up any of the time by marching.
As a rule of thumb, a suitable balance is using 5-10% of the total time for breaks. This should be enough to maintain combat readiness while meeting time constraints. Keep track of your pace with a watch and a map or a GPS if you prefer. The patrol leader or individual must correct the pace as necessary.
Real-life examples of the pace and balance between breaks:
| March 1 | March 2 | March 3 | March 4 | March 5 | March 6 | Total / avg. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distance | 50 km | 50 km | 50 km | 100 km | 100 km | 50 km | 400 km | |
| Total time | 567 min | 531 min | 435 min | 1359 min | 1299 min | 551 min | 4742 min | |
| Time moving | 533 min | 476 min | 414 min | 1229 min | 1189 min | 513 min | 4354 min | |
| Breaks | 34 min | 55 min | 21 min | 130 | 110 min | 38 min | 388 min | |
| Breaks of total time | 6 % | 10 % | 5 % | 10 % | 8 % | 7 % | 8 % | |
| min/km moving | 10,66 min | 9,52 min | 8,28 min | 12,29 min | 11,89 min | 10,26 min | 10,89 | |
| min/km during total time | 11,34 min | 10,62 min | 8,70 min | 13,59 min | 12,99 min | 11,02 min | 11,86 min | |
| km/h moving | 5,63 km/h | 6,30 km/h | 7,25 km/h | 4,88 km/h | 5,05 km/h | 5,85 km/h | 5,51 km/h | |
| km/h during total time | 5,29 km/h | 5,65 km/h | 6,90 km/h | 4,42 km/h | 4,62 km/h | 5,44 km/h | 5,06 km/h |
Try to drink regularly and a little at a time during the march. A good amount is 2-3 dl (6.75-10 oz) every 10-15 minutes. Adjust as necessary depending on your pace, load, and temperature. Avoid becoming very thirsty and maintain a normal need to take a piss. The color should be yellowish neutral, not deep yellow. Hydration is easy to forget in cold weather, so keep it in mind.
Some athletes and daredevils have died from drinking too much, so don't take it to the other extreme, either. You don't lose 2 litres (half a gallon) of fluids in one hour, so you should not drink that much, either. Overhydration can cause headaches and cramps, which could be mistaken for dehydration.
Water is what you need the most, but electrolytes are necessary to maintain a healthy sodium level. Sports drinks are effective alongside water to replenish sugars and salts. Find a concentration that your stomach can handle during the practice phase.
Don't forget to eat something with energy and salt. Nuts, pizza, whatever works for you. The key is to have tested your snacks in advance so you won't run into digestive problems during the march. The goal is to keep blood sugar and sodium levels balanced. Check out our food and cooking gear.
Example One, 50 km (31 mi) march sustenance kit:
- 3 liters (101 oz) of water in a hydration reservoir
- 2 liters (68 oz) of water in canteens
- 1 litre (1 qt) of sports drink in a canteen
- 3 pcs of energy bars
- 2 bags of salted peanuts
- 2 pcs of triple-salami and cheese sandwiches
- 2 bags of sports drink powder
- Magnesium citrate granules
Example Two, 50 km (31 mi) march sustenance kit:
- 4 liters (1 gallon) of water in canteens (not inside the ruck)
- 1 liter (1 qt) of water in the ruck (emergency bottle)
- Sports drink concentrate (effervescent tablets are handy and neat to use)
- Nut selections (vary the tastes!)
- Sliced salami/jerky
- Chocolate (or liquorice in hot weather)
- Energy gels
- Coarse sea salt - wonderful to let it dissolve on the tongue
The idea is to pack several snack bags to be opened and chowed every x clicks. Each bag will have nuts, salami, chocolate, and gel. This helps you maintain a fairly stable energy level. You can burn 5,000-6,000 kCal during a 50 km march with a backpack (10-20 kCal/min), so eating is really a task. Eating on your feet allows you to avoid a separate break for eating.
You will need one or several breaks on the way, depending on the distance. This is the time to clean and dry your feet and air them a little. Eat and drink if you have time. Change into dry and clean socks and fix your equipment if necessary. About halfway is a good time for this, or the 1/3 and 2/3 milestones of the total distance if it's a long march.
Frankly, it will be impossible to avoid all hardships. You'll be sore or tired in various places, walking will become boring, or your morale will otherwise be low. These are entirely normal reactions, and you can push through them with confidence in yourself and the plan.
Discomfort and aches are part of marching, especially over long distances. Knowing your body and listening to it is important: if you have alarming pain in the knee, ankles, back or other part of you that can be injured, stop going. An injured soldier is no good, don't break yourself.
Monitor every aspect of your body to the best of your ability. If your sock isn't on right or there's something in your boot, fix it right away. Many large blisters have started from the idea that you don't want to stop for a minor issue. Given time, small problems become large and complex problems.
Final words
Marching is a delightful way to be outdoors, get fit, and refresh your mind. You can do it individually or with friends. The threshold is low (it doesn't require much money or a super-fit physique), and you can do it every day. Even if you have bad memories from past marches or haven't done any, give it a try. With the right preparation and mindset, you can be positively surprised. Your performance is not what matters, it's what you do with pride.
In addition to local marching events, you can attend our annual Varusteleka's Remote Military March if you like the mental support of doing things together.