Welcome to the Rucking Calorie Calculator. Do you ruck along with a backpack and think about "How many calories did I burn?", We not only answer that question but also provide you with a complete guide that you might find helpful.
No doubt, rucking looks simple from the outside, but it tires the body like a full-body cardio-strength combo workout. Don't worry, we provide you with a Rucking Calorie Calculator that helps you estimate calories burned based on factors such as body weight, backpack weight, duration, and rucking intensity.
Keep reading! You will find everything about rucking calories burned, calculations, and much more.
Rucking means walking a set distance while carrying weight on your back, usually in a backpack or rucksack. Basically, it is rooted in military training, and fitness communities use it as a low-impact but high-calorie burn workout that improves cardio strength, endurance, mental toughness, bone strength, and overall body conditioning.
What are rucking calories? It means how many calories you burn when walking while carrying weight. When we walk while carrying weight, it uses more energy and burns significantly more calories compared to normal walking.
The rucking calories burned can depend on many factors such as:
You might be thinking how exactly the rucking calories are calculated and what formula is involved. In the next section, we explain the steps along with a real-world example.
We use a science-backed MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) formula that shows how hard your body is working compared to rest. You can follow the below steps to estimate rucking calories:
First, convert the body weight and the pack weight into kilograms (kg) because the MET formula uses kilograms.
1 lb = 0.45359237 kgThe MET formula uses hours, so let's convert the duration into hours.
60 minutes = 1 hour (you already know)Next, determine the intensity level in MET. Our calculator uses three preset MET values based on easy, standard, and hard intensity and also allows a custom MET value.
Easy ruck ≈ 5.0 METStandard ruck ≈ 6.5 METHard ruck ≈ 8.0 METCustom → user-definedNow, determine the load modifier that increases the effort by using the logic of pack-to-body-weight ratio. Here is the pack % of body weight:
| Pack % of Body Weight | Load Modifier |
|---|---|
| Less than 10% | +0.2 |
| 10% to 20% | +0.6 |
| 20% to 30% | +1.2 |
| 30% to 40% | +1.8 |
| 40%+ | +2.3 |
After determining the load modifier based on the pack % of body weight, add the load modifier to the MET value. For instance, if your intensity is easy ruck which uses 5.0 MET level, and the backpack weight is 10% to 20% of your body weight which equivalent load modifier is 0.6.
Let's add that modifier to the MET level:
MET = 5.0 (MET) + 0.6 (load modifier) = 5.6
Lastly, use the standard MET formula to compute the calories, and remember it is the same formula used in calorie-tracking devices, exercise science, and research studies.
Calories = Final MET × Body Weight (kg) × Duration (hours)
Estimating rucking calories is easy just ensure you properly use the formula and the backpack weight modifier based on the earlier guide.
Assume your body weight is 80 kg and you are carrying a 25 kg pack weight and rucking intensity is hard (~8.0 MET), and the duration was 90 minutes.
Let's compute:
80 kg25 kgHard (~8.0 MET)90 minutesHere are the steps involved:
Pack/body ratio: 25 ÷ 80 = 0.31 = 31% of body weight → load modifier = 1.8Final MET: 8.0 + 1.8 = 9.8Duration: 1.5 hoursFind calories:
9.8 × 80 × 1.5 = 1,176 kcal
Based on heavy pack weight and hard pace, we estimated 1,100 calories burned with heavy rucking.
Rucking is a low-impact but high-calorie-burn workout, we have demonstrated the most common mistakes that people make while rucking.
Yes, rucking is considered one of the highest-calorie-burn, low-impact workouts. It burns 2 to 3 times more calories than walking because of the extra weight your body is carrying, which requires a higher metabolic demand.