Rucking for Testosterone: Why This Simple Exercise Is Trending

Rucking, the simple act of walking with a weighted pack, has gone from a military staple to a popular fitness trend. Part of the appeal is accessibility: it requires no gym membership and no complex technique. Part of it is the idea that adding load to walking creates a middle ground between easy cardio and strength training. Because many men interested in hormonal health ask about it, this article looks at what the research does and does not tell us. It is educational and not medical advice.

An important caveat up front: no study we could find has measured testosterone in people who ruck regularly. What follows is based on research on load carriage, exercise intensity, and injuries, and it should be read as informed context rather than proof of any hormonal benefit.

What Is Rucking?

At its most basic, rucking is walking with weight on your back. The practice originated in military training, where soldiers march long distances with heavy packs. Historical review suggests that before the 18th century foot soldiers seldom carried more than 15 kg, and loads have risen steadily since.^[2] The fitness version is usually much lighter and shorter, typically a rucksack with a modest amount of weight carried on walks of 30 to 90 minutes.

The GORUCK brand, founded by a former Green Beret, popularized recreational rucking through organized events and purpose-built gear. But you do not need specialized equipment to start. A sturdy backpack loaded with weight plates, sandbags, or even books provides the same stimulus. The key differentiator from a normal walk is the additional load.

The Metabolic Demand of Rucking

Carrying a load while walking requires continuous muscular engagement of the legs, hips, core, and upper back, and the sustained nature of the activity places aerobic demands on the cardiovascular system. A review of soldier load carriage concludes that the energy cost of walking with backpack loads increases progressively with the weight carried, body mass, walking speed, or grade, and that terrain also matters.^[2]

There is a practical catch. In a laboratory study in which men walked 12 km on a treadmill carrying 31.5 or 49.4 kg, oxygen uptake rose over time by 10 to 18 percent in several of the loaded conditions, even at relatively low starting intensities, and a standard prediction formula underestimated the true cost.^[4] Those loads are far heavier than most recreational rucks, but the lesson holds: load carriage gets harder the longer you do it, which is one reason to progress gradually.

If you are unfamiliar with low-intensity aerobic training, our article on Zone 2 cardio and testosterone covers the concept. A simple rule of thumb is to keep a pace at which you can still hold a conversation.

Where Rucking Fits: Between Walking and Lifting

Most exercise forms push you toward either resistance stimulus or aerobic demand. Weight training provides strong resistance loading but limited cardiovascular challenge per unit of time. Walking provides aerobic work without much load. Rucking sits between the two, adding a modest load to a low-skill, sustained activity. That makes it a reasonable option for active recovery days or for people who dislike the gym.

Rucking should complement, not replace, strength training. In an 8-week special military training period, conscripts lost maximal leg and back strength whether or not low-volume resistance training was added, which the authors linked to a high volume of aerobic activity and too little resistance training.^[5]The World Health Organization's guidelines similarly recommend both aerobic activity and regular muscle strengthening for adults.^[6] Rucking fits into the broader framework in our best exercises for testosterone guide.

Intensity, Cortisol, and What We Know

The cortisol response to exercise depends largely on intensity. In the controlled study mentioned above, 30 minutes of exercise at 40 percent of VO2max did not raise cortisol (and, once plasma volume changes were accounted for, was associated with a reduction), while 60 and 80 percent of VO2max raised it by roughly 40 and 83 percent.^[3] Whether a given ruck stays below that kind of intensity depends on your fitness, the load, your pace, and the terrain. Heavier packs, faster speeds, and hills all push effort up.

We did not find research showing how cortisol or testosterone respond to a typical recreational ruck, so we cannot say that rucking is “cortisol-friendly” as a rule. What we can say is that choosing a comfortable pace and a manageable load is the most direct way to keep intensity low.

A Cautious Starting Guide for Rucking

One of the great advantages of rucking is its accessibility, and the biggest mistake new ruckers make is adding weight too quickly. The progression below is a conservative coaching convention, not a research-derived prescription. Adjust it to how you feel, and check with a doctor first if you have back, knee, heart, or other health concerns.

Gear Essentials

While you can start rucking with any sturdy backpack, upgrading to purpose-built gear can improve comfort as you increase load and duration. The ranking below is our editorial opinion, not study data.

For weight, purpose-built ruck plates are popular because they sit flat against your back and do not shift during movement. Sandbags are a budget-friendly alternative. Avoid loose items like dumbbells that can shift inside the pack, as shifting loads can make your gait asymmetric and uncomfortable.

Programming Rucking With Strength Training

For men who lift, rucking can fit into a weekly schedule as a complementary activity rather than a replacement for gym work. A common approach is to ruck on days between strength sessions, where it serves as light activity and extra walking volume.

As an example only, a man training for both strength and general fitness might lift on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, with 45-minute rucks on Tuesday and Thursday and a rest day on Sunday. Adjust everything to your own recovery.

Rucking vs. Running

We found no head-to-head research comparing rucking and running for testosterone, so any claim that one is hormonally better would be speculation. What the running literature does show is that some men with long histories of very high-volume endurance training have lower resting testosterone than untrained men.^[7] Our article on whether running lowers testosterone goes through that evidence. The practical takeaway is not to avoid running but to manage total training load, food intake, and recovery across all your activities, rucking included.

Getting Started Today

Rucking is simple to try. Load a backpack with a light weight, step out your front door, and walk for 20-30 minutes. Pay attention to your posture, keep your pace conversational, and notice how different the effort feels compared with an unloaded walk. For general health, the World Health Organization recommends that adults get 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week plus regular muscle strengthening, and rucking can count toward that aerobic target.^[6]

As you build your rucking practice, many people notice improvements in posture, trunk stability, and walking endurance. Combined with strength training, good sleep, and a balanced diet, it can be a sustainable part of an active lifestyle. If you have symptoms that worry you, such as persistent fatigue or low libido, speak with a doctor instead of trying to fix them with exercise alone.