A Grunt's Take on Rucksack Waist Belts 

Come to think of it, this is probably the reason old men wear their pants so high. In their day, that was how men wore pants.

I was just about to type this. Your natural waist is in line with your bellybutton, your hips are a lot lower though.

We wear our bet on our hips or even lower now.

Well we can't blame erkle

The skyrocketing obesity rate didn't help...

I think thats what the "pads" on military packs are for. The nylon straps on those are merely to stop the pad from bouncing and shifting. Actual belts on all (correctly designed) hiking packs are in fact intended to be used as described in the video. Having a weight simply resting on the hips does not make sense as that does not "transfer the weight" to the hip complex in any intelligenty or workable manner that the hips can actually perform that function. Weight transfer to the hips has to be done via the core, that is the only way it works. By attempting to bypass the bracing effect and making the belt rest directly on the hips simply creates an interference with the pelvic complex.

@@Leec_1972 I'm guessing you don't do much hiking.

@@ghostape6481 you obviously lose a lot of bets. Please demonstrate an actual example of a single quality ruck that is designed to "sit on your hips" rucks designed with a pad to be used with belt kit do not count as they are limited by their intended usage and cause lots of injuries

@Leec_1972 I'm a professional Forrester. I hike for a living and carry a backpack every day. Hip belts do exactly what they are proposed to do, lay off the majority of the pack weight to the hips and off the shoulders. I'm not going to be "told" about proper backpack usage by a non hiker wannabe trying to sound smart. Put a pack on and hike ten miles every day and get back with the real hikers with your nonsense.

@Leec_1972 I've got a dozen backpacks. Packs with hip belts and waist belts. For carrying any weight at al over significant distance, only a pack with a hipmbelt works best because of the weight transfer. I can tell you are not a serious hiker by your ignorance

Awesome

Lumber = timber, lumbar = an anatomical region of the back / spine

Totally agree and I was going to make the exact same point. My Kifaru EMR (Gen 1) will comfortably carry 100+ pounds with very little pressure on the shoulders. It conforms to the body and doesn't move around even when running when you have it adjusted properly. His other points are totally correct, however, and even the EMR works better when you wear it a little higher than you might think.

I'm interested in his theory of the rucksack, which I carried in the infantry. However, when I was a mountain guide, the monster packs we carried on expedition and multi-night climbs do rely on the iliac crest as the platform for your load. The mistake many veterans make when carrying the large climbing packs is to arrange the shoulder straps as a kind of puckered-up gap at the very top. They think it takes the load off the shoulders, but the best method is to have your shoulder straps touching everywhere, using the load lifters (top straps) pulling the pack closer to your back and centering it nearer your own center of gravity. The other mistake is to call the hip belt a belly band, and place it too high. Put the pack on, all straps loosened, half tighten the shoulder straps, then tighten the hip belt (not a belly strap, a hip belt) onto the shelf of your hips (iliac crest), then tighten the secondary straps of your hip belt, to include the diagonal strap that comes off of the center-bottom of your pack and attaches to the hip belt. Now complete the tightening of the shoulder straps, then the load lifters, and lastly the sternum strap. The sternum strap is often worn too high but needs to be right above your nipple-line. When hiking downhill, you may shift more load onto your hips; when ascending everything is snug but a bit more load onto your shoulders. On the level, you may alternate some of the load. Do not place the heaviest gear at the very top - instead place it near the level of your shoulders so as to draw a line from the heavy part directly over your hips. The top heavy arrangement is for external frame backpackers, and balance is not an issue because you're not going to achieve balance. Climbers gave up external frame backpacks a long time ago.

@@1caseyk that's absolutely correct! One important thing when moving about in very uneven (alpine) terrain, where you climb as well as walk is to not have your backpack wobbling around which can be caused by load distribution straps set too loose, like you said, and by things inside your pack like bigger water bladders that start shifting weight while you move, which can lead to unpleasant surprises.

@@1caseyk Yep, and when you're at altitude that tight chest gap prevents the lungs from fully expanding and can cause hypoxia. Great point!

Good idea. Thanks!

Thanks a lot! I'm surprised you learned it in basic, because I had to figure it out myself along the way.

Thanks! Glad to hear you haven't quit. I'm putting up the core video tonight

Thanks! It's up

Great!

Thanks!

Thanks! Yea I carry at my HQ with a ruck and never have issues. Very important

Thanks! That will be in the next/core video

Thanks! I suffered for years until I figured out how the body works

First what the military does and that of most backpackers appear very similar, but they differ greatly. The military actually trains to do what they do and prior to Rucking as an event, races, etc non-military backpackers were much less likely to train and many have gotten injured or received the training they needed actually on the trail, like through hikers. The military carries much around their waist... Especially the pant waist including a battle belt with equipment they need that tends to be much heavier than even traditional backpacking gear which is heavier than light kit which is heavier than ultra light both in the individual items and in the minimalist nature of what kit is taken and what is left. So a Soldier or Marine needs quick access to magazines for reloading, and they do not need them pack interfering with and hitting their battle belt or equipment with each step as well as creating additional sources for not spots and bunching of clothing. Although some experienced hikers walk fast especially on through hikes or attempting FKTs. But most walk at a slower rate than is expected of military personnel. Which waist? We have to be specific, and we are really talking about potentially small differences in cm or inches. Straddling the iliac crest is at or just above the pant waist. (Above the pant waist for current disorder jeans.) It appears wise as those hip bones can help hold the pack against your back or at least partially hold some of the weight up pushing the top of the pack and shoulder straps up and off the shoulders and thus the upper body. This is absolutely contradicted by the circumstances of quick matching or even more So runin g for your life since a lack mounted that way is going to separate from the body more. At small ultra light pack weights it would be a small annoyance. Below 40lb traditional pack loads it is unmanageable, but at military weights it is a potential back, hip, or spinal injury waiting to happen. Plus the additional potential for lower joint injuries would also be greatly enhanced. So if say the professionals in the military have gone tuned what they do, and for many ruckers and backpackers either carrying heavier loads, such as game loads, and those rucking purposefully at speed over longer distances are doing exactly what the should be doing. Many amateur backpackers are doing what they want to do and how they want to which includes lifting some or even most of the pack weight off their shoulders, which for many are under trained (backs, shoulders, and core). Then you have some of the thru hikers who've gone to shorter packs with no belt at all minimizing rubbing and potential hot spots in that manner and carrying very light weghts. So a short and thus high pack stays above the waist and pivots with the upper body, something that might be disastrous at military carry weights. There are at least two waists, and with all due respect and thanks to GP, the military and powerlines belt as described IS at the waist or anatomical waist as opposed to what we colloquially refer to as the waist but is often differentiated by calling it the pant waist. So I have left holes, and I know there are shades of difference among individuals and the way in which they put their packs into practice, but again their are two primary schools of thought about how and where to deploy a waist belt on a pack, and largely the differences derive from the wide gaps in the two activities for which the packs are needed and how they are used. So I think short of being in the militsry, being a smoke jumper, or being a firefighter in turnout gear with a Scott Pack, where you have been trained in a certain efficient protocol, it is for everyone else to decide what works best for him or her in each given situation they encounter from climbing to scrambling or bouldering, to fast packing, to casual meandering. It isn't necessarily wrong, but GP has pointed out two very distinct permanence measures with some of the critical areas of concern. However, the heavier and longer you go the more likely we probably should heed what the man is trying to teach. Personally I have decades of experience, and I am learning from the man and appreciate the specifics of the content provided.

​@@willway9378 Thanks for the explanation. I am neither a military nor would I call myself a hiker. I just love to have a backpack on me even while walking my dog. ;-) BUT I would very much like to adapt to military "standards" (in anticipation where the world is possibly going) Some questions: * how do I train my back, shoulder and core to sustain military loads aka 50+ lbs? (usually my daily backpack are 20-30 lbs) * how do you wear huge backpacks like a Tasmanian Tiger Rangepack / Raid Pack or Norrona recon 125L synkroflex Pack or the big Berghaus? I cannot imagine to get them that high up. Or the Alice pack the go to solution? Thanks.

Its just a marketing thing. They want to appeal to the masses by selling them easy and effortless ways to do things regardless of the long term consequences. But you can still wear the KUIU and other modern packs high and ruck with them.

Thanks!

Atlas + Chest Rig.....

@@easygroove I'd like to have them some new and *better* stuff

@@couchcamperTM ...served in the German Army - had the luck to be able to wear a Smock, Arktis Chestrig and a Berghaus Atlas (late 90´- no "Battle Belt" like they wear nowadays .) Best Combo. The Usual German "Koppeltragegestell" IMHO is the WORST LBE in the entire Universe ;-) - Still the Berghaus (Vulcan, Atlas or Crusader) are the Best the Germans ever had even those latest from the German Company Tasmanian Tiger are crap compared to Berghaus (IMHO) Also those Alice Packs - they are like a sack of potatoes.. that is like a backpack from the stoneage... best regards

​@@easygroove as long as you can use the Atlas with its belt you're good. With plate cariers and all that good stuff^^ it becomes cumbersome. The Koppeltragegestell is good enough to support the smock like UF Pro does it. lol The Dutch are just throwing out their old DPM backpacks, I replaced my Atlas with one, miles ahead of the new TT stuff. At 20% of the cost. :-D

@@couchcamperTM yeah, i never had a plate carrier - there were none during my time..

Yeah I think it’s top notch advice specifically for rucks as opposed to modern civilian hiking packs. I suppose it might confuse people who refer to hiking packs and rucks interchangeably. Cool to learn this though as I’m a backpacker and didn’t understand how rucks work.

Sometimes my back feels like I'm 80 😂

That vid will be up tonight!

Did you actively train martial arts during your Marine days? How did you typically schedule this weekly?

@@jackjack4412 Ah, I apologize if I formulated it incorrectly, english isn't my primary language, danish is. I'm a former martial artist, stopped when I joined the army and resumed after I was discharged. Does that make sense? If not hit me back 🙂.

Thanks!

I think it's great for a combination of weak or under-trained core and a heavy ruck.

It helps not to have the added weight of a ton of ammo

Awesome!

Thanks!

Awesome!

A lot of Soldiers don't get to learn it either

@@GruntProof That is a damn shame.

Glad to help!

I learned everything painfully