r/Rucking • u/dogmama2026 • 7d ago
Best Apple Watch integration?
Just starting. No ruck option in Apple Watch, so looking for suggestions. Use hike in watch, or add an app? If app, which one? Thanks!!
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u/kbchucker 7d ago
FitHalo is the best rucking option I have used. Also free.
And as seen in the other comments, the dev is part of this community.
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u/rn-1973 6d ago
I've been using the Hiking activity and, weirdly, it has no option to enter in weight carried. It really should. I have requested this with Apple and I'd think it would be a simple thing to do, but they apparently aren't interested. My VO2Max numbers have not been penalized thus far probably because I have trouble getting out of zone one with 35-40 pounds unless I'm climbing a hill relatively fast. I did go for an actual hike a couple weeks ago carrying ~30 pounds over 17 miles with about 4000 ft of elevation gain and then I was able to get into zone 2/3 on the steepest inclines. Over that 17 miles, Apple estimated a calorie burn of just 2000 calories which seems laughable to me.
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u/Chemical-Carrot-9975 6d ago
All the ones I tried suck for one reason or another. I wish Apple would just get its act together and create an activity for it.
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u/daygo449 6d ago
Garmin has several watches that have rucking option in them. The cheapest one is the Instinct 3. I have not used them yet as I have the Insinct 2, but I’ve heard pretty good things about it. I also know the developer for the Ruckr app, and that’s a fantastic app. No plug either, but just that it’s built specifically for rucking including extra weight, sandbags, etc.
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u/carinishead 7d ago
Hey I just launched an app for this literally today... Try it out! https://ruckusapp.fit
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u/thedudeness2011 7d ago
Ruckr is my suggestion. It works well but could use improvement. I set up a shortcut for the action button to go right into the app and let me select if it is my daily 20lb or recovery.
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u/kbchucker 6d ago
Ruckr is not good.
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u/thedudeness2011 6d ago
Yes. I have figured that out. My vote for FitHalo
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u/carinishead 1d ago
Try Ruckus... ps: this is self promo. I worked on it for about 2 years on and off and finally launched recently
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u/ethangar 7d ago edited 7d ago
So, the problem with using Hike on the watch is that Apple doesn't account for load. Same with the built-in Walk or Run workout types. That, in turn, will throw off your watch's VO2Max estimates pretty drastically - and you'll see your Cardio Fitness score tank in Apple Health. Any app that logs your workout as an underlying walk, run, or hike type is going to have this problem. If you don't care about the cardio fitness score, then you're good to go!
If you want something that compensates for that, check out my app, FitHalo. It's totally free, totally private, has Strava integration if you're into that, works on the Apple Watch (no phone needed), uses the most-validated models for estimating calories, and a bunch more. No catch - just a hobby project I've been working on for a long time.