I find it strange that you all would find the loads mentioned
above to be "extreme" by our standards ... or has everyone here
been "kenging" when going outfield? 
I regularly carried loads of more than 25kg as my fighting load (or
in SAF term, Skeletal Battle Order). Breakdown of the loadout
...
- Medics Load 12~13kg
- "Bra" + fanny pack ~10kg (Consisting of 4L water, asstd. SAF
Stuff, 24hr Rations, ET, book, snacks)
- Rifle 4.5kg
Instead of lightening my load, I tended to just pile on stuff as I
worked on the principle of train hard. So the typical figure tended
to approach 30kg or half my body weight. In FBO, my load approached
40~45kg for a 72hr ops. On some occassions when we carried
simulated war loads (the much hated blue magazines), you can add
another 8kgs to the above.
In case you're thinking I'm walking behind the formation, taking my
own sweet time ... I carried the same 30kg load as part of the
Battalion Recce Team, a rather quaint invention of our CO. The BtRT
consists of 2 3SGs, 2 SAWs, 2 M203s, 2 LAWs and a medic (me). Our
task is to act as the pathfinding point for the Battalion following
the trail left by our Battalion Scouts. This frees up more Scouts
for actual recce instead of them having to backtrack to lead us
into the FUP. Because the BRT races ahead of the main formation and
backtracks where necessary, I cover up to 10kms at a fast clip
before rejoining my platoon for the assault and follow on ...
I can remember many instances in my active and reserve times where
we've carried 30~40kg (70~90lbs) loads consistently over many days
and long distances.
So ... NO, I don't think those guys are carrying a very big load,
especially not when you consider that they are bigger than us
Asians. Their load as a percentage of their body weight is
comparable to what we're carrying ... or at least what I
carried.
